by T. A. White
There was also the slight issue of her real goal in Aurelia. Looking back, she now realized, she should have headed out of town the moment her feet touched land.
Regardless of the sympathy she had for Umi, this wasn’t the sort of thing Tate wanted to get involved with. But, could she refuse was the question. Ryu would have objections, but maybe she could get around that.
“I am truly sorry for you and wish I could help,” Tate told Umi. “But I don’t think I can do as you ask. I’m sorry.”
“We can pay you,” Umi said. She looked just slightly crazy as she pleaded with Tate.
“It’s not about the money. I just think you’d be better served with someone who has done this before.”
Umi fell to her knees and prostrated herself on the floor. She looked up at Tate with desperation. “Please, please help us. If our mutual friend says you are the person suited for this task, you are our best hope.”
Tate tried not to look directly at Umi. She hated when people cried.
Before she could refuse, again, Ryu stepped in and pulled Umi to her feet. He murmured in her ear as he steadied her, her slight form dwarfed by his more muscular one. Umi nodded and pulled a handkerchief out of her sleeve and dabbed at her eyes. Shooting Tate a watery smile, she ushered her guards out of the room.
Tate watched them leave feeling a little perplexed. That had been easy. Especially given how adamant Ryu had been earlier.
A sense of unease stole through her as he closed the door and turned back to her with a toothy grin.
“That is not the reaction I was expecting,” she told him. “You do realize I just refused to help?”
“Oh, you’re taking the job.”
She shook her head no. She wouldn’t do it.
“You’ll take the job or I’ll tie you up and keep you prisoner until Jost comes back,” he threatened.
It was just another variation of his earlier threat but no less scary the second time around. She tilted her chin up at him. She was almost willing to risk it. She had learned to pick locks and escape ropes from some of the best in the business. At any rate, Jost might be gone for months. No doubt she’d find a way to escape before he returned. Once she did, she’d head straight for the country until she was far, far away.
“Oh, and I’ll be taking these for safe keeping.” He held up several small pouches.
She froze at the sight of them. They couldn’t be hers. They just looked similar. She’d been on guard since he’d caught her.
She slid a hand down her thigh checking one of the hidden pouches she’d had sewn into her clothes. Empty. So was the one on the other side as well as the ones on the inside of her boots.
Her money was gone.
“Son of a plague ridden gutter rat. That’s mine.”
He smiled but didn’t respond. Low-born pirate, Tate raged. Of all the underhanded sneaky things to do. She couldn’t believe he’d stolen her money. She needed that to survive until she could get settled. He must have taken it during their tussle on the fence or the one in the carriage.
What had happened to being crew?
Well, no more. That was her money. She needed it to get by. Jost had given it to her. Most important of all it was hers. People didn’t take what was hers.
As her feelings swirled into a churning morass of anger that made it difficult to think clearly, Ryu moved to stand by the bed, his hands loose at his sides, watching as her anger built and built. First her face got redder, then her hands clenched at her sides. She began to pace back and forth in front of him in agitation.
When she moved, he almost didn’t see it. Her hand lashed out for one of the pouches. He let her fingers touch cloth and feel victory just before he spun it out of reach. She fell back a step and aimed a kick at his knee. He gracefully sidestepped still holding the bag tauntingly above her head.
She growled and tackled him. The world spun as he swept her off her feet. She landed with a slight bounce on the bed. She leveraged herself up onto her elbows and glared. The bastard didn’t even look mussed.
“Would you like to try again?”
With an inarticulate cry she launched herself at him, arms thrust out for the bag. He twisted away. She’d anticipated the move and aimed a back kick into his stomach. It landed.
He exhaled in a whoosh and bent forward.
She followed up with an uppercut to his face. He blocked and used his grip on her fist to spin her around and pin her against him.
“That all you got?”
She snarled and stomped on his instep. She thrust an elbow into his midsection and was rewarded by his arms loosening.
She wrenched herself out of his arms and said gleefully, “Not by a long shot.”
He gave her a gesture that said ‘get on with it.’ Meanwhile, her money had disappeared into his clothes. That was fine. She’d just knock him unconscious and get it that way.
Her hands came up in a defensive position that allowed for easy striking and settled into a fighting stance with her legs a little wider than shoulder width apart, her weight balanced evenly.
The bed prevented her from attacking from the left and attacking straight on hadn’t worked yet.
She fainted with a low kick and slid to the right, her hand flashing out and landing harmlessly on his forearm.
Her leg hooked around his and tugged. He began to lose his balance. She saw her chance as she swung at his throat.
He grunted as he blocked and grabbed her waist, flipping her over his head. She landed once again on the bed.
“Damn it.” She slapped the bed, the force of it absorbed by the mattress.
“Be a good girl and agree to take the job,” Ryu said. “You’ll be given your money back, plus an additional half at the completion of this job. And I’ll clear it with Jost so he releases you from the crew.”
“You can do that?”
“You could have too if you’d just gone to him with your problems,” he said imperiously. “He’s not a monster.”
“If he would have released me anyway why make me go through all this?”
