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around in other people’s business.”
    Kate kicked out, stamping hard on the man’s ragged feet.
    â€œArrrgh!” he snarled and tightened his grip.
    Kate stamped again and scratched his arms with her fingernails, fighting him off so she could catch a breath.
    â€œLet go of her!” There was a loud crack. Kalen’s eyes bulged, his knees buckled, and Edgar stood behind him with one of the bar stools raised high, ready to hit him again.
    Kate clutched at her throat, coughing her lungs back into life as the old man arched an arm across his face for protection. Only he didn’t look afraid. He was smiling .
    â€œJ-just leave us alone!” said Edgar, switching his gaze nervously between Kate and the old man, and in that moment, Kate saw something odd in her friend’s eyes. There was fear there, but there was anger too. Deep anger that she had never seen in Edgar before. It looked like he wanted to hurt that man. Really hurt him. And he was more than ready to do it.
    â€œEdgar,” she said carefully. “Don’t.”
    The atmosphere in the inn bristled. Edgar’s fingers clasped tightly around the leg of the stool and his hands shook a little, betraying the uncertainty behind his rage. He bit his lip and forced his muscles to relax.
    â€œLeave. Us. Alone,” he said, lowering the stool. “We haven’t done anything to you.”
    Kalen glared back at him and shook his head. “What’re ya doin’?” he bellowed, spraying globs of brown spittle into the air. “You know better than that. Don’t ya, boy? Never yield to an enemy. Never give ’em a chance. Do it, why don’t ya? Finish me off!”
    Edgar faltered under Kalen’s stare, and the old man laughed.
    â€œYou won’t last five heartbeats out there,” he said. “The world is changin’. You know what’s happenin’. You know what that little wench is. You’ve seen ’er kind before. Nothin’ but trouble. Just hand ’er over an’ maybe I’ll forget I saw you ’ere, eh? You know what Silas’ll do if ’e catches up with ya.”
    â€œShut up!” said Edgar.
    â€œThere’s those who’d pay fine gold to ’ave this little bird locked up, good and tight. What’s she worth to a fine young man like yerself? Bet you could do with a few coins in yer pocket. And ’oo knows? Hand ’er over quick and the council might even be willin’ to forget a few things. Make yer life a bit simpler, wouldn’t it?” Kalen smiled deviously. “Every man ’as ’is plan,” he said. “What’s yours, eh? How’s it goin’ so far? What’s that little voice inside yer ’ead tellin’ ya to do next?”
    â€œEdgar? What’s going on?” asked Kate.
    â€œNothing. The stupid old guy’s crazy, that’s all.”
    â€œNot so crazy that I forget a face, boy. And I’ve seen yours before. If you ’ad any sense, you’d let me do it. You’d let me snap that girl’s sweet little neck right ’ere and save Silas the trouble. Or maybe ya want to do it yerself? Please, be my guest. I won’t stand in yer way.”
    Edgar’s foot kicked out and slammed hard into Kalen’s chest, sending him sprawling back. “I said, shut up !”
    â€œThat’s better! Ha! Much better,” coughed Kalen, wheezing and chuckling on the floor. “Makin’ it look real. Wouldn’t want ’er to know what you really are, now would we? Careful, boy. Think! The life of a traitor’s ’ard enough, but when they catch ya the dyin’s always slow and cruel. Do ya want to know what hell looks like? Silas’ll show ya things that’ll make my life ’ere look like a rich man’s blessing. You mark my words.”
    â€œEdgar, just leave him,” said Kate. “We have to get out of here.”
    Kalen turned toward