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My hand rested on my knife, but the gathering throng of people seemed content to stand and watch the Keeper pass, or walk along the street a few metres from the horses.
At least for now.
"Down with the Alpha!" a woman shouted. That was all it took for the chant to change and the mood with it.
"We don't need him here!"
"The Alpha doesn't care about us!"
"Alpha Dex!"
That last had the Keeper turning around in his saddle to stare in surprise.
I took the opportunity to catch his eye. "We should return; go back to the residence, Keeper." A scene like this could turn ugly in a moment. It would only take one—
"Long live the Alpha! Long live the Vault!"
"Your highness," I urged.
Kerina glanced back, her brow creased. She too had her hand near her knife.
Viva gave her a wide-eyed look and pulled down the front of her scarf. Her nostrils flared once before she grimaced and tugged it back into place.
Dex pulled his horse to a stop, raised a hand and waved at the crowd. "Peace, folk!" he called out, but his words were lost in the noise. He tried again, "Peace, please!"
The crowd settled enough to hear his words, but they jostled and several muttered in complaint.
"The Alpha has not forgotten the Vault!" Dex declared. "I would never let him forget. He is working hard to make an heir for his favourite part of the Vault."
A few people muttered in disbelief, but others cheered.
"Have faith that Hades is watching over us all," Dex continued. "Keep the faith, in case a lesser god would try to hold their power over us instead."
Almost as one, the crowd shuddered.
"Praise Hades," an older woman said loudly. "Praise the Keeper and praise the Alpha."
Dex grinned. "Yes, praise all three. They are intertwined, now and forever, for the good of us all."
More than a few faces in the crowd looked sceptical, but they just muttered and shook their heads.
In the middle of them, but slightly apart from those around him, stood a man whose face was covered in a scarf, not unlike Viva's. That wasn't all that unusual in this part of the city, but that wasn't what caught my attention. The man's eyes were firmly fixed on Viva. They narrowed as Dex kicked his horse and the four of us continued down the street. He barely turned his face as Viva rode past, but his gaze was completely unwavering. He didn't even blink.
Then in one moment from the next, he turned and melted into the throng.
For a moment, I thought of going after him, but I wouldn't leave Dex's back unguarded. I would mention the man to the city watch on the way out, although the description would be vague at best.
"See, nothing to worry about," Dex said once we were past the throng.
"I'm not sure I'd call that nothing," Kerina remarked.
I silently agreed and looked back. The crowds had largely dispersed, but a few lingered. If this could happen once, it could happen again. Next time we might not be so lucky. Had Dex not been there, it might have escalated.
Of course, it might not have happened at all, but I suspected it happened more often than I was comfortable with. Between the zealots and the priests, the Vault sat on the tip of a knife, ready to be sliced down the middle.
Did the Alpha know about the growing sentiment amongst the citizens of the Vault? Surely Dex had told him? Although, the Alpha might view the unrest as incompetence on Dex's part and seek to replace him.
With who, I didn't know. That was the Alpha's business, not that of a lowly bodyguard, even if I had known the Keeper for most of his life.
