Askaro of the Falcon

by Lady Li Andre

  Chapter 19 – Whispers in the Dark

  Askaro darted around confused people. He watched the others moving down the street ahead of him. Running down the broad stairs was tricky. They were wide with angled front edges. He saw a draft animal pulling a wagon up the street and realized why the steps were shaped that way.

  The others had to pause with the rest of the pedestrians near the wagon, which took up half of the street, while a few men unloaded a large crate. It allowed Askaro to catch up with them. He glanced back. Bruvano wasn’t far behind. “We have to go now!”

  Blin grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the wagon. “Maybe we can get around it.”

  They moved through the crowd and approached the draft animal. It was standing quietly, moving its mouth as if thinking about a tasty snack. Zane looked past the animal. “The wagon is tight up against the building. There’s not enough room to get by it.”

  Blin patted the animal’s side and walked passed it. “Then we go under.”

  The cook leaned down. “That looks pretty tight, too. I don’t know if I’ll fit.”

  Blin sighed deeply. “Lay down and we’ll roll you.”

  Marlo put a hand on Zane’s shoulder. “Blin’s right. You can do this. We’ll help you.”

  Zane laid down. “Please don’t let me get stuck under here.”

  Askaro moved to his head and Blin took his feet. Marlo pulled off his lute and slid after them. There was more room after the first step because of the angle of the street. Askaro made sure Zane’s head didn’t connect with the undercarriage of the wagon. “Don’t worry. We’re out.”

  Marlo scurried to his feet and helped pull Zane to his. “Well done. I bet your father would be proud of that trick.”

  Zane grinned. “I bet he would. Let’s go. We’re almost to Bottoms Up.”

  Marlo readjusted his lute. “Ah, my favorite pub on this side of town.”

  Askaro could see the bottom of the street now. The breath caught in his throat. “I was wondering where he was. Just our luck. We’re trapped.”

  Blin’s brow creased. “What? How so?”

  Askaro ducked behind a group of people watching the progress of the workers, hoping that he hadn’t been recognized. “That man leaning against the corner of the building down there is Mister Fantori, the Helmsmen of the Falcon.”

  Marlo stepped in front of Askaro to shield him from anyone below. “He was with the other chap yesterday at the Red Cloud.”

  Askaro glanced back up the street. It was still blocked by the men handling the crate. He could hear Bruvano’s angry shouts. “They are in it together. And I don’t see any Authority officers anywhere.”

  Blin pointed to the door of the shop. “So we duck in and let him pass.”

  Zane motioned for them to follow. “Not this shop, Blin. If we can just get a few more doors down, we’ll be better off.”

  They followed him. Marlo made sure Askaro and Blin stayed close to the wall behind Zane. He brought up the end, blocking them from the sight of anyone uphill. He put a hand on Askaro’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, my friend. We won’t let these brutes get their hands on you.”

  Zane stopped by a door and rapped twice. The door opened. Zane smiled at the man. “How’s life at the bottom these days?”

  The man laughed loudly. “My dear Zane! Come in!”

  Zane motioned to the others. “I hope you don’t mind I brought some friends.”

  The man swung the door open wide. “Any friend of yours is a friend of mine. Come, come!” He turned away. “Stella! Come and see! It is our dear Zane!”

  Zane pulled the others inside and closed the door. “We’re safe now.”

  Askaro looked through the small curtained window beside the door. “Bruvano has gotten passed the wagon.”

  A well-rounded woman appeared through a doorway. She gasped loudly, rushed forward, and threw her chunky arms around Zane. She nearly swallowed him in a hug. “Oh, my Zane! Where have you been? Why have you not come to see Apegio and me, eh?”

  Zane managed to pull free. “I’m sorry, Lady Stella. Things have been a little,” he looked at the others and shrugged, “crazy lately.”

  Askaro felt that was an understatement. He turned back to the window and watched Bruvano coming down the street. Fantori moved into view. He tuned out the reunion behind him and concentrated on the two men. They were close enough that he could hear most of what they said.

  Bruvano’s face was twisted and the muscles in his neck bulged. “Did you see him?”

  Fantori straightened. “Was he here? I watched The Old Man’s place all night and he never showed up there. The Captain has had plenty of business though. From what I heard, he’s hired someone to look for the brat.”

  Bruvano’s jaws clamped shut. “That rotten piece of trash has cost us everything! He showed off his pendant to both Golarin and the Authority. The trackers are done with us.”

