Despite the situation Akosh had to admire his performance. He was good. Playing the victim and scaring the children at the same time. Whatever she did now or said, she’d never be able to come back to this orphanage. Even working through a surrogate Akosh knew she could not be their patron. Someone had outmanoeuvred her.
Part of her wanted to stab him over and over again for interfering in her plans. A larger part wanted to break his bones, one at a time, until he told her everything. Then she’d find out who he worked for and what they were planning. She teetered on the edge, having to work hard to fight her violent instincts, but in the end she withdrew. She calmly walked out of the building, clenching her jaw to stop herself saying something.
Akosh watched the orphanage from a secluded corner a few buildings away to see what happened next. A small boy hurtled out of the front door and raced down the street. A short time later he came back with some city guards in tow.
Maybe she should have just killed them all. She wondered how far it would go. One alleged assault shouldn’t be enough to cause any real problems. Even so she would get some of her people to quietly look into it. She wasn’t afraid of the authorities, but all of this would leave a trail.
Snarling with frustration she walked away from the orphanage, wondering about the ripples this would cause and who might notice them.
CHAPTER 6
It had been a few years since Balfruss had last seen Tammy but on the surface she looked much the same. A little leaner in the face perhaps. Tired and tense but that was to be expected given her new role and the pressure that came with it. When he’d heard about her promotion it hadn’t really surprised him. Her determination was unparalleled.
“Congratulations, Khevassar.”
“Thank you.”
“It suits you,” said Balfruss, gesturing at the Guardian jacket. “It’s the first time I’ve seen you in it.”
“Voechenka was a long time ago,” she said, recovering quickly from her initial surprise. “But sometimes it feels like only yesterday. It still haunts my dreams.”
“Mine too,” he said, forcing a smile to try and drive away the mental imagery from their shared time in the haunted city. “I came hoping you had some good news about Habreel and his network.”
Tammy hesitated before answering, showing a level of caution he’d not seen before. Balfruss didn’t know if that had developed because of her new role or a shift in their friendship. He hoped it was the former. “I have news, but little of it is good.”
His fledgling smile faded. “Do you know what’s happened?”
“I do. How is Munroe?”
Balfruss stared into the distance, trying to put her grief into words. “For the first few days she was barely holding on. She didn’t move, didn’t speak. She was consumed by her loss. I thought she was going to die. Two weeks ago she came out of her fugue. I tried to stop her but she insisted on going back to the Red Tower. She wanted to see it for herself and look for any clues about her family. She’s due back any day and, unless I can give her some good news, I’m worried what she will do on her own.”
“I’m so sorry,” said Tammy.
As a father Balfruss couldn’t even contemplate what he would do if something happened to his child. It was a nightmare he couldn’t dwell on. Thinking about his daughter always came with mixed feelings, but it was better than the overwhelming grief he’d seen in Munroe’s eyes. At least his child was still alive.
“Right now, though, I’m concerned about you,” she said.
“Me?”
Tammy folded her arms and leaned forward on her desk. “Are you going to seek retribution for the Red Tower?”
Balfruss shook his head. “We may not have spoken in a few years, but I haven’t changed that much.”
Tammy sighed and sat back in her chair, scrubbing a hand across her tired face. “I’m sorry. These days it’s difficult to know who to trust.”
“There are some things that I cannot tell you and others I will not,” said Balfruss, knowing they both had secrets they couldn’t share. No one on this side of the Dead Sea knew about his daughter and despite trusting Tammy, he would not tell her. The less people that knew about her the safer she would be. “But I will not lie to you and I’m still your friend.”
“I know.”
“Good. So, do you have some news for me?” he asked.
“We have Habreel in custody and he’s been helping us locate his lieutenants. They were coordinating his network of followers to stir up trouble against the Seekers. One of the six lieutenants is in the cells below, one is dead and unfortunately we can’t locate the other four.”
“Still, that sounds like a good start,” said Balfruss, puzzled by her lack of enthusiasm.
“It would be, if Habreel and his people hadn’t been pawns for someone else. A larger group. He was working with a woman named Akosh, and she was using his group for her own ends. So, now we’re trying to track down her and we don’t know anything about her agenda.”
“There’s something else. I can hear it in your voice,” said Balfruss.
Tammy’s job often required her to conceal her true feelings, but after enhancing his senses with magic for many years, it had made Balfruss adept at reading people.
“Akosh is some sort of cult leader. We questioned one of Habreel’s people, Grell, and he described her as an assassin, but he also said she had some kind of magic. She has a following and she funds several orphanages here in Perizzi. One of my Guardians, Brook, killed Grell for saying too much. It turned out Brook was part of the same cult. We found an idol in her home.” Tammy fished around in her desk drawer and pulled out a small stone statue. Balfruss held up the idol towards the light. It was crudely made but clearly represented a benevolent woman, probably a mother, caressing the cheek of a small child held in her arms. A symbol of love and affection at first glance, but perhaps it represented something more sinister. Absolute obedience.
