The guards quickly carried all their luggages and goods into the tavern after it was opened by the innkeeper who happens to be a female Sajura. She had been asleep all this while inside the inner chamber where she lives in together with her little daughter who was still sleeping quietly quite unaware of the rukus outside. The knock had woken her up from her slumber and had plodded through the darkness in search of a wooden lantern in order to find her large keys as well as her way to door while avoiding obscured objects that was completely shrouded in the dark.
She managed to find the keys that was hung on an iron loop close to the wooden door beside the kitchen entrance and turned around facing the direction to the large doors made of steel. The light gleamed slowly through the dark which enabled her to avoid obstacles which stood in the pathway to the doors. Then she arrived at the threshold of the door and silently opened the doors using the large keys which creaked as it open wide revealing a large entourage beneath the stairs with series of iron carts loaded with goods and other valuables which were completely shrouded with many large cloak that prevented their merchandise from getting damaged by the storm.
Meyol beckoned for her to come down from where she stood in order for her to negotiate and quickly ordered her guards to move the goods out of the carts into the tavern in order to secure the merchandise from getting stolen by bandits who operates secretly in the city at night. The guards quickly carried out the order and started moving all valuable goods as well as precious gem stones into the tavern while the Sajura descending the stairs down to see who had beckoned her to come.
"Are you the innkeeper?", Meyol asked impatiently as the innkeeper approached her.
"Yes I am, what can I do for you and your entourage?", The innkeeper replied looking at the guards who went about carrying all the items inside.
"Let me go straight to the point, I and my group urgently need to spend the night here and resume our journey at sunrise", Meyol said entirely being straightforward with the innkeeper.
"And if I allow you to spend the night, what do have to offer?", The innkeeper questioned as she peered around her merchandise.
"Tell me what you have in mind. Name your price and I will definitely pay you", Meyol replied desperately. The innkeeper thought for a while as she gazed at the valuables which were being taken inside by the guards and a solution quickly conjured into her mind which made her smile shrewdly.
"Give me two crates of red gem stones and I will allow you to freely use my inn the way you want", the innkeeper stated with a shrewd smile, which made Meyol sneered at her furiously.
"That's way too much. You can't bring out a wild price out of the blue!", Meyol exclaimed immediately,
"I don't think that I charged too much besides your goods are quite many and my tavern isn't spacious to contain your goods, but if you still feel that it's too much you can leave the premises right now and look for another tavern to pass the night!", The innkeeper retorted harshly and smile shrewdly because she was fully aware that she had the advantage due to the fact that most tavern won't be available at this hour and they might be robbed by bandits while trying to find another tavern. Meyol also knew this as well, and that she was desperately in need of help despite the fact that the innkeeper was capitalizing on the desperate situation which she found herself in. But she felt reluctant after she heard the hard price she got to pay in order to secure a warmth shelter from the cold night. The red gem stones were grossly priceless in the market due to its immense value and durability after it's fully utilize to create antiques as well as decors.
"Alright but I will only give you one crate of gem stones and nothing more", Meyol said feeling spiteful to be in a desperate position which she loathe with all her being. She normally use this as part of bargaining skill which she keenly learnt from her father each time they make deals with other clans. The innkeeper paused for a while and thought about her offer which seems okay for her since she still benefited greatly because a crate of gem stones would make a peasant to be wealthy in a very short time.
"Hmm.... Okay I accept your offer and the inn is all yours just for the night but there should be no commotion or loud noise inside otherwise we will end the deal right there", the innkeeper said sternly and went back inside climbing the slippy steps. Meyol was about to ascend the steps when she caught sight of a figure standing a distant away under the corrugated roof adjacent to the main entrance. She noticed and was able to make out that the figure stood there in the dark, in the form of shape of a male Patrox and quickly beckoned on one of the guards who came to her immediately, to fetch the Patrox and bring him out of his hiding place. Bamus wasn't aware that he has been spotted as he stood there oblivious to the approaching footsteps of the guard who swiftly dragged him out and merciless thrust him in front of Meyol. The guard swiftly brought a wooden lantern which he had taken from inside where almost half of their merchandise were proper arranged in a catalogue.
"Who are you and why are you standing over there?", Meyol inquired as she gazed upon the queer Patrox whose face shine under the lantern while he shut his mouth and didn't respond.
"Are you mute? Answer me now or I will have my guards give you a serious beating this instant!", Meyol barked impatiently on him who gave her a terrifying look while he trembled in fright since trepidation suddenly came over him which shook his nerves under the cold air of the dark night. The figure who apparently was Bamus decided to reply in order to avoid getting beaten by the Sajura who stood beside her but isn't going to reveal his true identity by uttering a false name
"I....am.....Temoz", Bamus replied stuttering with a croaked voice while he pretentiously shivered as if having cold chills due to the cold air.
"What are you doing out here in the cold? Why didn't you knock the door to wake up the innkeeper?", She calmly interrogated while she sneered at him.
"I.... Only came here to take shelter from the storm under that roof and I saw no need of entering inside because I saw this thick cloak which I used to shroud myself from the storm", Temoz replied and continued, "And I planned on leaving immediately after the storm subsided",
"And why do you want to leave? Don't you know that you might be robbed or worse apprehended by patrol officers?", Meyol quickly retorted and adjusted her thick dark cambric with white wool around the neck region which shield her from the cold.
"Well...l... That's none of your concern", Temoz replied trying to conceal the real reason behind his return back to the underground layer where Akanon and his cohorts had hidden while carrying out their secret operations.
"I see you trying to hide something from me and I can see it in your eyes but I will have to force it out of you", She said as she instructed the guard behind her to unsheath his blade and place it over his neck which guard obeyed without hesitation.
"Please!... have mercy. I'll tell you the truth!", Temoz yelled begging for mercy as the sharp blade glided on his neck.
"Say the truth now unless you want your head to roll off your body", She threatened furiously,
"I.... am just looking for my comrades who left me behind after we were hired to store grains....at...a merchant clan living..at the eastern part of the city", Temoz stammered as he fought hard to suppress his fears that almost flared up because of the sharp blade that hung by his neck.
"Are you sure you are telling the truth? Are you sure that you aren't among those that the security guards sent by the council to arrest those that colluded with a street menace named Akanon?", She skeptically questioned because her uncle, Termez had told her about the incident of how Akanon after having held the council members hostage inside the council chambers with the help of his Tarnites and few cohorts, was defeated by a rookie and apprehended by the council members who locked him up in a dark dungeon together with his allys while the Tarnites were brutally slaughtered by a delegate from Wintera. Ravon, a sentry guard had returned from his investigation at the southgate and was sent to check if all of his cohorts were the ones in their custody, but he found out that a Patrox which was the decoy that led the others to steal the map wasn't captured with them and having told the council members about it, he was given orders to inform the four commanders of each gate as well as the patrol officers within the city to apprehend any Patrox that fits the description given by Ravon.