by RJ Blain
Anatoly headed straight for the wolf shifter with Henry a step behind him. “Ferdinand. Is Gentry here?”
The wolf snarled. “Anatoly. You picked a shit time to show up.”
For an experienced mercenary to abandon common courtesy, there had to be trouble—a lot of it. I followed after Anatoly and Henry, searching the crowd for anyone who stood out. Without a sword, I couldn’t do a lot, but old habits died hard.
It alarmed me how easily I slid into a bodyguard role. If anything happened to a Clan Council member—and the leader of the feline clans—there’d be hell to pay, and Dawnfire would suffer for it. While I had no allegiance to any guild, I had to do something.
I owed Anatoly and Henry for my life.
“Who’s the broad?” Ferdinand asked, his tone snide.
I glanced over the man, wondering if he still held a high rank in Dawnfire.
“She’s the courier your guild was supposed to protect.” The calm cool of Anatoly’s tone bothered me. Every word challenged the guild and caught the attention of the gathered mercenaries. “Let’s try this again. Where’s Gentry?”
Ferdinand bared his teeth in a snarl and took a single step towards Anatoly. My sneakers squeaked on the polished floor as I took two steps forward and spun, whipping my leg around. The wolf barked a warning and hopped back out of my reach.
Anatoly held his arm in front of me. “I’d hate to have to explain to Gentry how his second-in-command got his face broken. If he loses his dignity again, you can indulge.”
“Bitch,” Ferdinand snarled.
Anatoly straightened, stared down his nose at Ferdinand, and roared.
The tiger’s fury broke with the intensity of a southern storm, the thunder of it shaking the building. My ears rang. Ferdinand recoiled with a whimper, as did everyone within ten feet.
The sound rumbled on and on, and when Anatoly finally quieted, his eyes glowed emerald. “Get Gentry.”
No one moved, no one spoke, and I had the suspicion I was the only one in the room brave enough to breathe. I stood beside Anatoly, my gaze slipping from sword to sword, sheathed at the hips of mercenaries, more than I had any hope of fighting.
“Oh boy,” Henry mumbled from behind me. The mystic’s voice startled me. When had he taken position at my back? I preferred his presence over a stranger’s, but it made it difficult to defend them both at once. After a moment of hesitation, I focused on Anatoly.
Few wanted to provoke a mystic capable of saving their life if the going got rough, making Henry the less likely to be targeted.
A door creaked, and the thump of wood on wood drew my attention. Over the heads of the mercenaries, I spotted Gentry emerging from a side entry.
“What’s going on here?” the grizzly demanded, his voice little more than a whisper but no less terrifying than Anatoly’s roar.
“Gentry,” Anatoly greeted.
Gentry’s gaze settled on me and stayed. “I see you were successful on your outing, Anatoly.”
“We came to check on her horses, which don’t seem to be in the main stable. She’s quite upset over this issue.”
“They’re at the palace under guard. After they broke out of my stable, I thought it wise to put them somewhere a little more secure.” Gentry took a single step forward, and a path cleared for him. “It’s been a while since you’ve graced my halls with one of your roars. What has your tail in a kink today?”
“Your second-in-command forgets his place. I was reminding him I’m a bigger predator than he could ever hope to be. I was also sparing him from the shame of an unarmed woman tearing him to bits. I think I’m owed thanks.”
Gentry chuckled. The Dawnfire mercenaries scattered, clearing space for the grizzly and tiger. Ferdinand backed away, and Dawnfire’s guild master snagged him by the back of the neck. “You’re testing my patience, Ferdinand.”
“When doesn’t he?” a familiar smug, amused voice asked from behind me.
Ice trickled down my spine and stole my breath. I turned, not wanting to believe my luck could be so bad.
The universe hated me. Todd stood at ease beside Henry, his hands in his jeans pockets. A few suspiciously dark spots stained his denim shirt. The years hadn’t changed him much at all, a gift of his shifter heritage.
Todd’s attention fixed on Ferdinand. “I’m pretty sure I told you what would happen if you started any trouble.”
