ELLIOT

"Hey, wait, bitch! I saw him first!"

The shouting faded behind me, swallowed by the chaos of the fights and the violins fueling the brawls.

I ran through the shadows of tents and small stalls, filthy, covered in mud. But for some reason, watching that brown hair flow ahead of me, inhaling that delicious lavender scent, a smile crept onto my lips.

I was happy.

*****

KATHERINE

I stood in the hallway, keeping watch.

We had slipped inside a stable in silence, with only a few horses dozing in their stalls.

Elliot told me that places like these always had rustic showers for the workers to clean up. And there he was, inside what looked like a small wooden booth, covered only by a flimsy curtain.

I turned my back, keeping my eyes on the long, dimly lit passage leading to the stable entrance. I knew he was naked. The shameless man had practically stripped in front of me.

I could hear the water cascading down his body. I imagined him standing under the stream pouring from the crude pipe