“Five orphanages in the city have the same idols and a holy book. They all receive regular donations from former orphans, and apparently someone claiming to be Akosh visits them in person from time to time. Some of my people are watching the orphanages in case she shows up.”
“How old was Guardian Brook?” asked Balfruss.
“Almost forty, why?”
A disturbing idea was starting to form at the back of Balfruss’s mind. He and Tammy had shared much during their time together in Shael, but this was skirting close to a subject he’d kept private. It was something he was still struggling to accept and had yet to tell anyone about it after all these years. Few people knew the truth about Vargus, although many like Balfruss had fought beside him during the war. They thought that he was only a veteran warrior who had died defending Seveldrom. If that had been the end of his story it would have been a lot simpler.
“Be very careful,” Balfruss warned her. “If your people see Akosh, I would strongly advise them to keep their distance. Tell them not to interfere with her, merely observe and report back.”
Tammy folded her arms. “I’ll need a little more to go on. Are you saying she’s really a mage?”
“I’m not sure,” he admitted, shaking his head. He needed more evidence before he could be certain. “Either she’s a mage or something else. Something we’ve not seen before.”
Over the years Balfruss had come to realise that while others considered him knowledgeable about the world and its mysteries, he knew far less than people believed. Maintaining the lie massaged his ego a little, but it also protected them from horrors they’d never considered and were better off not knowing about. Tammy had been with him in the labyrinth beneath Voechenka where they’d fought the brood mother. There were many terrors lurking in the dark, waiting for their chance to strike. Most of the time ignorance was bliss.
His instincts were telling him that Akosh was either something new or something very old.
“I recognise that expression,” she said and Balfruss guessed her mind had also gone
back to Voechenka and the labyrinth.
“I don’t think it’s the same, but my gut is telling me she’s incredibly dangerous. I know someone who might be able to give me some answers.”
“I’ll make sure they keep their distance,” promised Tammy. “I also have people looking into Akosh beyond the capital in Yerskania and abroad. I’m beginning to wonder how far this cult of hers extends.”
That was a worrying thought he’d not considered, but it made sense if his theory was right. “I’m staying in the city at the moment. I’ll come by with any news as soon as I have it.”
“There’s something else we need to talk about,” said Tammy. “Garvey.”
The name echoed around the room and then dropped like a stone. In the last month he’d been helping the students who had forsaken their magic settle into new communities. It often meant him travelling to remote towns and villages, but even in those quiet corners he’d heard the stories. He knew what Garvey and his band of rogue mages had been doing. The lives they’d taken. The homes and communities they’d destroyed.
It seemed impossible that Garvey was responsible and yet, no matter how much he didn’t want to believe it, deep down he knew that it was true.
His friend was gone. Twisted by his experience, angered by the fear and violence people directed towards anyone with magic, Garvey had finally snapped. He wanted to live free but if anyone got in his way or disagreed with him, he killed them.
“What he’s doing,” said Balfruss, his hands curling into tight fists, “it goes against everything we tried to do at the Red Tower. Everything we stood for.”
“We need your help to stop him.”
Balfruss shook his head. “You don’t know what you’re asking me to do.”
“He’s dangerous. He’s murdering people and destroying whole communities. What else do you need to know?”
“He’s angry.” Balfruss took a deep breath and then another, forcing himself to calm down. Despite all of their preparation and planning, so many people had still died during the evacuation. Their work over the last few years at the Red Tower had been undone in less than a year. Eloise was trying to salvage what remained with the Jhanidi, while others were being forced to hide their power, just so they could live in peace. Seekers had buried or destroyed their masks to protect themselves and now, if a child came into their magic, he had no idea what would happen to them. The fear of being cast out by their community, or worse if they were discovered, would make them bottle it all up. Instead of reaching a place where magic was respected, they were moving towards a new dark age of fear. One where anyone connected to magic would be exiled or killed. He shared some of Garvey’s anger about what had happened but knew killing innocents only fed into their belief that all magic was dangerous.
“He’s my friend. You know how rarely I used that phrase.”
Balfruss had now reached the age where he could count on one hand the number of people he would call true friends. These were people he could turn to in any circumstances and they would be there for him without question. Some friends had died, others had changed over the years becoming people he barely recognised any more, and some had drifted away when their lives went in a new direction. He’d thought of Garvey as a friend, despite all of the changes he’d gone through, but recent events were making him question his judgement. The man he knew, no matter how damaged and angry, could not have committed such atrocities.
He expected Tammy to ignore him but she considered his words carefully before replying, her words echoing his thoughts. “He isn’t the same man you knew. Events have changed him.”
Balfruss sat back in his chair and closed his eyes for a moment. He knew she was right but there was so much to do. He was doing his best to stop Munroe from going on a killing spree of her own. He’d managed to rehome all of the students who had given up their magic, but being accepted as a member of the community did not happen overnight. And now he needed to contact an old friend about Akosh. And if he was right about her the possible repercussions would force him down a new path.
