Finn took a steadying breath. “This doesn’t need to be complicated,” he said. “We can work together. If you’re not willing to do that—”
“That’s not how this is going to work, Shuffles.”
“How do you see this working, Felix?”
He said it a bit harder than he intended, but he was getting tired of Wolf throwing around his old nickname. He knew how much it annoyed Finn.
“Put on some fancy clothes and suddenly the boy decides he belongs here. I guess I shouldn’t be too surprised. Not the first time somebody gets a little ahead of themselves after getting a taste for the high life. Trust me. I been there.”
Finn had a pang of curiosity about Wolf he hadn’t known before. “If you think what I’ve been doing is the high life, then you have no idea.”
“I have some idea. Do you think this is the first time I’ve watched you?”
Everything within Finn went cold.
“You need to be careful, Felix. You’re a known accomplice to Leon Konig, exiled from Verendal for crimes against the king.”
Wolf started to smile. “Seems like Shuffles got a spine, too.”
“Call me Shuffles one more time—”
Wolf darted toward him, anger flashing in his eyes. “And what? Go ahead. Finish that sentence.”
“Call me Shuffles one more time, and I will make sure the Archers find you. Even in Meldran.”
“Only if you get out of here alive.” Wolf looked around, scanning the street. “Seems to me you’re all by yourself here.”
“Am I?” Finn whistled sharply twice in quick succession. “How much time do you think you have?”
Wolf watched Finn, smirking. “Long enough to shove a blade into your belly.”
“Maybe. But if they find me bleeding out, guess who comes looking for you?”
“No one ever comes looking for me,” Wolf said.
“I wouldn’t be so sure of that. Have you heard anything about Henry Meyer, the master executioner? If you haven’t, I’m happy to inform you he’s known as a dedicated servant to the king. He also would be quite disappointed to learn his apprentice was slaughtered. Again. I doubt he would rest until finding what happened this time.”
There was movement on the end of the street as Archers came. Finn suppressed the sigh of relief that immediately came to him. He needed to be careful with Wolf and should have been more cautious with him there than he had been.
“This isn’t over, Shuffles.”
“We want the same thing, Wolf.”
“No. You want something different. I want to know who’s responsible for what happened to my team, and you—”
“I want justice.”
Wolf started. “Maybe I was wrong. Maybe you changed much more than I thought. Keep your eyes open, Shuffles. I’ll be seeing you.”
He slipped off down the street, disappearing.
When he reached the Archers, he ducked down an alley, and one of the Archers stood in the mouth of the alley for a moment, watching, though Finn doubted that the Archer would even go after him. He wasn’t surprised when the Archer returned to the other, and they headed farther down the street. When they reached Finn, they studied him.
“I know you,” one of the Archers said. “You’re the hangman. You the one who whistled?”
Finn nodded. He debated how to answer. If he shared enough with them, it might push Wolf to keep from attacking Finn, though had Wolf wanted to attack, Finn had a feeling that he would’ve just done so.
“The man who went down the alley is a wanted criminal.”
“Some Poor Bastard that you released?”
Finn shook his head. “He escaped custody. I thought he left the city. He’s an accomplice of a man once known as the King.”
“I know that name,” the other Archer said. He was tall and thin, and had a higher voice than Finn would’ve expected. “He hanged a few months back. Some sort of thief who broke into the palace.”
“That’s him,” Finn said, looking down the street after Wolf. “And the man who just got away is his accomplice.” If he could put pressure on Wolf, maybe he could also put pressure on Bellut. He thought they’d gotten away, but they had thought that because they believed everybody else involved in the crime was gone. Finn had no idea where Rock had ended up, and Oscar was smart enough not to say anything, but Wolf…
He was angry.
If he were smart, he would’ve stayed away from the city and not returned, but his actions were anything but smart.
“Put out word to the other Archers he’s back in the city.”
“What do you think he’s doing?” the tall Archer asked.
Finn debated. He could use this, too. All of it would help him get what he needed on Bellut. “I don’t fully know. Maybe he’s planning another job. He might even be here for revenge about what happened on his last job. The Archers should keep an eye on him.”
“We’ll spread the word,” the other Archer said.
They headed off down the street, and Finn lingered for just a moment before hurrying on. He needed to be careful, but more than that, he needed to start paying more attention to what happened around him. He couldn’t have Wolf sneaking up on him again.
The problem he had was that he had fallen out of practice. During the daytime, Finn simply didn’t need to sneak the way that he once had. In the evenings, either he had a destination or he was on an investigation.
Either way, with Wolf back in the city, Finn had to be careful.
He found himself looking down each alley that he passed, his gaze darting into the darkness, finding nothing. When he reached an intersection, he paused to look along it, searching for shadows that might move toward him. Other than an occasional grouping of people who were out and wandering the streets, Finn saw nothing to be concerned about.
Maybe that was Wolf’s intention. He wanted to put Finn on edge, making him jumpy. A man who searched the shadows could make mistakes.
Finn had to be smarter than that.
