The man lingered in the shadows of the main street, his dark eyes on the crowd. It was a busy night in the Silk Houses, and the man knew there would be easy marks on the streets. He spent a lot of time in the area, frequenting the gambling dens and brothels, and he owed a great deal of money as a result. Sometimes he won big at the gambling houses, but others - like the night before - he lost spectacularly. While he normally worked as a cutpurse on the main drag of the Silk Houses, his losses the night before had made him desperate. Tonight he needed a bigger mark - and besides, there was something more fun about a face-to-face robbery than simply cutting purses. And, if he chose the right mark...
A girl barely into womanhood exited an eating house on the other side of the street, and the man's attention was immediately drawn to her as she tucked some money away in a purse worn on her belt. She was a pretty young thing, and she dressed well. She didn't look rich, but neither did she look poor. What she did look like was an easy mark. She barely looked at her surroundings as she hurried down the main street. The man followed, a predatory gleam in his eye, and grinned to himself as the girl turned down a seldom-used side street. This was going to be fun.
"Excuse me, miss?" he called as he followed her down the street, far enough from the main drag that her cries would go unheard. "I think you dropped this."
A girl barely into womanhood exited an eating house on the other side of the street, and the man's attention was immediately drawn to her as she tucked some money away in a purse worn on her belt. She was a pretty young thing, and she dressed well. She didn't look rich, but neither did she look poor. What she did look like was an easy mark. She barely looked at her surroundings as she hurried down the main street. The man followed, a predatory gleam in his eye, and grinned to himself as the girl turned down a seldom-used side street. This was going to be fun.
"Excuse me, miss?" he called as he followed her down the street, far enough from the main drag that her cries would go unheard. "I think you dropped this."
