Weapon of Pain (Weapon of Flesh Series Book 5)

by Chris A. Jackson

  “Not in the evenings!” Otar snapped as mist devoured the priest.

  In the swirling silence of the Sphere of Shadow, Hoseph assessed the status of his plan. The Tessifus boy was secure and in training. The guildmaster and Grandmaster’s rings were in his possession, ready to be bestowed as he saw fit. Tynean Tsing III was unwittingly setting himself up for assassination, and with Mya out of action, there’d be no one to save the emperor this time.

  Hoseph’s fortunes had finally taken a turn for the better. With Demia’s blessing, nothing would stop him now.

  Chapter XXIV

  Dusk faded into night as the Royal Guard carriage rumbled through the streets of Twailin, mounting the hill into Barleycorn Heights. Dee looked wistfully out the window at the familiar streets, the curbside cafés full of people enjoying a respite from the sweltering summer day. Had it only been a few months since he’d lived in the townhouse on Greensleeves Way, working as Lad’s assistant? It seemed like years.

  I’m homesick, he realized. But home is where your heart is…and mine’s in Tsing.

  The carriage slowed and stopped in front of a modest townhouse—Sereth’s new home. Dee had only been here once, the night before he left for Tsing. The curtains were drawn, but light leaked around the edges. Hopefully, that meant the guildmaster was home.

  “Here we are!” Captain Norwood grabbed the door latch and righted his cane.

  “Please, Captain,” Dee said before Norwood could open the door, “let me to speak with my associates alone. Those in the security business are very careful and private people, and…well…a squad of armed Royal Guards at the door might be misconstrued.”

  The guard captain frowned, but nodded. “If you think that best, I suppose. But let me know if they give you any trouble. The emperor’s ordered cooperation with your mission; that goes for private citizens as well.”

  “Of course. Thank you, Captain.”

  Dee strode toward the townhouse door at a sedate pace. He had no doubt that assassins were watching him from both inside and outside the house and didn’t want to give them any reason to feel threatened. A force of Royal Guards perched on the curb was threatening enough. With Hoseph on the prowl and the guild on alert, Sereth’s nerves were undoubtedly already frayed thin.

  And who knows what’s happened since I’ve been gone. For all Dee knew, the priest had killed half of the Twailin guild, maybe even Sereth. He held his breath and knocked.

  The door opened, and Dee breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of a familiar face—a journeyman Blade. Back in the shadows of the foyer, invisible from Captain Norwood’s vantage, two more journeymen stood ready, crossbows aimed straight at Dee.

  “What’s going on, Dee?” the Blade asked, his eyes cold and tone hard.

  “Don’t overreact, Gerri!” Dee hissed between clenched teeth. “Everything’s all right. Believe it or not, the guard’s just here to watch out for me…but it’s a long story. This is an emergency. I need to see Sereth.”

  “But that’s—”

  “—the captain of the Royal Guard. And if he thinks that you’re not cooperating with me, then he and his men are going to come up here and make that sure that you do, and then we’ll have all Nine Hells full of trouble. Just let me in and get Sereth.”

  “If this is some kind of trap…”

  “Then I’ll be the first to die! Now get Sereth before Captain Norwood gets suspicious!”

  The Blade’s eyes narrowed, but he nodded to one of the others. “Get him.”

  A moment later Sereth strode to the door, a broad smile on his face, obviously aware that he was in full sight of the Royal Guard. “Dee! How are you? Come on in!” He extended a friendly hand.

  Dee clasped Sereth’s hand and felt the inexorable pressure of the Blade’s grip pulling him into the house.

  “Wave goodbye to your new friends, Dee.” Sereth’s hissed whisper belied his pleasant expression.

  Dee painted on a smile and waved to Captain Norwood, held up a single finger. “Back in a minute!”

  Gerri shut the door, and assassins closed in around them. Even if Dee wanted to, he’d never get to his crossbows before being pierced by enough steel to arm a squad of knights.

  “What the hell’s going on? Why did you bring the Royal Guard to my home?” Sereth’s voice was low and dangerous.

  “It couldn’t be helped, but don’t worry about them. We’ve got bigger problems. Mya’s been taken by Hoseph’s people.”