If there was one thing Meyer had taught him, it was how to be smarter about everything. He had learned to be more calculating, mostly because it was important for questioning, along with investigations. He might not have all of the answers, but he believed that he could at least get to them.
He would use Wolf.
Finn had been searching for some way to dig into what happened with Bellut without upsetting Meyer, and Wolf might finally provide that to him.
The King and Wolf had used Finn before. Now it was his turn.
There had to be more to why Wolf returned. It couldn’t just be about revenge. That was what he wanted Finn to think… only, Wolf was a thief. He cared about the jobs. The crew had been a means to an end. And the King might have been a friend, but Wolf knew crime had consequences. That was something the King had warned Finn about when he’d been imprisoned.
Which meant Wolf was after something more.
It was another reason for the Archers to keep an eye on him.
When he reached Declan, the prison towered over him. The sound of music filtered along the street, a muted but jaunty sound, and Finn was drawn toward it. Something about the music reminded him of the Wenderwolf tavern.
He found a marking for the tavern above it. It was situated on a narrow street just outside of Declan. The sign for Treble Coat turned out to be simply that: a coat. He had no idea what the Treble part of the title meant.
There were other things he had to be doing, but Meyer had made it clear he needed to work with the iron masters. They knew things he would need to do his job well.
This was how he would get that information.
He pushed the door open, stepping inside. It was dark, with tables clustered close together. Several minstrels played in the center of the tavern, the tables arranged around them. A smoky haze greeted him, and a fire in the hearth glowed with a soft warmth that wasn’t unpleasant, given how cool the days in Verendal had been.
He looked around the tavern, searching f
or a familiar face, and found Shiner sitting with several other iron masters. Cards stacked on the table, ale piled in front of them, they shouted, laughing and generally having a good time.
This was what he missed.
As he approached the table, Shiner looked up, grinning at him. “Jags! Damn, I didn’t think you were actually going to come.” He looked down at the others. “Make room for Jags.” He looked over to Finn. “How do you feel about ale, Jags?”
Finn smiled slowly. “I’d feel better if I had one.”
Shiner chuckled. “That’s what I like to hear.”
Chapter Fourteen
Finn sat at the table, resting his elbows on it, glancing over to his sister as she prepared lunch. Lena had on a simple gray dress, her hair covered by a kerchief, and with her back turned to him, he couldn’t see her face, though when he had first come into the kitchen, he’d recognized the tension around her eyes. He had seen it from her over the last few weeks.
His stomach grumbled, though he didn’t know if it was because he was hungry or whether he was unsettled after spending the night drinking ale with the iron masters and had to leave early for errands, or perhaps he was more unsettled because of the interaction he’d had with Wolf.
“You haven’t said much,” he said to Lena.
“There’s nothing to say,” she said softly.
The sausage sizzled in the pan, along with the smell of the sweet bread she made. It was a better lunch than what he would’ve made for himself. “Is it Mother?”
The sudden stiffness to her back told him the answer.
“I can help.”
“I know that you can help,” she said. “This is my responsibility.”
“There are other things you can be doing.”
She took a deep breath, letting it out slowly. “I have been. Like you asked. It’s just that understanding the different stimulants isn’t easy.”
“I know. I’ve looked through Gisles, but haven’t found any answers.” They would be there, he was sure, but Finn didn’t know where, and the book was difficult enough to get through that he didn’t know how long it would take.
“There are a few different options you could have her try. Benel works as a stimulant, but you said she needs something long acting.” Finn nodded. “There are horath and vren, but neither of those would last very long. I think the challenge is the duration.”
“That was her complaint.”
She frowned. “I wonder if there might be a mixture that might…” Her frown deepened. “I need to check on something.”
She handed him a plate and hurried out of the kitchen, leaving him looking down at the plate. She had made an amazing lunch, the same way that she often made an amazing meals for him. He needed to be more thankful for all that she did for him, and needed to share with her just how much he appreciated it. And now she was helping him research.
He ate slowly, starting with the sausage, moving on to the sweet bread, before finishing. By the time he was done, Master Meyer had returned and come into the kitchen, looking over to the stove before flicking his gaze back to Finn. “Where is your sister?”
“She’s off looking into something,” Finn said, waving his hand. “It’s to help with my mother’s sickness,” he added. What they used for Moira might help their mother.
“I’ve done all I can for her.”
“I know. And I think she knows. It doesn’t change that she remains disappointed.”
Disappointed wasn’t even the right answer. Perhaps Lena was more sad.
“I think she questions what she’s going to do with her time.”
“She can do whatever she chooses.”
“I don’t think my sister sees it like that.”
He pulled the pan back out, heated it, and started preparing eggs and sausage for Meyer. It wasn’t going to be quite as skillfully made as what Lena had done for him, but it was good enough.
“What do you think she needs?” Meyer asked.
Finn took a deep breath as he flipped the sausages, and then turned over to look at Master Meyer. “I don’t know. She’s looking for purpose, the same as most people do, I suppose. She doesn’t have what she wants, though I don’t even know what it is that she wants. She’s been trying to find employment but has been turned away.”
