“And we’re supposed totake your word on that?” the voice retorts, laughter erupting fromthe circle of men surrounding me, bloodlust in theireyes.
I hold up my hands to appear contrite.“I just came to make an honest trade. Please.” I hate myself forthe wobble in my voice.
“Let’s see what Mynahwants,” Wolf barks, and I feel marginally grateful to him forsupporting me. “She is not like the rest of the House ofVultures.”
Murmurs arise as the understandingthat I am a woman circulates through the group. I take great painsnot to let my gender show, to disguise my curves in flowing shirtsand tight binds. Elbows jab one another, faces leering atme.
“Well now, that’s a littledifferent! If she’s here to trade, I’d be glad to do the deal,”someone shouts snidely. Judging by the looks in the eyes of thenearest men, I will be lucky to escape this place untouched now.“It is a girl, huh? Already checked the goods then, Wolf?” I feelhollow at the insinuation, hating my body for the danger it nowposes.
Wolf nods in assent, and I tense,preparing to argue the point. Why would he admit to something we’venever done? Then I watch how the others cease their snide comments,backing out of the circle to let me pass. “She gets whatever sheneeds. I’ll barter for her.” Wolf marches up to stand beside me,eyeing the tables with a lazy interest.
“You don’t have to dothis,” I hiss, already feeling guilty for whatever poor soul has totrade with him. “I didn’t ask you to protect me.”
“I’ve seen you herebefore. I know how it ends,” Wolf cracks as he places a hand on mywaist possessively. “Besides, now that they know you are female,they will not settle for the regular means of trade from you, youknow? If you want to leave here with anything, you will let me dothe deal.” Wolf turns my body to face his, his free hand landing onthe uncovered part of my neck. He leans closer, his breathwhispering over my mask as he asks, “Now, what do you want,Mynah?”
The way Wolf asks that question feelsheavy, loaded with so many intricate meanings and answers that Istruggle to answer. “Food,” I finally mumble with a quiver in mylip. “Enough for two days. A new jacket for myself, and a littlemoney for my House.”
A half-wild look flashes in Wolf’seyes. “Anything else?”
Well, since heasked…. “Bandages, ointment for burns, asmall knife sharp enough to whittle, a—”
Wolf holds up a hand to my lips tosilence me. “Boy, you are greedy when someone else pays the price.”He grins as I start to apologize. “No, I like that. It’s slick.Cunning. Just what my beta should be.”
“Is that the payment yourequire from me then?” I challenge, my teeth clenching as I speak.“Because if you are using this to try and buy me….” I trail off,realizing that I have no threat with which to finish mywords. If I am forced to use my body as acommodity of trade, I’d rather give it to him than one of theunknown vendors in this stinking place. Wolf scares me sometimes,but he has never hurt me. The men in this place would not be sochivalrous, I am certain. Wolf’s got me trapped, and he knowsit.
“No, I would neverblackmail you into becoming my beta. But you should know that yourindependent streak only makes me want you more.” A mischievoussparkle glints in Wolf’s eye as he speaks.
“Well, what payment wouldyou seek from me?” I ask, unwilling to let him trade until I knowthe price.
Wolf jerks me close for a quick,possessive hug, his mask dangerously close to my ear. “We’ll talkafter I have done your trade.” Before I can stop him, Wolf sauntersup to the biggest, brawniest vendor on the street. The man’s maskappears to be of the House of Piranhas, aquatically inspired withrow after row of teeth standing out from the jawline. My suspicionsare confirmed when Wolf announces, “Get ready, Shark. The lady hasa long list to fill.”
“How many items do youseek, girl?” Shark bellows at me.
“Six,” Wolf responds forme. Over his shoulder he commands. “Go stand with my pack. Fox!Keep Mynah by your side until this is done.” An elderly lookinggentlemen in a burnished mask waves me to his side.
Shark wastes no time, swinging his armwildly at Wolf as soon as I am out of the way. “I am going to enjoythis deal, Wolf. I’ve been waiting for the chance to fight you likethis for ages.” Shark overturns his own table just to get closer tohis assailant. Shells, driftwood, bits of woven netting, and allkinds of other items scatter the mud under their feet. In themelee, some of the bystanders gather fallen items, stowing them intheir own pockets. I wish I was that brave.
The fighting pair draws a crowd as onehour progresses into the next. Shark sways slightly, but he holdshis ground. His shirt is ripped open across his chest, and I cansee rivulets of blood pouring from deep gouges, no doubt fromWolf’s claw extensions. Shark’s mask is missing teeth along oneedge, and I see the faint gleam of them embedded in Wolf’s rightarm. Wolf’s jaw is black with swelling, and his left index andmiddle fingers bend at unnatural angles. I can tell Wolf is tiring,his easy grace becoming slower and clumsier with every passingminute.
“What is their score?” Ishout over the melee to the referee with a mask of aferret.
“Wolf has struck sevensolid blows that have taken Shark to the ground, Shark has had onlytwo.” I count off the checklist of wants in my head. Doing themath, seven strikes minus Shark’s two hits leaves me with fiveitems from the House of Piranhas. “I need only one more,Wolf!”
He turns his golden eyeson me as Shark bends at the waist, coughing blood. “Promise to usesome of those bandages on me.” My head quakes an answering nod, mywords falling flat. There’s no way I couldhave won this fight, I acknowledge tomyself. He may scare me sometimes, and Imay hate his carcass mask, but Wolf is truly a
