He stroked his beard and nodded. “Maybe so, but you haven’t been the most cooperative of guests.”
Ivar shrugged. “Can’t tell you what I don’t know. Whoever brought me here hit me a bit too hard and scrambled my brain.”
“So you say.” Balthazar struck, backhanding Ivar so hard his entire body spun around and slammed into the stone wall. Only sheer willpower kept him on his feet.
He spat blood onto the floor. “So I know.”
“You’re a tough bastard, I’ll give you that. But if you can’t tell me why you were running around with a Gravasian blaster and dagger, you’re not really much use to me.”
He had no memory of it. “You sure it was me?” The banter usually devolved into a beating, but Balthazar seemed to enjoy working up to it. And he was hoping to put off the inevitable as long as possible.
“Oh, I’m very sure. I was going to sell it and make a small fortune. Seems the Gravasians got word and sent an assassin. Killed everyone and recovered the tech.”
Ivar whistled slowly, even though it hurt like hell. Balthazar really had to be crazy. “I’ve heard Gravasians don’t mess around.” That was an understatement. Little was known about the planet or the people. Only that they were a huge military power and never ever sold their tech to others. Like all his other memories, they were factual with no emotions attached.
“No, they don’t.” Balthazar stalked toward him and wrapped his huge hand around Ivar’s throat. “Tell me why I shouldn’t kill you right now.”
“I didn’t cost you the money. That was on you. Used a middle man, didn’t you? Didn’t want to risk your own neck.” It was a guess, but a calculated one. His mind was still sharp, even if he didn’t have any personal memories.
Balthazar gave a roar, tightened his hold, and lifted Ivar right off the ground. With his airway cut off, he began to choke. He brought his knees up and shoved at the same time he lifted his arms between his captor’s arms and thrust them apart. There was nothing calculated about it. It was pure instinct.
The bigger man’s grip slipped. Ivar sucked in air and started to slide to the ground, but he grabbed the wall behind him for support. If he went down, he’d get kicked until he passed out. He was still sporting bruises and healing his ribs from the last time.
“You’ve got some skills.”
He shrugged. “Not enough, it seems.” His voice was hoarse and he coughed several times.
In the blink of an eye, Balthazar went from raging mad to laughing. His moods fluctuated wildly, making him unpredictable and dangerous. “No, not enough,” he readily agreed. “I need to find out who you are. You had Gravasian tech. If you stole it, maybe they’d offer a reward for you.”
“Maybe I’m Gravasian.” Something he’d considered and discarded, given his limited knowledge of them. His mouth was drier than the desert planet of Kalaman. He’d give just about anything for some water.
“Not a chance. Everyone knows those bastards rarely leave their planet. When they do, it’s a whole fleet of them.” He stroked his beard again. “There are their assassins, but if you were one of them, you wouldn’t have ended up here, now would you?”
Ivar’s shoulders slumped slightly. You’re stronger than that. The unknown voice echoed in his brain. He pushed upright and stared directly at his captor. “No, I’m not one of their assassins.” While he was well-trained, he didn’t have the skills, the instincts of a trained killer. Otherwise, he likely wouldn’t be in this predicament.
Your mind is a weapon.
He forced himself to shrug. “I doubt the Gravasians would want me.”
Greed twinkled in Balthazar’s eyes. “Oh, you think not, do you? If you stole their tech, I can guarantee what they’ll do to you will make your stay here seem like a vacation.” He turned to the jailer. “Keep him alive. I need to do some research. There could be money to be made yet. If not, I can still sell this one to recoup the cost of his room and board. There’s always a captain looking for new crew. I have to think on this.”
Ivar stayed on his feet until they were gone, the door sealed shut, and the light dimmed. When he was in darkness, he slid to the floor and tested his jaw. He’d gotten off lucky with nothing more than a love tap and a bit of choking.
But time was running out. Seemed his captor was determined to make him pay, one way or another.
