by V. J. Timlin
The captain reached for Nat’s revolver, his palm up. “I’ll take that.”
Nat’s jaw was tight. With a moment of hesitation, Nat put his gun on Biddulph’s open hand.
“Wise choice.” Biddulph tucked Nat’s revolver under his belt and turned his gaze down the street towards Anouk. She pulled her head back and curled into a ball. She shook in terror. Had the captain seen her? She listened for approaching footsteps, lifting her hand to the handle of her katana.
No footfall came, instead the captain spoke again, “Where is the lovely Miss Herring? Lord De Meriweth has spoken so fondly of her, and I’m quite disappointed she’s not with you.”
Anouk’s blood turned to ice. Stalo had spoken of her? Fondly? That was the creepiest thing she had ever heard. Nat remained silent. Not daring to risk peeking out again from behind the wash tub, she started to gnaw her thumbnail. She had to help Nat. She looked around, seeking inspiration. There had to be something she could do—other than a running attack with her katana. That wouldn’t end well.
A rattling sound echoed down the lane and Anouk eased behind the tub to see the source. A horse-drawn wagon drove along the street, heading straight towards the four men. Its driver appeared oblivious to what was happening and why this strip of the street was almost empty.
Anouk considered this her chance. She scanned her immediate surroundings and found what she was looking for, a rough-edged stone. She grabbed it and turned her attention back to the men, willing them to look at the wagon. And one of them did…
Captain Biddulph pointed his revolver at the driver and fired. The bullet knocked off the driver’s cap. The horse whinnied in terror and reared up on its hind legs, pawing the air with its front hooves. It started to push back, its eyes rolling in its head. The driver shouted, trying to get the horse under control, but only served to fuel the animal’s fright. The wagon crashed against a wall, sending empty barrels into the air like bowling pins. The men’s attention from Nat faltered for a split second.
“Now if ever,” Anouk snarled and jumped from behind her hiding place, hurling the pebble at the closest man. It hit his gun and ricocheted to the back of the captain’s head.
“What…” Captain Biddulph spun on his heel and pulled a trigger again. Anouk dove back behind the wash tub. The bullet hit the wall over her head. Fuck, that man had good aim.
“Get the girl and kill the bounty hunter,” came the captain’s bark.
“No,” Anouk screamed and scrambled up, toppling the tub over. It fell with a crash, spilling the foaming water on the street. Where Anouk had seen Nat last, now swirled a thick cloud of white smoke. She pulled her katana and darted towards it. “Nat!”
Another shot went off. Anouk dropped into a crouch as a whizzing bullet passed over her head. She crawled, trying to locate Nat, smoke burning in her eyes. She blinked the tears off. A figure appeared in front of her. It was a man crouching, holding a knife in his hand and wiping his tear streaming eyes. A squeal escaped Anouk’s mouth as she jumped back. The man cursed and lunged towards her, thrusting with his knife.
“Stop, you bitch,” he growled.
Anouk dodged aside and kicked him in his chin. “Learn some manners, asshole.”
Someone took her by the shoulder—Anouk spun, ready to slash with her sword, but Nat blocked the down coming strike.
“Sorry,” Anouk blurted. Jesus, she had almost sliced him in half.
“Let’s get out of here.”
Anouk nodded. They sprinted down the smoke-filled street.
“Where is the captain?” Anouk called to Nat.
Echoes of gunfire boomed behind them.
“There,” Nat growled.
They ran out of the smoke straight into an intensifying chaos. A man knocked into Anouk when he charged down the street shouting, “Fire, fire.”
She almost dropped her sword and without Nat’s quick reflex, she would have fallen as well. He caught Anouk by her shoulder and pushed through the crowd, leading her to an alley.
He stopped and knelt down next to a round metal lid in the road. It screeched when he lifted it.
“What’s down there?” Anouk asked.
“A sewer. Hop in.”
Anouk’s eyebrows shot up. “Really?” She wouldn’t have thought they had a sewage system in The Pits based on the amount of filth on the street. Maybe they had something against hiding the waste underground. She approached the hole. The smell wafting from it almost melted her nose hairs. Well, someone was using it.
