by Steve McHugh
"I’ve no idea what his name is."
Thomas growled again, and the man flinched. "He said his name was Mordred. He was about your height," he tipped his chin toward me. "But not as broad. Long dark hair. That's all I saw. He was the one who told Buckingham to send Tate here to meet the soldiers."
"If Mordred and Buckingham are working together, why does Mordred want these soldiers dead? They’re meant to deliver the crowns, why doesn’t Mordred want them arriving?" I asked.
"You'd have to ask him that," the man said. "Our involvement ended with what we were paid to do."
"My guess is you’d do it whether you were paid or not," Thomas said. "How many people have come through those doors and never left?"
"I don't know," he said. "Fifty, sixty?"
"In how many years?" I asked.
"Four," he told us. "Look, I know you think we're monsters, but it's only natural for us to prey on the unsuspecting and the weak. It's what jorōgumo do."
"And what I do is kill people who do just that," I told him, and he flinched away from me. “But today is your lucky day. You've been honest, and quite frankly, I don't want to sully myself with killing you."
"Thank you," he said with an awful smile.
"Oh, you probably don't want to be smiling." I picked up the satchel, which had fallen on the floor at some point during the night's commotion and checked that the crowns were still secure. "We're not untying you."
"You're just going to leave me here?" he asked incredulously.
"That's the plan. I don't want you running off and alerting anyone, so here you stay." I created a small ball of fire in one hand and threw it on the nearest soldier's body, which immediately caught fire. Several more balls of fire followed and soon there were the beginnings of an inferno on one side of the tavern. "But no one will ever be taken by you or yours here again. You probably have an hour until this building burns down. From the look of your wife when I left her in the woods, fire doesn't agree with your species."
"She's alive?" he asked, fear in his eyes as he struggled against the ropes.
I nodded. "Good luck."
Thomas and I stepped outside, leaving the smell of burning flesh and wood behind us, and I got my horse from the stable. When I returned a few minutes later, Thomas was watching the woods with concern.
"There's something out there. Something that smells of burnt flesh and death."
"The female jorōgumo," I said and swung up onto the horse. "He's in the house," I shouted into the woods. "He stood by while your other daughter died. You probably don't have long until the fire burns the house down, but if you're looking for revenge on him, you have time."
A series of clicks was the only reply I heard.
"A word of warning, “I added for her benefit. “If it's me you're after. I will take your head and move on with my day. My patience has been tested one time too many, and I do not have time to play any more games."
I nudged the horse forward.
"What if she sets him free and they run away together?" Thomas asked after we'd made it a few hundred meters up the road.
I stopped the horse and turned back in time to see a dark shape sprint across the clearing from the woods to the tavern. A few seconds later, screams sounded in the breaking dawn.
"I guess I wasn't her top priority. Either way, she didn't have long to live with the injuries she'd sustained."
"Pretty awful way to die," Thomas said and the sound of the collapsing building signaled the end of the tavern.
"No more awful than being eaten alive by one of them. Quite frankly, I'd say it was the death they deserved."
Chapter 9
“Why aren’t we heading for Eastbourne?” Thomas asked after it became increasingly apparent that we were going in the wrong direction.
“We need to see someone first,” I told him, as he walked beside the horse. “So, we’ll have to stop off in Brighton.”
“Whom are we meeting?”
“An old… acquaintance. If those boys are being taken to France, there’s no way that a ship of the size necessary to travel there is going to be anchored and just waiting. Safer for the ship to be further out to sea and just use a row boat to come ashore.”
“So, once we find the ship, your acquaintance will get us onboard?”
“Not exactly, he’s going to be there primarily to make sure the ship doesn’t set sail before the princes are safe. He’ll hopefully give Mordred and anyone working with him, something much more worrying than either of us. That should give us time to ambush them.”
“And how will he do all of that?”
I wasn’t exactly sure how much to tell Thomas, but anyone who had fought beside and for me the way he had deserved to know what we were about to get into. “He’s a summoner,” I told him.
Thomas stopped walking and stared up at me. “I didn’t think there were any left.”
“Most of them don’t advertise anymore. That much power scares people, and scared people tend to do stupid things. Most summoners have either moved on to more remote places or hide their talents. The man who lives at Brighton is one of the few who does neither of those things.”
“What type of summoner is he?”
“Water,” I told him. Summoners came in a four different guises; fire, air, earth and water.
“I’ve never met one before. Anything I need to know?”
I thought about it for a second before answering. “Firstly, despite their lengthy lifespan of several centuries, they can be killed by anything a human can. It’s why most of them are very cautious about showing their power. So, be aware that he might need protecting until he starts his work, but once he merges with the element he can’t be hurt.
“Secondly, once he starts to work, get as far away from him as possible. Whatever he summons won’t always be able to distinguish between friend and foe. Although he’s more powerful than most, that only means he can summon something for a longer period of time. How much control he has comes down to his mental stamina.”
“That it? Keep him safe and then get out of the way?”
“Oh, one last thing. Don’t judge his entire species on his tendency to be a money-grabbing little bastard.”
