A Jewel Among Thieves

Chapter 19: The End

The echoing sound of footsteps and the low hum of voices cut suddenly off announced the arrivals of Rezo and his brother. Safia let out one last ragged breath before getting as tight a grip on herself as she could manage. Her face had that cold, almost numb feeling she got when she shut herself down so she could function. What had served her well when she needed to pretend not to see a whole host of horrors, worked just as well now. She was a stone that felt nothing, least of all for the man just now appearing at the bottom of the stairs.

Rezo met and held her gaze, frowning as he took in her face. He stood to one side to let the other man walk in. Nearly as tall as Rezo but just as broad, that's where the similarities between the two brothers ended. It would have been funny if the serious hadn't been so serious. Light to Rezo's dark, Kasen had the oh-so fashionable blond hair and blue eyes that many relied on magic to get. From the set of his square jaw, she doubted he'd gone that route. His gaze briefly dipped and a vivid pink colour spread into his cheeks while he kept his eyes firmly on her face.

In the black uniform coat with bright brass buttons and the matching pants with the red stripe down them, the man couldn't be anything except a guard. Kasen even wore the regulation club, stun pistol, and helmet. He was every inch the proper guard. The only thing not regulation gear for his profession, were the gloves her wore on his hands.

Under the combined gaze of both men, Safia could feel a tiny prickle of sweat itch her back. She ignored it, keeping up her mask of indifference. "So it's time to get out the manacles and drag me out of here?"

Rezo coughed and looked at his brother. Kasen was still eyeing Safia and took a few seconds to catch the gaze. Rezo flicked his eyes towards her then back to Kasen. The blond man glanced towards Safia grimacing, but after a moment, he stepped forward. "Are you prepared to identify and testify against the man who had your father falsely imprisoned?"

Safia blinked, mind going as blank as her face. "What?"

His frown deepened. "Are you prepared to stand in court and accuse the man who had your father arrested for a crime he didn't commit?"

She shook her head, his words not making sense. Why were they talking about her father? Why wasn't he telling her why he was arresting her, or getting out the manacles? How had they gotten here? "Why are you asking me this?"

Kasen crossed his arms over his chest. "If you're willing to give sworn testimony against the man who sent an innocent man to gaol for money, I am willing to let slide the crimes that may or may not have occurred tonight. But only provided you are telling the truth and you must be willing to undergo spelling or take a truth potion before testifying. If you refuse, I will arrest you for the break-in and attempted theft tonight. Along with any other law I find you've broken."

When she only continued to stare at him, Kasen clasped his hands behind his back. "The only thing I hate more than criminals are criminals who pretend to uphold the law. Justice isn't for sale, and I won't let anyone make a mockery of my uniform."

Safia turned slowly to look at Rezo. He smiled at her, the lines she'd last seen on his face gone. "I thought this might work out better for both of us. Justice is served, you needn't worry about what happened tonight, and I don't have to try to lie to Kasen."

His brother snorted. "I always know when you're lying."

Rezo raised his eyebrows and smirked. "You only think you know. You're entirely too straight-laced and were basically born to uphold the law. Me, I've got a couple more tricks up my sleeve, ones even you don't know about."

Kasen frowned but shifted his attention back to Safia. "Do you accept the terms of this agreement?"

Her mouth worked for several seconds before she could get it to work. All the emotions she'd pushed away seemed intent on shoving themselves back under her nose, but with both men had just seen, the pain, anger, and sadness were swiftly fading. Rezo hadn't been all talk. He'd really had a plan, one that would work out for both of them. More than that, she'd finally get vengeance for her father, get him his name back. She had to swallow hard and blink to keep tears that had nothing to do with pain back. "Yes."

Kasen nodded shortly. "Good. I will require you to accompany me to my guard station. There I will have you undergo the spell or potion, whichever is available, before giving your statement. After that you will be released once you provide an address where we can contact you for anything additional we'll require from you. You may be required to wear a monitoring spell until the trial is finished, to ensure you don't try to escape."

Safia proper her hands up on her hips. "You're offering me the bastard who destroyed my father on a plate and you think I'm going to run?"

"What I believe doesn't matter. We have regulations."

She shook her head and looked towards Rezo. It was hard to meet his eyes, especially with what she'd said to him earlier, but she made herself do it. "Are you guys really brothers?"

"Sadly, yes. I did warn you. I think some spells were used on him when he was in the womb to create the perfect guard. Father won't admit to it, but I've suspected the truth for years."

Kasen grimaced. "That would be against the law."

That drew a laugh from the other two. "Well, if I'm going to be tracked, I guess I'll have to quit the whole thieving game." At least until that whore scum's in gaol. But she kept that thought private, since she wouldn't put it past Kasen to arrest her again if he got any wind of her breaking a law. Rezo hadn't been kidding when he'd described his brother.

"Well, someone with your skills could always find work as private security. If you started out as an assistant to someone already well established." Rezo winked at her. "I might know of someone looking for an assistant like that. Of course, he is a bit of a hard boss, one who insists on long hours."

Safia slowly grinned, her whole body feeling light as the tension drained out of her. She wasn't going to gaol, Rezo hadn't betrayed her, and she was finally going to get some real justice. She hoped some of what she was feeling showed on her face so that Rezo knew exactly what he'd done for her. Still, she wasn't going to make everything easy for him. "I'll have to consider all the offers I get, but you know, I think I might just take that opening you mentioned. I don't mind hard bosses or difficult positions."

While Kasen glowered at both of them, they only smiled at each other. Safia thought that legal work with Rezo would probably be even more exciting than thieving. Especially if he kept his shirt off.