"There you are," Jara smiled in front of the door that led to the staff quarters. He was dressed casually this morning, in green trousers and an aqua shirt that revealed much of his tanned chest. Gesturing with the two cups of dark liquid in his hands he frowned. "Why are you wearing that?"

Leyla brushed at the coat of the lower-rank security uniform she had borrowed, then took the cup Jara held out to her. The scent of vela filled her with pleasure. "It will be easier to inspect the new employees if they don't pay attention to me."

"Hmm!" Jara grunted as he pushed open the door and held it open for her to follow. "I spent a long time picking out those dresses that were delivered to your room, you know?" He continued muttering to himself as he descended the stairs that led to the underground network of chambers: "I should have known seeing you in a dress was going to take more effort."

Leyla ignored the grumbles of the Mahsap and took grateful sips of her drink instead. After making the rounds of the gambling rooms without incident, she had stayed awake most of the night, listening for any movement outside her room. It didn't matter that there were hidden guards stationed across the staircases and hallway, she had been on edge with the Prorex sleeping so close to her. What if he got hurt because of her again?

"Gather round!" A familiar voice pulled her out of her thoughts as Jara opened the door that led into the staff canteen. "Last time we talked about how to recognise signs of a potentially aggressive guest. What do you do if someone looks like they may get violent?" Takai, the head of security at the Jade Palace and her sparring partner of half a dozen years, paced in front of the gathered employees.

"Notify the security team immediately!" Thirteen members of the waiting staff spoke in unison, their voices echoing over the mostly empty canteen. The tables and chairs had been moved for the lesson and only a few people loitered on the outer edges of the ongoing class.

"We continued your self defence teachings for non-security employees after you left," Jara spoke in a low tone so as not to disturb the lesson. Leyla watched Takai demonstrate a simple over the shoulder throw with a strange sense of pride. "There are no employees in Jade Palace that have not been taught at least the basics. Even this lot, who are the newest arrivals are capable of the bare minimum."

"Takai has done a great job." Leyla said watching a skinny red-head escape her much larger partner's hold, and throw him over her shoulder.

"It's all thanks to you," Jara winked at her. Then he was stepping forward. "You are working hard."

The group all stopped training at the call. She could tell from the open stares and hasty bows that they recognised Jara despite his casual clothing.

"Mahsap!" Takai saluted, his long bone-braided hair swinging as he bowed over his extended arms. Then his gaze shifted to Leyla and his eyes widened, "Utan - I mean Mahsa-"

"You're doing great work here," Leyla cut him off. The new recruits did not know her face and would hopefully assume she was a regular guard.

Her gaze ran over the faces of the trainees. Jara had been working his way through the alibis of the staff since the murder of his second fiancé, but it was slow going when it had to do be done without raising suspicion. This lot were the last he needed to investigate, but they simply didn't have the time. Considering their pretend wedding was meant to happen in two days, one of these employees could try to kill her at any moment. With that in mind, she had insisted on coming down here to judge their characters and capabilities for herself.

"I am trying my best," Takai continued, little wrinkles appearing at the corners of his dark brown eyes as he smiled. "But it is impossible to replace you."

"Replace her?"

"What does that mean?"

"She was the trainer before Teacher?"

The rampant whispers were cut off when a young man with short red feathers bound to his sectioned hair stepped forward. "What do you mean by that, Teacher? You are the best fighter in Asch!" He folded his arms over his chest; he was bulky, with the type of muscles that came from lifting heavy weights for many moons. "How could she be anywhere near as good as you? No offence, miss."

Leyla's lip curled and she took a deep drink from her cup. That fellows ego would get in his way in a fight, but that was for Takai to fix not her.

"Dovit!" Takai admonished. "I have warned you before to look beyond what your eyes expect see."

"What am I supposed to see?" Dovit complained, looking from his teacher to Leyla. "She's got a security uniform on, so she must be okay, but Teacher, please, look at that face! No one in their right mind would raise a hand to such a gorgeous woman, so I doubt she's ever been in a fight. Plus she's half your age..."

Jara tried to hold back his laughter as colour seeped into Leyla's face. Gorgeous? The idiot was not only an egotist, he was also blind. Either way, he could be crossed off the list of possible perpetrators. With this kind of uncontrolled tongue, there was no way he could have plotted the murder of two high-ranking women and made it look like an accident to boot.

"I don't know how apologise for my student." Takai bowed, looking ashamed.

"You!" Leyla passed her empty cup to an amused looking Jara and took two steps forward, her eyes narrowing on Dovit's surprised face. She had planned to keep a low profile, but testing this lots abilities first hand would likely prove to be more useful than mere observation. "You need not respect me, but making your Teacher feel shame is unacceptable."

Dovit held up his hands, "I was just saying-"

"Don't say," she spoke curtly, "Show me instead. Let us see how you defeat an inexperienced fighter."

Feeling the sudden tension, the rest of the students looked to their Teacher, then took several steps back.

Dovit frowned, "Hey, now. I don't hit women."

Leyla circled him, looking at his form, seeing his weaknesses from his stance, the way he shifted his weight. "Don't worry, you can't hit me even if you tried."

"Look here, miss -"

She gave him a swift, light jab on the shoulder. It was nothing, a tap, but his balance was so bad it knocked him back several steps. There was no use fighting him, he would not learn from the encounter, he needed to go back to the basics. "There are times when conflict is unavoidable. A drunk guest, a jealous partner... and there are times when someone will grab you." Leyla walked slowly, circling him as he pulled himself together. He was angry now. Very angry - the silly boy.

"I don't want to hurt you, so don't push me!" Dovit seethed.

"I'm going to grab your wrist." Leyla said, ignoring his wrath. "I want you to try to get free."

"What the hell are you saying?"

Dovits wrist was thick beneath her grasp. Incensed, he yanked with all his might, but he was flailing uselessly. Leyla let him struggle for a while longer, watching the crowd's reactions before she let go. Surprise, awe, fear...there was no one suspicious in the group; no one enjoying the use of force or keeping their expression neutral. She could be wrong, but it was unlikely. Years of studying warfare, of learning how to sense danger, had gleaned her instincts.

"Trying to pull away like that will rarely get you free." She addressed the students in the circle now intent on improving their ability to defend themselves.

"What it is likely to do is provoke the assailant into using a second hand to help restrain you." Leyla looked back at Dovit, "Grab my wrist."

The guy did as he was told, his fingers gripping painfully. Leyla twisted her wrist, grabbed Dovit's arm and brought her elbow forward, forcing him to release his hold. "By moving forward into the grasp, and placing your elbow here at the underarm, you will not only get released, you can also pull your assailant to the ground easily."

Dovit's eyes flared at the thought of being thrown to the ground. She hesitated, then giving him a smile, released her hold.