  The Helmsman glanced along the street. His face tightened. “If the Authority is on to us, we’re sunk. There aren’t any ships going out this time of year. We’re stuck on this rock.”

  “That’s not the case. I made a few friends and one of them happens to be the Bosun of the Avenger. They are headed south in two days. They have a full ship’s compliment already but he said he’d get us on if we lined his pockets enough.”

  Fantori put his hands on his hips. “And how are we supposed to do that? We’ve lost out on our cut because of all this!”

  “That brat is going to pay, one way or the other. Better yet, the Old Man can pay. I says we find him and ransom him back to the Captain. If he wants that tree spawn so bad, he can bloody well pay up.”

  Fantori looked around. “That’s all well and good, if we had him, but we don’t.”

  “You didn’t see him pass and I know he didn’t double back. He must be hiding in one of these shops. You stay here and keep watch in the street while I turn this place up-side-down. He’s here and I’m going to find him.”

  Askaro jumped when Marlo put a hand on his shoulder. He spun around. “We’re out of options. I can’t endanger you any longer. My only hope is to run past Fantori while Bruvano is in a shop and hope I can slip by him.”

  Marlo held out a sandwich to him. “Master Apegio said we can stay as long as we need to. Zane told him who you were and he’s going to send a runner to find your grandfather.”

  The steam from the warm meat-filled roll teased his nose. “We don’t have time. Bruvano is searching every shop and has Fantori watching the street. He won’t stop until he finds me. I don’t want to endanger Zane’s friends either.”

  Blin had taken Askaro’s place at the window. She almost choked on a bite. “He’s headed this way!”

  Zane shook the old man’s hand. “Looks like we can’t stay but I’d appreciate if you could distract him while we slip down the alley.”

  The woman looked ready to cry. “You must be careful so that you can return. We miss you so much. If we would have known what happened, you know that we would have taken you back. You are a fine chef, so much better than Darion.”

  Master Apegio had moved deeper into the busy kitchen. He returned carrying a sack. “At least take this with you. I will do what I can to delay him and get word to the Captain. Return when you feel it is safe and we will get this wayward son home.”

  Blin grabbed Askaro’s arm. “He’s at the door!”

  There was a resounding boom against the door they had entered. Zane pointed to a narrow passageway. “Follow me.”

  Marlo made sure Askaro and Blin went next. He waved to the couple. “Until we meet again, fair skies!”

  Stairs led downward. Askaro put a hand on Zane’s back. “Where are we going?”

  Zane’s voice sounded muffled in the tight space. “Down the alley. We’re at the flats of Steep Street. All the shops along the rest of the street have storage space below them. This alley runs along the back of the storage rooms.”

  The stairs ended and they turned a corner. Ask
aro was surprised by the brightness until he realized there were small windows evenly spaced on one wall. Bruvano’s demanding voice above pushed him forward. “Lead on, Zane.”

  They hurried down the alley, passing several rough wooden doors. The alley ended at another door. This one was made of metal. Zane reached for the handle but stopped. Marlo started to say something but Zane spun around with a finger to his lips. He pointed toward the last wooden door they had passed.

  Marlo went to it and tested the handle. It opened. He peered inside. “Looks like a storeroom.”

  Zane shushed him and herded everyone inside. He shut the door and leaned on it. His body seemed to sag. “Someone is in the water way. I could hear voices.”

  The only light filtered down from a stairway. Askaro could see shelves filled with various boxes and bottles. He could hear the murmur of voices above. He moved closer to the others. “Someone is upstairs, too.”

  Zane moved toward one of the walls and leaned an ear against it. “Maybe it’s just a work crew.”

  Askaro moved to the wall and followed Zane’s example. He could hear the muffled sounds of conversation on the other side. At least two men were talking.

  One man sounded annoyed. “I still don’t understand why we had to meet down here.”

  Another man swore. “You’re an idiot. Do you have any idea what will happen if this is discovered?”

  “I don’t know if this is a good idea. How do we know he won’t go back on his promise and just have us tossed into the pit?”

  “He paid in advance, didn’t he?”

  “You can’t spend it if you’re dead.”

  “Quit whining and pay attention. Did you find out if your friend can do the job, or not.”

  There was a slight pause. “His price is pretty high.”

  “It doesn’t matter. Vancent will pay. He’s waited too long for this day.”

  There was a gasp next to him. Askaro opened his eyes and noticed Marlo also had his ear to the wall. His eyes were wide. He felt Blin move to a space behind him. They listened as the first man continued to assure the other that his friend was more than capable.

