Broken Silence

Kane swirled his mug of ale around on the table instead of drinking it. At least he didn't need to waste money on it, since his newfound status as an undefeated fighter had earned him quite a few new "friends" and they were always more than happy to drag him off to the tavern and buy rounds of drinks, even though Kane himself never had more than one.

He hadn't known a soul here when he had arrived nearly three weeks before, and now he was slightly baffled to find that he had no shortage of company. Particularly company like the voluptuous redhead currently hanging on his arm and gazing at him with a coy smile and baby blue eyes.

"I was worried about you when you took that hit tonight," she purred, lips turning down in a pout.

"I can take a hit or two, Nellie," he said with a crooked half smile. "You don't need to worry your pretty little self about me."

"But he could have damaged that handsome face of yours." Nellie giggled quietly, kissing his cheek. "We wouldn't want that."

Kane didn't reply, someone across the room catching his attention while Nellie's friend started whispering some unimportant gossip to her. It was the pretty girl with the hypnotic eyes he had seen during the fight. She was bustling around the crowded tavern taking orders and delivering mugs of ale to the rowdy patrons. He would never have guessed she worked here of all places. He felt the corner of his mouth twitch up in a small smile as he watched her duck and weave through the crowd, occasionally blowing loose strands of her dark hair out of her eyes.

Nellie didn't let go of Kane as the evening wore on, laughing a little too loudly and clinging to him a little too tightly after she'd had a bit too much to drink. Kane came to the taverns and mingled with the shady characters that resided in The Smokes in the hopes of finding out anything he could about Blackbird; he was sure some of the lower level workers there must frequent bars like this one. If anything, he at least needed someone to help him break into the damn place. Bribery and threats of violence were the language spoken here and Kane was more than ready to become fluent in order to save Camille.

Still, he was a bit distracted that night as he kept watching the raven haired barmaid out of the corner of his eye. He jumped slightly as Nellie pinched his knee under the table. She was staring at him with a small frown and he realized she had been talking to him. Kane hadn't heard a word. He cleared his throat awkwardly.

"You seem a million miles away," she complained, leaning toward him.

"Sorry," Kane muttered.

"I was asking if you wanted to come back to my place tonight." She gave him a sultry smile but Kane was spared answering when her blond, giggly friend spilled her drink, some of it splashing onto Nellie's dress. She screamed girlishly and swatted the blond's arm in irritation. Kane's head snapped around as the men at a nearby table started laughing and catcalling. One of them had an arm around the golden-eyed girl's waist, trying to tug her into a sloppy kiss. Kane glanced around but didn't see the tavern owner, who he had noticed keeping an eye on her all night. She said something to the man grabbing her, but her voice was too soft for Kane to hear.

"Now don't be like that, little pretty," the man slurred. He was plenty loud enough to be heard over the din. When she tried to pull away from him again he stood up, towering over her small frame and pulling her close against his chest. She squirmed uselessly, a trace of fear flickering in her eyes as she looked toward the bar and realized it was empty. Kane was up on his feet without even realizing he had made the decision to do something about this. He moved purposefully through the crowded tavern, and people were quick to move out of his way.

"I think it's about time you went home and slept it off," he said calmly, leaning against the table where the drunkard was still trying to get a little too grabby with the barmaid. The man whipped his head around and blinked at Kane with red eyes.

"What business is it of yours?" he grumbled. "Piss off."

"I'll be glad to. As soon as you let go of the girl."

The other men at the table had gone silent, and other people were starting to take notice of the exchange even though Kane hadn't risen his voice. His arms hung loosely at his sides.

"Stu, you should probably just let her go," one of the drunk's friends muttered to him. Stu snorted dismissively.

"I'm not scared of this kid," he said. Kane arched an eyebrow, easing slightly away from the table. The amicable aura around him vanished, his pale blue and brown eyes narrowing ever so slightly.

"I'm not a kid," he informed Stu.

"Stu, he's Gleason's new star," his friend warned him. Stu blinked, squinting at Kane. Kane gave him an unfriendly smile and the man must have finally recognized him. He stepped back and dropped his arms from around the barmaid. She stumbled back with a gasp and Kane caught her to keep her from falling. He steered her away from Stu's table and back toward the bar.

"Are you all right?" he asked, giving her a much more charming smile than he had given Stu. Her cheeks flamed and she looked down at her shoes.

"Yes," she said softly.

"What's your name?"

She looked up, brow furrowed slightly before hurriedly looking down again. "Malina," she mumbled.

"Malina," he repeated. "That's a lovely name. I'm Kane." He shot her a wink when she peeked up through her lashes. She blushed hard again.

"I...I should get back to work," she squeaked, bustling quickly away from him. Smiling, Kane returned to his own table to find a displeased Nellie pursing her lips at him.

"What was that all about?" she demanded. Kane shrugged.

"I don't condone that sort of behavior," he said simply. "I think I'm going to turn in for the night," he added. "I have another fight tomorrow, I should be well rested. Virgil will kick me to the curb if I lose."

Nellie pouted again, eyes filled with disappointment. Kane shot her a brief smile before slipping out of the tavern to head back to the inn where he was staying. But he paused in the doorway to glance back at Malina, where she was bussing a table. She glanced up and saw him, her eyes widening. She spun around to clean another table, knocking over one of the chairs. Kane smiled again, noticing that the owner had returned and was watching him with a nervous, narrow eyed expression. Kane gave him a jaunty salute before stepping back outside into the crisp evening air.

He hunched his shoulders against the chill and stuffed his hands in his pockets as he walked. His thoughts were conflicted; torn between his constant worry and fear, and a pair of golden eyes framed by long eyelashes. He sighed.

"Focus, Kane," he muttered to himself. "You have a job to do, stupid." He had a mission planned for the next day. He had picked up rumors and chatter about a man named Lionel, who apparently specialized in making less than legal gadgetry and knew everyone's business. He was the best bet Kane currently had of getting any information about Blackbird, and Kane was going to need some impressive lock picking equipment to get into the place. He was starting to get restless; every day he didn't have Cami back felt like a failure. Now that he had a potential lead, he was going to persue it as tenaciously as a dog with a bone.