Hob Lesatz for Hire

Arcanoir: Magic and fantastical creatures returned to the world at the turn of the century. But by the 1930s, it had only made the shadows that much darker.

"Sure, I’m Hob Lesatz. For hire. That’s what it says on the door, anyway. But good etching won’t get you a thing down on the waterfront in San Francisco. Not when you can get it just as nice on a tombstone. But if you’re going to make a living, it helps if people can find you without a locator spell. I do whatever I can to shake a couple nickels together and hope they mate, especially if it takes a strong back and a stronger stomach. But some days it doesn’t matter how much money you have because no doctor can vaccinate you and no mage can ward you against trouble. Especially when a dame straight out of your past comes sashaying in with a double helping of it."

Once upon a time, there was a woman Hob loved, but that was back before he did a nickel in Alcatraz. Now Roxy's back, and she needs Hob's help. Helping her will run Hob up against a feral hooker, her viciously deranged pimp, and even a few faces from his past.

The hooker and the pimp will leave scars, but it's Hob's past that could kill him.

"Hob Lesatz for Hire" is an Arcanoir short story by Joshua Unruh. Approximately 15,000 words.