Hazel stood staring at the wooden sign placed above a shop across the street, the words 'Pawn items' intricately carved above the entrance.
After running around town for half of the day and trying to escape a prince after a close call, she had been wandering aimlessly, avoiding crowded places in case someone recognised her. She had decided to leave her hair down and keep the eye patch on. It would be better if someone took her for a young lady missing an eye.
She still couldn't believe how unlucky she was on her first day out of prison. Good thing she wasn't caught because she would have fought till her last breath.
Now staring at the pawnshop, Hazel dipped her hand inside her pocket, retrieving the silver necklace she managed to steal from the handsome Prince. For some reason, she had felt like his face was familiar but she couldn't quite place where she had seen him before. She chuckled when she remembered the angry look on his face when she held a knife to his heart.
"I should keep this," she mumbled to herself, placing the necklace back in her pocket.
The sun was beginning to dip in the horizon and with no other means to survive, Hazel decided to pawn something of hers for a few coins. She had searched around town and came to the conclusion that with the number of businesses here, she could at least get a temporary job then leave for the capital.
With long and determined steps, she strode to the pawnshop across the street and found a scrawny middle-aged man scolding another person who she assumed was a customer.
"You must be delusional to think you can give me half of the money," he said to the other man, his lips twisted up in disdain. "If you don't show up here with my money tomorrow, I'm selling that watch. It can't even pay back the amount I gave you!" He snarled angrily, making the customer frown deeply.
"What do you mean by that? That watch is made out of silver. You might as well sell it and take your share then give me the rest of the money," the man shot back, riling up the owner even more.
"What silver!" He scoffed. "Michael, I should have known you would cause me trouble again. But I'm warning you, this time I'll make sure you learn to pay your debts. Now leave my shop!"
The said Michael glared at the shop owner for a while, then turned around with a click of his tongue and walked away.
Hazel watched the banter silently, questioning her decision to pawn her dagger.
"Sorry for that. My name is George. How may I help you?" The shop owner asked with a sigh, his expression showing that he was still very angry.
"I want to pawn something," said Hazel and George ushered her inside the shop.
Hazel took out her uncle's dagger and handed it to him. He took a microscope from a desk piled up with different items on a corner and started observing the knife.
"How much do you want for this?" He asked as he examined the blade by running his fingers across the sharp edge, then the ancient looking handle. His eyes stopped at the carving of an eagle and a frown marred his forehead. The bird's yellow eyes seemed to be glaring at him.
"How much can you give?" Hazel asked in return.
The man looked up at her then chuckled amusedly. "It doesn't work like that young lady. You mention the amount, then the day or time you'll return for the item and that's done," he explained calmly.
Hazel's eyes narrowed at her own dagger, then at the man sitting in front of her. He didn't seem like a trustworthy person. It should probably be obvious since he owned a pawn shop and also from the argument she witnessed earlier, but something about the man gave her the feeling that there was more to him than his polite attitude.
Discarding the thoughts about his personality, she squared her shoulders and decided to try her luck. She knew the knife was worth a lot, but she couldn't take an extremely high amount of money because she currently had no means to pay back.
"Five silver coins."
The man's eyebrows arched up in surprise, a smile curving his lips as he eyed Hazel. "Are you sure?"
Hazel pondered for a moment. This man was pressing all the warning buttons at the back of her mind. But she really needed money. "Yes."
"Alright then," George responded, a smirk still plastered on his face. He pulled open a drawer on his desk and took out some coins, handing them to Hazel.
Hazel felt the coldness of the coins in her hands, feeling like they carried more weight than they ought to. Maybe she should've asked for two silver coins. That would be easier to pay. Where on earth would she get five silver coins?
"So when are you going to return my money?" The man's voice snapped her back to her senses and she looked up at him, stuffing the coins in her pockets.
"Tomorrow. I might come at any time so don't sell my dagger," she made sure to deepen her voice at the last statement, adding a warning glare to ensure she wouldn't loose her dagger.
"Of course," George responded happily. The silly grin on his face unsettled Hazel and made her question herself again, but the doubt wasn't enough to make her return the money.
As she walked down the path to the Koza inn, she couldn't help but notice how everyone here looked suspicious. Everyone she came across seemed to have something they were hiding, which was a strange observation because she didn't really talk to anyone. But Hawksley was a strange place.
Back at the inn, she found the same man from earlier in the day. She knocked on the wooden counter using a coin to get his attention and he looked up at her with the same bored look.
"You still remember me, don't you?" She asked but got no response.
"Tsk," she clicked her tongue, reaching inside her pocket for money. "I want a room for the night. How much is it?"
The man eyed her for a moment as if trying to analyze her then said, "One copper."
"How about two nights?" Hazel asked, considering it might take a while to get back the money for her dagger. She didn't plan on staying long in Hawksley but it would he better if she just paid in advance.
"Do you need full accomodation?" The man asked, then explained further when he saw the confusion on Hazel's face. "Food and cleaning. Without that it will be two copper coins for two nights, but with full accomodation it'll be five."
Again Hazel was deep in thought. If she was paying for an inn, she wanted to have everything. It was good since they had a tavern inside the building. Speaking of taverns…
"Do you think you could offer me a job mister?" She asked out of the blue and the man seemed confused for a while, staring at Hazel with a frown.
"I don't understand."
"Well, I do need a room because I have nowhere to stay, but I also need a job because I have no money," she explained, but the man's face remained the same so she tried to convince him some more. "I don't mind any kind of job. I could wait tables or clean the floors. I can do anything. Besides, it's only temporary."
This time the man's gaze dropped from her face to examine her body, and even though the clothes she wore didn't give a feast to the eyes, Hazel still felt like punching him in the face. Just imagining what he could be thinking brought back unpleasant memories that made her jaw clench in anger.
"There's no vacancy here," the man said, his gaze returning to her eyes.
But Hazel was not ready to give up. Her expression turning desperate, she grabbed the man's hand with both of hers and brought it to her face. "Please mister. You know how hard it is to survive in Hawksley without money and I have no family to support me. Please," she begged, managing to gather some tears to appear more desperate.
The man tried to pull his hand away, clearly uncomfortable with the situation. Some other customers were starting to look their way and he didn't know how to react.
He cleared his throat. "I'll see what I can do miss."
"Thank you. Thank you so much," Hazel repeated with a grateful smile and teary eyes. She knew the man was just trying to get rid of her, but she was confident that by the following morning she would've convinced him.