Temple Hill - Drew Karpyshyn [13]
"Actually, I wasn't trying to pick your pocket. I was trying to give your money back. It fell from your belt."
He grunted in reply, obviously not buying her story.
She decided to come clean. "All right, I admit I did steal your purse. But when I saw you only had one hand, I tried to give it back."
"I don't need your pity," he spat at her. "You should have kept it-I'm not a beggar."
"Could have fooled me," Lhasha shot back. "Not even enough coppers to buy a decent meal!" Instantly, she regretted her words.
Rage twisted the man's features into a grimace of primal fury, and he raised his good hand in a clenched fist above his head. But as quickly as the rage came, it vanished, replaced on his countenance by defeat and resignation. His hand dropped back to his side, his shoulders slumped.
"So this is what I've become, Corin the Pitiful." he muttered.
He turned from her and began to shuffle away down the alley. Lhasha caught up to him and placed a hand on his shoulder. She knew what it was like to be beaten down by life. She knew the value of a compassionate hand to help you up.
"Corin… wait. I have a friend, a priest. Maybe he can help you."
Corin turned back and smiled at her, but it was a bitter, hopeless smile. "No priest can help me. I spent everything I owned on clerics of the Morninglord, and all I have to show for it is an empty purse-as you know all too well."
"Fve seen you with a sword," Lhasha said, trying to encourage him. "You don't have to live a life of poverty. You're good. Good enough to still be working as a mercenary. "
Corin gave a caustic laugh. "You think I don't know that? But would you hire me with this?" He raised his stump for effect. "I'm not a stray dog, half-elf. You don't need to look after me."
Despite his rebuke, Lhasha still wanted to help him- she owed him for saving her from the Maces. But sometimes a compassionate helping hand was less effective than a swift boot in the breeches. When she spoke again her words were angry.
"Life gave you a tough… deal." She almost said "hand." "Now you're using that as an excuse to give up. You don't want my pity because you're too busy pitying yourself!"
Corin snorted in disgust. "You have all the answers, don't you? But it's not that simple. My life is… complicated."
Lhasha refused to be cowed. "Complicated? Really? Then explain it to me!"
"If you want a tale, go find a bard," he snarled, and turned his back on her again.
Lhasha could no longer hear the sounds of the unruly crowd coming from behind the alley wall.
"The Maces have things under control," she called out as he walked away, "soon they will be looking for us. I know somewhere we can go and be safe."
The man hesitated, then turned to face her.
"I'm not a charity case."
"Just paying you back for saving me in the Fair," she assured him. "Come with me," Lhasha urged, still convinced Fendel could do something about Corin's arm. "The fight with the Maces was as much my fault as yours. The least I can do is get you safely away from here."
"And where shall we go, half… Lhasha?"
"The friend I mentioned earlier. Fendel. He will help us."
"The cleric?"
"A cleric," Lhasha admitted, "but one unlike any you've ever met."
CHAPTER FOUR
The alley Corin and Lhasha used to make their escape was on the north side of the Fair. Corin didn't know where Lhasha planned to take him, but if her friend was a priest there was a good chance he'd be found at Temple Hill… on the south side of the Fair.
Lhasha led the way, winding through little-used streets and shadowy back lanes. The description the Maces would provide to their patrols might be sketchy, but Corin knew as a pair they were hard to miss. The half-elf would draw enough attention on her own-an attractive young blonde with long hair and fair skin was sure to draw the eye of every man they passed, and her garish clothing only made her stand out from the crowd even more. As for his own description, Corin knew there weren't too many one-armed men wandering around the city streets.
Corin's suspicions about their destination were eventually