He bent down and patted her on the head. “You broke the rules. This is your punishment.”
Condescending bastard. Tate pushed his hand off her hair.
She sat on the bed, unwilling to concede she was beaten. It was obvious she couldn’t win, but still, it stuck in the craw to do what she was told. She slapped down the part of her that was whining that it was her money, and this wasn’t fair.
“Tate?” Ryu crossed his arms and waited for her to look at him. After a long moment in which she debated the possibilities of finding a job and escaping, she met his eyes. What she saw there convinced her she wasn’t leaving this room until he got the answer he was looking for.
Her shoulders slumped and all the fight rushed out of her. “Yeah. Whatever.”
Ryu’s expression softened and for a moment she thought he’d relent. Instead he said almost to himself, “This is necessary.”
With a bitter gaze she watched him let Umi back into the room. This job was going to be a huge pain in the ass.
Chapter Six
As the three Kairi filed back into the room, Tate worked hard to present a neutral and calm facade.
She remained on the bed watching as the other three arranged themselves. Ryu, the rat, didn’t let her attitude faze him, taking a seat on the opposite side of the bed from her. It dented under his weight, and his shoulder brushed hers as he made himself comfortable. She inched away, but the bed wasn’t that big.
After an uncomfortable hesitation, Umi finally settled into the desk’s chair, the only other seat in the room besides the bed, while Tempest and Kadien stood sentry by the door and window.
Umi’s back was ramrod straight, not touching the chair’s back, with her hands folded primly in her lap. Tate’s back ached just looking at her. How long could she keep that position without her muscles protesting in pain?
Umi’s posture alone made it clear she was from the upper classes. O
nly someone who’d had it drilled into them from birth could sit that straight.
No wonder they hadn’t made any progress in finding their little object. Any criminal in the Lower wouldn’t lift a finger for the privileged lords and ladies from the Upper. Not without a fee anyway. Even then, only if they couldn’t figure out a way to stab them in the back.
Her guards weren’t much better, standing with weight evenly balanced and eyes constantly moving as they checked for hidden dangers. They practically screamed ‘Valuable person here. Kidnap for ransom.’
Tate sighed. This was going to be a lot of work.
There was an expectant hush as everybody waited for her to get things started. It felt familiar in a way, and she had the unsettling feeling she’d been in this position before— being relied on to have a plan and lead others to its conclusion felt comfortable, like she had done it before.
Perhaps she had been a leader in that prior life. She shook her head firmly. Unlikely. She much preferred following other people’s lead. Less responsibility that way. Less worry, too.
“How about we start with what makes you think the missing object is here?”
Umi’s eyes flicked to Ryu as if asking permission. What he thought remained locked behind his neutral expression, and Umi was forced to make up her own mind on how much should be shared. With obvious reluctance she said, “It is the only answer that makes sense. We are currently renewing contracts, and the object is the seal that binds them. It has great value to my people and could be used to compel our cooperation in certain matters. It is my belief that to do this it will need to be kept fairly close to provide proof of its existence.”
“I don’t suppose you could tell me what it is you’re looking for? It would simplify things if I knew.” It was a shot in the dark, but you never knew until you asked.
To her credit, Umi looked regretful as she shook her head. “I’m afraid not. If knowledge gets out that it is gone, it will have devastating consequences on all involved.”
“How bad could it be? Whoever was on watch when it was stolen is demoted and everybody goes on with their lives.”
Ryu, silent until now, said grimly, “Its former guards are already dead. If Umi or a family member does not recover it by the time negotiations are complete, they will be put to death as well. That circumstance is negligible compared to what happens after.”
“Well, shit,” Tate said in stunned disbelief. One glance at Umi’s composed face, and the grim expressions on the guards’, convinced her Ryu wasn’t exaggerating. “That seems a bit harsh.”
“Now you can see why I want your full attention on this,” Ryu said
Tate exhaled shakily. If she’d thought the responsibility before was bad, it was nothing compared to what she knew now. No pressure.
It left the question, what could possibly be worth an entire family’s lives?
Nothing good, she thought grumpily. There were so many ways this ‘job’ could go wrong. More and more she wished she hadn’t stopped to watch the procession. Ryu would never have seen her there, and she wouldn’t be in this position now.
She shot a dark look at him. Convincing him of that would be impossible though.
“Where was it stolen?”
“En route to Aurelia about three days ago. We were able to track the ship they used to twenty miles south of the city. We believe they traveled over land from there and joined with travelers journeying to the city for the festival. Unfortunately we lost the trail once arriving here which is when Ryu offered his assistance.” Umi had avoided glancing in their direction while she explained.
Tate’s curiosity prodded her to ask how Ryu came to know about the super secret object, but she decided that question could wait. Like when, people’s lives weren’t hanging in the balance.
“How did they know which ship the object was on? I assume you didn’t announce its location to the public or the date it would be sailing.”
Umi bowed her head, shame echoing from her posture. It was Kadien, however, who answered, “Some believe we have a traitor in our clan. One who has sold his allegiance elsewhere.”
“Hmm.”
