Dynasty of Rogues

by Jane Fletcher

  “Taking her where?”

  “That’s none of your business, and I’d have thought a very minor concern to you, given your current situation. If you do this, I’ll plead your case with Bakara. As you’ve doubtless observed, I have influence with her. If we can resolve this with no harm done to anyone, then I think I can guarantee you won’t be court-martialed.”

  “Influence?”

  “Yes. Much the same as I now have influence over you.”

  Zelenski sank back in her chair, eyes closed. Isabel watched. The Intelligence Corps commander had reached her position by schemes, tricks, and double-dealing. Years sitting behind a desk had blunted her nose for a trap and let her rely on bullying rather than subtlety, but now that she was on the trail, it would not take long to reach her conclusions.

  Zelenski opened her eyes. “You set me up.”

  “Me?”

  “Yes. Marlena Azid couldn’t have run all this on her own.”

  “You’re welcome to your opinion. But my advice is not to think too much about it, because you won’t like where you end up.”

  “I know where I’ve ended up. Right where you wanted me. Okay. I’ll hand over your granddaughter at the docks. I don’t have a choice, do I?”

  “Not if you don’t want to be in a cell within the next hour.”

  Isabel stood up and reached onto the desk. “I’ll take my accounts sheets, if you don’t mind. I might need them for the tax auditor. But it would be as well for you to burn all the rest.”

  As the door opened, Zelenski spoke again. “The story about Joannou, was any of it true?”

  “Of course not. Do you think I’d let you anywhere near the truth?” Isabel smiled at the Intelligence Corps Colonel, still seated at her desk. “And do I need to tell you that it would be better never to mention any of this again?”

  “No.”

  *

  Riki tied the laces on her boots and stood up, again viewing the world from a clear four centimeters higher than usual. She clasped her hands around her expanded waist and shifted the padding slightly, getting it to sit more naturally. The other woman in the room, Devishi Tang, took a step back, examined her critically, and then handed over a long braided wig. Riki slipped it carefully on her head, pushing any stray locks from sight. After a final prod with her tongue at the pads inside her cheeks, everything was complete. Devishi stood beside her and the pair studied their reflections in a full-length mirror.

  “So, Dev? What do you think?” Riki asked.

  “You don’t look a lot like me. But I guess you look more like me than like yourself, which should be good enough. There isn’t going to be anyone on the barge who knows me by sight.”

  “Except Steph.”

  “She doesn’t count.”

  Riki grimaced and lifted the long hair off her neck. “August isn’t a good time to be walking around with all this padding strapped around me.”

  “I’m sorry. I’d have put more effort into losing a few kilos, if I’d known the problems it would cause you.” Devishi laughed as she spoke. She was one of Isabel’s granddaughters, an easygoing young woman with a sharp sense of humor, who had been summoned from her usual base in Eastford to assist in the scheme.

  Riki grinned. “I think it’s one of the reasons you were picked. Padding is an easy disguise to make me look like you from a distance.”

  “And if I thought losing weight would make me look like you, from a distance or anywhere else, I’d give it a go. Even though I’m a Tang, I think I got most of my genes from the Coppelli side of the family, and they’ve never had the reputation for turning out beauties.”

  “Tanya is...” Riki stopped herself and covered by adjusting her wig. “Tanya is going to be so pleased to get out of prison.”

  “I’ll bet. I should think you’ll both be happy to see the back of Landfall.”

  “I’ve enjoyed being here. It’s been fun.”

  Devishi laughed. “You ought to watch that attitude. Playing games with Grandma Izzy is addictive, and you don’t want to know the sort of trouble she can get you into. Trust me, I speak from experience.”

  *

  The Chief Consultant’s prayers were getting more desperate, judging by the fervent muttering. The heavy scent of incense was choking. Bakara knelt by the shrine, but she was on her feet before Isabel was halfway into the room, although she waited until the door was closed before speaking.

  “What did she say? Have you got the documents?”

  Isabel smiled. “Yes. It worked.”

