by H. M. Clarke
“Dagan? But he’s her Pair?” Banar replied defensively.
“You should be asking why those girls were roaming the halls half naked at that hour of the morning Lily. Bet they didn’t speak much on that.”
“Half naked?” The color on Banar’s face quickly flushed more red at each new revelation. For all his talk and bragging, Banar was inexperienced when it came to women. The man would probably faint dead away if a woman he liked actually showed him any affection in return. Banar had the looks, and the girls did moon over him, but he rarely showed an interest in any of them.
“No, they didn’t…”
“Dagan was there because I was running late. He was hurrying me up.”
“You? Late? You’re never late.” Banar’s embarrassment quickly vanished at the change in focus.
“I’m late when he doesn’t tell me when or where to meet him.”
“Just as I’m late in coming to meet you for dinner.” Dagan sat down on the bench opposite them and beamed a smile at both Lily and Banar as they both jumped in guilty surprise. “You will find that things will eventually even themselves up in this relationship.” He then looked back to Ryn. “When you’re finished, we need to go and see the Knights Commander. I have new orders from Kaldor, delivered by bird this afternoon.”
Ryn nodded, trying not to let too much of her inner curiosity show in her face. She was burning to find out what had caused that outburst of anger from him. Banar’s comment about Lily earlier started Ryn thinking about what exactly Dagan can sense from her over their link. When they had some time, the two of them are going to talk about it.
“The Knights Commander have finished eating, perhaps we should see them now before they turn in for the night?”
“Yes lets,” Dagan replied. He then raised an eyebrow at Lily and grinned. “You really should ask those three girls why they were climbing back into the barracks through a hallway window in such a state of undress.”
“They were really climbing in through a window?”
Dagan nodded.
Lily giggled and then gave Dagan a conspiratorial smile. “Just wait until Geia hears about this!”
“Lily… Please…”
“Banar, don’t be such a stick in the mud. Gossip is the only excitement we ever get around here.”
Banar groaned and rested his head on his hand, a look of pure defeat on his face.
Dagan rose from the table and Ryn followed suit and she followed Dagan as he made his way past the tables and chairs up to the high table where the Knights Commander were sitting and talking with the other officers.
As they stopped in front of the dais, the talk at the table halted and all eyes focused on the Magister dressed in black. Ryn stood a step behind to Dagan’s right as was the custom of a junior officer with her gaze respectfully lowered to the floor. She wanted to show her commanders that even though her Paring was ‘unusual,’ she was going to try to uphold Blackwatch traditions. Ryn still wore her cloak, the triform symbol of the shield, sword and staff displayed prominently over her left breast and right shoulder where it was stitched in silver thread.
Dagan gave the table a slight bow. “Knights Commander, I have received orders from the Lord Tribune in Kaldor. I wish to present them to you. Can we speak in private?”
Ryn risked looking up and saw the two men look at each other. Hembrook gave a slight nod and Doran turned back to Dagan, a flash of pained resignation flashed across this face. “Come to our office first thing tomorrow morning and present your papers. We can discuss your disposition and requests then, Yes?”
Dagan nodded. “Very well, I will see you both first thing tomorrow.”
∞∞∞
“Where do you want to go to talk?” Ryn asked once they were out of the Great Hall.
“Talk?” Dagan’s tone was distracted, his mind seemed to be elsewhere.
“About our mission, remember? We were going to talk about it tonight.” Ryn stopped in her tracked and grabbed his arm to get his full attention.
“Ah, right. We were.”
“Were? What do you mean were?” Ryn felt her eyebrows dip into a frown as it dawned on her that she was being put off.
“Kathryn, we will talk about this, but I just can’t do it right now. I’ll meet up with you in the morning after my meeting with the Knights Commander and I promise I will tell you all that I am able.”
“What is stopping you from telling me now?” she asked fully knowing what the answer would be if her past experience of Dagan was anything to go by. A cadet walked passed them in the Hallway, and they both watched the boy as he disappeared around a corner.
Once his footsteps had receded, Dagan spoke. “I have some Tribunal business to attend to that can’t wait.”
“Is that what made you angry earlier tonight?”
“Angry?”
“I felt it over the Link when I was eating dinner,” Ryn said. “You felt as if you wanted to punch someone’s teeth out.”
“Partly. Though I wouldn’t go as far as removing anyone’s teeth.” Dagan quickly rubbed his fingers over his forehead and then gave her a rueful smile. “I’m sorry you felt that. I know you told me earlier to practice blocking but…”
“That one slipped out?” Ryn shrugged her shoulders. “We’ll both get better at it with time.”
“And time is something that I don’t have at the moment. I need to go.” Dagan started to back away. “I’ll meet you tomorrow morning after I see Doran and Hembrook,” he said pointing a finger at her chest.
Ryn nodded. “Okay Dagan. I’ll see you then.”
And then the man disappeared through the door into the main courtyard.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
“Have any of you seen Lily?”
Ryn looked up from her breakfast, as did both Donal and Ashe. The worry in Banar’s voice caught all of their attention. Gone was his usual cocksure attitude, leaving bare the true voice that Ryn knew was not that of an ass.