  The man finally accepted it. “Fine. I’ll have Tibs bring the part by around midday. Lashen will sadly follow the footsteps of Laharas.”

  Blin sucked in her breath. Askaro turned around. She had her hands over her mouth. Her eyes were wide. He leaned toward her face. “What’s wrong?”

  “They are going to kill him.”

  Askaro felt like he’d heard one of the names before but he couldn’t remember where. “Who?”

  Blin slid to the floor. “The Prince.” She covered her face completely.

  Zane sounded like he was choking. Askaro turned as the cook stumbled away from the wall. Askaro caught him. There was no furniture in the small room so he led Zane to the stairs and helped him sit. In the slightly brighter light from above, the cook’s face looked pale. He stared back at the wall as if he could see through it.

  There was a groan and squeal then a quiet boom from the alley. Askaro moved to the door. He could hear footsteps retreating then another door being opened and closed. He looked back at the others. “One of them left.”

  Marlo had moved away from the wall. He was slowly pacing the room, rubbing his chin with his fingers. “This is bad.”

  Blin was shaking. The dim light reflected off the trickle that dripped down her face. She brushed at the tears. “Why would they want to kill Lashen? Who wants him dead?”

  Marlo came to a stop and rested his shoulder against the stair support. “Vancent does.”

  Blin gasped. Askaro rolled his eyes. “Let me guess. You know this person.”

  Marlo put a hand on Askaro’s arm. “I realize there’s no way you could know. Vancent is the Regent of Rokathalon.”

  Askaro sighed. “Well, that could explain why people don’t like him. But why would he want to kill the Prince?”

  Blin looked up at him. “So he can take the throne for himself.”

  Askaro rubbed his head. “I’m confused. He’s already Regent. Isn’t that the same thing?”

  Marlo drummed his fingers on the wood. “I’ve lost count. How old is the Prince now?”

  Blin studied her hands. “He’s almost sixteen.”

  Marlo turned to her. “Wow. Are you a fan?”

  She looked away. “Hardly. I just happen to be the same age.”

  Marlo began pacing again. “They were talking about food as well. Something is happening tomorrow night that requires an extensive menu.”

  Askaro intercepted the musician. “We have to do something. This is important. We have to warn someone.”

  Blin almost choked trying to laugh. “Warn who? All the guards are loyal to the Regent. Besides, no one would believe the likes of us.”

  Marlo looked over at Blin. “Take it easy, my friend. Don’t take your anger out on Askaro.” He turned back. “But there’s another issue. We don’t know when, where, or even what they are planning.”

  Askaro thought about the conversation. “We might be able to. They spoke of something being delivered to a shop. If we could figure out which shop, we might discover what they are up to.”

  Blin frowned. “And then what? Who can we even tell?”

  “We could tell the Seeker.”

  Blin shrunk back against the wall. “No!”

  Askaro was puzzled. “Why not? I thought you said they were loyal to the king. Knights of the Realm, right?”

  Marlo put his hand on his chin. “I’m still surprised by that appearance. I don’t even know where he came from. It’s not like you see a Seeker everyday.”

  Askaro hadn’t had time to consider it. “I’ve seen him, or maybe there’s more than one. It’s hard to tell with the cloak. Anyway, one has shown up at least a few times in just the past couple of days. I thought he was after me but he kept Bruvano from attacking me.”

  Blin sniffed. “He’s not after you. He’s after me.”

  Marlo spun to face her. “Why? What did you do to attract that kind of attention?”

  “I escaped.”

  Marlo’s eyebrows went up. “Escaped from where?”

  Blin covered her face and cried softly. Askaro put a hand on Marlo’s chest. “Don’t press. We need to stay on topic. Time is short. Whatever the part is they spoke of is showing up around midday at a shop. We need to find out what’s going on.”

  Marlo pulled at his lute strap. “That could be hard. There are hundreds of shops in Rokathalon. Where would we begin?”

  Askaro considered the scale of the city. “Well, you said they were talking about food. There must be a connection. And since they met here, the shop might be nearby.”

  “There are a limited number of markets and eateries in this area.”

  Blin pointed toward the door. “How about the one we passed through on the way down here? Maybe he works in the kitchen.”

  Zane finally stirred. He sighed deeply and looked up at them. “He doesn’t. He works for Rok Catering.”

  Askaro sat down on the step below Zane. “How do you know?”

  “I know who he is.”

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