01- Jack of Thieves

by Ben Hale

  Ursana.

  He spotted her hanging from the exterior of the opposite tower. Held aloft by her shadowhook, she'd placed herself in the deepest darkness. He grinned at her as he raced across the platform, intent on reaching the opposite side. A handful of guards pushed their way toward him but the leader suddenly went down, tripping over Duke Fillian's foot. The ones behind him were too close and they stumbled over the man's body, falling into a knot of squirming and shouting men.

  Duke Fillian grinned at the havoc he'd caused and his eyes met Jack's. Jack sensed the duke had acted on his own interests, not specifically for Jack. Either way, the motion allowed Jack to cross the Overlook unhindered. As he leapt the pile of men he flashed a smile to the man and inclined his head in gratitude. The duke grinned in response and made no effort to stop him.

  Jack landed and raced for the eastern bridge. Soldiers filled the opening across from him, their red tunics thickening as they charged. Knowing it was his last chance, he leapt to engage them.

  He bounced off the railing and flipped over the two leaders. Catching their uniforms as they turned, he twisted and launched them into the soldiers flooding from the turret. One managed to evade the impact, and darted toward him with upraised sword.

  Jack twisted, allowing the sword to slide past him before catching the man about his neck. Bending low, he threw him over his back and into the fray. Soldiers cried out in dismay as the body was hurled into them.

  Jack leapt the gap, landing halfway across the bridge that connected the balcony and the turret. He gauged the distance for his shadowhook and raised it toward the exterior wall of the tower, where the lights from the Overlook failed to reach. At the last second he glanced over his shoulder, his gaze sweeping the crowd.

  Gordon was nowhere in sight, but Beauty was being herded into a group with other nobles. She protested with the rest of them but Jack noticed the tension to her frame. If they began questioning her Jack had no doubt her identity would be discovered. Growling in irritation, he turned away from his escape and leapt back.

  The men had just managed to disentangle themselves and one man raised his helmeted head. Jack stepped on it, causing him to crash into another soldier as Jack leapt over them.

  “Sorry, mate!” Jack called as he sprinted away, but his laughter robbed the apology of sincerity.

  The soldiers had separated the nobles into knots to protect them, but the women began to scream upon Jack's return. Fleetingly he noticed Stelora staring at him, her expression a mixture of amusement, anger, and curiosity.

  The group with Beauty recoiled as he raced toward them and the guards began to turn. Beauty reached up and caught one helmet. With one hand she smashed it into another, sending them both to the ground.

  Jack leapt two swords, twisting his body so his legs caught the head of one guard while his arms caught the head of the other. His sheer momentum knocked them backward, slamming them into the ground. He rolled to his feet and stepped to Beauty's side.

  “You should have gone,” she growled.

  “Is that your idea of gratitude?”

  “I'm still going to curse your name when we hang.”

  “At least it will be my name on your lips.”

  She released an explosive growl and refused to respond. Jack grinned as he began to retreat toward the musicians' platform, pulling her with him. Soldiers were flooding the Overlook, organizing into ranks and interlocking their shields as they pushed their way forward. Jack rotated away and stepped onto the musicians’ platform as he cast about for a way out. With Lord Horanian's giant statue at their backs and a wall of soldiers forming around them, Jack finally drew his dagger.

  The guests followed the guards in, drawn to the spectacle. Evidently intent on taking them alive, the soldiers wielded staffs and clubs rather than blades and spears.

  “You really are a fool,” Beauty said, stepping to cover his back.

  “And yet you join me,” Jack said.

  “You know I have no choice,” she snarled. “They will close off the exits until they determine how you got in.”

  She caught a club with her bare hands and wrenched if from the wielder. His cry of dismay was cut off when she knocked him to the ground. Then she swung it at a pair of guards with staffs, snapping one weapon and sending the other man sprawling.

  “Gordon?” Jack queried.

  “He slipped out when you kissed the girl. By the love of Ero, why did you have to kiss her?”

  “I needed the distraction.”