Terror had a scent, and it burned my nose while also stirring my hunger. I glanced over my shoulder at the wolf, who strained against Gentry’s hold on him. “It’s not like that,” he whined.
“Oh, it is. You test your luck because you think you can. I got your message, Gentry. What’s going on that you need me here?”
“Someone stole the Hope Diamond.”
“What?” I roared. A moment after the sound burst out of me, I realized Anatoly had roared the word, too.
Gentry winced and rubbed his ears. “The President asked for Dawnfire and Lancers’ to work together to recover the stone. It began to pulse when the other Starfall stone burst, and they want both stones found yesterday.”
“The President issued the bounty?” Todd pinched the bridge of his nose and heaved a sigh. “And just when I thought my day couldn’t get any worse.”
“Your blood?” Gentry asked, his tone softening.
“Only a little. Ran into a group trying to steal a courier’s horse. I got involved, and one of them got a lucky hit.”
“Get any of them alive?”
“No. I tried, too. They were determined to fight to the death.”
I had no idea what was going on in Charlotte, but I recognized trouble when I saw it. I doubted I’d have the skill to steal the Hope Diamond even if I wanted to; security around the thing surpassed what I remembered of the mayoral palace. I frowned, wondering who possessed the resources to pull off such a heist.
“Let’s continue this discussion in my private office. In the interim, the palace will be the best place for you, Runs Against Wind. It’s easiest to guard. I’ll—”
Anatoly lifted his hand. “We both stay.”
Dawnfire’s guild master regarded Anatoly with a frown. “It’s confidential information.”
“She’s part of my clan. I’ll take responsibility for her knowledge. Her experience as a courier may prove valuable.”
The palace was the last place I wanted to go, but the longer I remained in Charlotte, the higher my risk of discovery. Despite standing so close to Todd, the distance between us remained too far to traverse. With two words, I could end the misery of isolation, but I feared how he would react.
By running away, I had rejected his friendship. I deserved to be ostracized and scorned. After betraying his trust, I deserved to remain alone. Exposing myself would hurt him far more than help me.
It was better for everyone if the Water Viper and Jesse Alexander remained lost and forgotten.
I stood stiff and straight, wishing I had a sword so I could grip its hilt. With so many armed people around me, my lack of a weapon marked me as a helpless civilian—or worse, a regular courier reliant on the speed of their horse rather than skill with a blade.
Too many people stared at me, and I wondered how long it would take someone to repaint my image in their mind, change my hair from black to a blond-streaked brown, and reverse my tan to the paler shades of my past.
“Is there any reason you don’t trust my mercenaries?” Gentry challenged.
“I’ll explain in private.”
The mercenaries made way for us, and Todd fell into step with Dawnfire’s guild master while I trailed a few steps behind Anatoly, keeping a careful watch. While my precautions proved unnecessary, I didn’t relax until we reached the maze of corridors leading deeper into the repurposed warehouse.
Located deep in the heart of the building, Gentry’s office blended comfort and functionality, one half taken up by a conference table seating ten while a massive desk and bookshelves ate away at the rest of the space. The grizzly took th
e seat heading the table and gestured for us to sit.
Anatoly touched my elbow and nodded to one of the chairs, but before I had a chance to reach it, he stepped ahead of me and pulled the chair away from the table. Aware of every eye on me, I sank onto the leather cushion. Henry and Anatoly took the seats beside me before anyone else could claim them.
Todd circled the table and sat across from Anatoly. “It’s not like you to bring extras.”
I leaned back in my chair and discovered it reclined; after experimentation, I figured out how to get comfortable without feeling like the chair wanted to tip over backwards. Clutching the armrests didn’t look nice, but it kept my hands busy and my fingers still.
“Runs Against Wind has control issues, and she shifts when provoked. She’s rather large for a female, so I’d rather not have any incidents. Her knowledge as a courier may help us track the Hope Diamond’s thieves, who will be doing everything they can to avoid attention.” A predatory edge crept into Anatoly’s smile. “Henry also needs to stay with her, and I’d rather not have to brief him on the situation later.”