“Hurry,” Nat barked. As if to emphasise, a gun went off behind the corner.
Sheathing her katana, Anouk scurried into the hole and climbed down into the stinking darkness. When she reached the bottom, she was standing almost knee deep in sludge. Her stomach protested the smell and the idea she was standing in human waste. She drew deep breaths through her mouth, trying to calm her rebelling innards.
Scraping metal echoed down from the manhole, cutting off the last source of light. Utter blackness surrounded her, and she became more aware of where she was and what microscopic horrors swam among the water—she gagged.
Nat appeared at her side and switched on a torch. “They are coming this way. Better put out some distance in case they decide to look here.”
The shaft of light revealed a domed tiled tunnel. Nat’s top hat scratched the ceiling when he pushed his way forward through brown liquid. The sight of floating waste confirmed to Anouk she was in liquid shit. Her stomach flipped and she threw up.
“Sorry,” she whispered to Nat, who looked over his shoulder. The darkness hid his face. She was grateful for not being able to read his expression. This wasn’t her grandest moment.
The hollow sound of metal grating stones came from above. Nat switched the torch off. He put his hand on Anouk’s shoulder and whispered next to her ear, “Don’t move, don’t make a sound.”
Anouk nodded, although in the darkness Nat wouldn’t see it. He kept his hand on her shoulder. His action comforted her and helped her keep her wits.
Over her pounding heart and the gurgle of the wastewater, she listened to the men debate above. The echoing walls of the sewer blurred the words, but by the tone she guessed they were arguing if they should climb down to check for their targets or not. A beam of light scanned the small area just behind them. They stood downstream, and water flowed undisturbed, concealing their presence—unless, of course, the men climbed down or either of them made a sound like a sneeze. Thinking of sneezing, Anouk’s nose started to tickle. Oh shit… She pinched her nostrils, trying to subdue the growing pressure inside her nose.
The shaft of light disappeared and the scraping sound came above again. Anouk couldn’t have held it a second longer. A soft sneeze bounced from the brick walls like a drop of water hitting hot stones.
Nat turned the torch on. “Let’s go.” He proceeded to head deeper into the sewer.
Anouk had hoped that they would wait for a while and climb back up to the street level. “We’re not going back up?”
“Yes, we are, but not in The Pits.”
Anouk’s shoulders slumped but knew it made sense. Captain Biddulph and his men were searching for them there. “You know where this leads?”
“Aye, to Oxbridge Street.”
They waded downstream in silence, Nat leading the way. He chose the tunnels at each intersection with such certainty, Anouk was convinced this wasn’t his first trip through these sewers.
She played the events in her mind over and over again. The way Nat lost his cool when seeing Captain Biddulph and pursued him with such recklessness was worrying, to say the least. He had some explaining to do whether he liked it or not.
“Nat, I know you don’t like to talk about your past, and I respect that. But because of what just happened back there…” she pointed towards the tunnel ceiling, “…I need to know who Captain Biddulph is.”
Nat turned to face Anouk, his expression guarded. He looked at her for a long moment. Debating the bare minimum he
would have to tell?
“You don’t need to go into details if you don’t want to, but, please, tell me who he is.”
“He was… is Stalo’s right hand.”
A cold shiver ran down Anouk’s spine. Yes, that was the bare minimum in words, but just a picture can tell a thousand words, and this one statement had the same effect. She nodded. “That’s all I need to know.”
Relief replaced the wariness in Nat’s face. “I won’t act as rashly the next time. I promise.”
“I hope not. You almost got yourself killed.” Anouk forced a smile on her face. “That’s rude, you know.”
“Aye.” Nat placed his hand on her shoulder and his expression softened. “Thank you for not being as reckless, and for throwing that stone at the captain. That distracted them enough so I could drop the smoke bomb.”
That was the most comradely gesture there was. A surge of disappointment flashed through Anouk. “Well, someone has to be the rational one here,” she grumbled. “And I was actually aiming at the other guy with the gun, but never mind. Let’s get moving. As fun as standing knee-deep in shit is, I want to get back up.”