The future was looking grim. Either he’d end up being tortured by the Gravasians or pressed into servitude on a space pirate ship. Both options ended with him dead.
“Where are you, Del?”
****
Delphi’s patience was legendary, but it was running thin. Two days had passed since she’d found Ivar. Or who she hoped was Ivar. It had taken her that long to devise a plan and get everything in place. There’d been a stir around the jail last night.
Balthazar had visited.
The jailer had come into the tavern closest to the prison for a meal earlier today. It had only taken a couple of free ales from other patrons to loosen his tongue. Everyone wanted the latest news on the mysterious prisoner.
She’d sat in the shadows at a corner table, sipped ale, and listened. To give the jailer his due, he didn’t give too many details. Likely it was fear of his boss holding him back. But he did say that Balthazar had come up with a new way to make his prisoner pay off and that the prisoner was in worse shape than he had been.
That worried her.
The clock had run out for them both. Ivar was in greater danger and might possibly be moved, not to mention she was expected to have dinner with Balthazar tomorrow night. Or rather tonight, since it was just after two in the morning.
This was the time of day where most people were the least alert. Those who had been drinking were passed out or too drunk to be a problem. Everyone else was safely inside their dwellings.
This was her time.
Moving stealthily, she used the buildings for cover, slipping through the shadows until she was outside the prison. It was easier to go through the chimney, but there was no way Ivar would fit. As much weight as he’d lost, his shoulders were still far too wide.
“Through the front door.” She’d marked the timing and the route last night. One shot was all they’d have. If she failed, she’d have to leave Ivar to save herself.
And that she wouldn’t do.
Not only because she’d given her word—to the Gravasian king, her sister’s husband, and to Ivar himself. No, she couldn’t have Ivar’s death on her conscience.
He’d shown such composure under extreme pressure. He had no idea who he was, yet the core of the man shone through. Honor wasn’t just a word to him. He’d been concerned about her safety.
She’d held his hand.
Curling her fingers inward, she cursed the phantom heat from his touch. Straightening her palm, she rubbed it against her pants.
Get your head in the game and do this.
Delphi made sure her hood covered her head and watched as the outer guards made their rounds.
The one closest to her was first. She jumped toward him, slamming her hand over his face to muffle his cry of surprise even as she drove the tip of her blade into his heart. She lowered his body to the ground, withdrew the blade, and was on the move before he took his final breath.
The second man was huge. At seven feet tall, he was going to take a bit more work.
She picked up speed and jumped, using the wall as a springboard, her foot barely grazing it as she pushed off to give her both height and velocity. At the last second, he must have sensed something and turned.
It was too late. Her blade was already slicing across his throat. He grabbed her and threw her over his head even as he went down. She rolled and came up to her feet, on the move again.
The keys she needed were hooked to his belt. She grabbed them and ran. Timing was everything.
There were only three keys and she guessed right for the first one. She slowly released a breath when she was inside the prison.
No time to
waste.
Two more locked doors, one more guard down until she reached her destination.
She reached into her deep pocket and withdrew the meat she’d retrieved earlier. Already she could hear the whining from the other side of the door.
“Shut up,” the jailer yelled. It was followed by a yelp.
Delphi unlocked the door and tossed the meat in.
“Hey, what’s that?”
Why wasn’t the bastard asleep? Going with her alternate plan, she shoved down her hood, tossed back her curly hair, and pushed the door wider. With a sultry smile on her face, she waggled her fingers at the man, who was now on his feet with a knife in his hand.
“You’re not supposed to be here.”
She nodded and moved steadily forward, keeping her hands in plain sight and her weapons hidden. “I convinced your friends outside otherwise.” Putting a sway in her step, she walked toward him. “I saw you at the tavern earlier.”
He slowly lowered his dagger and hitched his pants up. “Did you now?” He licked his lips.
