Captured Chapter 4

Captured, Chapter 4

Written by Virginia Leonard

Copyright, 1997

                 Rhoane chuckled to herself all the way down the hall.  No one

would believe what she had just seen and that was too bad because it

would have made a great drinking story.  “Oh well...” she thought.  She

pulled out a coin and began rolling it across the back of her knuckles.

 Rhoane worked everyday to keep her fingers nimble and the exercises had

served her well.

                She took a seat at a table in the back of the main room and

settled in to wait until dark.  Brandy made certain that she kept her

lover’s ale mug filled and tossed a wink in the thief’s direction every

chance she got. 

                 Rhoane settled back in her chair, propped her feet up and made

herself ready to wait.  There was always the waiting.  In her profession,

the actual work took only a matter of minutes but the planning and the

confounded waiting took hours and sometimes days.

                She did not mind it that much.  The down time gave her the

opportunity to study people which was sometimes the key to her

success.   Rhoane had rarely been caught and even those few times were

because of someone else’s mistakes, not hers. 

               

                “You certainly look deep in thought,” Gabrielle said as she

walked over to  Rhoane”?s table. 

                 Rhoane chuckled and motioned for Gabrielle to sit down.

“Funny, the scene in your room reminded me of when Xena and I first

met.”

                Gabrielle blushed crimson and looked down at the table.

“Oh?”

                “Yeah,” Rhoane smiled.  “She was a bit of a tight ass then.”

                Gabrielle burst out laughing.  “Like she’s not now?  Tell me

how you two met.”

                Before  Rhoane could begin, Brandy appeared bringing with her a

full mug for the bard and a refill for her new lover.  She leaned over the

table and spoke in a soft voice.  “Once we close it usually takes my

father about an hour before he’s deeply asleep.  He goes home before I

do so it won’t be that unusual for me not to be there.”  Brandy paused

to check the hourglass and its pegs.  “You’ve got about 3 hours to

kill.”  She grinned then turned and walked away.

                 Rhoane watched the young woman then took a deep breath and

began...

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                “You want me to take what from who?!?!?!?”   Rhoane slammed

her mug down on the table. 

                Lozesta put his jeweled hand on her arm, hoping to calm the

agitated thief and shot furtive glances around the room. 

                “Oh be serious,”  Rhoane continued.  “everyone in here has

something to hide.  They don’t give a damn about what you and I are

discussing.  What I want to know...” she leaned closer, “…is how, in the

name of Hades, do you expect me to steal the dagger of King Creston

from that insane female warlord??

                “That’s not exactly MY problem now is it thief?  I’m prepared

to pay one hundred dinars now...and one hundred upon its delivery.”

                 Rhoane sat there looking at him, trying her best not to let any

reaction show on her face when deep inside, it felt like the Furies were

throwing her heart around her ribcage.  “One....” her voice betrayed her

image of pure calmness when it squeeked, “hundred now and another

hundred when I hand it over.”

                “Take it or leave it.”

                “I’m risking getting my throat cut.  Xena don’t play!”

                “Take it or leave it,” Lozesta hissed.

                “Obviously your mother never taught you manners.”

                Lozesta, in a flash of anger, raised his hand to slap the

impertinent thief but before he had moved more than an inch, he found it

wrenched up behind his back and the side of his face mashed against the

table.

                “Don’t you ever raise your hand to me again.  I’ll kill you.”

 Rhoane’s voice was quiet, controlled and it sent shivers down the rich

merchants spine.  All he could do was nod his head.

                 Rhoane let him go and straightened up, brushing the front of her

clothing down and returned to her seat.

                “Good.  Now that we’ve established the working parameters I

need to plan.”  Her smile was genuine and quite disarming considering

the position she had just taken with her benefactor.

                They spent the better part of an hour discussing the location of

Xena’s raiding party and where, it was believed, that she kept the

dagger.  Lozesta finally departed and Rhoane walked out a few minutes

later mumbling to herself.

                “You’ve lost your mind.  Nobody in their right mind would

waltz into Xena’s camp and attempt to steal anything.”  Then she felt

the pouch of coins pressed against her chest.  “Well, maybe for two

hundred dinars.”

                She had ridden as far as she dared then left her horse standing

in a thicket with the command to hide.  She was now crouched just

outside the firelight and watched the camp.  It was obvious which tent

was the warlord’s; there was constant activity in and out of it and even

though she could not be certain,  Rhoane was fairly sure that she heard the

sounds of female laughter coming from the tent.  She raised and

eyebrow at the possibilities.

                 She waited.  Waited until all but two sentries were asleep,

checked the position of the stars then began her silent trek into the camp.

                She made it to the tent easily enough but was totally

unprepared for what she found inside.  Xena was asleep on a large cot

and laying on a mat next to it was a beautiful woman, naked, ankles

bound, wrists bound and tethered to a leg of the warlord’s bed. 

                This was not something she had planned for.  The possibility

that one of Xena’s prisoners would be held in her tent had never crossed

the thief’s mind.  She crouched in the corner and tried to decide the best

way to proceed.  Should she free the captive or let her be?

