I am sorry for my long silence – work kept me too busy to even think of writing…
But I met my deadline and have some free time now – the first since one month!

I must say it was very nice to have so many people asking what happened to me via
reviews and emails – thanks for missing me :-))))

So here is the next chapter. I thank all of you for sticking with me and waiting for my
return…

Special thanks to Little My for beta reading!

And…as always… let me know if you like it …
___

The moment the man's eyes fell on the sparkling piece of jewelry, Gimli knew he had
won. Karim's face showed no emotion, but for the shortest moment something
flickered in the depths of his eyes. Greed. The dwarf could not help the wave of
contempt washing over him.

The necklace was taken from his hand and he had to force himself to keep still as
everything in him rebelled against it being touched by foul fingers. But another short
look at the still form of Legolas held Gimli frozen in place. In the end it was only
mithril and rubies, he tried to tell himself, and while it held many memories for him its
worth still paled in comparison to the worth this one's life had for him. So Gimli did
not move but watched as Karim turned it over in his hands to look at it.

Finally the man's eyes came up to meet those of the dwarf.

'It seems this elf is worth much to you,' he taunted.

'He is worth much to my father,' Gimli answered. He could see the fight going on in
the man as his fingers closed around the beautiful object. He was reluctant to let the
prisoner go, but greed won.

@@@

'Who would have thought this dwarf to be so good an actor?' Elrohir mumbled,
shaking his head in a mixture of awe and disbelief. A low chuckle answered from his
left where his brother crouched next to him. It had been all too easy to circle the
camp and find a place from where they could watch the dwarves.

'Aye, if I knew no better, I would fear for Legolas,' Elladan whispered his eyes never
leaving the man Gimli was speaking to. Their keen ears had missed no word of the
conversation, and things were going far better then they had expected.
'The deal is made.'

They watched as the man accepted the price for the captive elf, gesturing towards
Legolas.

The dwarves turned, but Gimli had taken no more than one step towards his friend
when a small figure blocked his way.

@@@

'You cannot take him,' Dian cried. He was not much smaller than Gimli, and he tried
hard to look determined but was not able to hide the small flicker of uncertainty in his
eyes. 'He is Surdim's captive; you have no right to take him away.'

The small spark of amusement Gimli felt at seeing a child stand up to him died upon
hearing this name. For a moment he was at a loss of where he had heard it before
but unease filled his heart. Then memory returned and his eyes darkened in anger.
He remembered too well what had been done to Legolas that night.

Not knowing the fire in the dwarf's eyes was not directed at him, the child took a step
backwards in fright. Clardyn quickly stepped to her son's side, her arms wrapping
around his shoulders in a gesture of comfort.

Gimli ignored her as he continued his way towards the unmoving elf. His eyes took in
the details he had missed before when he had been careful to not show too much
care. Legolas was slumped forward, only the bonds holding him upright. Gimli could
see the uneven falling and rising of his chest, speaking of a slightly erratic and too
fast breathing pattern. A curtain of golden hair concealed the face, but as he stepped
closer Gimli could not shake the feeling that his friend was not as unconscious as he
had thought. But he showed no reaction to his surroundings, although he could not
have missed the conversation.

Gimli's step faltered as he was unsure how to proceed. They had been able to get
thus far without trouble and had Legolas been awake, the dwarf would not have had
a doubt that the elf would play the part of the hostile Mirkwood elf to perfection. But
as he showed no sign of awareness, Gimli knew not how he would react to seeing
them. If he gave them away, there would be no other solution then to fight their way
out of this situation.

But ere Gimli had finished his line of thought, Karim moved with quick strides to the
captive's side. There was a cruel smirk on his face as he grabbed a handful of golden
hair, forcing Legolas's head up. Wide eyes in a too pale face were revealed, but it
was the look in the dark eyes that made Gimli's heart clench. They were unfocused
and held utter confusion mixed with something that bordered on panic. Legolas tried
to break free but did not succeed in yanking his head away. For a moment he fought
but neither the man's grasp nor the bonds holding him gave away, and then his face
tightened in an expression of pain and his struggles ceased as he slumped against
the tree once more.

Keeping the rage from his face was the hardest thing Gimli had ever done. To not
lash out and end the cruel display but stand still and watch took all the willpower he
possessed. It was his dearest and closest friend he witnessed being treated like this.
But even as his face did not show any reaction, his eyes flashed with the rage and
hatred he felt in this moment.

Clardyn stood frozen, watching the scene. She felt sick at what was happening here
and even more so for she knew that there was naught she could do. Her fingers
tightened their hold on her son, wishing he did not have to witness something like
this.

Her eyes wandered to the dwarf standing there, expecting to see the same
expression of amusement she could see on Karim's face. It was with great surprise
that she took in his expressionless features, and with a slight shock, the burning
hatred in his eyes. It was gone as quickly as it had appeared but she knew she had
seen it. For a moment she thought it was directed towards the elf until she realized
his gaze was fixed on Karim.

She hardly noticed when the man let go of the elf and his head fell forward again. A
memory fought to rise, and with her eyes never leaving Gimli's face, she tried to
grasp it. Then as if feeling her gaze on him, the dwarf's eyes shifted to meet hers and
suddenly she made the connection. She knew, unlike Karim and his men, who
Legolas was. She had lived in Minas Tirith when the nine companions had been
celebrated. She knew of Legolas the elf and his unusual friendship with Gimli the
dwarf. Suddenly she understood what was going on here, and an overwhelming
sense of relief washed over her.

