In the darkest shadow of the alley, Felix crouched, carefully taking in every detail of Agrona’s home. She kept the dining room open suspiciously late, though Felix couldn’t tell if it was because they were being observed or if it was a way to let him enter without drawing too much attention.

  Felix now looked very different from when he had left that morning. His once curly blond hair was now short-cropped and black, with a slight golden sheen when the light caught it just right. His casual attire was replaced by a thick cloak, and he appeared a little taller thanks to the shoes he bought.

  He’d shoved his new quarterstaff into a worn-out sheath that used to hold a long sword. He’d plugged it with a bladeless handle from the scrap pile. With his ‘sword’ strapped to his back, he hoped no one would take a closer look at his arm. Between that and his cloak, he hoped it was enough.

  There was precious little he could do to cover up his missing limb in the time he had. In the end, he had to settle for shoving a tree branch he bought from a carpenter into his sleeve and holding it in place with a bit of rope. It was hardly secure. Every time he moved, he could feel the branch shifting and threatening to fall. What’s worse, the branch was slightly too thin to match his right arm, and it was cut off after his upper forearm.

  Between that, the awkward shuffling he had to do to keep it in place and the fact that he couldn’t move his shoulder without losing it, he doubted he’d fool any keen-eyed observer. At most, the cloak and sword might help him pass a cursory inspection.

  Realising he wouldn’t learn more from the alley, and with several backup plans in place, Felix decided it was time to move. He didn’t exit the alley and approach. Instead, he looped back through the alleyways and exited onto a street a couple of blocks away. Slinking in from the dark would only draw attention from anyone who’s watching. So he approached openly, confidently striding down the street.

  He tried his best to look unbothered, but with every step he took closer to the door, his heart thrummed louder in his chest. He forced himself to stay focused, to look forward while his instincts screamed at him to look around, to see if he was being followed.

  By the time he climbed the short set of stairs leading to the dining hall, he couldn’t hear the wood creaking beneath his boot over the pounding of his heart. The more frantic he felt on the inside, the more he clamped down on his expressions. Through a sheer force of will, he strutted into the dining hall like nothing was amiss.

  It was rather quiet. Agrona was serving a couple of patrons drinks at the counter, while a group of three young dwarves played a game of dice near one of the sconces along the wall, still covered in grime from their day on the streets. An elderly human man sat as far from the others as he possibly could, slowly nursing a glass of water, or more likely, spirits.

  The hall was steeped in the tired silence that follows a long day of work. There was a comfort of strangers who’d grown used to each other’s presence. Felix’s entrance was like a stone dropped into the stillness of the room. His presence felt before it was seen.

  Every patron sent a glance, and every glance lingered, trying to gauge whether the new presence would disrupt their peace.

  Felix fought down the urge to flinch at their stares. He spent hours in the alley planning for every contingency. Meeting their gazes, his head bobbed a greeting before he made his way to the counter. Leaving a spot between him and the lads Agrona was having a chat with, he took his seat.

  “Be with you in a minute, dear.” She called out as he settled in.

  Dropping his hood, he noticed someone staring at him from his periphery. Sitting in the shadow of the stairway was a human man, not exactly rare, but still something to pay attention to. Add in the look he was giving Felix, and his heart started picking up the pace again.

  Turning his head to face the man, he raised an eyebrow. Inwardly, he thanked himself for remembering to dye it while he stared the man down. When he still didn’t look away, Felix put on a confused frown and dropped his smile. He intentionally had his hand twitch, like he wanted to reach for his sword, only to stop himself once he realised what he was doing.

  It was finally enough to make the man look away. Felix caught him glancing his way a few more times before Agrona came over, but at least he wasn’t overtly staring.

  “You’re a new face. Did you just get into town?”

  While he suspected it before, her pretending she didn’t recognise him just confirmed that they were being watched.

  Felix smiled stiffly. “You’re normally closed this late. I’ve never had the chance to stop by.”

  Agrona rolled her eyes and raised her voice a little to ensure they were overheard. “Yes, well, don’t think I’ll be doing this again. One late night is more than enough. I still have a breakfast service in the morning.”

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  Thinking for a moment, she gave a curt nod. “In fact, you know what?”

  Raising her voice so everyone would hear her, she called out. “Last call, folks, I need to be up early tomorrow.”

  A series of grumbles answered her proclamation, followed by people calling out orders. The man near the stairs tried to glare at Agrona, but he was quickly shut down after she rounded on him. “I’ve played your stupid little game, and I’ve let you glare at my customers all day. I did it to avoid the hassle of dealing with you. Don’t think for one second I’m scared of you. We both clearly know you’re full of shit.

