"Caligo, Umbra, heel," Kol commanded. To my surprise both dogs stopped and turned to Kol. He hit his hand against his thigh and both dogs bounded over to him, their short stumps of tails wagging happily. Kol reached down and petted them both on the head. "I'm going to go and get something to dry off with and see if I can find dry clothes for you."

My eyes only widened as Kol opened the door and the two dogs trotted after him out into the hallway. How did he know how to control the dogs like that; unless they were his dogs? But that couldn't be. Kol wasn't some noble lord. He was a thief who roamed the streets of Pharyss and led some sort of well known group in the lower city. Realization hit me when I saw the mask hanging on the edge of a large vanity mirror, but I still didn't understand.

He returned with a pile of towels and what looked like clothes draped over the top. "I found something, but I don't know how well it will fit you." I tilted my head and examined him. In his dingy clothes and with wet hair he looked out of place. He must have known I had questions and he laid the towels down on the wooden table.

"Who are you?" I started with.

Kol swept into an elegant bow. I could still see the silly little ring on his pinkie finger as he made a flourish with his arm. "Nikolaus Caiden Rydell, only son of Jared Isaiah Rydell, captain of the king's guard."

He straightened and gauged my reaction with those black eyes. I did not know how to react. Kol – Nikolaus – was the one at the ball and he must have recognized me then but didn't say anything. He also used to be friends with the prince, but something had happened. Christian had said that he was arrogant and horrible to be around. Was that just another facet of himself that he was hiding?

"So you're insufferable," I mused. I did not know what else to say. The dogs had returned with him and were now coming over to sniff curiously at me.

Kol raised an eyebrow. It must not have been the response he was expecting. "Me? Insufferable? Where did you get that idea?"

I shrugged and looked away. "The prince may have mentioned something or other to that effect a few days ago when I went to the Etvor cliffs."

I caught the towel that Kol tossed to me. He picked up another and scrubbed at his head leaving his hair sticking up crazily. "Did he now? What did our good prince have to say about little old me?"

"Just that you had once skipped a council meeting and-" I wasn't sure if I should be telling him what Christian had said. Kol raised an eyebrow as he wiped at his neck. "He was glad you were not around at the beach or at the tournament." I said in a rush.

Kol laughed. "That would make two of us. His highness has good reason to not like me and I try to avoid him when I can. So you also joined him at the tournament?"

I nodded as I did my best to dry off. At least I was not dripping on the floor anymore, I thought glancing at the puddle at my feet.

"Don't worry about making a mess. The cleaning pixies can fix almost anything. Trust me I should know. When I was young I threw red paint everywhere. Father was not happy. A washroom is through that door if you want to get out of your wet clothes." Kol tilted his head to the door to my left.

Timidly I went to pick up the clothes he had brought in for me. They were soft leather riding pants and a smart maroon woman's tunic. They were much nicer than most of the clothes I owned. "I don't want to take someone else's clothes." I said feeling the softness of the black pants.

For the briefest moment, Kol looked sad, but then he was smiling again. "No one will miss those old things. They have been gathering dust in an old wardrobe for years. It's about time someone wore them."

I took the clothes into the washroom and closed the door with a click. There was a round bathtub carved from what looked like blue marble. The same blue marble was used for the floor and wash basin. The walls and arched ceiling were a contrasting white. Instead of a window there was a large oval mirror hung on one wall. It was just as fancy as the bedroom had been. I flushed at the realization that I had been in Kol's bedroom and was glad he was not there to see me.

I peeled off my wet clothes and put on the dry ones. They were made to fit someone who was a lot more voluptuous than I so the clothes hung awkwardly off of my thin frame. I did my best to make myself look presentable though. I undid my braid and combed my fingers through the damp tangles. My hair was a mess after being wet and in a braid, but I tamed it as best I could. I removed my wet stockings and boots before opening the door and returning to Kol's room.

One of the dogs was lying curled up on the bed while the other had its head resting in Kol's lap while he petted it. Kol had changed out of his wet clothes too and now wore a white shirt tucked into light gray breeches. One booted foot was propped up on the table as he lounged in one of the sofas. He now looked like he belonged in a room as rich as the one we occupied. His hair had dried much better than mine had and for a moment I was jealous of how effortlessly it framed his face. He turned to look at me and the dog lifted its head when his hand stopped its path. "There you are. Sorry, the clothes don't fit very well. Their previous owner was far too shapely for her own good."