“No. Geia’s over there. She might know where she is,” Ryn said gesturing to Geia’s table with a spoon. Ashe nodded agreement.
Banar took the empty seat next to Ryn, and for once he did not try any sleazy lines or try to touch her. This, more than what he said made Ryn take him a little more seriously.
“I’ve already spoken to her.”
“And?” Donal asked dropping his spoon back into his porridge bowl. “What did she say?”
“She… she…” Banar’s face twisted and Ryn thought she could see wetness around his eyes.
“Banar?” Ryn reached out and placed what she hoped was a reassuring hand on his shoulder.
“The link….” Banar said as he turned to look at Ryn. “Remember last night when we talked about our Links? And I said that Lily’s Link took some getting used to? Well, it’s gone. I can’t feel her anymore.” The last was said in a near sob.
“What do you mean her Link is not there anymore?” Ashe asked and to Ryn he looked very uncomfortable with Banar’s obvious distress.
“It’s just… not there. It disappeared early this morning. I was shocked awake, feeling fear and pain and then…. the feelings vanished. Gone. And I was alone.”
“Gone? You don’t mean-”
“By Bellus, no.” Banar cut Donal off before he could state the unthinkable. The near mention of it sobered Banar of his distress. “No. I didn’t feel… That. The Link is there still, but it’s also not there. It’s hard to explain.”
“So, what did Geia tell you?”
“Geia told me that Lily wanted to find out if Dagan was telling the truth about those three girls, that they had been up to no good. So they both decided to follow them into town last night when the rest of the women’s barracks had settled down for the night.”
“They did? I wouldn’t have thought they had it in them,” Donal said in surprise. “If Geia went with Lily, then she should know what happened to her. Maybe Lily and her just got blind drunk, and that’s why you cannot sense her.”
> “Don’t be silly Donal,” Ryn said. “You know that being drunk doesn’t affect the Link. Remember last Winter’s Night? When Yonnie got rolling drunk on mead and collapsed in a stupor after trying to dance on one of the feasting tables dressed in a skirt? And his Pair Tanea, who is a teetotaler-”
“Kissed me. She was drunk, and she kissed me,” Ashe muttered as he scrubbed a hand over his mouth as if trying to wipe away the memory.
“Yes, but the point is that Yonnie’s drunkenness affected Tanea, even when he passed out cold.” Ryn turned back to Banar. “Where did they go? And did Lily come back to the keep with Geia?”
“Geia said they had followed the three into Brookhaven Town and… and that they went into the Wicked Woman.”
“The Wicked Woman?” Donal suddenly had a large smile plastered across his face and received an elbow in the ribs for it from Ryn.
“Being chased out of the Wicked Woman might explain their state of undress,” Ashe murmured a little uncomfortably. “The recruits are banned from visiting the brothels.”
“Did Geia and Lily go in then?” Ryn quickly asked, trying to get things back on track.
“Geia said that she left Lily outside the Wicked Woman to go back to the Keep. She did not want to be seen in there. Geia said the last thing she saw was Lily going inside to find those girls.” Banar suddenly thumped his fist hard on the table. “Geia should have dragged her back to the Keep with her!”
“Calm down Banar. If she went in there to see what the three were up to, then all we need to do is go talk to them.”
“I tried that. I can’t find them. No one remembers seeing any of the three girls last night or this morning.” The calm that Banar had found was fleeting. Ryn could hear the waver in his voice as his worry and fear began to build in him again.
“We need to tell the Knights Sergeant-” Ashe began to say, but Banar angrily cut him off.
“No! They cannot know that she went to The Wicked Woman, that she had left the Keep past curfew without permission.” Banar’s voice rose as he spoke and he drew some eyes from nearby tables.
Ryn placed a reassuring hand on his arm. “Banar, calm down. We will not go to the Knights Sergeant. We’ll help you investigate. Dagan is talking with the Knights Commander and will be there for a while I think,” she turned to Ashe and Donal. “And both of you are not due for your patrol until fourth bell this afternoon. That should give us the morning at least to find out what happened to Lily.”
“Ryn-”
“Donal, we have to help. It’s Lily, Donal. It’s for Lily.”
Donal glared at her for a moment longer and then nodded. Ashe nodded his agreement as well.
“Thanks, Ryn. I knew I could count on you. If anyone can help me find her, you can.” The relief in Banar’s voice made Ryn feel a little guilty about her comments about him to Dagan the night of the Proving feast. This was the longest Ryn had spoken to Banar without her thinking him a complete Ass.
“So,” Ryn said as she brushed her hands together. “You said that no one in the keep has seen none of the girls? Then we need to go to where we know Lily was definitely last seen.”
“You want to go to the Wicked Woman?” Ashe asked in dismay.
“It should be safe at this time of the morning Ashe. And I’ll be there to protect you from the seductive wiles of the women.” Ryn gave him a reassuring smile as she saw Ashe’s cheeks flush red and his eyes widen in trepidation.
“Anyway, it’s the men that work there that have the worst reputation.” Donal gave a little snigger and nudged Ashe in the side with his elbow. Ashe gave him a sour look in return.
