The town of Saad and a dark secret.

Lexi, renting a carriage, was heading to the small town of Saad which was in one of the quieter areas of Rivera, with it been mainly an area of farming. The area was not one of the richest but not was it poor, the people living a comfortable existence. The town was isolated, been set off the main road and the road out of Saad only lead back to the main road but just further along.

The reason Lexi was heading to Saad was that travellers had reported that the town had no women. No request for help had been received but Lexi decided she would investigate and was determined to find what had happened to the women of the town.

The carriage dropped Lexi off on the outskirts of the town, having passed through quiet countryside dotted with small, well tended farms and bright wild meadows full of tall grass and wild flowers.

The carriage dropped Lexi off at the outskirts of the town at her request and the driver headed back the way they had come, hoping to make a good way home before night fall. The town was small and appeared well kept and tidy with well tended cottages with neat and tidy gardens of either lawn or vegetable plots. As she walked to the main square it was hard to believe that anything was wrong in the town as she headed to the main square in the late afternoon glow of the sun.

The main market square was like the rest of the town, small and neat. To the left a large Inn took up all one side, opposite where Lexi had entered the square was a large grand building that appeared to be the town hall and most likely the mayors house too. Along the remaining two sides were what appeared to be shops that were closed.

The centre of the square was rather odd though. A long row of stocks stood, facing the blacksmiths. Lexi wondered how often the stocks got used, she couldn't imagine that there was much crime in the area.