That could make things a little difficult. She pinched the bridge of her nose in thought. The facts she’d been given so far had been rather sparse and there were gaping holes in their story. Knowing what was missing would narrow the search. What could be so important that people were willing to die for it? She crossed her arms. Maybe that wasn’t the right question. People were willing to die for a great many inconsequential things. The better question would be, why get outsiders involved when it was this important to them? They were questions that would have to wait, however.
“I don’t suppose you have any suggestions on where to start?” she asked turning to Ryu.
“Thought you’d never ask,” he said with a slight smile. “I was going to watch you putter around in ignorance for a little while before offering to help, but since you asked so nicely I suppose I could do you a favor.”
Tate snorted. She’d had just about enough of his help to last for a good long while.
His quick grin told her he knew what she’d meant by that snort. “You’ll need to go to the underground market and gain entry into the Red Circle. Throw Jost’s name around, that should get you in fairly quick.” He turned serious. “You are not to enter the Black Circle. If it comes to that, I’ll be the one to go.”
“Why not me? It’ll take too long if we have to come back and get you.”
Tate didn’t really understand the parts about the red and black circle, but she could figure that out later. Right now she was more concerned about the fact he’d restricted her movements. As usual, being told no made her itch to explore.
“No. You are not to go into the Black under any circumstances.” Ryu leaned close, crowding her back against the wall. His faces inches from hers, he asked, “Do you understand?”
He didn’t move until she nodded.
Sweet Saviors, the man could be touchy about the oddest things. First it’s help, then it’s don’t go there. She wished he’d make up his mind.
If he’d known her just a little bit better, he’d have known that ordering her not to do something was the quickest way to get her to do it. Or maybe he did know that and was counting on it to get her to do what he wanted. Tate ran her fingers through her hair in frustration. Trying to stay a step ahead of this man was so tedious.
When Ryu sat back from her, Tate shot a hard glance at Umi who watched the two of them somewhat calculatingly. Tate hadn’t quite made her mind up about the Kairi lady. One moment, the woman was the perfect epitome of a noble lady then the next she did something totally out of character. Little things like an expression when she thought no one was looking or a smile that held no real warmth made Tate’s senses tingle.
Perhaps she was simply overanalyzing things. It was entirely possible that she was seeing shadows where none existed. On the other hand, more than one job had fallen apart because of the tiniest details. Any criminal would tell you it was those minute details that would warn you of trouble. Things like a man’s shoes being too nice could tell you whether he was a spy for the Provost’s Marshal. Yes, those little details were important enough to make her cautious. Tate trusted her instincts, which were telling her to tread lightly around this woman.
Regardless, she couldn’t walk away. Learning the stakes involved had changed things. She didn’t care much about others outside those she considered her friends, which mainly consisted of Danny, Ripley and Trent, maybe Jost, but one thing she knew beyond any doubt was she had to be able to face herself in the mirror at the end of each day without shame or regret. No way did she want to have the deaths of an entire family on her conscience. Not if all she had to do was guide these people through their dealings in the Lower.
As for the trust piece of the puzzle. She could live with that. Trust came with time. Right now she didn’t trust them anymore than they did her.
“Alright.” There was a la
rge relieved breath at her words. Umi’s posture relaxed marginally in relief before steel snapped back into her spine. “I’m not making any promises, but I’ll do what I can to help. Ryu’s plan sounds like a good place to start. We’ll see what we can find out and go from there.”
Umi was nodding vigorously before Tate had even finished speaking. Though dark circles still lined her eyes, the endless night of them lightened marginally and gleamed with hope.
It would be easy to stare into the full black of Umi’s eyes and get lost. Though unsettling, they weren’t as startling as they’d been the first time she’d seen them.
Ryu stood. “Since that’s settled, I’ll be getting on with my business.”
“Wait.” Tate lurched across the bed and grabbed his sleeve. She didn’t release him even when he gave a pointed glance at the hand on his arm. She didn’t trust him to answer if she didn’t hold him here. “You’re leaving?”
“I’ll be pursuing the search from another avenue.”
“What avenue? Shouldn’t you keep us informed so we don’t waste time going over the same ground?” she asked a little desperately.
“Did you think I’d be tagging along every step of the way?”
She flushed. That was exactly what she’d thought. Agreeing to help had been one thing. Doing this herself, another. She wasn’t equipped for this and had planned to rely heavily on Ryu while providing backup in case anything went wrong. Being the mastermind behind the search wasn’t how she worked.
Barely started and things were already snow balling on her. It was not a good sign.
“Relax,” Ryu said rubbing Tate’s shoulder. “Trust your instincts. I’ve seen you work before. I wouldn’t have recommended you for this if I hadn’t thought you were capable of it.”
Tingles ran down her arms from where he touched. A rumbling sound, very like purring, came from Ryu. It was barely audible, felt more than heard, but muscles that had been tight with nerves began to loosen, lulled into relaxation by the sound.
Tate shook off the effects of Ryu’s purr. That sound had made her feel the most peace she’d had since waking up cold with no memory of her past. While nice, she needed her anger and wits to do battle with Ryu.