Nat chuckled and resumed wading. Anouk followed, mentally kicking herself. What did she expect? Nat thanking her for saving his life with a hot passionate kiss? She suppressed a snort. There were more important issues, damn it. She cleared her throat. “Wonder what Biddulph and his men were doing in The Pits. Recruiting more men?”
“That and gathering information,” Nat said, his voice neutral.
Anouk’s mind lurched and she gulped. “Do you think Rose might be in danger? I mean, she said she’d ask for us about those men at the harbour? I’ll never forgive myself if we’ve put her at risk.”
“Look, I know it sounds cold, but sometimes you have to let those kind of thoughts go. They only slow you down. I promise, we’re going to check on her as soon as we can, but we can’t let worrying control our actions. You have to trust that Rose knows what she’s doing.”
“Helping her husband was a different matter.”
“Aye, but there was nothing in her message that hinted she’s in trouble. We’ll go back again when it’s dark. I’ll send a message to Rose. But before that, let’s do some shopping. We need to be prepared, nevertheless.”
“What? Now?”
“Yes, now.”
“But we can’t,” Anouk exclaimed.
Nat looked over his shoulder. “Why not? It’ll be dark soon.”
“Because we stink, that’s why.”
“Amanda won’t mind.”
“Wanna bet?”
Nat chuckled again. “We’ll be there soon.”
* * *
Amanda’s Emporium was closed.
“We missed the opening hours.” Anouk propped her fist to her hips. Not that she was sorry about it. Marching into Amanda’s shop, dripping sewage all over everything, wasn’t something she had been looking forward to doing anyway. “Now what?”
“She’ll see us, don’t worry.” Nat sounded confident. “Let’s get around the back of the house.”
“You’re not going to break in, are you?”
“Well, yes, but she won’t mind. I do it all the time.”
Anouk gave him a flat look. “Very funny.”
They trotted to the alley between the buildings and turned the corner to a small back yard. Nat switched the torch on and brushed his hand along the side of the rear door. “Ah, there,” he muttered and pressed something. There was no sound Anouk could detect, but Nat sighed satisfied and stepped back.
“What did you just do?”
“Amanda has a doorbell for loyal customers and friends who need to see her after opening hours. It’s hidden.”
“And you are one of them?”
“Naturally,” Nat flashed his smile. “How else would you have got those clothes for free?”
Before Anouk could answer, there was a sound at the door and it cracked ajar.
“Who is it?” Amanda’s cheeping voice asked.
“It’s Nat and Anouk,” Nat called back, keeping his voice low.
The door opened and Amanda’s head peeked from behind it.
“Please, come in,” she beckoned them with a cheery tone. “So lovely to see you again.”
Anouk flinched, embracing herself for Amanda to change her mind as soon as she caught the smell… They squeezed past her.
“Have you been swimming in the sewers again, Nat?” Amanda asked, wrinkling her nose.
“Aye.” Nat grinned.
Amanda turned to look at Anouk but said nothing.
“We had to escape some of Stalo’s thugs,” Anouk blurted. “I tried to talk reason to Nat…”
Amanda waved her hand and heaved a sigh. “I’ll give you new clothes and you can use my bathroom to wash yourselves.”
Anouk winced. It was nice to get rid of the grimy trousers and the hideous stench, but she would have preferred not to impose on Amanda’s hospitality in order to do so.
Amanda patted Anouk on her shoulder. “Don’t worry, lass. This isn’t the first time Nat has come for acquisitions after taking a dip in the sewers. Come, I’ll show you the bathroom.”
“Thanks,” Anouk muttered.
The bath and new clean clothes helped Anouk feel human again and not like a sewer rat. Amanda had chosen Anouk a similar set of dark trousers with a matching waistcoat, lace-up boots and light-blue shirt. Nat waited for her in the hallway, leaning against the wall. He was wearing a new dark brown trench coat. Under the coat peeked a black waistcoat and red shirt. Anouk had to admit he looked very handsome. She wasn’t going to say it to his face, though. After the kiss, such confessions would be nothing short of awkward. Instead, she whirled around in front of him.