Before Thomas could ask more, we reached the outskirts of the small fishing village of Brighton. I’d heard of plans to expand the area into the beginnings of a town, but wasn’t sure the few hundred people who lived and worked in the seas off the coast would be too happy with the resulting influx of people, many of whom would be rivals to their livelihood.
We continued to make our way through the village, garnering the occasional glance from one of the villagers, who were either tending to their land or weaving nets for the next fishing trip.
I climbed down from my horse and led him further into the village and up to the large stone house in the center. A large man appeared, struggling with a sheepskin fleece that was draped over his shoulders. His big, bushy, orange beard was at odds with his bald head, and appeared to be compensating for the lack of warmth on the top of his skull.
“I’m the sheriff of this village and am in charge here,” he bellowed, the voice matching the man. “What do you need?”
A man riding his own horse was something of a rarity. It signaled that you were either very wealthy or a thief. The fact that Thomas was walking beside me put me firmly in the first category in the sheriff’s eyes, thieves don’t usually have someone to walk alongside their horse.
“I’m here to see someone,” I told him as tied my horse to a nearby post. “And my horse requires food and water. It’s been a long few hours.”
“I’m in no mood to…” the sheriff began, quickly quieting down when I tossed him a small pouch of gold coins. “My Lord,” he said with a slight bow. “Your horse will be attended to. May I ask whom you’re here to visit; maybe we can be of service.”
“We’re here to see Alan.”
The sheriff blanched at the mention of the summoner’s name, and I noticed several of
the villagers stop what they were doing to turn and stare at Thomas and me.
“He lives on a house by the sea front,” one of the villagers said, a small woman with a pale complexion and bright red cheeks. “Are you here to take him from us?”
The slight note of pleading in her voice led me to believe that Alan wasn’t the most popular person in Brighton.
“That depends on him. But maybe, yes.”
“He’s in the house right now,” the sheriff said. “He doesn’t leave unless it’s important.”
“How many people live here?” Thomas asked.
“Four hundred and nine,” he said. “I make sure to count.”
“How many does Alan take money from?” I asked.
“Anyone who wants to be able to go to sea and return home safely,” the woman told us. “We pay him, or our ships are destroyed. He tells us that he keeps all the boats safe when they’re out on the water. He’s full of dark magic.”
“So, you rely on him to keep you all safe. In fact, you pay him to do just that, but don’t actually want to be anywhere near him?” Thomas asked.
“Like I said, dark magic,” the woman said and made the sign of the cross over her chest.
I nodded thanks to the sheriff and villagers and, after removing the satchel from my horse, Thomas and I made our way through the village toward the sea. The summoner’s house wasn’t hard to spot. To start with, it was massive, a three-floor building made of huge pale stones. But more than its size was the simple fact that it was the only dwelling anywhere near the water.
We walked across the beach and stopped outside the house, where I started to knock on the thick wooden door. It took a few times before anyone decided to recognize the fact that we were outside.
“Fuck off,” came a gruff voice from the floor above, followed by the unmistakable sound of a woman’s moan.
“Alan, you can answer the door, or I can break it down,” I shouted. “Whatever runes you have will do more damage to your home than to me.”
I counted to sixty as another moan, this one high pitched and urgent, sounded out, followed by a deep bellow of pleasure.
“I could have lived a long, happy life and not heard that.” Thomas said.
“If that’s the worst thing he says or does today, count yourself lucky.”
I stepped back from the door to the sound of bolts being thrown from inside the house. Eventually the door opened, to reveal a tall, muscular man with long, dark hair that flowed over his shoulders, where more dark hair continued. He was also sweaty and naked.
“You could have put something on,” I said as he moved aside to let Thomas and me into his warm house.
The room we stepped into was steeped in finery. Statues and busts sat on ornate tables and a wolf rug lay on the cold stone floor.
“You’ve done well,” Thomas said, lifting up a handful of gems from a nearby bowl.
“Are you here for a cut or something?” he asked.
“Alan, do you remember me?” I asked.
“Nathaniel Garrett. You still work for that asshole Merlin?”
I ignored the taunt. I wouldn’t get into an argument with him. It was a worthless pursuit. “I need your help.”
“The answer is no,” he said. “I’m quite happy. Now if you’ll both leave, the sheriff’s wife isn’t going to fuck herself.” He stopped and thought for a second. “Actually she might, she’s quite the handful.”
“You have the sheriff’s wife up there?” Thomas asked. “No wonder he doesn’t like you.”
“Yeah, well he should pleasure his woman more often, instead of drinking himself into a stupor. She’s a young, virile woman, and she needs a damn fine cock in her at every opportunity.”
He motioned to his penis in case we didn’t understand that he meant himself. I was pretty certain that anyone on earth would have understood without the need for a mime.
“You’re clearly quite the catch,” I said. “But you need to come with us.”
“Did you not hear me? Agnes, come down here,” Alan called out. And on cue a voluptuous, young woman came down the stairs, just as naked as Alan.
“Isn’t she a beauty?” Alan asked, and slapped Agnes, who was presumably the sheriff’s wife, on the ass.
