Contents
8. Bully Boy
Overview
Kinch, set to meet Galva at dawn, detours to a mummers’ show and picks a few pockets. In Sparktown, he impulsively rescues a blind cat from bounty hunters, slashing and tripping them. Arrested by a chainsdam and processed by a sardonic clerk-justice, he’s jailed—cat and knives intact—jeopardizing his rendezvous and momentum west.
Summary
After Galva sets a dawn rendezvous by Haros’s tower, Kinch caches his gear and heads to Cadoth’s square. He watches a mummers’ Crowning Play mocking Ispanthian royalty, using the distraction to cut a purse and lift an earring before slipping away.
In Sparktown’s market by the eel stalls, Kinch notices a blind tabby navigating by scent. Two teen cat-catchers arrive to claim bounties, killing a ginger cat and aiming for the blind one. Kinch intervenes, first bluffing with coin, then slashing one catcher’s cheeks and tripping the other to seize the blind cat and run.
A chainsdam abruptly collars Kinch mid-flight and marches him to the gaol. Before a wry clerk-justice, Kinch denies theft but admits to tripping and brandishing a small knife, defending the act as “sporting” mercy for the blind animal. The justice, amused, allows Kinch to keep the cat and orders him to a cell.
Kinch and the cat—now called Bully Boy—are locked up, his knives improbably left on him. His impulsive rescue has landed him in prison on the eve of his crucial sunrise meeting with Galva, threatening their planned departure west.
Who Appears
- Kinch Na ShannackNarrator-thief who pickpockets during a mummers’ play, rescues a blind cat, is arrested, and jailed after facing a sardonic clerk-justice.
- Chainsdam (female constable)Swiftly apprehends Kinch mid-escape, manacles him, and delivers him with the cat to the gaol.
- Clerk-justiceQuestions Kinch with dry humor, notes his guild ties, allows him to keep the cat, and consigns him to a cell.
- Bully Boy (blind cat)Blind tabby Kinch saves from cat-catchers; remains docile in custody and accompanies him to jail.
- GalvaIspanthian rider who scheduled a sunrise meeting; her plan is jeopardized by Kinch’s arrest.
- Cat-catchers (two teen boys)Bounty-seekers who shoot cats; one is slashed and the other tripped by Kinch during the rescue.