by Tina Hunter
“We’re laying in ‘er at the Corrupt Harpy,” he said pointing at the building over his shoulder. Lynn thanked whatever might be watching over her for small favors. At least she wouldn’t have to see Declan anymore. “And there be ladybirds next door, if’n you want to join?”
“Thank you for the kind offer but I have work to do this evening. I thought you did as well?” she asked with innocent eyes.
“Bah. Ain’t nobody got better knowing than a ladybird,” he said. Then with a tip of his non-existent hat, he took off towards an oil-lit building right next door to the Corrupt Harpy.
“Lovely location he picked, don’t you think?” Lynn asked Dorothy. The girl gave a noncommittal sound, her eyes searching the crowd looking for someone. Who could she know out here? Was she looking for Malack?
“The Burnt Scroll is just down the road, not far,” she said but still Dorothy didn’t answer.
“Dorothy!?” Lynn raised her voice slightly trying to get the girl's attention. Dorothy jumped at the sound of her name and finally looked at Lynn. Her eyes were wide with fear and Lynn immediately felt a wave of danger wash over her. “What is it?” she whispered.
“The men with the gun from the Velvet Rose. They’re here.”
Dorjee spent the entire evening locked in their room. Lynn wasn’t taking any chances until she knew where those men were and how they hadn’t seen them on the boat. Dorjee could tell that them being here made Lynn nervous, and that made Dorjee more than nervous. She borrowed a book from Lynn, some romance book about a Dukanna Prince and dragon rider from Drakar. But no matter how hard she tried to get into it, her eyes kept being pulled to the window. She wanted to look out and see if they were there. But it would be foolish to do so in the dark. They’d be able to see into her oil lamp-lit room and she wouldn’t be able to see a thing outside. So, she turned back to the book and tried to figure out how the prince moved so quickly around the world. Maybe that man was using the same thing.
The secret knock on the door finally broke her circular thoughts. Lynn had taught the knock to her. Two quick knocks than a pause the two slow ones. Dorjee went to the door and unlocked it for her. Lynn dressed as a man again, black trousers with a grey dress shirt and a long black coat. Her long hair was pulled up underneath her hat, and she’d even put special powder on her cheeks and chin to make it look like she had the shadow of a beard. She looked like a man, well, except for the eyes. The eyes crinkled up when she smiled at Dorjee in a very Lynn manner. Even when she dressed like this, it was still just Lynn.
“Anyone come by?” Lynn asked, locking the door behind her. Dorjee shook her head and sat down on the small bed; it would be interesting to see if there was enough room for both of them to sleep in it.
“Good,” Lynn said and turned down the oil lamp. Then she took off the jacket and hat.
“Did you find out anything?” Dorjee asked. She was desperate for information and being stuck in this room wasn’t helping. Lynn grimaced.
“Sorry I couldn’t find any trace of him. It’s like he wasn’t here.”
Dorjee felt the dig. Lynn had pestered her to describe what she saw in detail but Dorjee had only seen him for a moment.
“It was him. I’m sure of it.” And she was sure, all the way to her bones. It was like when she felt with her abilities and could tell when something was metal or the shape of it. She knew it was the same man.
“I believe you. It just means we must be careful. I’ve asked Teodor to keep an eye out too since he’s seen those men before. Hopefully, we’ll see them before they see us.” Lynn took her dress shirt off and then went to the washbasin and washed the powder off her face. “Hopefully they won’t remember your face.”
“He will,” Dorjee said, remembering the way he made her look up at him with his hand on her chin.
Lynn peered over at her with sad eyes over the towel she was using to dry her face then came to sit beside her on the bed.
“Let’s try to keep our minds off it. There is nothing more we can do about it tonight. So why don’t you tell me about today, with Malack on the boat?” Lynn looked hopeful. Dorjee didn’t know how to tell her that Malack had no interest in taking her in. He was just being kind to Lynn.