Gentry rested his elbows on the table, clasped his hands together, and stared at Anatoly with narrowed eyes. “Why?”
“Her kidnappers were very careful to ensure she had no opportunities to escape without a lot of help. Between high dosages of sedatives and general mistreatment, Henry had to do extensive work to heal her. I was required to force her through numerous shifts to augment his work. I’m not letting either one of them out of my care until this situation has been resolved.”
When I glanced at Henry out of the corner of my eye, he shrugged.
Gentry scowled. “Did you learn anything from her kidnappers?”
“Unfortunately not.” Anatoly sighed and told the guild masters what had occurred, leaving out no details. Todd nodded his approval over Maria’s transfer to Samson and Charlotte’s Bengal clan. Gentry frowned and massaged his temples.
Anatoly shrugged. “I didn’t have much choice. Maria’s aunt is prejudiced against predators, and I couldn’t afford to leave such a young shifter in a potentially volatile situation. If I hadn’t taken her into custody, it’s entirely possible someone would have gotten killed. Maria’s still a cub, young enough to be at high risk, and rabbits can be dangerous when provoked. There was no simple nor good solution. I made the decision least likely to result in someone’s death.”
“I’m not judging you for your decision. I likely would have made the same choice. I don’t envy the amount of paperwork you’ll have to do.”
With a smug smile, Anatoly waved away the grizzly’s concern. “Samson agreed to deal with it.”
Todd drummed his fingers on the table, drawing everyone’s attention. “I think we need to determine what is connected to the Hope Diamond’s theft. Recovering the stone needs to be our highest priority.”
Contributing to the discussion would increase Todd and Gentry’s chances of recognizing me, but if I kept silent, I’d probably do far more harm than good. “If someone knew they were about to steal something as valuable as the Hope Diamond, having courier horses would dramatically increase their chances of making a clean getaway. If I knew time mattered and had the resources, I’d set up a relay, switching to a fresh horse every hour. That’d allow me to push as hard as possible for a lot longer. Courier horses are chosen for their endurance, speed, and hardiness. They can handle most terrain. They’re healthy. They’re used to working hard.”
My throat itched, and I cleared it so I wouldn’t cough.
“If the courier attacks are related, they would be setting up a relay.” I shrugged. “If they had horses like Dipshit and Devil Spawn and pushed hard, they could be anywhere. Depends on when the stone was taken.”
“Last night,” Gentry replied, his gaze settling on me. “Educate me on courier horses and travel.”
“I can do forty miles in a day, maybe more if needed, but I try to limit it to thirty to thirty-five miles. I’ve done eighty-three in a day, but my horse required several days to recover. With fresh horses every few hours? I couldn’t tell you for certain how many miles as I’ve never run a relay, but I’d guess easily over a hundred, maybe as high as one-twenty.”
“If I took a regular horse and tried to ride eighty miles in a day, what would happen?”
“You’d kill your horse if they aren’t conditioned for endurance riding. Horses are like people; they need to be in shape to go long distances. If you took a horse used to walking all day and forced them to trot or canter on a long ride, you might kill them. Foundering’s a risk. If they weren’t run into the ground and potentially killed, they’d require a lot of care. Dipshit recovers from our hard runs in two days.”
“And Devil Spawn?”
I shook my head. “I rarely ride her on the runs. She comes, but she’s not carrying a rider’s weight. She’s usually ready for another stroll within a day. Carrying a rider makes a big difference.”
Gentry’s gaze shifted from me to the Lancers’ Alliance guild master. “Todd, you said you ran into someone trying to steal courier horses today?”
“Yes.”
“Wouldn’t that suggest the incidents aren’t connected?”
“Unless they’re still in Charlotte because they haven’t been able to buy or steal good horses.”
I shook my head. “If they’re running relays, they could steal any horse and be a little slow on the first leg but still keep to their schedule. If they don’t care if the horses die, as long as they have good horses on the later legs, they won’t lose much time.”
