Dark Healer (An Empire Falls Book 1)

by Harry Leighton

“Wow. So who did it then?”

  “Tanner.”

  “Good that you got him so quick.”

  “Yeah. And now we’re out making sure that no one else gets any ideas.”

  “I’m sure it was a one off.”

  “It had better be. Good day.”

  “Good day, officers.”

  Julen walked off as calmly as he could manage. The tanner? The man had a pretty distinctive smell and he was sure that the man hadn’t been there last night. Which left the question as to why the watch had arrested him for the killing. Did they say that the nightstick was evidence? But that had been left at Nuno’s side — not that anyone was going to admit knowing that. Which meant that the tanner had been fitted up for the murder. Oh, as far as things went he would have been a likely enough suspect as he’d been in trouble with the watch in the past but Julen was sure he hadn’t been involved. Maybe the watch didn’t have any leads but didn’t want to be seen to be inactive so they’d just picked someone who was a possible and pinned it on them. He’d seen officialdom and that was how they worked sometimes.

  Though what had happened last night had been badly wrong, fitting someone up for it didn’t make things any better.

  Maybe it was finally time to get rid of the empire after all.

  *****

  “Exactly how many petitions is that, Vance?”

  “Fifty-eight, sir.”

  The Governor tilted his head to take a new direction at the pile, but no, it didn’t seem any smaller. Fifty-eight pieces of parchment, each with some demand. The sort of demand which reached right up to his office.

  “Okay, another question, Vance, how many of these are to do with our watch and our guard?”

  “Fifty-one.”

  “I thought so.” The Governor leaned back into the leather of his chair, stifled a sigh because it didn’t do to keep repeating those, and took a decision. “Sort me out the other seven, and we will deal with those. Everything else will be treated in one go.”

  Vance looked round from the window where he’d been staring out and imagining, haunted by what an angry mob bludgeoning a government employee to death might look like.

  “In one go, sir?”

  “Yes, get over here and get a quill. Right, here is what we are going to do. The guard and watch are hopeless, and that is partly my, er, you’re not writing this bit down are you?”

  “Of course not, sir.”

  “Sorry, of course. It’s partly my fault for putting that man there, so I am going to sort this out. He has allowed faith in the watch to fall, he has allowed the firmness of the Guard to wander.”

  “I don’t think he’s in charge of … never mind, sir.”

  “So what we have to do is make sure, absolutely sure, that people stand in awe of our officers of the law.”

  “As you say, sir. What order am I giving?”

  “First, we make it absolutely clear what killing one of us means. To which end, send a messenger to the town immediately, and have that tanner hanged before the day is out. Find the tallest tree you can find, cut it down, and assemble a gallows in the town square.”

  “I think, sir, they’ll have a gallows.”

  “Oh, right. Well hang him off it, and leave the body there until I say they can remove it.”

  “Of course, sir.”

  “And I want the guards to be on top of this. If someone argues back, arrest them. If someone fights back, hang them. I want the entire region to know that if you cause trouble we will punish you.”

  Vance paused the quill and considered the situation. Perhaps just one attempt…

  “Are you sure, sir?”

  “Oh yes, definitely. You have to make it clear to people who is in charge. Us. It’s like dealing with a child.”

  “As you wish, sir.”

  “We will be swift and we will be harsh. We will get this under control.”

  “Of course.”

  “Actually, reword that last part, we don’t need to get it under control.”

  “No?”

  “No, it is already under control.”

  “That might not match the first parts of the order.”

  “I know you’ll find a way to make it work.”

  “Quite so, sir, quite so.”

  *****

  "We may have a lead," Trimas said at breakfast.

  “I hope it’s better than the last one,” Zedek said.

  "Well we're due some luck," Alia said, taking a bite from her toast.

  "What did you find?" Jonas said.

  "Daeholf and I were drinking with a couple of watchmen last night and they were talking about a complaint they'd heard about from a shepherd."

