Kandral clutched his chest "What is going here, my daughter... Get out of that dwarf’s arms this minute!!! How dare you interact with a boy!!! You have spoiled my honour and you dare approach my house in the arms of an unworthy dwarf! How dare you?”
Thandrili jumped out of Byli's arms and bobbed to her father and hugged her mother hard.
Swaying on her feet, her head ringing from the blow she had received she really didn't understand what had gone on. “Oh Mother... He rescued me... He is my Dwarf!!!”
Buhni closed her eyes and felt the tears squeeze out... She had made a solemn promise to help Byli and he had delivered his end... Now she was honour bound to deliver hers!
"Oh mother... He rescued me! He came for me!"
Her daughter wept copious tears and Buhni could but nothing but hold her daughter tight and shed tears of her own!
With a heavy heart Byli approached the town jail... He bowed low before the Guard captain and submitted himself to being incarcerated back in the cell he left only twelve short hours ago.
"If I go from here to be hanged, it was worth it! To save my love, I will happily give my life!"
=================
Byli heard a shrill giggle from the next cell... "Oh Mahal, It's that that evil Dwarf!"
"Welcome home, boy... how'dya feel about having your girlfriend [beaten]? [With ya not there to protect her?] Mmmmm she was [crying] and she [groaned] for [hours] after I [worked her over]!"
"Oh Mahal she sure [screamed] when I [hit] her with my long club... you ever been there boy? Or are you as lacking in [brass] as you are in intelligence?"
Byli shoved his fist through the bars and into the evil Dwarf's face, sending him flat on his back, out cold from the blow.
"Oh the cruel evil of this Dwarf... To have done that to his Thrandili... He needed to die and right now!”
Byli fumed and paced his cell. Mahal... If only they hadn't found his lockpicks!
Byli reached at arm’s length and grabbed the dwarf's leg... Pulling it through the bars he leant his weight on it and felt the bones snap! "Feel pain, my evil friend! You will have a wall of pain from me for your defilement of my love!"
Byli took a leather thong from his belt and tied the Dwarf's leg to the bars...
He waited quietly in his cell for him to wake up. Eyes dark and brooding, no sign of pity on his face.
===============
Night had come to the homestead. Kandral and Buhni marched toward Thorin's Hall prison, both knew exactly what had to be done. The two nodded to each other as they entered the Hall, it was dark and none to clean.
"Is this how we keep those yet to be judged?" said Kandral to the guard captain, "if I recall correctly this Hall receives a generous monthly stipend from Lord Dwalin's administration for cleaning, prisoner food, prisoner garments...", Kandral looked around the prison not pleased at all at what he saw. "You and your lads wouldn't be spending that silver at Runulf's now would you?", Kandral gave the guard captain a stern look who went pale. "You know... according to the law... that is stealing from the Lord... and well... I wouldn't want to be in your boots when Lord Dwalin hears about what's been going on here, master Guard-captain."
The guard-captain's eyes opened wide in utter fear. "But master Kandral, I swear we will clean this place up... and ensure the prisoners are given the best food and garments, if at our own expense if need be! By Mahal, I swear it! But please don't report us to Lord Dwalin." he pleaded, now on his knees.
"Hmm, I don't know about that lad... I'll need some assurances first.... ", said Kandral.
"Name it Lord Kandral, I will see it done", spoke the Guard-captain, helped back up by Buhni.
"Well for one thing, you'll release that young lad over there", Kandral pointed at Byli in the cell.
"But Lord... I can't, he ran from prison, assaulted another and... "
The guard captain was cut short by Kandral's interjection: "hmmm... well, can't say I've tried. Off to Lord Dwalin then. I bid you a good day sir and wish you good fortune on the other side of those bars, may you long keep that beard of yours", Kandral added with an acted sense of compassion.
"No wait!", spoke the Guard-captain quickly, "alright! But don't speak of it again," he sighed, "he'll be released in the morning. Now surely that will do? Right? Right??", spoke the guard captain with a look of desperation in his eyes.
"Hmm, well, you see, "said Kandral slowly, "there are soooo many offenses, not to mention the question of harmed honour on the part of the Lord himself..... well, I don't know to be honest. Let's discuss the matter in detail", Kandral put his arm over the guard captain and beckoned the two other night guards who had been looking at the discussion with bated breath. Like young dogs they were led out the main prison hall into a smaller chamber and as he did so Kandral whispered to his wife "You're up".
Buhni nodded, looked around and saw no other apart from the prisoners. She stepped toward the cell of Durtin and put the key in the lock and opened the cell. The key she had cleverly pick-pocketed off the guard captain while helping him back on his feet after all that groveling he did toward her husband. Slowly she stepped toward Durtin, who seemed asleep. Byli woke up in the adjacent cell, startled at the sight of Buhni in the cell with the dangerous dirty dwarf and said: "No, mistress Buhni, get out of there!".
But Buhni had no ears for such pleadings and stepped toward the prisoner, who at that time opened his eyes. He looked at his leg and got into a rage panic, squealing like a pig being dragged to slaughter. Buhni rushed toward Durtin, lifted him clean off the ground and smashed him firmly against the bars of the cell and whispered to him in a slow, determined, yet ice cold voice: "You touched my daughter.... you took her honour and that of our family by touching her... NO ONE TOUCHES MY CHILDREN". Durtin's eyes were drenched in fear and dread, utterly terrified at the power of this dwarf woman who clean lifted him off the ground without flinching.
"What are you going to do... no... I beg of you... don't!