  “Shit!” Sereth clenched his fists. “How the hell could they have done that? I’ve seen her fight, Dee. She’s unstoppable.”

  Dee huffed a laugh. “You don’t know the half of it.”

  “Apparently not. I do know that she’s now my Grandmaster. Lad sent me a note with this.” Sereth held up his hand, and the gold and obsidian ring on his finger glinted in the light.

  At least Lad made it back safely. Dee breathed a sigh of relief.

  “Master.” Gerri was staring out the door’s viewing glass. “The captain’s gotten out of the carriage and is walking back and forth, and he’s got a huge dog with him.”

  Sereth held his hand toward the door and turned to Dee. “Explain. Fast.”

  Dee took a deep breath. “Hoseph killed the Tsing guildmaster and the ranks split. The Blades, Enforcers, and Hunters are loyal to Mya, but the Inquisitors and Alchemists sided with Hoseph. They had some big plan to kill the crown prince and put their own puppet on the throne, but Mya thwarted the assassination attempt at the coronation, and—”

  “That was Mya?” The guildmaster’s eyes widened. “We’d heard vague stories, but…” He shook his head. “Go on.”

  “The emperor asked her to rescue some noble’s kids that Hoseph had had kidnapped. When we were getting the last one…she…we walked into a trap. She got me out, but…not herself.” Dee’s voice petered out.

  “Don’t second-guess yourself, Dee.” Sereth’s tone was stern, but held none of the disgust that Dee had expected. “Never second-guess yourself, or you’ll never get through your next assignment. So, they took Mya. Do you think she’s still alive? It must have been a week or two ago that—”

  “No, no! It was just last night. That’s where the Royal Guard comes in. The emperor has pledged whatever help we need to get her back, so Duke Mir’s wizard transported me here magically. Unfortunately,” he threw a baleful glance toward the front of the house, “he brought me to Captain Norwood, thinking that the quickest way to get anything done was with an official escort, and the good captain is overly keen on fulfilling his duty. Turning him down would only make him suspicious.”

  “So, why did you come to Twailin?”

  Dee proceeded carefully. “Since they didn’t kill Mya, they might be interrogating her for information on the Twailin guild. I thought you should know.”

  Sereth nodded gravely. “The Hunters will be the most vulnerable. You were her assistant, maybe you can talk with—”

  “No.” Dee shook his head firmly. “Sorry, Sereth, but I can’t take the time. I have to get back to Tsing, but I need your help with something first.”

  “Of course, but wait one second. Tomin!”

  “Sir!” A young woman ran up.

  “Send runners to all the other masters telling them to shore up defenses, move any headquarters that existed before Mya left for Tsing. I’ll get more to them later.”

  “Right away, Master!” She took off toward the back of the house.

  “So, Dee, what else?”

  “I need you to come with me to the Tap and Kettle.”

  Sereth’s eyes widened, then narrowed. “Lad’s not guild anymore, Dee. He won’t leave his family.”

  “He will. He has to!” Dee noted the subtle shifting of the journeymen Blades at his outburst and forced himself to calm down.

  Sereth frowned and shook his head. “I have people watching the inn. He’s barely left the place since he returned from Tsing. If you didn’t know him, you’d think he’d been an innkeeper all his lif
e. He’s not going to like you giving him ultimatums.”

  “I know.” Dee swallowed hard. He knew better than anyone Lad’s desire for a quiet life with his family, the devastation Wiggen’s death had wrought. If there was any other way…but there’s not. “I don’t really care if he likes it or not. He’s the one who got Mya into this mess, and he’s the only person who can get her out of it.”

  Sereth blinked at Dee in surprise. “Tsing has changed you, Dee. You wouldn’t have even considered confronting Lad before. Why do you need me there?”

  “Because you’re going to tell him that you’ll look after his family while he’s gone, and because you’re a guildmaster and I’m only an assistant. Also because he rescued your wife, so you and he have some…connection that I don’t understand.” Sereth opened his mouth, but Dee raised a forestalling hand. “I don’t need to understand it, but if I can’t convince Lad to do the right thing, maybe you can.”

  Sereth glanced toward the stairs that lead to the second story, licked his lips, and sighed. “I don’t know how much good it will do, but I’ll go. The convincing, however, I’ll leave up to you.”

