His eye followed the men spreading out in front of him and the girl. He'd been in worse situations, but not by much. He grinned evilly as he thought of the situation that had taken his eye, and that had been a “friendly” game. He was aware of the woman moving behind him, but he paid her scant attention. If she was armed, he was the heir apparent. He inclined his head as the few men he'd had followed him surrounded the bandits.

“I do think you may want to reconsider your options,” Arturo said. He lunged at the bandit leader before giving him a chance to answer. A large sweeping arc of his sword down toward the leader. The clang of the two swords meeting reverberated though the small clearing.