  "Don't tell us someone saw him?" Alia said.

  "Not that good of a lead," Daeholf said.

  "No, apparently someone has been dumping animal remains on his land," Trimas said.

  "Animal remains?" Zedek said.

  "Who's to say that the shepherd would recognise that there was more than just bits of animals?" Daeholf said.

  "Why aren't the watch following this up?" Zedek said.

  "They'll be getting hundreds of stories like this every day," Jonas said. "Can't follow them all up." He turned to Trimas and Daeholf. "What makes you think this is worth investigating ahead of everything else though?"

  "It's nearby," Trimas said.

  "That'll do it," Alia said with a smile.

  "Someone keeps sheep near the city?" Zedek said.

  "Grass is good apparently," Daeholf said.

  "Oh," Zedek said. "Makes sense."

  "We'd better get on it then," Jonas said.

  They wrapped up quickly, a sense of urgency about their movements. They'd been looking without success for a number of days now and the lack of progress was getting to them. It didn’t take them long to be mounted and out of the city.

  "I'm a little sceptical," Jonas said as they rode.

  "Why?" Trimas said.

  "It'd be unlike Marlen to be that sloppy," Jonas said.

  "You might have mentioned that earlier," Daeholf said sourly.

  "Oh, don't get me wrong, a lead is a lead and this is as good as any we've had. I just don't want expectations to get too high."

  "Why?" Zedek said.

  "We've been on the hunt for some time now and that is wearing. It's easy to lose focus and jump at any possibility of finally getting the job done."

  "We're not all your apprentices," Alia said.

  "No, but it's a good point. If it doesn't pan out then we can't get too disappointed," Daeholf said.

  "There's always another lead if we look hard enough," Jonas said.

  "Anyone ever get away?" Daeholf said curiously.

  Jonas signed. "Yes. But not many. Because I follow up every lead I can."

  "But you said…” Trimas said.

  "I said it was as good a lead as any, just not to get our hopes up. It's possible Marlen instructed a follower to dispose of some things for him and they weren't as diligent as he seems to have been."

  "Let's hope that's the case then," Daeholf said.

  "Without getting them up,” Alia said with a smile.

  “Um?” Trimas said.

  “Our hopes,” Alia said with a sigh.

  “How are we going to approach the shepherd?” Daeholf said. “I can’t imagine we’ll be well received all riding up together. We’ll probably look to him like a bunch of rustlers.”

  “Do you rustle sheep?” Zedek said. “I thought that was horses.”

  “Any cattle,” Daeholf said.

  “He speaks yokel so he would know,” Trimas said.

  “You rustled horses?” Alia said. “Maybe we should be turning you in for the reward?”

  “Moving on,” Jonas said. “You have a point, we probably do look a bit intimidating.”

  “Thanks,” Daeholf said.

  “Maybe I should go on alone whilst you hold back a ways,” Jonas said.

  “You look intimidating all by yourself,” Daeholf sa
id.

  “I have done this before you know,” Jonas said.

  “You keep saying that. Maybe it’s time for a woman’s touch,” Alia said.

  “Shepherd might talk to you,” Jonas said, considering.

  “And it’s not as if it looks like she could pick up and carry off any of his sheep,” Zedek said.

  Alia gave him a look.

  “That’s not really how you steal sheep, Zedek,” Daeholf said. “Unless you’re trying to do it one at a time.”

  “Sounds to me like you might have some experience in this area,” Jonas said.

  “Sometimes as a soldier you have to live off the land.”

  “Live off the land. One way of looking at it I suppose,” Jonas said.

  “We’re not going to be stealing any sheep today,” Trimas said.

  “Nowhere to put it at the inn for one thing,” Zedek said, straight faced.

  They all looked at him, trying to decide if he was making a joke. He remained straight faced.

  “We’re getting close,” Alia said. “You boys wait here, I’ll be back if there’s anything to see.”

  She rode on ahead. Jonas dismounted and tied his horse’s reins to a nearby tree before stretching his legs. The others did likewise.

