1 Chapter 1: Play With Me (1/2)

ELINA: There is someone who's trying to kill me. He thinks that I don't know about him. He thinks it's going to be easy. Because he's a little smart.

But I have something he doesn't.

Something that sets me apart.

I can hear him coming. One step at a time. Riding on a horse. Sitting on a worn out saddle. A sword slung around his back. A hood to protect him from the wind.

He's probably thinking about the money he'll get for delivering my head. I hope he was promised a large sum, otherwise it would be insulting. Maybe I'll ask him. I really ought to know how much my head is worth.

Or I could live my life in peace. Fly away. He'd never find me. Because I only appear when I want to be found. But where's the fun in that? I'll wait for him. See what he does. What scheme he comes up with. Maybe he can entertain me. And just when he thinks he has won, I'll kill him.

Let's play a game.

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SALEM: I was hired to find a girl. Name: Elina. Seemed like a standard job at first. Someone from the Church of Deliverance came to me. Said there was a witch they wanted. Not the first time I worked with the Church. Not the first time I killed a witch.

Standard sum for a witch hunt was fifty gold. Enough money for half a year'srent and food. Unless the King decides to increase taxes again.

But I was offered eighty-five gold coins. Which was odd.

The priest from the Church said they paid me extra because they wanted me to bring her in alive. In one piece. Not just the head. Like I usually do. Breathing and in full health.

Weird.

A dead witch was better than a live one.

But not every day you can earn this kind of money.