Out in the hallway, James has kept an eye on things and so far no one has come to investigate the noise. When Jiron begins to bend over and starts removing the man’s armor, James asks, “What are you doing? We don’t have time for this.”
“Then stop standing there and help me,” he says.
James enters the room and together they quickly get the man’s armor off. “Here,” Jiron says as he hands him the helm. “Put it on.”
Getting the idea, James puts on the helm. It’s a bit loose, but should work well enough for what he believes Jiron has planned. He also takes the man’s cloak while Jiron puts on the bloody armor.
Neither one of them would pass a close inspection, but in the dark and confusion outside, they just might be able to pull it off. Jiron tosses him the sword and he buckles it on. “Ready?” he asks.
“No,” replies James with a grin.
Moving out of the room, Jiron takes the lead. They continue to follow the hallway to the next room which is a small greeting room where the innkeeper and family can entertain guests without having to be in the common room. A door in one wall stands closed.
Opening the door slowly, they find it opens onto the edge of the rear courtyard. A quick glance reveals no soldiers are in the immediate vicinity. “Let’s do it,” Jiron says as he opens the door and strides outside, James following a step behind.
Walking in a straight line to the gates of the courtyard, they pass by several soldiers, none of whom give them more than a casual glance. Upon reaching the gates, they hear a commotion and glance up at the roof. They have broken through the trapdoor and must have discovered the hole they escaped through. A soldier on the roof is yelling to those below.
Opening the courtyard gate, they walk through and find more soldiers stationed out here. But walking like they have the right to be there, plus dressed at least partially in ‘appropriate armor’, they move right past them without being noticed.
Keeping a steady pace, they work their way through the soldiers until they leave the last one behind. Once they have put a suitable distance between them, they break into a run. Fleeing into the night, the find a quiet spot and shed their ill gotten armor. Then they begin working their way back to the building containing Aleya.
Chapter Twenty One
Keeping to the shadows, James and Jiron make their way quickly from street to street toward the building where Aleya is being held. Down the street ahead of them, a squad of soldiers emerges from a side street. “This way!” Jiron whispers as he ducks into a side alley.
Plastering themselves against the side of the alley, they hold still as the footsteps of the soldiers approach. The light from the lanterns that two of the soldiers are holding gradually illuminates the street just outside the alley as they draw near. When the soldiers reach the mouth of the alley, the light from the lanterns fully reveals James and Jiron where they are pressed to the side of an adjacent building.
James holds his breath and silently prays that none of them happen to look in the alley or they will surely be discovered. As fortune would have it, the soldiers continue past without one of them seeing the two fugitives hiding within the alley. Once they’ve moved on, he lets out his pent up breath and says, “That was close.”
“Too close,” agrees Jiron. Peering around the corner of the alley, he finds that other than the retreating backs of the soldiers that just marched passed, the street is empty. “Come on,” he says and moves back onto the street.
Lights from several different groups are seen moving on adjacent streets. The number of men searching for them is steadily growing. It’s going to be hard enough just to reach the Eye’s Court as Orrin called it, let alone rescuing Aleya and getting free of the town.
They make it down several more blocks before having to again duck into the shadows as another squad makes its way past. “Can’t be too far from it now,” Jiron comments once the squad has moved on.
“Let’s hope not,” replies James.
When the street is once again clear, they leave the alley and continue on. Keeping to the dark, they are forced to weave around the circles of light given off by the lit lampposts so as not to be spotted. Then finally, the large structure appears down the street ahead of them. Even two blocks away, they can see that an additional dozen men now stand guard before the front entrance.
Keeping to the edge of the street near the buildings, they slowly make their way closer until they are but four buildings away. “Where are the others?” asks James. He was hoping to have come across Miko and the rest by now. Fear that they may have been captured or even killed begins to grow within him.
“Use your cloth and find them,” Jiron tells him.
Feeling stupid for not having thought of that himself, he can only assume the events of the night must have him rattled. Taking it out, he casts the spell and is surprised to see that it indicates they are in the building he and Jiron are hiding against. “They’re in here,” James says as he pats the wall.
Several feet behind them lies the doorway into the building. Jiron moves back to it and tries the handle. Finding it locked, he removes one of his knives and begins working on the lock. He soon has it opened and they move inside.
“Miko!” whispers James as loudly as he dares once the door is closed behind him. They remain still and listen for a reply. When nothing comes, he again whispers, “Miko!” this time a little bit louder.
A shadow passes across the doorway leading to another room. “James?” he hears Miko ask.
“Yes,” he replies. Then his orb springs to life, barely giving off any light, just enough for them to be able to see each other.
The rest are right behind Miko, even Scar and Potbelly. “Am I glad to see you two,” Scar says.
“We were getting worried that you might not have made it,” Potbelly adds. “But not too much, seeing as how nothing blew up or anything.”
“What did you find out?” Miko asks.
“Nothing,” replies James. “Orrin said for us to abandon her. That to attempt a rescue was tantamount to a death sentence.”