  “She’s actually very good,” Jonas said to them.

  “Why the ‘actually’?” Trimas said.

  “Suppose I’m used to people underestimating her. I’ve not known that many female bounty hunters over the years.”

  “Not a common thing for women to do then?” Zedek said.

  “Ah, not really, no,” Jonas said.

  “Why does she do it then?” Zedek said.

  “That, you’ll have to ask her,” Jonas said.

  “So you’ve known some other women do it then?” Daeholf said.

  “Oh it’s an equal opportunities job really. It just takes a certain sort of madness to want to chase dangerous criminals across the empire for a living. Most women seem to have more sense.”

  “And you think people underestimate female hunters?” Trimas said.

  “Definitely. And something she can use to her advantage. Sometimes it helps to be big and intimidating though.”

  “Seems to come naturally to you if you don’t mind me saying,” Daeholf said.

  “Been doing it all my life really,” Jonas said. “Grow up big in the wrong part of town and it gets expected of you.”

  “So what’s your story then?” Trimas said.

  “Oh, I’ve been menacing people for years. I just had a change of heart and decided to swap to the side that paid me less.”

  Daeholf laughed. Trimas nodded. Zedek looked puzzled.

  “Laws are as much about the who and the why as the what,” Jonas explained.

  “I’m not sure I follow,” Zedek said. “Surely killing someone is wrong, for example.”

  “What about in war? Or someone who has invaded your home intent on burning it down with everyone in it?” Jonas said.

  “Or to save a loved one’s life,” Zedek said.

  Jonas’s shoulders slumped. “That too,” he said quietly.

  “Uncalled for,” Trimas muttered to Zedek.

  “Poor choice of words,” Zedek said. “We’re letting that lie.”

  Jonas nodded, relieved.

  “So what made you swap sides?” Trimas said.

  “It felt wrong. The daft thing is I ended up doing much the same thing but for other people. Just people that had much better intentions overall.”

  “Was one of them Marlen?” Daeholf said.

  “Yes.”

  “Can’t picture you with him,” Trimas said.

  “Oh, he’s not always been like this. At the start at least I’m sure he had good intentions. All he wanted to do was help people. And he did. A lot of people.”

  “Sounds like you’re having second thoughts about taking him down,” Zedek said.

  “Not for a second,” Jonas said. “He’s got to be stopped.”

  “Do you think he still thinks he’s helping people?” Trimas said.

  “Hadn’t really thought about it. Now I do, it wouldn’t surprise me.”

  “Where did it all go wrong then?” Daeholf said.

  “As far as I can tell that’s the nature of magic. It corrupts, twists and warps. I’ve chased down two magic users previously. Both were dangerously unhinged. And utterly terrifying. You’ve not known true fear until you’ve seen someone pull fire from the air.”

  “We’ve all been through bad times,” Daeholf said reproachfully.

  “Sorry, I meant I’d not known true fear. I nearly froze.”

  “How did you take them down?” Trimas said. “That might be useful information in the circumstances.”

  “Fire mage blew himself up.”

  “Blew himself up?” Zedek said.

  “Exactly like it sounds. He exploded in a massive fireball.”

  “How did that happen?” Daeholf said.

  “Lost control of his magic I think. Again, part of the nature of magic from what I’ve learned. Eventually it consumes you.”

  “So how do we get Marlen to explode?” Zedek said. “Make him use so much magic he loses control?”

  “No. I don’t think so anyway. Only the fire mage exploded and maybe that was because fire was his thing.”

  “How did the other one die then?” Trimas said.

  “He started bleeding out of his eyes and his head crumpled like he’d been hit with a mace from four directions at once though there was no one next to him.”

  “Bloody hell,” Trimas said.

  “What was his power?” Zedek said.

  “Could move things with his mind. Had me pinned against a wall when he went off.”

  “Used too much magic then?”

