His head was spinning. He had barely eaten in the last three days, but now he had downed an entire bottle of wine, and he felt it keenly. The older man sitting across him disgusted him, and he would pay the price for that later. Not much later. Will shook himself and plastered a smile on his face.
'Wanna go home? It's getting late.' The older man grinned at him and got to his feet. He tossed a silver coin to one of the serving girls and led the way out to the street. Will followed him, the cool night air lessening the fuzz in his brain. The other man was equally drunk, and he wouldn't be able to defend himself much. Normally Will would have been sober, and normally that man wouldn't have been an option. So far Will had chosen men he felt attracted to, but tonight a wobbly chunk of stale meat would have to do.
A hand gripped his arm and pulled him close. The breath that hit his face smelled strongly of wine.
'Need a roof over your head for this?' It struck Will that he didn't even know his name. 'I want you right here.' Will grinned. This was way too easy. It was dark, and in this place no one with a clean enough conscience to talk to the guards would linger at that time of night. The only thing that might happen was a patrol, but Will could be quick.
As the fat man moved close to him, he felt a sense of dread overcoming him, not of the man and being close to him, but of what he intended to do to him afterwards. He swallowed. 'Wait. What's your name?' The other man started groping at him, hands pawing at his pants. His breath was coming fast.
'How's that important?' Will backed away, anxious to get some space between them.
'I'm sorry. You should go. Go fast.' The man blinked slowly. Will felt his back hit the wall, his mind slowed by the wine, and moved sideways an instant too late. The other man's bulk blocked Will's way, and his attempt to push him away left him unimpressed. He had his hands clamped on Will's arms, his grip hard and painful. His face was only an inch from Will's.
'I don't think so.' Will forced himself to stop struggling and calm down.
'Don't do this. I don't want to hurt you.' The other man laughed. His body was pressing close to Will, who could feel his arousal. Hips bucked against him, one hand started fumbling with his breeches. Fear flooded Will's body and soul, driving him close to panic. It cost him all the self-control he could muster not to scream. He felt his heart beating in his throat as the large man rubbed against him, sweating and promising abuse.
'You're tiny,' the fat man said simply. Will felt anger surge in him and driving some sense back into him. He was not going to let him do this thing to him. Not this. He'd rather die fighting.
'I'll give you tiny.' Will twisted slightly so he could reach his dagger. He never got there. The fat man, suddenly limp, leaned against him even more heavily before slumping to the floor. A guard came running to Will, looking worried.
'Did he hurt you?' Will blinked, stepping away from the body. He hadn't even got to grab his knife, and he felt inexplicably glad about the fact that he didn't have to kill the man or die trying to keep his dignity. He knew he was flushed and ruffled, and it must be obvious what the man had tried to do, but he was too relieved to be embarrassed.
'Not yet. Thank you.' The guard blinked wistfully at the body. Another was standing behind him, watching the scene in silent disbelief. It struck Will who they thought they had caught in the act and couldn't blame them for their dumbfounded expressions. For more than two years they had been hunting for the murderer – for him. And now here lay an unnamed dead man who would, if he was Dordovan, be identified and take the blame. Will would walk away, actually almost a victim of a drunken rapist, and in the eyes of those guards, of the monster that had taken seven lives.
'This must be him,' the guard mused, confirming what Will had been thinking. 'Well, you're lucky. At least now there will be no more murders.' Will smiled.
'Indeed. It's over.'
((This should justify the rating, which, aside from the swearing has been an exaggeration so far. I wondered briefly if I should change it to M, but it isn't that bad, is it?))