  “Well I hope you enjoyed it,” she snapped. “It will cost you your life. Lord Horanian will execute us both for it.”

  Their conversation grew difficult as more and more guards pressed around them. Only their enhanced strength and speed kept them from being overwhelmed. He picked up a discarded string instrument and smashed it over a man's head. The discordant note joined the wonderful din, causing Jack to smile.

  “Are you enjoying yourself?” Beauty demanded.

  “How can you not?” Jack asked.

  He caught a club and folded his leg over the man's arm to kick him in the face. Another man took his place, but since he'd lost his helm Jack leaned in and smashed his forehead into the guard’s skull. Dazed, the man crumpled to the floor.

  “I thought you didn't practice combat,” she said acidly.

  “I said I didn't practice swordplay,” he replied. “I'd be a fool not to practice combat.”

  “But what do we do?”

  “We wait,” Jack said.

  “For what?”

  “Hold!” a voice roared, and the soldiers reluctantly retreated a step.

  “That,” Jack said.

  He eased the hand crossbow from the holster he'd hidden in a fold of his cloak. The springs snapped the crossbow open at a touch, and Jack made a mental note to thank the dwarf for his work.

  Lord Horanian pushed his way forward until he could see them, but not so far that he could be attacked. Lord Saris was at his side and both had murder in their eyes. Lord Horanian could barely speak through his rage.

  “How dare you . . .”

  “Your daughter is an excellent kisser, my Lord.”

  His words caused the soldiers to gasp, their eyes darting to their master, whose face had gone purple. A vein jumped on his forehead like a grasshopper straining to break free.

  “I will have you drawn and quartered for this,” Lord Horanian snarled. “Guards . . .”

  Jack pointed his crossbow at the giant statue. “I'd point it at your daughter, but I wager you value yourself more than her.”

  Fear appeared in the lord's eyes. “You cannot harm it,” he said.

  “Are you certain?” Jack asked.

  A tinge of doubt touched the man's voice. “Put down your weapons and you will not be harmed.”

  “For a noble, I expected you to lie better.”

  Jack savored Horanian's abject horror for several moments. Then he thumbed the exploding rune and pulled the trigger—and yanked Beauty down. The bolt struck the statue and detonated in an explosion of fire, dust, and bits of stone.

  “KILL THEM!” Lord Horanian roared. “KILL THEM NOW!”

  In the midst of the cloud Jack pulled Beauty toward the ring of soldiers, kicking his way through as the guards struggled to recover. Once clear he raced to the balcony that overlooked the canyon far below.

  “You really are mad,” Beauty said.

  Jack stepped onto the railing and looked back at her. “Either them or me. It's your choice.”

  She looked back at the milling guards and snarled at her choice. Then she hiked her dress above her knees and joined him on the railing. As he wrapped his arm around her, the dust cleared enough for the guards to spot them.

  “I swear, Jack, if you kill me . . .”

  An inch from her face he smirked. “I know, you'll curse my name as you die.”

  With guards bellowing, lords shouting, and ladies screaming, he tightened his grip on her and leaned back. Her rising curse ming
led with his laughter as they tipped over the edge. The next moment the guard’s stunned expressions faded and Jack and Beauty plummeted into the gorge.

  Chapter 22: Into the Gorge

  Jack managed to twist so they faced downward, the wind tearing his clothing as they accelerated. In half a breath they reached the top of the canyon, streaking past it on their way into the gorge. Over the rush of wind and Beauty's shouting Jack could hear screams from the Overlook and the city.

  The roar of the waterfall exploded over them as they fell, but Beauty’s shouting in his ear overpowered it. She held him with a deathly grip, nearly crushing his ribs. His attention on the canyon he hardly noticed, and his unrestrained laugh reverberated off the walls of the ravine.

  As darkness enveloped them, he pointed a bridge connecting the two sides of the city and sent a thread of black streaking toward it. It continued to extend, slowing as it reached the extreme end of its magic. Then the shadowhook struck the underside of the bridge, fusing to the shadow and holding fast. Jack straightened his arm and grasped the magical rope, bracing for the jolt.