She giggled, and then he kissed her forcibly, grabbing hold of one of her large breasts and squeezing it.
“Alan, you can either stay here and try to fuck your woman in front of us, which I assure you is neither impressive nor advised, or you can come with us and make some money.”
Alan whispered to Agnes, who nodded toward Thomas and me before running back upstairs with another giggle.
“Any chance you have a red-hot poker?” Thomas asked. “I wish to blind myself.”
“Fucking funny man,” Alan snapped. “Now you said something about money.”
I removed the satchel from my shoulder and threw it over to him. He caught it one handed and looked inside. “Crowns? What is this shit?”
“It’s meant to be the crowns for the new king and prince of England. They need to be removed from sight and disposed of. They’re your payment for helping. I assume you know people who will do this and pay you a good price for the gold and such?”
“That’s a big price. What’s the job?”
I saw no reason to lie to him, but no reason to tell him everything either. “Buckingham took the princes from the tower. He plans to take them to France. The result will be civil war here. Again.”
“I heard Richard murdered the princes to secure the throne.”
“You heard wrong,” Thomas told him.
“Buckingham is a fucking idiot,” Alan said. “He couldn’t find fire if he set his own balls aflame. There’s no way he’s behind this.”
I decided not to inform Alan of Mordred’s involvement. At least not until he was too far involved to back out. “And yet, he’s involved in this. So, are those crowns enough to gain your services?”
Alan licked his lips. It was more disturbing than the sex show earlier had been. “I need to get dressed. Give me ten minutes, and I’ll find you down by the water.”
I nodded and ushered Thomas out of the house. The wind carried the sounds of loud sex all the way across the beach and down to the water’s edge, once we’d reached it.
“Does he really have time for that?”
“He can either get it out of his system now, and we’ll have a lot easier time of it, or he’s going to be even more insufferable to deal with.”
“He’s not exactly what good ladies dream of marrying.”
“No, he’s not, that’s true. But I didn’t hire him for his ability to be a gentleman.”
“What about his ability not to sell us out at first chance?”
“He’s been paid and handsomely. He’ll see it through to the end, even if it means making enemies in the process. He’s weirdly honorable like that.”
“Do you really think he’s keeping the village safe?”
I nodded. “For a fee, he’s ensuring every ship that goes out comes back. What the villagers probably don’t know is that he’s the one putting the monsters out there in the first place.”
*****
The ten minute wait turned into thirty, after which a thankfully dressed Alan emerged from his den of sexual gratification.
“Sorry,” Alan said without ever sounding like he knew what the word meant. “Sometimes you’ve just got to finish up, you know?”
Thomas and I ignored his comment, and together we walked back up toward the village, only to be met by an irate-looking sheriff.
“Where’s my wife?” he demanded to know.
“Exhausted,” Alan said with an exaggerated sigh. “Probably a little sore too.”
The sheriff’s face grew red with anger and he stepped toward the summoner, a dagger in his hand.
I interjected myself between the two men. “You don’t want to do that,” I told the sheriff.
“He fucks my wife and then he has the gall to rub my nose in it
, why the hell shouldn’t I gut him like a fish?”
“I thought he kept your ships safe?” I asked.
“That’s not enough for me anymore. I may be old, but I’m not going to stand back and let him humiliate me like this!”
Part of me wanted to step aside and watch Alan get destroyed, he certainly deserved it. But there were bigger things at stake. “But you will, because I need him. So, put your knife away and we’ll pretend this never happened. Or, keep your knife out, and I’ll take it from you. I promise you, only one of those options will allow you to keep your hand afterwards.”
The sheriff stared at me with crazy eyes. “You think I’m scared?”
“I think you’ve reached the limit of patience. I think you’re drunk too. Maybe if you stopped the latter, the former wouldn’t happen.”
“I’m not drunk,” he assured me as the smell of stale alcohol reached my nose.
“Yes, you are. You’re also beginning to draw a crowd of people, who will kill you if they think you’re jeopardizing their livelihood. They may not like or trust him, but they like making money and having food on their plates.”
Some semblance of sense dawned on the sheriff and he quickly hid the dagger, allowing the three of us to pass into the village, where several people asked Alan if he’d be back. He assured them that he would, that their ships would be safe while he was gone, but that they should keep his payments aside until he returned. He asked one man, a farmer, if he could have his horse, and the man quickly agreed.
“I’m so loved,” he said with absolute smugness as I retrieved my own horse and led him out of the village.
When we were out of sight from the villagers, I passed Thomas the reins to my horse and then grabbed Alan by the throat, slamming him up against the nearest tree. “I want to make something very clear to you, you absolute bastard. I don’t care who you fuck or who you piss off, but if your behavior endangers our job, I will let anyone who wants to cut you into tiny pieces. Are we clear?”
Alan nodded and I released my grip, letting him drop to his knees, coughing and spluttering.
“One more thing,” I told him as I climbed up onto my horse. “If you have thoughts of betrayal, be assured I will remove your testicles and give them to the sheriff of that village as a keepsake.”