  “Praise the Goddess.” Bakara turned back to the shrine and raised her clasped hand to her forehead, clearly giving thanks for her reprieve.

  Isabel waited until she had the Chief Consultant’s attention before continuing. She pulled a wad of papers from inside her shirt. “Here they are. The map you drew for Azid. Some regrettably indiscreet letters. Not one is much in itself, but together they add up to a complete picture.”

  “And this is all of them?”

  “Zelenski assures me these were all she had.”

  “She swore an oath?”

  “Yes.”

  Nodding, Bakara took the offered documents and leafed through them, stopping at her own hand-drawn map. “What should we do with these?”

  “I’d recommend burning them as soon as possible.”

  “Yes. Of course.” Bakara looked at the shrine, where a row of small candles was lit. “A suitable offering. Though I’ll be giving more to the Goddess later.”

  “As will I.”

  Isabel watched the Chief Consultant burn the documents, one by one, in the small gold offering bowl beneath the shrine. The thought shot through Isabel’s head that, at the very same moment, Colonel Zelenski was probably in the process of burning her forged copies of the very same documents. It was neatly symmetrical and ironic.

  And of course, the sheets Bakara was burning were not the originals—those were still safe inside the Coppelli mansion—but they were not deliberately clumsy and inaccurate, like the copies sold to Zelenski. Isabel had considered handing over the originals to Bakara, but the Chief Consultant’s eyesight was weakening, and it would take far more than a ten-second scan to spot the work of a skilled forger, such as the one Isabel employed. With an ever-uncertain future, the original documents might yet find a use.

  When the last sheet had been turned to blackened ash, Bakara again faced Isabel. “Thank you. As ever, you’ve been most helpful, and you will find me suitably grateful.”

  “I’ll consider myself adequately repaid by the safe delivery of my granddaughter into your secure accommodation.” Isabel let her face reveal a hint of distress. “Her mother and I had family issues, from when she was a child. I’ve always felt I was partly to blame for what happened...her joining the heretics. If we’d worked out our relationship better, maybe...” Isabel sighed. “The past cannot be changed. But I feel I owe it to her to make sure her daughter is safe and unharmed for the rest of her natural life. The repayment of debts. Does that make sense to you?”

  “Yes. I think so. I’ve made the arrangements you asked for. A barge will be waiting at the downstream docks after sunset. Three Sisters and a squad of Guards will be on board.”

  “Thank you. My granddaughter, Devishi Tang, will also be on the barge, with an attendant, but I hold you responsible for ensuring Tanya is handed over safely at Southwater.”

  “Of course.”

  Isabel smiled. “Once my heretic granddaughter has disappeared from the eyes of the world, I think it would be better if we never mention any of this again.”

  *

  Riki stepped from the carriage, accompanied by her attendant, Steph, who was carrying their baggage. The river barge was moored a few meters away. Behind her, the driver flicked the horses’ reins, and the carriage rumbled across the cobblestones, returning to the Coppelli mansion. Apart from activity around the barge, the downstream docks were deserted, lit only by the rising moons.

  After the heat of the day, the
cool dockside was pleasant. The sound of water slopping against the stone quay was scarcely louder than the whispering from the three Sisters huddled by the foot of the gangplank. Uniformed Guards stood to attention in a line along the waterfront. The crew were dark figures on the barge, acquiring detail only when they entered the circles of light given by the lanterns, mounted bow and stern.

  At Riki’s approach, the Sisters broke off their quiet conversation and turned to her. Their white robes were luminous in the moonlight. One took a half step forward. “Good evening.”

  Riki bowed her head. “Good evening, holy Sisters. I’m Devishi Tang. I have a letter from my grandmother, introducing me and my attendant, and one from the Chief Consultant, but you’ll need better light to read them.”

  “That’s not necessary. We’ve been informed of who you are.”

  “And has”—Riki paused—“my cousin arrived yet?”