  “Thank you.” Dee’s hopes rose as he turned toward the door. “Oh, and Mya’s known to the authorities as Moirin, a bodyguard from Twailin, recently moved to Tsing.”

  “I can work with that.” Sereth opened the front door.

  “You want company, Master?” Gerri asked, obviously not happy about Sereth taking a carriage ride with the Captain of the Royal Guard.

  “No, that’d just cause trouble. Don’t worry. Tell Jinny,” his eyes flicked upstairs again, “that I’ll be back soon.”

  Dee led the way down the walk to the carriage, glad to see that the royal guards seemed unconcerned by their wait, conversing quietly.

  “Captain Norwood, I’d like to introduce Sereth VonBruce.” He gestured to Sereth. “He’s a long-time acquaintance of Miss Moirin, and has offered to help us.”

  “VonBruce.” Norwood extended a hand. “I know that name… Oh! You’re a dueling instructor, aren’t you?”

  “A swordmaster, yes, Captain.” Sereth shook the captain’s hand amiably. “Nice to know I have a reputation with the Royal Guard.”

  “And you run a security company, hiring out bodyguards. In fact, you used to be a bodyguard, didn’t you?”

  Sereth shot Dee a sharp look as he bowed his head in acknowledgement of the captain’s question. “Yes, I did. I imagine your Sergeant Tamir told you that he interviewed me about my former employer, Horice DeVough?”

  Dee admired Sereth’s aplomb in the face of Norwood’s subtle probing. He’d forgotten Sereth’s report that the Royal Guard sergeant had come around asking questions after Horice’s death.

  The guildmaster’s candor seemed to take the captain off guard. Norwood grimaced for an instant, then pasted a smile back on his face. “Yes, it was Tam who told me about you. Did Miss Moirin work for you as a bodyguard?”

  Sereth smiled. “No, Captain, she didn’t work for me, but she’s a friend.”

  “Shall we go?” Dee gestured toward the carriage. They couldn’t afford to waste time on pleasantries. “We can talk on the way.”

  “Of course.” Norwood snapped his fingers, and the mastiff hopped back in the carriage, followed by the three men.

  Dee and Sereth settled onto the seat across from the Royal Guard captain, shifting their feet to avoid the enormous bulk of the dog on the floor. As the driver flicked the reins and the carriage picked up speed, Norwood said, “Where are we off to next?”

  “The Tap and Kettle. It’s an inn in—”

  “Eastmarket,” Norwood finished.

  “You know the place?” Dee asked.

  “I do.” Norwood shouted orders to the driver without taking his eyes off of Dee and Sereth. “They have wonderful ale and cookies.”

  The ensuing silence hung so thickly it felt smothering. As Dee turned to the window for air, he felt Sereth stiffen beside him, and looked back to see Captain Norwood staring at the guildmaster’s hands…and the ring on his finger.

  The captain looked up, his expression as clouded as a stormy day. As if sensing his master’s unease, Brutus growled deep in his chest, the vibration thrumming through the carriage floor.

  Shifting in his seat and adjusting his grip on his cane, Norwood said with a nonchalance that belied his clenched jaw, “Is the young man named Loren who works at the Tap and Kettle also an associate of Miss Moirin?”

  “Um…” Dee glanced at Sereth, but the guildmaster’s eyes remained on the captain. “He…uh…used to be. Loren’s just an innkeeper now, but I hoped he’d be willing to help us find Miss Moirin.” It wasn’t exactly a lie.

  “I see.”

  Sereth spoke up. “Can I ask how you know Loren, Captain?”

  “You can ask, Master VonBruce, but I’m not going to tell you, just like your associate Master Dee hasn’t told me everything that’s going on here.” He clenched his thick jaw, the muscles bunching like walnuts.

  Silence shrouded the rest of the trip, each man tense and watching the others. Brutus was the only one with even a semblance of ease, panting and drooling all over the floor. Dee was relieved when they finally pulled into the courtyard of the Tap and Kettle. A confrontation with Lad couldn’t be any tenser than this carriage ride had been.

  “Thank you for the ride, Captain. We’ll be out as soon as we can.”

  “Oh, no,” Norwood said as he levered himself out the door with his cane and snapped for Brutus to heel. “I’m coming in with you.”

