The old man's eyes widened, the shine of gold reflected in his rheumy eyes. Soleia spotted the gears in his head turning as self-preservation and greed began to wage war in his mind. She decided to keep the coins, watching as he made a hastily aborted motion to grab them.
"You don't even need to join us on the boat," Soleia said. "We'll take the boat at night when the guards are busy. In return, you shall get more gold than you'll ever need."
The old man nodded his head frantically. "Alright then. As long as you can't pin it on me. It's good."
Gratified, Soleia handed the old man a few gold coins. "Consider this a downpayment." And then she took one look at the boat and decided to give him some more― not because the little dinghy was worth even a gold coin, but that boat might be that old man's livelihood. Since they were taking the boat, she wanted to leave him a way to feed himself.