  “No. We’re still waiting for her, but—”

  The Sister broke off at the sound of more wheels, rattling over the uneven stones. An enclosed prison wagon appeared around the side of the nearest warehouse. The plain-clothed driver reined the horses to a stop close by where the Sisters and Riki were standing, and then she and her second jumped down and went to the rear of the wagon. The door was unlocked and three more women emerged. In the middle was Tanya.

  Riki felt her insides kick. Had Tanya been mistreated, despite Isabel’s assurances? The light was too poor to tell. Riki wished there was a lantern close by, though she could do nothing with the information, whatever state Tanya was in, and it was no bad thing if the darkness prevented the Corps agents from identifying Marlena Azid, should any have seen her visiting Zelenski.

  Tanya’s body language shouted bewilderment and fear, but this told Riki nothing. It was the role she was supposed to be playing.

  “This is the one?” the lead Sister asked.

  “Yup. Here’s your heretic.”

  “Thank you.”

  The Sister gestured to the uniformed Guards, who formed up around Tanya and rapidly bundled her up the gangplank. Throughout this, Riki hung back, as if disinterested. Only after Tanya was out of sight below deck did she also mount the gangplank, followed by Steph and the three Sisters.

  While the crew made ready to depart, Riki stood in the middle of the barge, well away from the lanterns, and watched the four Intelligence Agents around the prison wagon. They in turn were looking at the barge and showing no sign of leaving. Riki pursed her lips. If they had hurt Tanya, Riki wanted to come back to Landfall, hunt them down, and do something equally nasty to them. But it was a childish impulse and missed the point. Riki’s expression eased into a smile.

  Isabel Coppelli had won. She had beaten the Corps. Tanya was out of the dungeon and on her way home. That was the real score.

  *

  The four agents watched in silence as the crew cast off and the river barge drifted into the night. They then clambered back on their wagon, but still made no attempt to move from the dockside. After a few minutes’ wait, the sound of hooves announced the arrival of a lone horsewoman.

  The rider paused by the wagon. “The heretic left on the barge?”

  “Yes. With her escort.”

  Another agent pointed at a speck of light on the water. “There you can just see the stern lantern.”

  “Right. I’m on it.” The horsewoman, Lieutenant Maz Turan, waved an informal salute and urged her horse onward, following the barge downriver and away from the city of Landfall.

  Chapter Thirteen—The Old Three-Card Shuffle

  The barge was three days out of Landfall, traveling with the current, and halfway to Southwater. The river had widened and was now twice the size as when it had flowed through the city. Earlier that morning they had passed the spot where the Liffy joined with the Wade, flowing down from Fairfield.

  Fields, woods, and villages drifted by on the riverbank. The pace and mood of the journey were lazy beneath the scorching sun. The cool breeze off the water was welcome. Riki sat on the foredeck, in the shade of an awning, with a book open on her lap. The ragged fringe on the canvas fluttered, sending dancing shadows across the page. Riki considered moving slightly, so it would be less distracting, but it was not as if she was actually reading, merely turning the pages at a methodical rate.

  Piercing squeals made her look up. The barge was passing a sandy spot on the bank, where five small girls were splashing naked in the water. They were the ones screeching. Beyond them lay planted fields, a collection of farm buildings, and a dirt track fading away into the distance.

  Riki smiled at the girls and was about to return to her book when she heard someone approaching. The oldest of the three Sisters was coming to join her under the awning. Riki shifted to make room.

  “Good morning, holy Sister.”

  “Good morning, Devishi Tang.” The elderly woman eased herself onto the bench.

  “It’s a pleasant day the Goddess has sent us.”

  “Indeed. Though I fear, a little hot below deck. I’ve come to cool down for a moment.”

  “And I’m very pleased to have your company.” Riki kept her tone just on the believable side of obsequious.

  “I note you haven’t visited your cousin.”

  Riki made a dismissive noise and held up her book, a battered, well-thumbed copy of The Book of the Elder-Ones. “Not because of the heat. I’m a faithful daughter of the Goddess. I’m here on my grandmother’s orders. But were it up to me, I’d have left the family shame in the Intelligence Corps dungeon where she belongs. I certainly have no wish to socialize with her.”