Meyer looked to the opening in the door, as if to see Lena through it. “I will see what I can do.”
“I’m not sure that’s what she wants, either. She wants to find something for herself.” He handed Meyer a plate and took a seat across from him. “I ran into Wolf last night. I thought he’d stay away from the city, but Oscar thought…” Finn trailed off, wondering if he should have mentioned the man.
Meyer started to smile. “You can say it. I know who Oscar is.”
“Fine. Oscar is a thief. And I don’t know that he can get involved in this without drawing attention to himself. Besides, there’s something of an unspoken agreement when it comes to thieves and those who work with them and against them.” Oscar would never say it, but Finn suspected he wouldn’t go after Bellut directly simply because he was a public figure. Instead, he would go after Bellut in a way that made sure that no one really knew that it was Oscar who had gone after him.
If it came down to it, Finn was perfectly willing to work with Oscar, and perhaps he needed to. Especially now that Wolf had returned.
“Are you sure this Wolf has been out of the city?”
Finn shook his head. “I’m not sure about anything, really. All I know is I haven’t seen any sign of him since the attack on the palace. He’s the kind to go after revenge, if you know what I mean.”
Meyer looked over to Finn. “Only him?”
“I’m not trying to get revenge,” Finn said.
“Which means that you have decided to settle for justice.”
“Isn’t that what you want me to do?”
Meyer settled his arms on the table, looking over to Finn. He watched him with a bright intensity in his eyes. “I want for you to recognize you cannot seek revenge. You most of all.”
“Why not me most of all?”
“That I must explain it to you is troublesome. Others watch you, and they are watching for you to fail. You might’ve passed the Executioner Court, and you might have proven yourself, but there are still those who would love to see you fail. You need to demonstrate integrity beyond reproach. Not just because the position demands it, which it does, but because of the circumstances of your coming to work with me demand it. Do you see that?”
Finn nodded slowly. “I see that,” he said softly.
“Are you sure?”
Finn took a deep breath, letting it out. “I see that.”
“Then recognize you cannot be after vengeance. You cannot side with anyone who is after vengeance. All you can do is search for the truth and let that guide what happens next. All you can do is ensure that the king’s justice is carried out.”
“What will you do if we find information that implicates Bellut and whoever he’s working with?”
“I will do what I am tasked with doing. I will serve the king, serve his justice, and I will ensure that it is carried out in the way that it must be.” He turned his attention back to the food, eating slowly, deliberately, and didn’t look up at Finn.
Finn scrubbed at the pan, getting it clean, and watched Meyer.
He didn’t like the idea of Bellut getting away with what they’d done. He deserved the king’s justice. It was just that Finn also recognized that what Master Meyer said was true. He did need to find a measure of peace, such as it were, if only so that he could move past what had happened.
Besides, as much as he might want to get revenge for what they’d done, perhaps that simply wasn’t in the cards.
Only, it was in the cards. The hegen card.
He turned to Meyer. “I’ve been wondering about your involvement with the hegen. When did you start working with them?”
Meyer looked up. “What is there to tell?”
&
nbsp; “I understand you helped develop that relationship.”
Meyer nodded slowly. “I did.”
“Why?”
“Many people fear the hegen,” Meyer said. “They’re found throughout the kingdom, and perhaps my feeling toward the hegen stems from my interaction with them in my previous assignment.”
“Before you came to Verendal?”
“This hasn’t always been my home.”
Could he get Meyer to share more about himself? Wella knew quite a bit about Meyer, but Finn had never gotten the old executioner to discuss anything about himself. He was private, almost frustratingly so.
“Where did you serve before?”
“I told you about my first master. I was taken in as an apprentice when I was younger than you. My father needed money, and my family struggled, so they apprenticed me to him.”
“Why?”
“Most people recognize the executioners as something almost undesirable. Not all, though. My family saw the executioners as an extension of the king’s justice. I wasn’t the first executioner in my family. That would’ve been my great-uncle, but not many had served as executioners in recent generations. But my family knew it paid well, and knew that even as an apprentice, I would earn my keep, and that it would provide for me in the years to come.” He smiled tightly, turning his attention back to the food. “I was given an opportunity to have a life. My father was a laborer, poorly paid, and dependent upon jobs coming in. My mother was a baker, but again, finding work was difficult.”
Hearing Master Meyer talk about his experience made Finn wonder if perhaps he had chosen to work with Finn because he reminded him of himself. Perhaps it wasn’t anything more than that, nothing to do with the hegen themselves, or anything but the fact that he had seen something in Finn.
If so, then Finn should be thankful for it.
“How did you end up in Verendal?”
“I suppose this is something we should talk about, anyway. Once you move far enough in your training, you progress to journeyman status. As a journeyman, you can travel, if you so desire. It gives you the opportunity to see part of the country and to serve the king more directly, though not to be tied down to any one city. From there, eventually you can progress to master executioner, though not all executioners do so. Only those chosen by the Executioner Court can progress. Once you do, you will be given an assignment and a location to serve.”
The Executioner's Apprentice (The Executioner's Song Book 2) Page 17