Having finished washing off all the dishes from supper, Crow got up from where he had been kneeling at the riverbank and wiped his wet hands off on the bottom of his tunic. Just like the last time, his stomach churned anxiously as the time grew near for him to meet with Jaxon again. However, this time, the feeling was even worse. He leaned down to pick up the clean pots and plates, carrying them back to the hideout as he went over his plan again. Even though he knew what he wanted to say and how he wanted to say it by now, the thought of confronting a man who killed others without remorse sent a shiver of fear up his spine. He just hoped Jaxon would be in a good mood tonight.

Once he finished depositing the dishes, he quietly put on his cloak and headed out again, making his way east towards the clearing near Myrefall. As he walked, the memory of Gavin’s confrontation flitted through his mind, and he tensed, suddenly more alert to keep watch for movement in the trees around him. His eyes wandered over the shadows around him, and he glanced frequently back over his shoulder as he hurried through the forest at a brisk pace.

However, the longer he walked, the more he began to question if he was just being paranoid. Why would Gavin follow him twice? The knight had already caught him with Jaxon once before. Surely there wasn’t anything else for him to gain by spying again. Besides that, Penelope had made it sound like her ex suitor hadn’t overheard very much of his conversation with the other thief. What were the odds he caught wind of their plan to meet again tonight? The more he thought about it, the more he convinced himself that he was worrying for nothing. Despite this, he continued to remain alert, just in case the knight would try to go after him again.

Of course, the trip was uneventful. At one point, the thief thought he heard the sound of a twig snapping behind him, but upon whirling around with his daggers drawn to confront the source of the noise, he had only seen a lone stag that loped off in fright at his sudden movement. After that, the woods remained quiet, and he relaxed as he decided he was alone, after all.

When he finally came to the clearing, he saw that Jaxon had beaten him there as usual. The cold man smiled as he stopped on the opposite side of the space. “You know, I think I’m coming to enjoy these meetings of ours,” he said with a false air of sentiment. “They remind me of the good old days, when you and I were still working together, and you didn’t have your ridiculous notions of morality.”

“Save it,” Crow rolled his eyes, unamused with Jaxon’s fake friendliness.

The other thief’s smile vanished as he clicked his tongue. “You’ve become quite a troublesome mutt,” he said in a warning tone. “If you keep misbehaving, I can always find another dog to train.”

Crow clenched his jaw, fighting the urge to spit at the man. He forced himself to take a calming breath. He couldn’t prod at Jaxon—not tonight. There was too much on the line. As much as he hated the thought of it, he was going to have to submit to the other thief if he wanted to have any chance of getting what he wanted from him. “I’m sorry,” he muttered through gritted teeth.

“What was that?” Jaxon quirked a brow.

“I said I’m sorry,” he repeated more loudly this time, balling his hands into fists at his sides. “I’ll stop fighting with you.” He averted his gaze. “Let’s just get this meeting over with…”

Jaxon studied him for a moment, and then nodded, “That’s better.” He waved a hand. “Now then, tell me what you’ve learned about the knights since the last time we met.”

Crow took another slow breath, relaxing slightly as he launched into the meat of their meeting, “From what I know, the knights know nothing more than they did last week, and they haven’t been able to focus on their search for you after the Younisians attacked their camp. They’re just trying to recover and wait out the draught until their new supplies come in.”

“Good,” Jaxon nodded thoughtfully as he considered Crow’s words.

The thief shifted his weight as he realized the current subject could be a good transition into one of the questions he planned to ask the other man about. “Speaking of which,” he said slowly, looking up again to meet Jaxon’s gaze. “Your next raid. When is it going to be happening?”

Jaxon stared at him for a moment before an amused smile spread across his mouth. “You really think I trust you enough to give you that information?” he chuckled. “How cute.” He folded his arms loosely over his chest as he answered: “You’ll find out when the raid will happen at the same time as those knights you seem so fond of.”

Crow felt his heart sink in his chest at the other thief’s vague reply. He was starting to think it would be harder than he thought to get the information he wanted out of him. But he couldn’t give up yet. “Alright then,” he narrowed his eyes slightly. “If you won’t tell me that, then maybe you can explain to me why you sent one of your murderers after the knight I told you about? I specifically told you that I would take care of him, myself.”