  “So before you speak, you'd better think carefully about what you’re going to say. Because if I think dealing with you is less hassle than being dealt with, and I can promise you that won’t be pleasant. Are we clear?”

  With the full force of Agrona’s ‘angry parent voice’ turned on the rat, he suddenly looked ten years younger. He responded by nodding slowly, like he was afraid anything he said would set her off.

  As if the moment never happened, Agrona turned back to Felix. “Sorry about that. What can I get you?”

  Felix let out a dry chuckle. “Don’t worry about it, I can see why you’d be annoyed at having a creep staring at your customers. I’ll just have something hot to wash away the day’s stress.

  Agrona nodded and deftly started preparing everyone’s orders, serving his first before she started with the rest of the room. The elderly man didn’t order another round and was the first to leave, before Agrona even finished serving the room.

  Felix didn’t rush. He didn’t want to be the last person to leave. That would be too suspicious. Now that he knew how they were being watched, returning to Agrona’s would be easy. He could leave and watch the entrance to see when the man left. Then, before he had time to report to anyone, Felix could circle back and enter through a window.

  If he could get some time alone with Agrona, then they could figure this out. Clearly, Menium’s presence raised their suspicions enough to warrant surveillance, but not enough to warrant more than a cursory effort.

  Still, Felix didn’t rush. He was served first, and everyone else ordered a second round. He could afford to drink slowly. Appearing rushed wouldn’t do him any favours when it came to shrugging off suspicion.

  So he slowly sipped whatever he’d been served, taking comfort in the blank warmth it offered. Outwardly, he stayed calm, listening to the conversations and blowing off a bit of steam before heading home for the evening. Every moment sitting in the chair dragged on, wearing on his frail nerves.

  With every sip, he had to force himself to slow down, to take his time. So when he eventually took a sip and realised it was his last, he felt like throwing the cup in victory. Maybe at the head of the sulking spy who still shot him occasional glances when he thought he wouldn’t be caught.

  Felix still had the presence of mind to quirk his lip in disappointment while looking into his empty cup like he’d somehow find another sip hiding in it. When none were forthcoming, he set it down with a sigh. And fished out a couple of coins to leave on the counter.

  “Thanks for the drink, I’d best be getting home.”

  Agrona nodded. “Hopefully, next time you stop by, it will be when the kitchen is open.”

  Felix chuckled as he headed for the door. “Hopefully.”

  He kept up the act as he walked out the door and creaked his way down the short set of stairs. He kept it up as he walked down the street, like he’d really just stumbled in after seeing the place open at such an unusual hour. It was only when he was a few blocks and a few turns away that he let out a sigh of relief.

  Pressing his back against the building he’d just walked around, he let it sink in. He’d made it. His heart could finally get a break. Ever since their visit to ‘Borins’ Beginner Boots & Boggles’, it felt like everything was falling apart. It was still falling apart.

  The only difference was that he’d been proactive, he’d made plans, and they’d worked. He could improve, he could escape, and maybe eventually he’d find a way to win. The more he thought about it, the more it soothed his worries, and the calm might well have saved him.

  If he’d still been walking, he wouldn’t have heard the sound of boots scraping against the cobbled road coming from the same direction he’d just left. In the time between breaths, he realised what the sound meant, and his blood ran cold.

  Pushing himself off the wall, he started walking again, picking up the pace slightly so it wouldn’t look like he stopped.

  ‘Spokes, spokes spokes! Please tell me it’s a coincidence. Why would someone be following me?’

  He wanted to believe it, he really did, but he couldn’t shake the icy dread coursing through his veins. He turned as much of his attention as he could spare inward, trying to come up with a plan. While he continued down the street.

  Every plan he came up with was a bad one. Every situation ended in misfortune. With no plan forthcoming, his anxiety kept growing. Just as he was ready to start considering more desperate options, he spotted an alley and was struck with inspiration.

  Turning into it as if it were a normal part of his commute, he scaled the wall as soon as he rounded the corner. All the time he spent climbing trees at the Crossroad and all the time spent in the Feywild meant the task was trivially easy, even with his missing arm. He was no stranger to using his perfect memory during training, and after years of effort, he’d truly mastered his body's control. That control didn’t help him keep the hastily tied stick arm in place, and Felix could feel it shifting dangerously as he scaled the wall. If it fell, his plan would be ruined.

  Pulling himself onto the eves he crouched low, waiting for his pursuer to follow, while he thanked his lucky stars that the arm held. He only had to wait a few seconds for the man from the tavern to poke his head around the corner. When he didn’t see his target, he made a mistake. He rushed into the alley.

  By the time he turned to face the sound of Felix’s boots hitting the ground behind him, it was too late. Felix had his sword sheath pointed at his neck.

  “You'd better have a damned good reason for following me if you want to get out of here alive.”

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