  “Possibly. Frankly I was very lucky to get out of that one alive. I’ve been fortunate enough not to have had any similar encounters since.”

  “So we get Marlen to power himself out then?” Zedek said.

  “Like I said, I don’t know about that. He’s been active longer than any mage I’ve ever heard of which suggests he has some measure of control. And if healing is his thing, maybe he can just heal himself of the damage.”

  “So how the hell do we kill him?” Daeholf said.

  “I plan to try decapitation and fire,” Jonas said. “And if that doesn’t work, move on from there to something more serious.”

  “Sounds like a good place to start,” Trimas said.

  “More serious?” Zedek said.

  “We’ll come up with something,” Jonas said.

  “Alia’s on her way back,” Daeholf said.

  “That was quick. Hope she got something useful,” Jonas said.

  Alia rode up. “Hello boys,” she said. “Been talking about me?”

  “Only about you,” Daeholf said. “We’ve stopped now though obviously since you’re back.”

  Alia smiled at him winningly.

  “So was it a wasted trip?” Jonas said.

  “Not at all,” Alia said. “Follow me to the bottom of the hill.”

  The others mounted up and followed her as she rode a short distance.

  “What did you see?” Zedek said.

  “I only had a quick glance but it’ll be better if you see for yourself.” She led them to the bottom of the hill and dismounted. “Leave the horses here and brace yourselves,” she said, tying her horse to a bush and walking on a few yards. The others dismounted, curious, tied their horses and joined her.

  “Ick,” Trimas said, looking at the pile of offal.

  “Ick?” Daeholf said.

  “Ladies present,” Trimas said. Alia rolled her eyes.

  Jonas bent down and examined the pile, holding a rag across his face against the smell. “Looks human,” he said, voice muffled.

  “How can you tell?” Trimas said, standing slightly back.

  Jonas stood back up and nudged the pile with a boot, revealing a three-fingered hand.

  “A
h,” Daeholf said.

  “What’s that?” Zedek said, looking at something off to one side.

  “I’m disgusted to say it looks like a pile of fat,” Jonas said.

  “Fat?” Alia said.

  “Fat.”

  “That’s gross.”

  “No more so than the rest of the pile.”

  “You have a point.”

  “So is he here then?” Zedek said.

  “I think we can safely conclude nearby. And it looks like we were lucky, he has a sloppy hireling,” Jonas said.

  “So where do we look?” Trimas said.

  “That’s a good question. But at least we have confirmation that he is definitely in the area, and judging by the state of this, active recently.”

  *****

  If the watch had been a problem before Nuno, they were doubly so afterwards, Ospin thought to himself as he walked to work. He was apprenticed to a carpenter who had the misfortune to have his workshop near the stinking tannery. The rent was cheap apparently but Ospin would frankly have paid more to be away from the smell. Still, hopefully it wouldn’t be long now before his apprenticeship would be finished and he could branch out on his own — and set up somewhere that smelled a little better.

  He could see the trouble long before he got close. Of course he’d heard the rumours that the tanner had been arrested for Nuno’s murder though he was pretty sure the man hadn’t been there as the smell did tend to rub off on him a bit. What he hadn’t expected was that the watch would take his premises apart looking for more trouble. His premises and any nearby. His boss, the carpenter, was currently being held by two watchmen whilst more rampaged through his workshop, tossing benches and knocking down equipment.

  One of the guards emerged from the workshop holding a tool.

  “What’s this?” he said, holding it up in front of the carpenter.

  “An adze,” said the carpenter.

  “Hah, an axe. Arrest him.”

  “No, an adze you idiot,” the carpenter said angrily. “It’s used for shaping wood.”

  “Less of your backchat,” one of the guards holding him said before punching him in the stomach. The carpenter sagged.

  Ospin watched his future evaporate before his eyes. No carpenter meant no completed apprenticeship. No completed apprenticeship meant no business of his own. No business, no money. He wasn’t having this. He stepped over to a pile of wood and picked up a short plank.