“You did say that,” Jaxon shrugged apathetically. “But I told you that I would handle your mess if you couldn’t clean it up on your own. Our meeting last week proved you’re incapable.”

[i]So he did know Gavin followed me,[/i] Crow thought, eyeing the other thief warily. Though he was certain of it now, he couldn’t help but wonder how Jaxon had figured it out. Gavin hadn’t shown his face until after the two thieves had parted ways. “You knew he followed me,” he said after a pause, trying to coax the other man into telling him the answer. “Why didn’t you stop him before?”

“I would have,” Jaxon shrugged again. “But I only learned about his unwanted appearance after you two had your little spat.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

Jaxon just smirked in response and snapped his fingers.

Crow stared at him confusedly until another figure stepped into the clearing from behind a nearby tree. His eyes widened slightly as he recognized Colton, one of the criminals in Jaxon’s band. The other thief shot him a toothy grin, “Hey, Crow. Nice to see you again.”

Crow just nodded wordlessly in response, still processing everything that was happening. Now it was all beginning to make sense. Of course Jaxon wouldn’t travel alone; Colton must have spotted Gavin after their meeting and stayed behind to investigate why the knight was there.

“If you heard about the thief I sent after that knight, then I’m sure you also heard that he was killed,” Jaxon went on with a cold edge to his voice. “That knight spilled the blood of one of our own, so he will be dealt with accordingly.”

Crow shifted his weight, catching the warning in Jaxon’s tone. He could already tell that if he tried to convince the other thief to leave Gavin to him, it wouldn’t go over well. He muttered a curse under his breath, wishing again that the idiotic knight hadn’t followed him. Now that one of the thieves had been killed, Jaxon would stop at nothing to get his revenge, and there was nothing he could do to stop him. So, instead of trying to save Gavin, he forced himself to swallow his pride and focus on the only thing left that might still be within his control.

He dipped his head slightly, keeping his own voice level as he reluctantly replied, “I understand.”

“Excellent,” Jaxon smiled. “I promise you it won’t be much longer now before that pest is out of our hair for good.”

Crow just nodded again, feeling sick at the thought that he could do nothing to stop the murderer from killing Gavin. He couldn’t even imagine how Penelope was going to react when the thieves took the life of her former suitor and close friend. The image of her heartbroken face made him shudder.

“If that’s everything you had to say to me, then I’m going back to my camp,” Jaxon said. “You’re free to go, Crow.”

Snapping out of his thoughts, Crow looked up again just as the other two thieves prepared to leave. “Wait,” he said, taking a step forward. “There’s… one more thing.”

“Oh?” Jaxon quirked a brow. “Is there something else I’ve done that’s offended you?”

“No,” he muttered, fidgeting with the hilt of his dagger uncomfortably as he worked up the nerve to bring up his final question. “I just wanted to know… Do you believe the Younisians are going to win this war?”

Jaxon studied him for a moment before he answered, “Undoubtedly.”

Crow swallowed. “Very well then,” he inhaled slowly, forcing himself to hold the thief leader’s gaze. “I want in… And I’m not just talking about the petty little deal we made.” He stood up slightly straighter as he went on. “I want the money and the perks and the support of the Younisian battalion—the same deal that baron offered you—and I want it for all of the thieves in my group. Can you make it happen?”

Jaxon stared at him, seeming surprised by his request, “You’re willing to sabotage your own kingdom for a wage?”

Crow nodded solemnly, “The Younisians are going to win regardless of what I do. My companions and I have already discussed it, and we’ve agreed that we want to be on the winning side when this war is over.” He hesitated slightly before adding: “If that means turning against Brerra to survive, then that’s what we’ll do.”

“I’m impressed,” Jaxon chuckled. “Perhaps you’re smarter than I thought… I’ll see what I can do.” He glanced at Colton and tilted his head, gesturing for the thief to follow him as he began walking towards the edge of the clearing. “I’ll see you in one week, Crow. You’ll have your answer then.” With that, he and Colton disappeared into the darkness of the surrounding forest, leaving Crow behind to reel with relief that his request would be made heard.