                 Rhoane would deal with that question after she found the Creston

daggar.  She crept over to the locked strong box and studied

the locking mechanism.  Easy enough, she thought.  She pulled two

slender picks from her pouch and had the lock opened in only seconds.

She cracked open the lid just enough to peer inside and smiled when she

saw the dagger handle sparkling in the faint light of one lantern.

                 Rhoane reached in and slowly closed her fingers around the hilt

then, after shutting and relocking the box, she tucked the knife down the

front of her pants.  Rarely was she ever searched down there.  She

started to crawl out of the tent when the tethered young woman moaned

and shifted on her mat. 

                The thief was caught in a dilemma.  This captive was probably

going to be sold to the slavers and as much as she hated them she feared

this warlord more and wondered if releasing the woman was worth

risking the wrath of Xena?

                No, it was not, Rhoane thought.  She liked her life and did not

see any reason why she should risk cutting it short for a woman that she

would likely never see again. 

                The hardened outlaw had made it to the flap and was ready to

crawl out when her conscience kicked her squarely between the eyes.

 Rhoane dropped her forehead to the ground and silently groaned to

herself.  You big pushover, she thought to herself, if anyone finds out

about this you’ll never live it down. 

She was about to cut the ropes that bound the captive’s wrists

when the young woman looked at  Rhoane and began shaking her head no.

                 Rhoane put her fingers to her lips pleading for silence.  “It’s

OK...I’ll help you get away,” she whispered.  Again, the woman shook

her head in the negative.  “I understand you’re afraid...I am too but

I’ll...”

                 Rhoane’s sentence was cut off by a foot coming to rest in the

small of her back.  A large, heavy, booted foot.   Rhoane grimaced and

slid her knife back up into its holder under her sleeve.

                “She tried to tell you she didn’t want to go.  Now look what

You’ve done.”  Xena growled.

                “Meaning no disrespect, Madam Warlord but...you’re about to

crush one of my kidneys and I’d like to keep them a while longer.”

                “What if I decide to cut your throat?”

                “Well....you’d have a bloody mess on your hands but on the

bright side, I wouldn’t need my kidneys anymore.?   Rhoane grunted under

the increasing pressure.

                “Who sent you?”

                “Nobody.”

                More pressure.

                “Really!  Nobody sent me.”

                “You were just out for a stroll in the moonlight and...”

                “Got lost.”   Rhoane interrupted.  “I saw a light and came in here.

Imagine my surprise when I found out whose tent this is.  I’ll just be on

my way now...?

                Xena reached down to grab Rhoane by the scruff of the neck and

pulled the thief back up on her knees.  “I don’t think you’ll be going

anywhere you worm,” Xena hissed in  Rhoane’s ear.  “Rileous., get in

here!  How in the name of Hades did this get past you?  Nevermind, I’ll

deal with you in the morning.  Tie her and put her in the corner.”             

                 Rhoane winced when Rileous pulled the ropes tight and started

to say something less than brilliant but thought better of it when she saw

the look on the warlord’s face.  She was thankful that, so far, no one had

bothered to search her and she prayed to every god and goddess she

could think of that her captors would not change their minds.

                Rileous roughly shoved Rhoane down in the corner and it was

only due to the thief’s agility that she was able to shift at the last

moment and keep the sharp blade from some of her more pleasurable, if

not vital, body parts.  She tried to arrange herself so that the outline of

the dagger would not show through her pants and certainly hoped that

no one else would notice the blade’s golden tip beginning to poke

through the leather seams.

                Xena placed a finger against the naked slave’s face and began

to gently stroke and caress the soft pale skin.  “Tell me, worm, does this

creature look like she wants to be set free?”

                 Rhoane looked up, slightly wide eyed, and shook her head.

“Uh....well now that you mention it...no.  Why don’t we just chalk this

unfortunate incident up to an over eagerness on my part?  We can all

leave as good friends and laugh about it when next we meet.  Whaddaya

say?”    

                Xena had untied her bondmaid and made the woman kneel

between her legs.  The warlord smiled as she kissed soft red lips then

looked over towards the annoying thief.  Standing, she snapped her

fingers and the naked woman immediately jumped into the still warm

cot.  Xena looked down at the reclining figure.  “Sleep, my pet.  We’ll

deal with my irritation later.”  Xena chuckled when she saw the

venomous look that her slave had shot towards  Rhoane.  “Well now, I’d

say my precious doesn’t care much for you...you have a name?”

                “ Rhoane.”

                Xena walked over and placed her booted foot directly on top

of the knife in  Rhoane’s crotch.  “No, she doesn’t care for you much at all

and neither do I.”

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                Gabrielle’s eyes were wide, “Noooo,” she gasped.

                “Yep.  I don’t think I took a breath for several minutes.”

                “What happened?”

                “Well....”  Rhoane winked, “it was the first time I discovered that

my voice has a tendency to squeak.” 

                The thief sat quietly for a moment, shifting in her chair is if

remembering something painful.

                “Go on,” Gabrielle gently prodded.

                “Xena asked me a few more questions then called for a couple

of her men who, after some quiet discussion, picked me up and threw

me on the back of a horse.  Xena, about 8 of her warriors and myself

then rode out of her camp and towards the nearest village when we

were suddenly attacked by a group of about 25 men...?