  The thread went taut, yanking him and Beauty into an arc away from the waterfall. The sides of the gorge became a blur of windows, stairs, and shocked faces illuminated by pools of light. He caught a glimpse of a mother standing in her kitchen, her jaw open, her hand frozen in midair as she stared at them.

  “Jack!” Beauty shouted.

  “I see it!”

  They were headed straight for a bridge containing a pottery shop. The impact would shatter every bone in their bodies. Jack strained to touch the rune that would pull them up and the shadowhook began to draw them in. As they accelerated toward it Jack realized they weren’t lifting fast enough.

  They yanked their feet up, passing so close they kicked a table of ceramic pots to the surface of the bridge. The shopkeeper shouted in dismay and then his eyes widened as he saw them streak past him.

  They reached the bottom of the arc and began to climb, but Jack extinguished the shadowhook, sending them sailing downward. Beauty tightened her grip when they lost their tether and began to fall once again.

  “ARE YOU MAD?”

  Jack aimed again and activated the shadowhook, catching the underside of a lower bridge. The magical rope snapped taut, swinging them once more. An instant later the center of the magic caught on another bridge, forcing Jack to extinguish and recast it.

  Through the maze of bridges they soared, using the shadowhook to keep them moving and alive. Their momentum slowed with the horizontal motion, the shrieking of the wind diminishing to a howl.

  Again and again Jack sent his shadowhook away, catching the spans above in order to keep them from plummeting into the depths of the canyon. In spite of his efforts to slow them they continued to drop.

  “We're going too fast!” Beauty shouted.

  Jack growled under his breath but she was right, and they were running out of bridges. Ahead, the tip of the canyon appeared with bright moonlight filling the opening. They were nearly at the bottom of the gorge now, with only a handful of spans beneath them. Realizing they had no choice, he dropped lower and swung them just forty feet above the river below.

  “Care for a swim?”

  She ground her teeth together but didn't argue, signaling she knew it was their best option. Swinging beneath the lowest bridges in the gorge, they gradually slowed. Beneath them the tumultuous water had begun to calm as the ground leveled out. He hooked the last bridge and timed the release. Then he extinguished the magic. Falling side by side, they straightened their bodies for the impact and Jack sucked in a breath.

  The water felt like stone when Jack hit, and his legs buckled beneath him. Then he was under and the distant sound of the rapids evaporated. The current carried him thirty feet before he managed to breach the surface. He sucked in a great breath and looked about for Beauty. Then she burst into view beside him, coughing and gasping. Striking out for shore they swam to the bank and crawled onto the surface.

  “If you hadn't just saved my life, I'd kill you,” she said.

  He grinned, his gaze lingering on her soaked dress. “Drenched in water is a good look for you, especially in that dress.”

  She flushed and shifted to cover more of her leg. “Did your mother never teach you any manners?”

  “My mother's dead.”

  His answer came out before he could stop it. He grunted in annoyance and looked away but she reached out and touched his arm.

  “I'm sorry,” she said. “I didn't know.”

  He pasted a smirk on his face and gingerly rose to his feet, pulling her up beside him. “We need to get moving,” he said.

  Her gaze lingered on him, a flicker of doubt in her expression. Before she could ask any more, Jack began to walk toward Shadow's Bank. She caught up to him and ignored his closed expression.

  “What happened to your—”

  “How do we get a message to Nemeth?” Jack asked.

  She didn't answer, and he could almost feel her gaze burning into his back. Then she caught his arm and spun him about.

  “Why are you here, Jack? Is it because of her?”

  “Leave it alone,” Jack said.

  “I deserve to know,” she growled, stepping so close he could smell the moisture in her hair. “You've risked my life enough.”

  “Leave it alone, Thera,” he said, his voice turning dangerous.

  “Did you lose her to the thieves?” she demanded. “Was your mother Morissa?”