“I want to help, but I have my limits. The Red Tower is gone and so are all of its students. All of the mages I could call on are scattered to the winds, living in hiding. Garvey has at least a dozen students with him. I wouldn’t stand a chance against them by myself.”
“Do you think he would kill you?” asked Tammy.
Balfruss considered it. “No, but his followers may have no such compunction. They may have acquired a taste for killing, and, as someone capable of fighting back, I would present them with an exciting challenge.”
Balfruss knew his answer was disappointing, but they would have to deal with Garvey by themselves for the time being. Without some guidance he was afraid of what Munroe might do. If she went on a rampage it would make Garvey’s seem minor by comparison. Without a doubt she was the most powerful mage he’d ever met and right now she was incredibly unstable.
Tammy didn’t push him any harder on the subject, for which he was grateful.
“I’ll speak to my contact about Akosh and let you know if I find anything.”
“I’d appreciate that,” she said, coming around the desk to see him to the door. “Despite everything, it’s good to see you.”
She hugged him tightly for a moment and then let him go. As Balfruss walked through the outer office he looked back through the door and saw Tammy return to her desk and the mountain of paperwork.
When Balfruss entered his room at the inn he was briefly surprised to see someone sitting beside the window. Munroe looked very small in the large chair with a blanket across her lap. The room was in darkness and she was staring out at the night sky, oblivious of her surroundings.
He moved around the room, kindling the lanterns and starting a fire to drive away the chill in the air. Munroe barely noticed and didn’t react to anything he did. She’d been like this at the beginning, numb to everything except her pain.
“When did you get back?” he asked, settling into the chair opposite.
“Tonight,” she murmured, her eyes still distant. “Do you think it would have made a difference, if I’d been there?” asked Munroe. She’d asked him the same question several times before but he wondered if she remembered.
“I don’t know. Perhaps.” It was the same answer he’d given her the last time as well, because there was no way to know. If she had been at the Red Tower it could have made things better or far worse. Whatever answer he gave it wouldn’t restore the dead.
“What did you find? Was there anything left?” he asked. Part of him had also been tempted to travel back to Shael to visit the school and see what remained. The more logical part of his mind had warned him against it. Such a journey would only bring him heartache and make him angrier. Heeding the wiser voice inside he’d remained here while Munroe had gone in search of answers about her family.
“The school is gone.” Her voice was flat and lifeless. “Every building is a pile of charred timbers. There were bodies, too, burned things, just lying on the ground. Even the crows won’t touch them they’re too far gone. The tower itself is still there. I could see where they’d tried to burn it. The earth all around is blackened, but there’s not a scratch, not a single mark on the stones.”
It was a small relief but again not unexpected. The tower was centuries old and he had no idea who had built it or how it had been done. As a boy he’d asked a member of the old Grey Council if they knew its origins, but they were also in the dark. Its creation was another secret that had been lost.
From the moment he’d seen smoke on the horizon Balfruss had known the school was gone. But he’d put on a brave face and kept the students marching, kept their minds and their hands occupied so they didn’t dwell on the past. But Munroe hadn’t gone back to Shael to check on the school. She’d gone in search of her loved ones.
A long painful silence settled on the room. He didn’t want to ask and she didn’t want to speak about it, but part of him needed to know. This time, ig
noring the wiser voice, he broke the silence and opened himself up to the pain.
“Did you find them?”
“I searched everywhere but found nothing.” Balfruss felt his heart lift at her words until he saw the misery etched into her features. “So I spent several nights listening to drunks tell stories in taverns. In dark corners, in whispered voices, several people spoke about chasing an injured man and a boy on horseback. They pursued them down to the river, only for a green monster to rise from the water and scare them away.” Balfruss tried to speak. To offer her a glimpse of hope. A sliver of denial that, perhaps, all was not as it appeared. But she wasn’t finished. “I went down to the river, to his cabin. And there, soaked into the boards of the pier, I found blood. There was so much.”
There were no words he could offer to soothe her agony. Nothing he could do that would change what had happened. Her family was truly dead. Balfruss wondered who was sitting across from him. How much of the person he knew had died with them beside the river?
Her eyes roamed about the room before finally settling on his. For a little while she seemed to be with him in the room. “You look tired.”
“It’s been a long day,” he said, trying to remember the last time he’d slept for more than a few hours.
“Did you visit Tammy? Did she have any news about who killed my family?”
“No. The person we thought responsible was merely a pawn for someone else.”
Balfruss saw something dangerous flicker behind her eyes. “I want a name,” said Munroe.
“Habreel was being played the whole time. His group of followers were just one branch of a much larger cult.”
“Who killed my family?” she asked again.
“Give me some more time,” he said. For a brief moment he thought she might concede but then the steel crept back into her gaze. Her posture shifted, shoulders hunching and hands curling up into tight fists. She was out of patience and he was out of time.
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