Let's go back half an hour.
While they waited in line, Irin guarded the carriage while she rummaged through a chest of her uncle's belongings she hadn't yet checked. When she finished, she glanced at Henry's black backpack.
Contrary to appearances, Irin was a polite and quiet girl. She didn't want to invade Henry's privacy, but it was important to remember that Irin was still a child, often driven by curiosity. And so it was in this case.
Opening her backpack, Irin began leafing through strange, colorful books whose writing she didn't understand. She also saw a brown liquid in a plastic bottle.
Putting it aside, Irin put it aside because the liquid in the bottle reminded her of something disgusting, having no idea that the bottle contained a delicious drink.
After several hours of boredom and doing nothing, the girl lay in the driver's seat, staring at the blue sky with her red eyes.
"Hey, you stupid brat!" someone shouted, breaking the girl's silence and peace.
Irin glanced to the side and saw three boys who looked to be about 15. They didn't look particularly remarkable. They weren't wearing poor or rich clothes. They looked like average people.
"What's the matter?" Irin asked, looking calmly at the young men, who were staring at her like an owl at a mouse.
"I see you have quite a nice carriage here." With a mocking smile, the tallest of the trio approached her. "I was wondering if a merchant's carriage like this needed security in this parking lot. I don't know, but there are some really suspicious people hanging around this area."
"Really?" The red-eyed girl raised her eyebrows, feigning innocent ignorance.
"Yes. You're lucky we're here, or something would have happened to you." The young man chuckled, his mocking smile transforming into one that disgusted Irin. "Don't worry, we'll take care of the carriage. You can go and mind your own business."
At those words, all the young men began to laugh, thinking that Irin would simply run away so they could rob the carriage. They were terribly mistaken.
"I'm sorry, but guarding the carriage is absolutely my responsibility, so there's no way I'm going anywhere," Irin replied calmly.
Her response caused all three of them to raise their eyebrows in dismay.
"Listen, you stupid brat," the tallest boy spoke again, his voice stern. "We're trying to be nice here, so be nice and get out of here before things get ugly for your pretty face."
Irin wasn't particularly bothered by his threat. She'd seen other people threaten her uncle like this many times. It often ended in a fight, and Philip rarely emerged victorious. But at this point, what choice did Irin have? Looking around earlier, she hadn't seen any guards nearby, and she wasn't about to scream for help like some coward.
These guys posed a threat to both her and her uncle's business.
And now they were addressing her in a threatening manner.
So Irin decided to defend herself.
The tallest youth didn't even have time to see Irin's fist. It struck him hard across the cheek. Several of his back teeth shattered on impact. Most of the shards flew down his throat, causing excruciating pain.
"How dare you, bitch!" The other two young men lunged at her. She easily dodged their fists, ducking under them and rushing towards them.
She struck the first in the chin, and knocked the second down with a half-turning kick to his cheek.
The leader of the thugs, whom Irin had struck first, stood up with a furious expression. Irin tried to finish him off with a kick to the face, but he dodged sideways, breaking through her defenses.
The young man then delivered a powerful uppercut to her stomach.
Irin coughed loudly, and blood spurted from her mouth. She fell to the ground. Then the other thugs rose and began kicking her. The red-eyed girl felt constant pain until they finally stopped.
"That bitch fucking knocked my teeth out!" the leader of the gang shouted, covering his mouth with his hand.
"Let's at least grab a few things and sell them." His friend advised. "We'll find her later and teach her an even bigger lesson."
The gang leader looked at the cowering Irin and then delivered another furious kick to her stomach.
"Okay, let's get out of here."
........
"And that's pretty much how it went." Irin finished her story as Henryk tried to straighten her out, wiping the blood from her face.
Henryk just shook his head. It was literally a miracle those guys hadn't killed her. Irin was a literal mess of blood when he reached her. He immediately noticed that three crates of goods containing electronic equipment had been taken. Earlier, when Henryk was standing in line with Philip, he had told him that the equipment was useless without special energy. Henryk had spared himself the details, but Philip still believed that the equipment would have some use, allowing him to sell it to some gullible fools.
When Henryk told Irin what had happened at the town hall, she looked worried but not surprised. As if it weren't the first time it had happened.
Then Irin and Henry rode in a carriage to their room at the inn. Of course, Irin was driving, since Henryk had no idea how to handle horses.
Shutting the door behind him, Henryk heaved a sigh of exhaustion. Irin lay down on the bed.
"We have to think of something," the girl finally said, breaking the silence.
"What?" Henry asked, irritated. "Your idiot uncle has racked up more debt in this city than you'll ever see. It takes years of hard work to earn that much money! My life isn't long enough for that."
"Then maybe you can somehow break him out of prison. Maybe you can organize an escape?"
"ME?! ESCAPE! Irin, this is no joke! I'm not Michael Scofield to do something like that!"
Irin fell silent, seeing that it was best not to upset Henry now. After a long moment, Henry calmed down and sat on the edge of the bed next to Irin.
"Okay, let's think in terms of tasks. For now, I'll try to find a job so we don't starve on the streets, and then we'll figure out what to do next. Agreed?"
"Agreed." The red-eyed girl nodded.
This time, Henryk slept on the floor, reluctant to sleep next to a 12-year-old. Earlier, he had been traumatized by a dancing woman who committed suicide. Now he was sober. Staring blankly at the ceiling, he tried to fall asleep.