It was almost too easy. Her smaller stature and lithe build always made men underestimate her. “I certainly did.” She ran her hand over his chest and up his arms. “You’re a strong one, aren’t you?”
He dropped the knife and yanked her close, his mouth slamming down on hers. She slid both knives from their sheaths and drove them under his arms, severing the arteries there.
“What?” The man stumbled back, falling into his chair “What did you do?”
One of the dogs came over to her and licked her hand. “Sleep now, baby,” she told the animal.
The guard was still gasping for air, but there was no one to hear as his life’s blood quickly drained away. Without another word to the man, she liberated his keys and opened the heavy wooden door between her and Ivar.
“Are you awake?” she whispered as she pulled her hood back over her head.
“You came back.” The surprise in his voice was an insult.
“I said I would.” She tried four keys before she hit the right one. After turning the lock, she yanked the door open. “Took me longer than I anticipated. Come on. We need to move fast.”
“I shouldn’t.”
Okay, she hadn’t seen this one coming.
She whirled around, stomped over to him, and drilled her finger into his chest. “I’ve just killed four men to get in here. You’re coming with me if I have to drag you.”
His lips twitched. “I’m not sure you can.”
“You’d be surprised what I can do,” she muttered.
“No, I don’t think I would.”
It wasn’t pride making her chest swell. It wasn’t. “Hurry up. I have a schedule to keep.” Then she remembered the jailer’s bragging from the tavern. “Are you hurt?”
“No more than usual.” He stepped outside the cell and stopped, peering back into the dark depths. She slammed the door shut and locked it once again.
His big body shuddered at the metallic click.
She led the way to the door with him shuffling after her. Good thing the guards were dead or they’d hear him coming a mile away.
Ivar paused when he stepped into the outer room and blinked at the man slumped lifeless in the chair. “Your work?”
Not bothering to answer, she opened the door and checked both ways. “Follow me and stay close.” She would not apologize for what she’d had to do. He should be grateful she was saving his ass.
Making sure he was behind her, she led the way through the doors, locking them behind her. That would give the illusion the prison was locked down if anyone checked. And locked doors always confused people.
With that in mind, she’d shoved the jailer’s keys under the door to his room and returned the outer keys to the guard lying in the shadows.
At first glance, it would appear a ghost took out the guards and got through locked doors to release the prisoner.
A ghost or a Gravasian assassin.
While she wasn’t a real one, she’d put her skills up against one any day.
Ivar was leaning up against the stone wall of the building, his head thrown back as he peered up at the sky. Her heart ached for him. He’d likely never expected to see the outside again.
There was a slight clopping sound on the road. Right on time. “Stay here,” she whispered.
Before he could object, she was on the move. This was trickier than breaking into the prison, because she wasn’t going to kill this old man who was simply doing his job, one that no one else wanted.
The wagon slowed as it rounded the curve. The driver’s head was down as he clicked his tongue to get the mulkey moving. The beast of burden was known for its ability to work hard while requiring little water. They could also be stubborn.
Delphi ran and used her momentum to jump to the wheel of the wagon and then onto the driver’s seat. She struck hard and fast, slamming the pommel of her knife into the driver’s head. He gave a short cry and toppled over. She caught him before he fell out of the wagon, jumped down, and was about to lower his body to the ground when she sensed someone behind her.
She whirled around with her blade in motion and barely stopped before jamming it into Ivar’s neck. He held his hands up. A thin line seeped blood from the shallow cut on his skin. She glared at him before slowly lowering the blade. “You could have died. And if you had, after all the trouble I’ve gone through to break you out, I’d kill you.”
His lips quirked but he nodded solemnly. “It won’t happen again.” He lowered the man to the ground. “Where do you want him?”
“Over there.” She removed the man’s cloak first. “Hurry.” They were too open here. Seconds later, he was back. She indicated the back of the wagon. “Get in.”
He wrinkled his nose. “I smell bad, but this is worse. What is this?”