  The Sister nodded. “Your piety does you credit. And, to be honest, your cousin isn’t pleasant company.”

  “I don’t doubt it.”

  “She has a crude turn of phrase and she”—the Sister hesitated—“she doesn’t seem fully in her right mind. She’s forever asking what’s going on and insisting her name isn’t Tanya. Do you know if she suffers from mental problems?”

  “She’s a heretic and believes their foul lies. She must have mental problems. No sane woman would credit any of it for a second.”

  “Maybe. But you’d think she’d know what her name was.”

  Riki shrugged. “Perhaps they have some depraved naming ceremony, when they renounce their old life along with the Goddess and enter the cult. She might want you to call her by some blasphemous title. If I were you, I’d ignore everything she says and certainly not ask what she wants to be called.”

  Again the Sister nodded. “Yes. It must be something like that.” She sounded happier, as if Riki’s suggestion had eased her doubts.

  They sat in silence for a while longer, but then the Sister stood. “I’d better return to my watch.” She started to leave.

  “Holy Sister.”

  “Yes?”

  “I’m truly sorry for the trouble you’ve been put to, for the sake of this stain upon my family. I feel soiled just knowing that she’s so close by.”

  The Sister put a hand on Riki’s head in blessing. “My child. No blame attaches to you. Your faith marks you as pure. Good day.” She wandered back to the hatch.

  Riki picked up her book. Her eyes returned to the riverbank. The playing girls were now far out of sight. Riki stared into the distance. Several times over the previous days, she thought she had seen a horsewoman shadowing the boat. It was not unexpected. Their plans allowed for the Intelligence Corps tracking the boat, and so far, their plans were working perfectly.

  *

  The town of Southwater consisted of a busy port, a small temple, and not much else. It lay in the middle of an expanse of salt marsh at the mouth of the Liffy River, on a rocky islet—the highest point for kilometers around. The only way to reach it was by boat. To the south another kilometer of tidal mud, quicksand, and brackish water separated the town from the ocean. A dredged channel allowed seagoing vessels to reach the port, where produce bound for Landfall was transferred to river barges.

  The town exis
ted only to support the docks. It consisted of inns for travelers, taverns for sailors, warehouses for goods, homes for dockworkers, and a Militia station to ensure that the law was upheld. With limited space on the islet, the buildings were densely packed. None of the roads were wide enough for a horse-drawn wagon or carriage. Handcarts were the way goods were moved. Feet were the only method of transport.

  The temple was positioned at the apex of the hill, overhanging the docks. In midafternoon, Riki stood on the busy quay, staring up at it. The location seemed an unlikely one for a temple—surely the town was too small to justify it. Yet it was a very good place to keep a prisoner secure. Lock down the docks, and no one could enter or leave the island, and searching the entire town would not take long.

  A noise made Riki glance back. Tanya was being brought on deck. It was the first time Riki had seen her since they boarded the barge, and her first chance to assess her state in daylight. To Riki’s relief, although Tanya was filthy and disheveled, she appeared unharmed. Thoughts of what the Corps might have done had been preying on Riki’s mind.

  Soon, the party were assembled on the quay. The Sisters set off in the lead, climbing the streets to the temple. Behind them were the Guards surrounding Tanya in tight formation, with Riki and Steph tagging along at the rear.

  “Why are we here? My mom’ll—” Tanya’s voice rose in a whine that was quickly silenced by a slap from a Guard.

  Riki kept her eyes averted, trying to appear unconcerned, although she felt a flare of anger. She had to maintain her act for a little while longer. Soon the charade would be over, and then she could flatten the next person to mistreat Tanya.

  A brief period of standing around ensued at the temple gates, while the letter of introduction and explanation from Chief Consultant Bakara was dispatched to the Consultant in charge of the Southwater temple, and then they were ushered through to a small audience chamber that undoubtedly fulfilled the entire role of outer sanctum for the minor temple.