“Do I look fat in this?”
Nat’s brows flew up. “Huh?”
Anouk sighed. Inappropriate joke, or rather an inside joke that no one in this world would understand… “Never mind. Let’s go thank Amanda.”
“Aye.” Nat detached from the wall. “You look… What’s the word? Ah, badass.”
Anouk’s mouth split into a grin. “Really? Cheers.”
They walked through the dark shop to the backroom.
“What can I do for you?” Amanda asked when they joined her.
Anouk was glad that Amanda went straight to the business. No attempt to pry about what got them into the sewers in the first place, no bemoaning or sanctimonious lectures. She didn’t want to relay her harrowing experience anyway, at least, not yet.
“We need a couple of night goggles,” Nat said.
“Just a minute,” Amanda chirped and vanished behind the shelves. She was humming a tune Anouk didn’t recognise. Anouk sniggered to herself; what was she expecting? Amanda singing The Blue Danube?
“She’s glad to see us,” Anouk whispered to Nat. “I mean, after the bath.”
“She’s a businesswoman.” Nat smiled.
“Does she get lots of customers at this hour?”
“Some. She makes the biggest deals outside the opening hours.” He winced. “Of course, that’s when people really need her wares, and she can jack up the prices accordingly.”
What else did she sell other than everyday items and accessories? Something she might not want the authorities to know about?
“What…” Anouk started to ask, but Amanda appeared from behind the shelves carrying two sets of goggles.
“Here you are.” She handed one pair to Nat and the other to Anouk.
Anouk turned them in her hand. The goggles looked like the regular round-framed goggles Nat wore around his top hat. The lenses were ice blue, but there were no switches, power sources or infrared eyes like in night vision devices from her world. Anouk lifted the goggles to her eyes.
“No, don’t!” Nat called.
Sharp pain shot through Anouk’s eyes back to her brain.
“Oh, fuck!” She dropped the goggles. The pain throbbed behind her pupils and bright lights jumped around in her vision. “D
id I go blind?” she whimpered. It hurt like hell. Were her eyeballs melting?
“No, but I wouldn’t recommend wearing those around any light source.”
“Gotcha. I didn’t realise they were so powerful. There weren’t any switches to turn them on. What are the lenses made of?” Anouk asked, holding her hands over her eyes. The pain was lessening and the light dancing around her vision faded.
“Actora crystal,” Amanda said.
Anouk decided not to pursue the question any further. The name said nothing to her and even if Amanda and Nat explained the crystal’s origin and how it worked, she wouldn’t be any the wiser. The stone was something alien like the crystals used in the Gadget or those other instruments Nat had.
Anouk removed her hand from her eyes and blinked, her eyesight was getting back to normal.
“How are you feeling, love?” Amanda asked. She tilted her head and looked at Anouk, concerned.
“I’m fine.”
With a warm smile, Amanda straightened. “Good.” She turned to Nat. “Can I get anything else for you?”
“Yes. Do you have smoke bombs, knockout gas and gas masks? I used my last smoke bombs when escaping the thugs.”
“Got a new shipment today. Just a moment.” Amanda vanished again behind the shelves.
Anouk gaped at Nat. “Whatever do we need those for?”
“For diversion, just in case. Arnar’s house will be watched and Rose’s house is next door,” Nat said, with a lowered voice.
“Great, you have a plan B figured out already.”
“Always.” Nat winked.
“Nat, why can’t we call the enforcers? Does Amanda have a phone?” Anouk tried to keep pleading out of her tone.
“Why?”
“Those guys are dangerous and it’s dark. Trying to deal with them without extra help, to me, sounds like a suicide mission.”
Nat patted her shoulder. “Enforcers won’t set foot in The Pits when it’s dark. And if they did, there would be a blood bath.”
Anouk’s shoulders slumped. “Wonderful. Could you ask Amanda if she has any coffins or body bags?”