"Who was the previous owner?" I asked. Stiffly, I sat down on one of the other sofas. I was alone with a man in his bedroom. I had no reason to distrust Kol, he had kept me safe so far, but it was still strange.

The sadness flitted across his face again before disappearing, so fast that I could not be sure I saw it. "They were my sister Bria's. They got left behind."

"Left behind?"

Kol smiled but it was different than his usual carefree grin - tighter. "My parents thought it would be best if they sent her to live in Ghant. She didn't take some of her things."

It seemed that he was not telling me the entire story and I opened my mouth to inquire further about his sister and how she was faring in Ghant. Before I had the chance, Kol brightly spoke up and changed the subject. "It doesn't look like the rain is going to let up anytime soon. You should wait here until it at least slows down a bit. Unless you don't want to stay, then I can arrange to have a carriage take you back to where ever it is you're staying. It must be a bit of a shock finding out I'm not who you thought I was."

"I've been finding that out a lot lately." I shrugged. I was almost used to being completely thrown by Kol – Nikolaus – by now. "I suppose it could be a bit comforting knowing that you are a gentlemen and not a wily street urchin."

Kol winked at me and his mouth tilted in a sideways grin. "Oh, I am most definitely more of a wily street urchin than a gentleman."

"I suppose that is true. You did rob me and we were chased down by a gang of thugs. Not to mention you didn't even say a thing to me at the ball and just stood by watching me." I said dryly. Perhaps if I would have known that the man behind the mask was Kol, I wouldn't have felt so embarrassed. Still, knowing now that it was him I felt twinges of embarrassment anyway. "Did you laugh at me behind your mask?"

"Of course not," he assured. "I thought that I recognized you behind yours and wanted to affirm that I was right. That little scamp who so rudely informed you that you looked stupid was completely wrong you know. You looked lovely. The dress suited you well."

I ducked my head at the unexpected compliment and fumbled for what to say. I was unused to receiving compliments so offhandedly, as if it wasn't a compliment at all and just a statement of fact. "That's very kind of you to say. Your own costume was quite elaborate."

"Father thinks that it is distasteful to completely hide ones identity at those sorts of things. I think that it wards away unwanted conversations with people who I do not particularly want to talk to. Not that it worked well the night of that particular ball. The captain could not have introduced me any louder to his friends and anyone he could find to listen." Kol shook his head in slight annoyance of how loud his father could be.

"He was rather loud, Niko," I emphasized the nickname Captain Rydell had called his son by. "I think everyone in the room heard when he talked about you."

Kol winced at the name. "Please, don't call me that. It is such a silly name. Just forget you have ever heard it."

I grinned at Kol's distaste of his own name. I then remembered something else that his father had said. "So that means that you are engaged to be married"

He tilted his head in confirmation. "My parents have arranged a marriage for me since they think it is high time I settle down with a wife and provide them with grandchildren. The girl is the daughter to one of the more well known socialites in Pharyss – a good match."

For some reason I couldn't imagine Kol married to a socialite's daughter. Not the Kol I knew who picked people's pockets and ran barefoot through the streets wearing a pauper's clothes. What does his future wife think of his antics? "I congratulate you on your upcoming wedding then. I hope you two have a long and happy marriage."

Kol smiled now. His face had turned as serious as such an impish face can be while he spoke of his future. "My father is giving me the chance to fall in love with Miss Roitfield by throwing us together as much as possible before the wedding is planned, but he says whether we are in love or not the wedding will take place before next spring. Speaking of which, are you busy tomorrow? I have a day off from my courting duties and there is a wonderful acrobatic act in the Shetland Theater."

The sudden change of direction in conversation threw me. "How does that relate to what we were speaking of? Won't you want Miss Roitfield to go with you?"

"I'm told she is going to be engaged in pre-ball pampering tomorrow to look her best. While my father wants me to fall in love with her, I do not like her so much as to sit and wait in dress shops all day."

I doubted that his betrothed was anything like Giselle and Victoria, yet I saw little enjoyment for him in a woman's dress shop. I shrugged. Giselle was going to go to the royal menagerie with Christian and as far as I knew Victoria was spending the day with Hector. "I was planning on wandering the festivities in the town tomorrow anyway. Maybe it would be better to see something like an acrobatics show instead of just wandering."

That's right, duckies! Kol is not some common thief (as a fair few of you have already cleverly figured out), but rather the son of the city's highest ranking officer and the husband-to-be of some mystery woman who will be revealed in time.