Niti stared at the four unconscious mercenaries on the floor, her gaze shifting slowly back to Rudy. The utter lack of exertion on his face contrasted sharply with the groan of the man waking up near the shattered barrels.
She brushed a strand of hair behind her ear, her fingers still tingling from the residual warmth of that bizarre sensory link in the crypts.
"You expect me to believe you are just a well-timed bystander," Niti said, stepping past a discarded short sword. "You staged that entire fight. You took a hit to your shoulder on purpose just to make it look difficult."
Rudy shrugged, rolling his shoulder to check the shallow tear in his fabric. "A little theatricality keeps people from asking too many questions. Clearly, it failed with you."
"Because I have eyes," Niti replied, though she kept her voice low as she glanced toward the exit. "The mercenary who ran will bring reinforcements. We need to move before the entire shipyard locks down."