  Rage swelled within him, spilling into his words. “You want me to tell you they killed her? Hunted her down like a rabid wolf? That they killed her in front of me?”

  “Why?” she asked.

  “I don't know,” Jack ground the words out. “But I swore I'd find out before I killed them—just like you did with your sister.”

  “And your father?”

  “What about him? He was drunk and useless.”

  “I'm sorry, Jack.”

  Irritated that he'd revealed so much, he forced a smile. “I joined the guild to punish them, just like you. That's all that matters.” He turned and strode away.

  She caught up and fell into step beside him. “You still haven't told me where your magic comes from.”

  “Enough secrets for one day.”

  His tone ended the conversation, and neither of them spoke until they reached the settlement. Behind an inn they found clothes flapping in the breeze and took those that would fit.

  “Turn away so I can change.”

  He grinned. “I can't promise that.”

  She growled in exasperation and stole away. While she was gone he slipped into trousers and a merchant's tunic. When she returned they strode into the street and made their way to a smaller inn. Although a handful of people were in the open, the late hour had driven most to their beds.

  Jack and Beauty stepped into the cramped tavern and slipped into a booth near the fire. After the bruising descent from the castle a glass of ale was needed, but what came was a watered down version of it. Jack wrinkled his nose in distaste.

  “They call this ale?”

  “Apparently.”

  He managed half the mug before giving up. “How do we reach Nemeth?” he asked, sliding the mug away so he wouldn't be tempted. “Lord Horanian will certainly lock down the city while he searches for us.”

  “Did you have to kiss her?”

  “She was beautiful. And I'm me.”

  His matter of fact tone made her laugh. “I can send a message through the tavern, but we should keep a low profile.”

  He yawned, suddenly tired from the long night. “Let me know when he shows up.” He rose to his feet but she caught his arm.

  “I mean it, Jack,” she said. “Lord Horanian will be out for blood, and you won't always be as lucky.”

  “Is that a thank you?”

  “The only one you're going to get.”

  Her tone was annoyed but her lips tugged into a smile. Jack grinned in turn and strode towa
rd the stairs. Finding his room, he slipped inside and locked the door. With a weary sigh he collapsed onto the bed and was asleep in seconds.

  It took two days for Nemeth to sneak out of the city, and when he appeared he was positively giddy. He slipped into the corner booth they had taken to using. His smile revealed his yellowing teeth.

  “I've never seen such madness in all my days,” he said.

  Jack tossed his cards on the table with a resigned sigh. Beauty grinned and collected the coins between them.

  “Nobles need the occasional blow to their pride,” Jack said.

  “And what a blow,” Nemeth said with a chuckle. “His vaunted Overlook is in ruins and the other nobles are outraged.” He leaned in, lowering his tone. “And word is that his daughter wants to call off her engagement.”

  “Must have been some kiss,” Beauty said wryly.

  Nemeth smirked. “I can't believe you kissed Stelora.” His eyes lit up as if imagining the moment.

  Abruptly tired of the intrigue, Jack shrugged. “I suspect the city will have my poster up for some time, so I'd like to be gone. When do we get our payment?” He reached into a pocket for the amulet but Nemeth raised a hand to stop him.

  “Keep the item for tonight,” Nemeth said. “You are coming with me to meet the dark elves.”

  “You want us to come?” Beauty asked. Her eyes flicked to Jack and he saw the anticipation in them. It was the opportunity they had sought for.

  “You've earned it,” Nemeth said. “Besides, Jack needs to see how a thief takes payment for his work.”

  Jack smiled, relishing the prospect as Beauty spoke to Nemeth. Vaguely he listened to them detail the plans on where and when to meet, and he managed to keep the anticipation from his face. Alone with Nemeth and Beauty would be his best chance to exact his revenge upon the man.

  The day passed too slowly for Jack's liking, and when night fell they departed the inn and worked their way north. Several times Beauty tried to engage him in conversation but he couldn't bring his attention away from Nemeth.