“It was good,” she said. “He taught me about misdirection and... uh, sleight of hand. I wasn’t very good. But he was patient with me.” Dorjee stared at the ground, refusing to meet Lynn’s eyes.
“Did anything else happen?” Lynn asked. Dorjee could hear the concern in her voice. But how could she tell Lynn? Sometimes Dorjee used her abilities without meaning to, and she had during the game. Malack had caught her and yelled at her to not use her powers around him again. He didn’t like her powers, but he was kind enough to her when she didn’t use them. The problem was there was no guarantee she wouldn’t use them around him again no matter how hard she tried.
“No,” she finally answered, but maybe Lynn would know more about Inborn abilities. “I was wondering if you knew why sometimes I can’t control when I use my abilities?”
“What do you mean?” She asked. She didn’t look scared or angry, just curious. Dorjee relaxed.
“It’s like when you hold in a sneeze. Sometimes it comes out even when you try to hold it in.”
“And when you feel like that, you just move things? Can you control what you move?”
Dorjee shook her head, “Things just move towards me or away from me depending on how I’m feeling. No matter how hard I try to not do it, it always shows up when I don’t want it to.” That’s how her parents had found out about it. She’d kept it under control for so long and then she hit her foot on the table in the living room and it magically flew to the other side of the room.
“Has it always been like that? Was there ever a time when it didn’t happen or didn’t happen as often?”
Dorjee thought about it and was surprised to realize that it happened only twice while she was at the Velvet Rose. She told Lynn as much, and Lynn tapped her pointer finger on her chin while she thought.
“Maybe you need to use it or it will just happen without your control. Let’s try practicing every night and see if that stops it from happening during the day.” Lynn said with a smile. Dorjee was shocked and thrilled. Lynn didn’t seem to care about her ability. She just wanted to help. Dorjee couldn’t keep the grin from spreading across her face. Lynn matched it with one of her own.
They set up the room, turning off the lamp and setting up a candle on the windowsill so no one would see shadows outside, and then Lynn took out a handful of coins and laid them in the middle of the bed. She sat on one end while Dorjee sat on the other.
“Let’s start with something easy,” Lynn said, spreading out the coins so they were in a line. “Lift each one up into the air, hold for a moment, then put it back down in the same place.”
It was similar to what she used to do at home in her room, only with jewelry and bits of paper, to see what she could do. It was easy enough though by the tenth and final coin she could feel the strain of doing so much in so short a time. It wobbled in the air before she put it back down. Lynn tapped her chin again in thought.
“Hmmm. OK. Faster. Each one up and down as fast as you can.” She said with a devilish grin. Lynn was enjoying this, and Dorjee had to admit that she was too.
Dorjee went through them as fast as she could but the strain was getting worse, each coin felt heavier than the last. So much so that she was dropping the last three instead of putting them back down. She was even breathing a little heavier by the end.
“That was good,” Lynn said. “How do you feel?”
“I feel good. Like I just stretched.” Dorjee replied. Lynn nodded.
“So, is it just moving things or can you do other things?” Lynn asked, leaning forward conspiringly. Dorjee giggled and told her how she could feel things if she closed her eyes. Lynn’s eyes grew wide and then got a faraway look. “What is it?” she asked the older girl.
“Just that you have an incredible
gift. Tomorrow I’ll try hiding things and see if you can find them.”
Dorjee felt happy in a way she hadn’t in a long time. She had a friend who accepted her for who she was. It was a great feeling.
“Let’s try to get some rest now. I’ve got a busy day tomorrow,” Lynn said with a yawn.
Dorjee frowned. “Are you ever going to tell me what your job here is?”
Lynn appeared surprised, and then after a moment of hesitation, she nodded to herself.