“Are we going after her then?” Reilin asks. No one even bothers to answer him, they all know the answer.
Jiron comes before Scar and Potbelly and asks, “Did you two see anything that might help?”
Shaking his head, Scar says, “Not really. The buildings adjacent to the one holding her are three stories or less. Guards are posted on all four sides including the roof. I’m not sure how we could get in there without being seen.”
“There’s always the sewer,” replies Miko.
An audible groan escapes James. “Only if there are no other alternatives will I do that again,” he says. To Scar he asks, “How close can we get without being seen?”
“Pretty close,” he replies.
“Good, then take me there so I can see what’s going on,” he tells him.
“I’m coming too,” states Jiron.
When Scar nods, Jiron says, “The rest of you stay here.” That’s when he notices Miko has a tart in his hand. Surprised, he glances around and for the first time notices they are in a baker’s shop. Over to one side he sees where the baker’s leftovers from the day before are stacked together. He goes over and helps himself to a quarter loaf of bread and lays three coppers down on the counter next to it.
James notices it too and snags three of the four remaining tarts before Miko has a chance to finish them off. He too lays a couple coins on the counter and then takes a large bite as he follows Scar to the back of the building. “I think the baker is asleep above us,” he explains. James nods understanding.
Scar takes them out the back to the street running behind the building and then quickly over to the mouth of an alley that leads back to the street the Eye’s Court faces. Upon entering the alley, they move quickly to where it opens onto the street. From there, James has a good view of the face of the Eye’s Court across the street as well as the alley directly across from them that runs beside it. The guards in th
e street are none too far away.
The alley on the other side of the street that runs along the side of the Eye’s Court is wider by far than the ordinary alley. Peering around the corner he can barely see that the alley on the far side of the Eye’s Court is just as wide. He realizes the buildings bordering the Eye’s are further back in order to create a buffer zone that would prevent any attempt at gaining access from their rooftops.
Four men with crossbows are seen in windows on the third and fourth floor facing the front. The side facing the alley across from them has four men in similar position, two on the third floor and two on the fourth. The windows on the fifth floor are dark and closed. Another four men are stationed on the rooftop, each looking out over a different side.
Aside from being set back away from the Eye’s Court, the building across from them is only three stories tall, as are all the others adjacent to it just as Scar had said. James stands there several minutes while he takes in the positions of the men in, on and around the building holding Aleya. It’s definitely a tough nut to crack.
“Alright,” he says and indicates they should return. “I’ve seen enough.”
Just as they are leaving, more soldiers arrive and join those guarding the front of the building. “This just gets better and better,” Scar comments as they withdraw back down the alley.
Once they’ve returned back to where the others are waiting, James gives them a rundown of what he saw. “So,” he summarizes, “any way we go, it’s going to be almost impossible to get inside without being seen.”
“Can you put the guards to sleep?” Miko asks. “Like that time in Cardri when you snuck back in after rescuing Perrilin?”
“I doubt it,” he replies. “Those guards were bored and not alert. The ones here are expecting us to make an attempt and will fight any attempt I make. I’m just not sure I could get them all at the same time.”
“The sewers?” asks Jiron.
“We don’t even know where an entrance is,” he says. “There’s not much time. Once they’ve completed searching near Orrin’s inn, they’ll come here. The sooner we move, the better our chance will be to get away.” He glances at the others and then settles his gaze on Brother Willim. “Is there anything you could do?”
Shaking his head, he says, “I don’t think so.”
“How about a diversion?” asks Potbelly.
“Yeah!” exclaims Scar. “Do something like you did in Al-Kur.”
“It may come to that,” he says. Then he turns to Shorty. “How far away are you accurate with your knives?” he asks.
“How far away are you talking?” he responds.
“From the rooftop of the building next to it, to the guards in the windows,” he replies.
Nodding, he says, “I think so. I don’t have my throwing knives, they took those when they captured me at the inn. All I have are the five knives I took from the guards we killed earlier.”
“Can you do it with those?” Jiron asks.
He takes one from his belt and tests it for balance and weight. “It’s not well balanced for throwing,” he says. “But they’ll do.”
“Good,” says James.
“You got an idea?” Jiron asks.
“Yes I do,” he nods. “But we have to get into the building on the back side, it’s furthest from the guards stationed out front. Hopefully what we do will have a better chance of remaining unobserved back there.”
“Now,” James says as he looks to Jiron, “how do we get across the street?”
“Follow me,” he says. Taking a slice of some honeyed sweet bread, Jiron leads them out the back door. Leaving through the back door again, they follow the street leading away from the direction of the Eye’s Court for about a block. Then they come to a side street that will take them back to the one running in front of the Eye’s Court. Turning into it, Jiron leads them back to the street where he pauses and peers in both directions. Seeing that the guards in front of the Eye’s Court aren’t likely to see them crossing from so far away, he waves the others forward and they race across to the narrow alley on the other side.
From there he leads them in a roundabout way until they’ve reached the building directly behind the one holding Aleya. Using his knife, he picks the lock and soon has the door open.
