The Good Thief
an excerpt

He first heard the horse from several miles away. At the time he had been foraging through the brushes, but he quickly climbed a tree to get a better view of the scenario. It was a single rider, riding his horse at a reckless speed towards him, apparently completely unaware of the danger he was about to face. The man was tall, dressed completely in black and gold. He was elaborately dressed with a long black scarf that danced behind him, defying gravity with such ease that it seemed to have a mind of its own. The man had his face covered, presumably to keep the bugs and the dirt that his horse kicked up out of his face. His eyes were barely visible through the black, but it didn’t take long to see them. The mans eyes were red.
It didn’t take Caleb to figure out who the man riding towards him was, or at least get a general idea of who the man was. He could tell from the elaborate gold chains that anchored his horse to him that he must’ve been rich. Coins hung from the horse’s mouth, ears and down his body which tinkled with every stomp of the horses hoof. With each moment the sound increased, making the mans position all the more clear. Caleb closed his eyes and listened.
He could hear everything. The wind gently rustling the branches, the fluttering of wings of a nearby hummingbird, and the ever present pounding of the hooves as the horse traveled closer and closer. Gently pressing himself against the branch that overhung the road. Within a matter of moments the richly clothed man would be underneath him, and that would be when he would strike. The man was a firefly, and Caleb was the spider. Carefully, cautiously he slipped his leg over the branch anchoring himself to it. He gripped the dagger from the leather strap which anchored the deadly piece of silver to the side of his leg.
He breathed in. He could practically smell the mans rich cologne as he galloped towards them. He could see the dust fly behind him, and the spittle, white and frothy, fly from the horses mouth. The horse had clearly been running for a long time, it looked fatigued and had small cuts around his legs. It’s once brilliant coat was dusty and dirty. Even the mans clothed, which from a distance had seemed pristine and blemish free were dirty and dusty from the travel. Caleb assumed he’d been traveling for a long time as the man looked tired. A smile slid across Caleb’s lips. He enjoyed it when they were tired. It would make this easy for him.
As soon as the man passed under the tree where Caleb had been residing, Caleb put his plan into action. In a swift move that was as calculated as it was efficient, he swooped down at the exact moment the man passed under neath him. He fell one foot to the left of the man, with his elbow out. With a devastating force Caleb connected with the man’s chest knocking him clean off his horse. His scarf billowed out before engulfing him in his own fabric. Caleb could feel the scarf’s soft, satin-like fabric engulf the two of them. It blocked out any of the moonlight that lit up the night plunging them both into a silky darkness. Caleb however didn’t need the light. He had practiced this maneuver many times before. He knew precisely how hard to hit the man and exactly how the two would land.
The man flailed helplessly and Caleb smiled. The maneuver had worked perfectly. Caleb let go of the branch, and felt himself turning over in the air, spinning like a cat preparing to land. He never let his eyes leave the man in black for a second, as that one second could mean the difference between a perfectly executed robbery, and breaking his neck. The two of them danced in the air as the horse, scared and riderless scampered away. If the man was lucky the horse would turn around and come back. If not, the horse would keep riding until it found something or someone better. Caleb could tell that at least the horse was well fed.
The man landed on his back, his black robes covering him completely and wrapping him like a mummy. His screams muffled by his own scarf. He landed hard, and Caleb taking advantage of the situation, fell with his knee pressed against the mans sternum. He landed gently, hardly rustling the dirt. The man began coughing wildly as Caleb gently increased the pressure on his sternum. He looked down at the fly he had so effortlessly captured in his web. It was almost too easy.
With a fluid and well practiced ease Caleb took his dagger and pressed it against the rich strangers throat. Carefully he gripped the scarf that covered the mans face and ripped it away from him. Like liquid it passed over him and launched into the air, floating up and drifting quickly off into a nearby tree, it’s free tendrils blowing in the wind.
Caleb gave the man a quick flick of the dagger, pressing it against the man’s throat. For the first time the man looked at him, and Caleb saw resentment in the mans eyes, which was no surprise. He wasn’t sure what else was behind the mans curious expression, but whatever it was, it intrigued him.
“Who are you?” Caleb asked. He looked down at the man as the lights danced across his face. The man didn’t speak. No surprise.
“I asked you who you are.” Caleb asked, but he could tell the man wasn’t going to say anything to him. He may have been knocked off of his horse, but his dignity still seemed intact. 'one way to fix that.' Caleb thought to himself.