“The refuse wagon.” The man went around at night, scooping up the garbage left outside people’s homes and carted it far away from the community. It was the one thing she could agree with Balthazar on. The inhabitants of Tortuga smelled bad enough without adding garbage to the mix.
Not that there was a whole lot of it as people tended to reuse and repurpose just about everything they could and sell what had any value.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” he muttered.
“Don’t be precious. Get in before you get us caught.” She vaulted to the driver’s seat and picked up the reins. She clicked her tongue in the exact manner the man had and the mulkey began to move.
The back of the wagon dipped as Ivar climbed in. They were barely around the turn from the prison when they were hailed. “Hey. Wait. I want this gone.”
Keeping her head lowered, she disguised her voice, making it low and rough. “Toss ’er in.” She barely slowed. Better to keep going. If she had to stop, the man would die for the sin of getting rid of the trash. And there’d already been enough bodies.
There was some swearing and then the back of the wagon dipped as though something large had been thrown in. She tensed, but Ivar didn’t cry out. Whatever had been tossed on the load, she hoped it hadn’t hit him.
They passed the edge of the town without being stopped again. As soon as the buildings were out of sight, she halted and jumped down. “This is where we get out.” She tapped the side of the wagon.
Ivar rolled out and gagged. “Thank the gods. I thought I’d die from the stench.”
It was pretty bad back there. Wearing the refuse man’s cloak over her own was bad enough. She whipped it off and placed it on the seat.
“What got thrown in? Sounded heavy.” Ivar rummaged around and raised his hand. “The bottom half of a barrel.”
“Huh, he could have burned the wood and used the staves.” Then the stench hit and Ivar dropped it. “He’s been using it in place of a toilet.”
She bit her bottom lip to keep from laughing at the disgust in his voice.
“Thank the gods it didn’t land on me.”
“I have to get the wagon turned aro
und.” Grabbing the mulkey’s harness, she clicked her tongue and guided the animal in a circle until it was facing back toward the town. A quick smack on his hindquarter had him moving off at a trot.
“What now?” he asked.
She peered up at the sky and gauged the time. They were cutting it close. “Now, we walk.”
Chapter Five
Exhaustion dragged at him, but he’d never admit it aloud. Putting one foot in front of the other, he followed Del. He inhaled the air, breathing in the fresh, clean scent. Okay, maybe not quite clean, but the stench was coming from him and not the air. After being stuck in prison for weeks and escaping in a refuse wagon, it was pure heaven.
“You holding up?” she asked, her gaze constantly moving. Good thing one of them was paying attention. His brother would kick his butt for such a lapse.
That drew him up short. Once again, he almost caught a glimpse of another man, but it was gone before he could grab onto it.
“Hey.” Del touched his arm. “You okay?”
He shook himself and nodded. “Fine.”
She studied him from beneath the hood for a few seconds and then nodded. “We need to move faster, if you can. I want to be inside before dawn breaks.”
“Where are we going?” He followed as she set out again, this time at a brisker pace. Del’s movements were fluid, her passing barely disturbing the surrounding vegetation. Large trees towered over them, the huge green fronds adding freshness to the air. Dew caught on the leaves, making them moist. He wanted to rip some of them off and rub them over his face and body, but that would be a mistake.
Leave no sign of your passing.
Easier said than done when his feet were practically dragging. The weeks of captivity had taken their toll. He was winded. Sweat covered his body, his muscles protesting as he blindly followed. It wasn’t so much that he trusted her. He was simply out of options. And Del had come back. Whether she was truly a friend remained to be seen. He wouldn’t put it past Balthazar to allow his own men to be killed. It would be an elaborate scheme, but the man was crazy.
His feet ached as stones dug into his bare soles. Funny that he’d forgotten until now he wasn’t wearing shoes. Strange what was important and what wasn’t when your life was on the line.
Ivar's Escape (Assassins of Gravas Book 2) Page 4