Banar quickly rose from the table. “Let’s go. I need to find her. I need to know that she is all right and safe.”
Ryn nodded and stood as well, gesturing to Donal and Ashe to do the same. Both men stood reluctantly and stepped out from their bench. “The sooner we do this for Banar, the sooner he can go back to being his usual abrasive self.”
Donal nodded and then grinned. “Yes, let’s go. Then I can go back to cleaning my scale mail and polishing my staff.”
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
“Are you sure Geia said they went into The Wicked Woman?”
Ashe asked the question as the four Blackwatch Constables stood on the walkway across the street from the establishment in question.
It was still early morning and in this part of town, the only people out in the street were drunks staggering home after a night drinking from the seedier taverns and patrons from the brothels slinking away before anyone of note recognizes them. Both drunks and johns avoided the quartet of uniformed Blackwatch as they stood contemplating the front of The Wicked Woman. For a business located in the bad part of town, it presented a very prosperous front, especially compared to its neighbors. Bright, fresh paint coated the walls and doors of the ground floor, and there was even a touch of gilding on the window frames. Both the storey’s above were not as highly decorated, but were still color coordinated to make it stand out from the surrounding businesses. Two very large and burly guards stood like structural pillars on either side of the bright red entry doors.
“Yes, I’m sure,” Banar replied. Standing next to him, Ryn could feel his pent up anxiety. Would she react like this if anything happened to Dagan? Subconsciously, she opened herself up to the Link and was quickly reassured as she felt Dagan’s calm annoyance come through. He wasn’t mad, so maybe the meeting with the Knights Commander was going his way.
“It’s doing us no good just standing here looking at it. Let’s go in.”
Banar was moving before Ryn finished her sentence and she hurried to catch up with him and was quickly followed by the other two. As Banar stepped up onto the porch, Ryn tensed as she waited for the two guards to move to block their entrance. But they didn’t. They both stood impassively, arms crossed on their chests and their eyes only gave them a cursory glance before they went back to surveilling the street. They thought them no threat. The four pushed through the doors and entered The Wicked Woman.
The four constables came to a standstill in the front parlor as all of their senses were assailed on all fronts. The first thing that struck them was the smell. It was a musky, cloying scent that shocked them on entering like getting slapped in the face with a wet fish. Then the red and gold of the opulent surroundings pushed through the incense to assault their sight from all directions. A moment after this, Ryn began to work her mouth as she began to taste the musky smell unpleasantly on her tongue.
“Can I help you with anything? Our breakfast menu is quite extensive.”
Ryn’s attention was suddenly drawn to the small woman sitting in a plush brocade chair with a small writing table in front of her on the far side of the room next to another set of double doors. On the table laid out neatly was a thick leather-bound ledger, a collection of quills and a small container of ink.
“We are looking for a member of the Blackwatch who came in here last night. A woman.” Banar moved to stand in front of the table and glared down at the small woman with an intensity that troubled Ryn. She came up beside him and placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. He looked at her as she stared up at him. There must have been something in her face that calmed Banar as the manic look in his eyes faded. Ryn felt more than saw Donal and Ashe come up behind them.
“You’ll have to be more specific love. We do a lot of business with the Blackwatch.” The small woman answered in a rustle of black taffeta, her eyes half lidded as she waited for their answer.
“A young girl, about my age with shortish blonde hair and about a head shorter than me,” Ryn replied holding one of her hands at about the height she remembered Lily to be.
“I’m sorry, but that still doesn’t help. We had a few young girls from the Blackwatch in here last night. And our guests that come in expect some privacy when they pay over their coin.” The woman crossed her arms over her breasts and stared down her nose at Ryn as if she was something distasteful that the cat dragged inside.
>
From the corner of her eye, Ryn saw Banar tense, and she released a pent up breath as Donal placed a firm hand on Banar’s other shoulder which seemed to help him gain control.
“The girl’s name is Lily. She came in after another group of three girls. Those three were recruits who should not be served in here. You know the town ordinance regarding Blackwatch cadets and houses of ill repute. If Blackwatch command hears that you have been ‘catering’ to recruits, they may ban the use of this establishment entirely.”
The woman narrowed her dark eyes and glared at Ryn and Ryn glared right back at her. The threat to inform was a bluff, but this rustling black taffeta puff ball doesn’t know that. Ryn was not going to back down, Banar might hit someone if she did and being turfed out of the establishment on your butts by the guards would not help them find Lily.
“Fine, fine. Just let me check the book. By law, we have to keep a record of all people who ‘use’ our premises. If she was here, it will be recorded.” The woman reluctantly looked to the large ledger sitting open on the table and turned it back a page.
“They have to record everyone who comes in here?” Ryn heard Ashe whisper to Donal.
“Yeah, the town and the Crown taxes brothels per head, so they have to keep records to make sure they are not over taxed.”
“A girl who gave her name as Lily Brenker did come in last night, but she was here to see the three Blackwatch girls who came in before her. I directed her to see Janin, it seems that he was quite a favorite of those three.” The woman said using a long finger to read the neatly inked entry in her ledger. “Janin is quite good at his trade, maybe you would like to try out his wares when you are finished with your inquiries?”