“Oh. This . . .” Bonnie frowned down at the item for half a second before her face then lit up again like a firework exploding across the sky. “WHAT?! This is such an amazing item. Boss, boss! Boss?! Are you trying to win me over? You’re not trying to get out of paying me for future missions with this, are you? I mean, it might work, but— Wow! I’ve never had a guy give me anything before. Now, the next time I stalk my prey, I can murder him before he even sees me coming! I’ll be able to take on much better contracts!”

“Calm down,” Lucas said sternly, noticing that her exuberance was starting to draw a crowd. “I also have another question for each of you: How do you feel about both playing the Healer one more time?”

“What? Really? I get a baddy assassin class, and you are shafting me with the Healer again?” Bonnie winced. “I want to kill people with the new class!” she exclaimed.

Lucas knew that feeling. There was nothing worse than getting a new toy and not being able to use it—or a new axe and not being able to chop someone in half with it. “‘Cause we won’t be killing anyone,” he said, extending his hand even though he knew that she’d reject him. “But if you got a problem with it, I can always take back the cloak . . .”

“Fine. But you’re gonna have to pay me double,” she insisted.

Lucas kept his hand out. “Pay you? So, you want gold instead of the cloak?”

Bonnie glared at Lucas’s hand. “Fine, meanie. FINE! You get this one as a freebie, but don’t expect me to throw out another again any time soon.”

“Cold bed in the future there, buddy,” Nick snickered. “But if you need me to heal, that’s fine. Just make sure we get the quest turn-in first. I need my experience.”

“So, what’s the plan?” Bonnie asked.

Lucas grinned as he leaned forward and whispered to the two of them. He pointed to one of the fences as discreetly as possible and described his plan, which was simply to grab the princess and then try to make a run and a jump for it.

After he finished with his explanation, Bonnie rolled her eyes and said, “You’re insane. You know that, right? If you get me killed, I’m going to keep that cloak and still expect a little payment for my losses.”

“More importantly,” Nick started, “if I die, then I’m definitely going to—”

A loud voice called out from behind the trio, interrupting Nick before he could finish. “What are you doing here, brother? And with Negative of all people?”

Lucas recognized the voice, and he instantly stiffened.

“Oh my, Negative? Is that really you? You look different,” the next voice said.