Todd frowned, his eyes narrowing. “That doesn’t make sense. Why take good horses if they don’t care if they die? Any horse would do then.”
Shrugging, I stared at the polished tabletop to prevent eye contact with the stallion. “Maybe they plan to reuse the relay. Maybe they don’t just want one stone. Maybe they want to make a circuit out of it. That’s the whole point of setting up a relay station. If the horses are good and the legs are moderate in length, they could make a run every other day—every day if the horses are running short legs. I could push Dipshit or Devil Spawn for two hours at a fairly hard pace and expect them to be ready for another run the next day if they remain sound through the night, assuming they’re walked and cooled by those on the ground at the relay station.”
“If I wanted to make a run from here to the Mississippi, how many horses do you think I’d need?” Gentry asked.
“If you give me a map and some time, I might be able to answer that for you.”
Gentry stood, headed to a intercom panel on the wall, and pressed a button. “Bring a courier satchel, a large-scale map of the United States, and extra writing supplies to my office.” Turning to me, the grizzly gestured to his desk. “Think you can establish likely routes for such a relay?”
I rose, pushing my chair back. “It’d help if we had an idea who was stealing the Hope Diamond and why. It’s hard to set up a relay without knowing where it’s going.”
“Make guesses. That’s what we’re all doing right now,” Gentry replied, his tone wry.
Shrugging, I headed to the massive desk. “Why not?”
Chapter Thirty-One
The map consumed my attention, a relic from before Starfall, when cars and other motorized vehicles ruled the roads. Highways crisscrossed the continent, and I struggled to imagine a world where anyone could go anywhere the roads led without having to wait for a train or riding a horse. Time had marched on, bringing prosperity and ruin in equal measure. Blue ink colored cities lost to the sea. Bright yellow highlighted critical roads and train lines. Razed inland cities were crossed off in black, their names covered with a single thick line.
In a way, I appreciated the old map and its hundreds of notations. Current maps told one story. They missed important details, including the locations of towns lost to time or magic—places criminals might take shelter.
Hunting the Starfall stone’s thieves would require someone who could think like th
em, no different from how a bodyguard thought like an assassin to protect their charge. Where would I go with something so powerful?
Why would I take it? What would I use it for?
I trailed my hand along the east coast of the United States, my fingertips pausing over the drowned cities. Many had fallen in incidents like the crystallization of Fort Lauderdale. One, two, ten—if I counted the small towns destroyed as a consequence of Starfall, I’d spend at least a week listing them all. The large map, which took over most of Gentry’s desk, didn’t show them all, either.
With groups of three or more working together to steal horses, a lot of individuals were involved—motivated people. I remembered someone mentioning a horse race among the social elite and mercenary guilds over contracts, but I discarded it as a reason for the thefts.
The wealthy played games but wouldn’t risk losing everything over stolen horses and murdered couriers. Something bigger drove the thefts, of that I was certain—something big like the loss of thousands or millions of lives, leaving behind family and friends to mourn.
Starfall stones could destroy entire cities. Starfall stones could also renew life and youth to those within their burst radiuses.
What if the thieves wanted the Starfall stone to undo the destruction from a previous burst? A chill ran through me, and I grabbed a sheet of paper and a pencil, going to work marking down the names of dead or dying cities and towns—places large enough to have many survivors determined to save their homes and families.
Maybe I lacked family or friends, but I remembered my willingness to step in front of a poisoned blade to protect Todd’s back.
Since I wasn’t sure about the actual distances I’d travelled since the first time I’d been attacked, I began with cities near the Mississippi river, charting my original route. Smart thieves would steal horses near where they intended to set the relays to preserve the animals for the run.
I snatched a spool of thread from the courier’s satchel and went to work. By laying the thread along my chosen path, I could get a fairly accurate measure of distance. The thread would then represent the distance I had travelled since the first attack, which I would assume was the farthest west the thieves operated, as I had heard no rumors of thefts west of the Mississippi.