They find themselves in the residence of a rather affluent individual. Jiron suddenly freezes and holds his hand up for the others to stop. They stand there in the darkened room a moment until the others hear the creaking of a floorboard above them. Someone is awake and moving about.
“Wait here,” he says. A knife springs to his hand and he moves to the door leading from the room.
As the others wait, they watch his shadow pass from the room and enter the rest of the house. A minute goes by, then two. All of a sudden, the floorboards above them begin creaking severely. Then there’s a thud and all becomes silent. Footfalls are heard moving away from where the creaking came from to the stairway, then Jiron’s voice hollers out, “Come on up!”
Upstairs they find a middle aged man lying on the floor of his bedroom. “Don’t worry,” Jiron reassures James, “he’s not dead.”
Scar comes forward with a length of rope and says, “Better tie him up then. Can’t have him waking up and sounding the alarm before we leave.” With Potbelly’s help, he picks up the man and lays him on the bed. As he ties his arms and legs securely, the others make their way up to the third floor and search for the roof access.
In one of the corner rooms, they find a ladder in a closet that leads up to a trapdoor. Jiron climbs the ladder and finds the trapdoor unlocked. Pushing it up just enough to create a crack through which to see, he looks out.
The trapdoor opens up along the rear of the roof, far enough from their objective that they will remain unseen in the dark by those stationed in the windows and on the roof of the Eye’s Court. “I think we can get onto the roof without being seen,” he says.
“Two at a time at half minute intervals,” suggests James. “You and me first.” Climbing the ladder until he’s on the rung below Jiron’s foot he then nods the go ahead.
Opening the trapdoor, Jiron climbs out onto the roof and then holds it open for James. Once he’s out, they close the trapdoor and then move to the roof’s edge, all the while keeping an eye on the men stationed in the windows and on the roof of the Eye’s Court. None of the watchers so much as shift their gaze even slightly toward Jiron and James.
Then, the trapdoor opens again and out comes Miko with the pack containing the Book of Morcyth and Shorty. “Over here,” whispers James and they quickly move to join them. Still, the watchers fail to notice them on top of the roof.
Time and again the trapdoor opens then closes until everyone has joined them on the roof. During that time, James has been watching the men guarding the Eye’s Court. The guard stationed on this side of the roof will at times leave his post for several seconds before returning. Looks as if he’s talking with the others up there when he disappears. The men in the windows are stationed at either end of the building, one each from the third and fourth floor.
He gestures for Shorty to come close and points out the two on the right. “We’ll take them out first,” he says. Then he indicates the man on the roof, “Once we’re in position, we’ll wait for him to look away before throwing. You take the one on the third floor and I’ll take the one above him.”
Shorty nods. “But what if there are more than just them in the rooms?” he asks.
“Then things get more complicated,” replies James. “But I’ve been watching them since I came out of the trapdoor and they’ve given no indication there’s anyone with them.”
“Once we take them out, we’ll do the other two,” he says. Turning to Jiron who’s been listening the whole time he continues. “After they’ve been taken out, it’ll be up to you and Shorty to get the men on the roof before anyone has a chance to notice.”
Jiron looks at him questioningly. “And just how are we to do that?” he as
ks.
“I’ll make you a ramp,” he replies. To Shorty he says, “It’s just like the ‘bridge’ Delia used when you took out the siege equipment back at Lythylla.”
Shorty nods. “That’s going to be quite an incline from here,” he observes. Indeed, if the ramp is going to stretch from the roof of this building which is on the third floor, up to the roof of the Eye’s Court which is on the fifth, the angle is going to be severe. “If I remember right,” he adds, “that bridge didn’t have the greatest traction.”
James considers what he says a moment then replies, “I’ll take care of that. You two just get up there and take those men out when it appears.”
“We’ll be ready,” Jiron says.
“Alright then,” he states. Then to Shorty he asks, “You ready?” When he gets Shorty’s nod, he begins moving across the roof closer to the men watching from the windows. A slug makes its way into his hands as they come closer. “How close do you need to be?” James asks.
“Another five feet should be sufficient,” he replies.
Moving closer, James keeps a constant eye on the men in the windows. Only the fact that he and Shorty are moving in darkness while the men in the windows have light coming up to them from the alley below, prevents the men from seeing them. It’s easy to see the Eye within the Eye’s Court is no military man. He has torches burning all around the building to prevent anyone from sneaking up close, yet at the same time, it ruins the night vision of his men. The shadows become even darker when there’s a light nearby.
Shorty taps him on the shoulder to indicate they’re close enough and he stops. “When the man on the roof looks away,” James whispers. With slug in hand, he watches the man up there on the roof. They haven’t long to wait before he looks away. Letting the magic flow, he launches the slug and strikes the man on the fourth floor in the chest, knocking him back into the building. Shorty’s knife strikes home a second later and the man on the third floor staggers. James looks on in fear as it looks like he’s about to fall out the window, but then he slumps forward. Half in and half out, he lies there dead in the window.
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