  Dee swallowed hard and looked to Sereth, but the guildmaster just shrugged. “Of course, Captain. No problem at all.”

  They strode toward the steps of the inn behind the captain.

  Like three blind fools into the den of a dragon.

  The Alchemists worked on Lakshmi with brutal efficiency, peeling off the old skin and stitching on the new. They swabbed and sliced, clamped, dosed, and bandaged with no conversation apart from Kittal’s terse orders.

  This time they woke Lakshmi before she left the table. The Master Inquisitor emerged from the anesthetic coughing and wheezing, grimacing as Kittal’s assistants helped her sit up, her face twisted in pain.

  Mya hoped it hurt a lot.

  “Drink this.” Kittal pressed a glass of clear liquid into the woman’s shaking hands. “It’ll blunt the pain and restore the blood you lost.”

  Lakshmi drank greedily and drew a ragged breath. Her grimace eased as the drug took hold. “Better.”

  “Now you sleep, Lakshmi.” Kittal motioned to his assistants and they brought over a stretcher.

  “Yes…” Lakshmi didn’t struggle as they lifted her, but gripped Kittal’s sleeve as they started to take her away. “I want…more, Kittal. As soon as we can.”

  “Of course.” The Alchemist glanced at Mya. “We’ll take more grafts while you rest. As soon as you’re ready, we’ll continue.”

  “Good.” Lakshmi lay back and closed her eyes as they took her away.

  When the door closed, Kittal took a deep breath and let it out slowly, fatigue etching his face. Mya studied him closely. He wasn’t an old man—certainly nowhere near as old as Lakshmi—but he wasn’t young either. Maybe he’ll drop dead, she thought wistfully, but it seemed that the gods weren’t on her side. After a stretch, he turned to Mya with a determined expression, surveying her like a carcass ready to be cut up into manageable pieces.

  “Once you’ve got everything cleaned up here, Berta, we’ll take more grafts.”

  Mya wanted to scream, to rage, to threaten, but refused to give the Master Alchemist the satisfaction of witnessing her desperation.

  “Master.” Berta had been collecting soiled linens and swabs. Dropping them into a bucket, she looked at Kittal. “I’m concerned about Mya’s condition. She’s lost a lot of blood, and her rate of healing will only decrease as we take more runes, especially with so little time between collections. In a weakened state, the pain could send her into shock, pe
rhaps even kill her. As you said, she has to survive to the end.”

  Mya held her breath. She’d misjudged the woman. Berta had decided to help her, at least, as much as she could.

  “Yes, that is a concern.” Kittal tapped his lips with a finger, then shrugged. “I suppose you’re right. Give her a restorative for blood loss and some opium for the pain.”

  Berta pulled jars from a shelf and began mixing powders into a cup of water. Carrying the glass of cloudy liquid to the table, she supported Mya’s head and helped her drink.

  Mya swallowed it down without a word, hoping that Berta would see the gratitude in her eyes. The woman didn’t look at her, which wasn’t surprising with Kittal watching. When the glass was empty, the Master Alchemist turned away. Already, Mya could feel the drugs at work. Like a cup of Paxal’s mulled wine, its warmth radiated from her stomach, relaxing her, strengthening her resolve. Berta had given her more than relief from the pain, she’d given her hope.

  I’m not going to die.

  They had taken the Grandmaster’s ring, and they would take her runes, but she’d survived before she had them, and she’d survive after. As long as she had breath, she would try to escape. And once she did…

  Vengeance almost destroyed Lad, her conscience reminded her.

  Lad is why I’m here in the first place! Mya recalled the moment he slipped the Grandmaster’s ring onto her finger, how sweet it had been…until she realized what he’d done. His kiss wasn’t love, as she’d hoped, it was betrayal.

  And it wasn’t the first time love had betrayed her.

  Mother… She clenched her hands. The blood was still there, a stain she could never remove. She’d loved the guild, and it, too, had turned against her.

  Love is a weakness…

  Dee loves you, whispered the voice. Dee will find you. Just wait…

  No! Mya shoved the voice into the deepest recesses of her mind. What if Dee failed? Should she take her last breath on this table while waiting for a lover who would never come? No, she couldn’t depend on Dee to save her. She could only depend on herself.