                “A rival warlord’s party?” Gabrielle interrupted.

                 Rhoane snorted.  “Oh please...pitiful amateurs.  Two bit outlaws,

common criminals and maybe a few mercenaries but one--one I

recognized.  He had come in with Lozesta and then I realized what was

going on.  One way or the other my presence in Xena’s camp would

have caused some confusion and Lozesta was planning on using that

confusion to try and take Xena out.”

                “You mean he didn’t really want the dagger??

                “Oh he wanted the dagger but he also wanted more.  He

wanted the money that the other warlord’s had pledged for her head

and, for some odd reason, that made me angry.”

                “What, that he was trying to kill Xena?”

                 Rhoane screwed her mouth into a grimace.  “No.  Gabrielle, I

don’t know if you’ve heard but your princess wasn’t a very nice person

then.  I couldn’t have cared less if she were dead.  I was pissed because

that slimy mugwort had put me in even greater danger of dying.”

                 Rhoane paused to take a drink of ale.  “I noticed that Xena was,

for the moment, without an opponent and I rode my horse up next to

her....

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“Cut me loose, Xena, I know who’s behind this and it’s my

fight too.  You need every hand you can get.” 

                 Rhoane clenched her jaw and met the steely gaze of the warlord

with much fire and determination of her own.  Xena finally gave in to

logic and reached down the front of  Rhoane’s pants to retrieve the dagger.

With a very faint smile touching the corners of her lips, she cut the

thief’s ropes.

                 Rhoane snatched the dagger from Xena’s grip and reared back to

throw.  There was panic on Xena’s face and she knew that there was no

way she would escape death this time. 

                The warrior heard the metal whiz by her ear and embed in the

chest of a man behind her.  She wheeled around to see that he had

drawn back and arrow and was about to release it when the knife found

it’s target.

                A very brief glance passed between the two women, a glance

that spoke volumes and  Rhoane knew that once their eye contact was

broken, the incident would never be spoken of again.

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                Gabrielle sat in stunned silence.

                “What?”   Rhoane finally asked.

                “Why?”

                ?A hundred different reasons I guess.  A sort of twisted code

of ethics.  Nobody, not even a heartless warlord, deserves to die with an

arrow in the back.  Especially when that arrow is coming from a piece

of scum like him.  Besides, I’m a thief, not a murder.”

                “I guess,” Gabrielle sighed.  “I suppose I’ll never figure out all

of these unwritten rules of outlawry, if that’s even a word.”

                 Rhoane softly chuckled.  “I know.  Doesn’t make much sense

does it?” 

                The thief stared at the bard for a few moments.  Gabrielle

needed to understand something about her new lover and  Rhoane was not

sure she could find the words but she knew she needed to try.

                “Gabrielle, I want you to think about something.  Xena wasn’t

as cruel and heartless as her reputation made her out to be.  I won’t

deny that she did some pretty gruesome things but beneath all of that

there was some compassion, there was a warm beating heart.  Do you

honestly believe that if there weren’t she would have been able to

overcome her past and turn out to be the woman that she is now?”

                “I guess you’re right.”

                “I know I’m right.  I saw her cry when a certain few of her

men would go down.  Beneath her anger and hatred were hidden other

emotions and she fought with them continuously.  It took Hercules to

finally reach down and grab them and yank ‘em out of her with such force

that she could never deny them again.”

                “But I’ve seen those emotions try to re-emerge.  I’ve watched

her struggle with them.”

                “And she always will.  She can’t deny that part of herself

either, none of us can, but she’s learned to control it.”

                 Rhoane leaned forward in her chair and turned Gabrielle’s face

towards hers, forcing the bard to look into deep blue eyes.  “She tells

me things, Gabrielle, and one of the things that she tells me over and

over is that you have become her lifeline.  She could not remain who she

is now without you to lean on.  I guess you probably have the hardest

job of all.”

                “What’s that?”

                “You have to hold that hardheaded, stubborn, and tenderhearted

jackass up and believe me, I know how heavy she can get.  I’ve had to

carry her broad butt a few times.”

                Xena walked up to the table and stood looking back and forth

between the dangerous pair.

                “Xena, turn around.”  Gabrielle made a circular motion with

her fingers.  “I don’t know...doesn’t look that broad to me.”

                Xena wheeled around, put her hands on her hips and glared at

her dark-haired friend. 

                 Rhoane cleared her throat.  “’Scuse me, but I need to go warm

my fingers up for this little job tonight.”

                “Why don’t you.”  Xena growled.

                “Warm your fingers up?  How do you do that?” Gabrielle

asked.

                 Rhoane flashed a smile and winked at the bard.  “I dunno.  Think I’ll go

fondle a certain serving maid.”

                The two women watched Rhoane disappear into the crowd.

                “She grows on you doesn’t she?” Gabrielle asked.

                “Hmm.”

                Gabrielle smiled then leaned over and softly kissed Xena on the

lips.

                “What was that for?”

                “Because I happen to be very fond of jackasses.”