“I need to steal something from inside the Fort,” she said at a whisper. Dorjee’s eyes grew wide, but she said nothing, she didn’t want to discourage her friend from talking more. “It looks like the only way in is through the front door, and I can’t find a back one, so I have to see if we can get someone to tell us what it looks like in there. I need to know the layout so that when we go in on Saturday, I’ll know where what I need is. Maybe they have workers bring in cargo...” she trailed off in thought. Dorjee could tell she was worried. Whatever was in there was important for her to steal. She didn’t know why but she would try to support her new friend as much as she could. She put her hand on Lynn’s arm, breaking her from her thoughts, and gave her a reassuring smile.
“You’ll figure it out,” Dorjee said. “I heard Declan and Malack say you were the best thief they’d ever known so you must be good.”
Lynn laughed at the statement, a real full belly laugh. Soon Dorjee joined in. It was nice having a friend.
Six
~Wednesday Morning In The Corrupt Harpy~
THE TEAM GATHERED at a table in the large dining room. There were two other tables full, but they were far enough away that being overheard wasn’t a concern. And much to the men’s disagreement, Lynn allowed Dorothy to stay with them for the conversation. It wasn’t like Lynn was about to leave the girl alone and she had no one else to watch over her.
“So, what did everyone find out?” Lynn asked. Dorothy sat beside her, tucking into an egg and potato dish that reminded Lynn of the slop she used to feed the pigs. She had already finished her toast.
Simon was eating a slab of meat and gravy, and an assortment of other expensive-looking food. He was ignoring her completely while he ate the last bites and she noticed he deliberately slowed down to stretch out how much longer it would take to finish. Teodor leaned forward, over his empty plate, to give his report.
“There’re loads of new folk in town, but the birds are in a puzzle as ta why.” He looked at Dorothy, “Couldn’t find your gal-sneaker, but we’ll keep an eye out for him.” Dorothy nodded in reply.
“We should look into that,” Lynn said. “We need to know if there is something going on with all these new faces. Anything else?”
Teodor scratched his chin. “I asked ‘bout getting work at the Fort. Birds think cargo’d be my spill. They go in ‘n out twice daily. Could be our back way?”
“That’s excellent. Yes, we could use that as our way in for scouting. Our opening is on Saturday, and I have a plan for that but we need to know the layout of the Fort before then. Teodor, can I count on you to get onto that cargo crew? When is the next shipment?”
Teodor shrugged. “Dam’ if I know.”
“I think I might know,” said Brutus. He was drinking a steaming warm drink and Lynn held her breath for him to finish his sip before continuing. “I found that the cargo is moved from an area near the Square. Where the watchtower is. They take special boats over to the Fort with soldiers onboard. They are watched the whole time. It would be a very difficult job to get done, and I think Teodor would stand out too much.”
“Great, so you’ll do it then?” Lynn asked. She couldn’t let him tell her that the plan was no good without giving her another option. He raised his eyebrows in surprise. Lynn maintained eye contact and didn’t look away. She would have to assert her place as the leader here. They would not give it to her. Heck, Darkan might have given them something else to do while they were here. Simon might be the most vocal but he had no spine to back it up. She, however, wasn’t backing down. This was her contract, and she did not want to be Darkan’s slave for 20 years. It grew quiet, then awkward, then she felt the anticipation from the others at the table. This would decide who was in charge. She wasn’t backing down. Finally, Brutus turned away and Lynn caught a brief gleam of sadness in his eyes. She had to stop herself from asking if he was all right. There was a job at stake here. She needed this done.
“I’ll do it,” he said. Lynn nodded. She knew this was something he didn’t want to do but she couldn’t think of a way to give the job back to Teodor without losing whatever authority she’d just gained. She glanced over to Simon now. He looked nervous.
“Did you find anything of interest out last night?”
Simon wouldn’t look her in the eye but he snarled out his response. “There is a group of dangerous men gathering in town and it may or may not be connected to a Belalto princess arriving tonight.”
That surprised Lynn. The Belalto Kingdom was on the far side of the mountains, and the Goa Elves didn’t normally send royalty out of their crystal castles for small errands.
“There must be something interesting going on,” she said, “I want you to find out more about this princess and why she is in town.”
