Zahne was still piecing together what had just happened when he was asked if he was alright. The hood slipped back when he cast up his glance, revealing the twisted nest of scars that composed half of his face. A beefy hand pulled the cover quickly when bystanders gasped at the horror of his face.
“Look mam. It’s ole Zahne the Lazy. He’s got a face only his mudder could love.”
His teeth ground together again as he stood and tried to ignore the comment that tore at his pride. He meant to answer the young woman, but she turned her attention back to her bird before he could reply.
“He got his legs back, the nasty ole cyclops. Pa says he got the face of a cow right after it got its ‘what for’ outside the slaughter house.”
The words brought laughter from the crowd, which spurred Zahne out after the retreating man. His anger became swollen and he would be damned to let that be seen by the other Breelanders.
Donnovan wiped the blood from his eyes when the bird was called off. It gave him the opportunity to dart down the adjoining alley once he saw the lumbering scarred man’s form bounding towards him.
“Miss, if you want your coin, you better come with….just stay behind me.” The words were hasty and called over his shoulder as he made to catch the fleeing criminal. By the time Zahne had made the corner, Chickweed was almost to the end of the alley. The intersection beyond had a crowd surrounding the communal well and it would be just seconds before the man disappeared into it.
Without thinking, Zahne reached out for anything that he could toss at the villian. The sill of a back window was all that he could reach; months of repressed anger and self-disgust filled his hands with strength and he tore at the masonry. A jagged piece of the wall erupted into the warrior’s hands and in a fluid motion he tossed the misshapen stone at his fleeing target.
The stone sailed wide and his heart began to sink; Donnovan would be warned now and flee the city…never to be seen again. Every second that passed wrenched at the beaten man; the knowledge that he failed one more time bearing such weight that Zahne was driven to his knees. At the last moment, pain exploded in the twisted Breelander's head. He clutched at his face as the lancing pain stole any logic from his thoughts.
The pain also turned Zahne’s attention away from the stone: in mid-air it shifted its trajectory and slammed against a side wall. This caused the missile to ricochet and right its course. With a meaty thud, the rock slammed into the back of Chickweed’s head. Flesh folder under the pressure of the assault and bone caved in where it was impacted. Yet still Donnovan ran, though he was no longer aware of his own faculties. The long legs continued to spin until the conman slammed through the crowd and nose-dived in the well before him.