'Is he wounded?' Gimli's voice betrayed nothing of what he truly felt. Neither the deep
concern over the elf's condition, nor the rising anger.

'Nothing serious,' Karim answered, his voice uncaring. He had recognized the look in
Legolas's eyes and knew the elf had been given a draught. It was a common thing to
slip it into the water or food of an intended victim and wait until its effect took away
any resistance. It was so much easier to rob a sleeping man of his belongings and be
long gone ere he woke than to risk a fight.

A dagger flashed in the man's hand as he bent down to cut through the bonds that
held Legolas. As they fell away the elf sank forward, his arms limp at his sides.
Before he had a chance to recover, he was grabbed and forced to his feet. For a
moment Legolas swayed ere he regained his balance. Legs that had not moved for
too long could hardly keep him upright. He blinked a few times but his eyes did not
clear.

Silently Gimli stood and watched as Karim tied the elf's wrists together behind his
back. He could see the pain on his friend's face and his eyes wandered over the
slender form, trying to find the cause of it. He could see the dried blood on his throat
but found no other traces. But what wounds might be concealed by the elf's clothing,
he had no way of knowing. He heard Karim calling for a new rope that was quickly
brought. Gimli's fists clenched as he saw what the man intended to do with it.

'I do not think this is necessary.' He could not stop himself from intervening. 'We are
perfectly capable of holding one elf under control.'

'Do not underestimate him, my friend,' Karim answered. 'Right now he is under the
influence of a draught that makes him quite meek, but as soon as it wears off you will
have your hands full in keeping him under control.'

Gimli could not risk arguing any further, and willing himself to stay calm he watched
as the rope was tied to a sling that was fastened around Legolas's neck.

'Now you have an elf on a leash,' Karim sneered as he held the rope out to Gimli.
The dwarf found himself unable to move, not ready to participate in humiliating his
friend like this. Although he knew Legolas had to be far gone to not even try to fight
them, he could not bring himself to take the rope from the man's hand. It was Gudin
who took a quick step forward, accepting the offered rope.

'Well,' the man said. 'This bargain is done, so we can turn to more comfortable things
now. Do you feel hungry, my friends?'

Disgusted at being repeatedly entitled 'friend', Gimli only shook his head.

'I am sorry to decline,' he lied smoothly, 'but we need to make haste. Especially now
as we have another burden to drag along.'

Karim was quick to hide his disappointment.

'Then I will send one of my men with you to show you the way,' he answered, and
without waiting for a reply he turned away, calling out a name.

'Too generous of you,' Gimli mumbled.

A man appeared at Karim's side and it was all Gimli could do to not show any
reaction upon seeing him. He remembered the face well, and grim satisfaction welled
up as he realized he had found one of those men who had attacked him.

Karim turned to the dwarves once more.

'Jerim will lead you through the forest and to the way that leads to the Lonely
Mountain,' he said, gesturing to the man at his side. There was no recognition in the
man's face as his gaze met Gimli's.

The farewell was short and no one seemed to take any notice of the woman still
standing and watching the group of dwarves. She knew these men well enough to
realize that Karim did not plan on simply letting them go. Not when they knew the
location of the hidden camp and still carried some gold with them. She knew the trick
of a man sent to lead a group through the forest, but instead leading them into a trap.
Everything inside of her cried out in warning; she did not wish the dwarves to meet
their doom.

But as she watched Gimli, the feeling dawned that he knew quite well what kind of
game Karim was playing. She could see the man's behavior, his way of talking to the
dwarf and a grim smile lit her face. She could see what Karim so obviously missed as
he underestimated Gimli's wit. It was no longer a case of a group of unsuspecting
travelers being led into a trap, but a group of keen-minded hunters leading a group of
thieves into a trap.

They were ready to go and Gimli cast one more glance at Legolas. The elf was
standing upright but still had the same lost look in his eyes that told Gimli he was no
more aware of his surroundings then before. He ached to speak to his friend, to call
out to him and get him back from whatever place his mind seemed to be lost in. But
not here, not in front of so many eyes watching them. Instead, his eyes turned to
Gudin who held the rope with a barely concealed look of contempt and seemed
reluctant to force Legolas into moving.

With an expression of disgust that Gimli did not need to fake, although it was not
aimed at the elf, he gave Legolas a push, causing him to stumble a step forward.

'Get moving, elf,' Gimli growled.

Upon hearing his voice, Legolas showed some reaction for the first time. His head
turned and his eyes struggled to focus on Gimli's face. Knowing he could not risk the
elf recognizing him right now, Gimli grabbed his arm, propelling him forward a little
more roughly. He could see a flicker of pain cross Legolas's face and hated himself
for doing this to his friend. It was Gudin who took over now, grabbing the elf's arm
and tugging him along. If anyone found it odd that he would not use the leash as it
was intended, no one commented on it.

His senses dulled by the effect of the draught, Legolas was barely able to keep
awake and was far from finding the strength to fight. He was hardly able to
understand what was going on, needing all his willpower to stay on his feet. The
voices he heard made no sense as he could not grasp the words they uttered.

Once, he had thought he heard a voice that seemed familiar, one he trusted without
knowing why. But as he tried to concentrate, to break through the fog that seemed to
clog his mind, he was pushed and the sharp pain of the ungentle touch on his broken
arm washed away everything else. When the pain ebbed away, once more dulled by
the power of the drug in his blood, he knew no longer what it was he had been trying
to grasp.

So he stumbled along, following the pull of a hand on his arm, this time the
unwounded one. He knew not where he was going and who led him but resistance
was far from his mind. He needed all his strength of will to stay upright and moving.