Simon glared at her. Directly in the eyes. He looked to Lynn like a trapped cat. Ready to strike out at any moment but also terrified. There was something going on with him and it was affecting the others. They would have to have a conversation soon. She needed to know what was going on before it made things even worse.
Simon finally nodded his acceptance of the task she gave him. Which left Teodor without something to do.
“Teodor, you go and help Simon learn what he can. Dorothy and I will keep an eye on the docks from a distance in case things don’t go smoothly.” Lynn looked at Brutus, hoping he would understand that she was trying to give him a safety net while still being in control. He wasn’t looking at her for her to read a reaction. Just as well. She needed to tone down the compassion. “If things do go well, we’ll spend some time getting to know the town a bit better.”
Everyone had something to do today. That should hopefully keep them preoccupied with other things instead of having her as their leader. They’d obviously had too much time to think about that already. Teodor merely nodded his head. He didn’t seem to have any ill will against her. She’d have to work on Simon and Brutus.
Simon stood up quickly, pushing the table away from himself as he did and stormed off. Teodor gave her a raised eyebrow look and left the table to follow him.
“I’m going to get some juice,” Dorothy said quietly before she, too, slipped away. At least the kitchen was within eyesight and Dorothy knew to stay on this side of the door.
Which left her and Brutus alone for the first time ever. She wondered what she should say to him, to win him over to her. Or perhaps just to find out what Simon had been saying about her to poison him against her. For once she was at a loss for words. She wasn’t afraid of him, more worried about him. She reached out to take his hand, and he flinched back. Then he looked her in the eye. She revised her previous thought. She was a little afraid of him.
“I know you didn’t pick this job, and neither did I, but let’s make something clear. I’m a healer, not just someone you send in to throw fists,” he whispered.
“That was never my intention, however, you made it clear that Teodor wasn’t suitable. What other choice did I have?”
“How about going home?” Brutus said. “You’ll still get your stupid necklace, Darkan gets nothing, and we can all go back to our lives.”
Lynn sputtered for a moment. So that’s the problem? “You think I win either way? You think I would rather be Darkan’s slave for 20 years rather than actually try? Are you saying there are no consequences for you if we fail?”
Brutus turned away, unable to meet her gaze, and she waited. He didn’t like talking but she could be stubborn. Surely, he knew that by now.
�
��I can live with the consequences of failing Darkan. I’m not sure I can live with what happens if we succeed.” Brutus flinched and rubbed his wrist. Lynn saw the faint glow of his bracelet and knew it had hurt him. Something very dangerous was happening here. The contract had bound him not to talk about something. That meant that he knew something Darkan didn’t want her to know. Brutus met her eyes. “Do you understand?”
Lynn nodded. She understood enough. “The others?” she pointed at his wrist.
“Just Simon,” he said. He looked prepared for pain but none came and he let out a sigh of relief. At least Lynn knew why Teodor didn’t act strangely. He didn’t know what she now desperately wanted to know.
“Well, until we can figure something else out,” she said carefully, “We proceed as planned.” Brutus gave her a weak smile and then stood up and left the table. Why were things never simple in her life?
Lynn took Dorjee upstairs to change. She had purchased some boy clothes for her last night and putting on trousers was proving to be more difficult than Dorjee thought. Skirts and dresses were so straightforward. The trousers made her feel so naked. Lynn pulled Dorjee’s hair up onto the top of her head with a braid and pinned it tightly in place. Finally, Lynn placed a cap on top of it all. With her simple shirt, she looked like a street rat. A beggar. Dorjee felt freer somehow. Free from herself and her troubles. The gunman wouldn’t recognize her now.
Lynn was wearing her man clothes from last night, but she was wearing different shoes.
“What kind of shoes are those?” she asked. They were like leather socks rather than actual shoes. Lynn smiled.
“When I want people to think I’m a man I normally wear those,” she said pointing at the big boots she had worn last night. “But these are why Declan calls me Lightfoot. I can climb anything and run faster in these. I just need to remember to walk with a heavy step.”