by Devyn Jayse
"You've a visitor," The Rebel Hare's innkeeper informed me, knocking on the open door.
I looked up at him as I was sitting in one of the smaller parlors of the inn. I hadn't wanted to see anyone and didn't want to go up to my rooms, so I thought I would spend the time alone.
Penny entered the room, and the innkeeper withdrew.
"What are you doing here?" I asked.
I usually only saw her in the mornings or when she dined at the tavern. I thought that was the first time I'd seen her standing inside the Rebel Hare instead of outside.
"I was searching for you," she said. "I tried the tavern, but they told me you had left some time ago. Then I came here, but you weren't here. So I went to The Fortune, but Oscar said he hadn't seen you and hadn't sent you out on any deliveries. I thought I'd try this place one last time before I gave up."
"Why were you looking for me?"
"I want to visit them. I thought you'd like to come with me."
"Who?" I frowned.
"The families of the two women that died today."
"No." I shook my head. "I don't think that's a good idea."
"Why not?"
"I don't know them. What would I say?"
"You would tell them you're sorry for their loss and offer your condolences."
"They don't know me."
"It's still a good thing to do."
All I wanted was to be alone for some time. I didn't want to visit the families of the victims and remember what Tara had looked like with her body all slashed.
"Come on, Dare, let's go. I'm not taking no for an answer. You won't get your alone time as long as I'm here, so you may as well join me."
A sigh escaped me. "Fine, let's go."
I dreaded the visits with the families. I was expecting a lot of tears.
However, unlike our visit to Kay, there weren't any tears at either home. Everyone was strangely dry-eyed.
"She knew she'd wind up in a bad turn."
"Ma told her not to do it."
"How else was she going to earn coin?" a sibling argued.
At both homes, I watched the remaining family members bicker. Their sister had been dead for most of the day, and none of them seemed to think her passing was a loss. The only concern seemed to be for the lack of coin coming in.
I glanced at Penny and could tell she was thinking the same as she turned to me and gestured that we should leave. We walked out of the place without further comment. The families didn't thank us for coming or acknowledge our departure.
"This was not how you expected it to be, is it?" I asked. It definitely wasn't the way I had imagined it would go.
"I expected them to be a little more..."
"Upset?"
She nodded.
"Families are strange. I'm sure they'll feel the loss later. They might just be in shock." I was making excuses for them, but I wasn't convinced. Both families had seemed broken.
"It didn't seem that way," Penny said.
"That's why you should be thankful for the family you have."
"Vin is the only family I have."
"And he cares more about you than anyone did for their sister in either of those families."
My attempt to lift her spirits backfired as she seemed to sink into a quieter mood. We walked back to the Rebel Hare in silence.
I sat on the stool at The Fortune. After that little jaunt, I couldn't bear to sit alone at the Rebel Hare, but I wasn't ready just yet for the noise of the tavern. I had been sitting there for some time, making no attempt at conversation. Oscar glanced at me, jotting short entries into his ledger.
"Are you all right?" he asked, peering at me over his spectacles.
"Yes." I let out a heavy sigh. "No."
"No?" Oscar waited for me to continue.
"I went over to the latest victim's home. Her family didn't seem to care she was dead. It's just strange," I said in a rush. I hadn't realized how much the situation was bothering me until I said it. Part of me was uncomfortable because I wondered if my family was better off since I was gone. I was no longer there to make trouble or make them come up with excuses for my behavior.
Oscar put his quill down and rubbed the bridge of his nose as he thought. "Some folk are like that in the Blights. Life here has made them as tough as leather."
"But she was their blood," I protested. "She was family. They acted like they had heard news about a stranger."
"Blood or water, it doesn't matter. If she wasn't sharing her coin, they wouldn't think much if she was there or gone."
"That's horrible." I winced.
"That's life." Oscar gave a half shrug. He changed the subject. "I've heard back from Wendell. He says he can start training with you next week. He's a little preoccupied at the moment with his latest project."
"What does he do?" I asked.
"He's a little bit of an eccentric. He finds things that he believes can be improved upon and works on them until he finds a solution or abandons them to his next fancy."
"He sounds interesting."
Oscar nodded. "He is. He's quite the character. Wendell's good with weapons, due to an interesting phase when he was researching all types of weaponry. He will be an unpredictable partner, which is what you need."
"Why do I need that?"
"Anyone attacking you in the Blights isn't going to attack you in predictable patterns like the guards up at the castle. You'll need someone who thinks differently so you can learn to counter unexpected behavior."
"That makes sense. At any rate, any type of practice would be better than none."
"That's true. Do you want to recite the names of the blades I have here?"
I started naming them even though I knew Oscar was just testing me in order to take my mind off the depressing visits. Even though I knew that was his intention, it still worked as a distraction. Before long, we were discussing the merits of blades against axes.
By nightfall, Garren was at The Honest Tavern.
I saw him walk in because I was keeping an eye out for him. He made his way among the tables of men drinking and approached me warily. Ragum frowned as Garren walked past him. The darkness under Garren's eyes suggested he'd had some late nights recently. He dropped into a chair.
"What's the news?" He gestured to Hazel for a drink.
She brought it over to him in a rush, giving me a wink in the process. She always appreciated a good-looking man.
"There's been another two, I'm sure you know," I said without preamble.
He nodded as he took a sip of his ale. "I don't have all the details, but yes, I heard."
I told him everything that had happened since I'd last seen him.
"Miss Ruby suspects that the girl was working off-hours to avoid giving her a cut of the profit. She didn't seem too sad about her loss. Surprised at the second girl's death but no outward signs of grief."
"If there's one thing I've learned in this job, it's don't take anything at face value. She may act like she doesn't care in front of you, but things are different behind the scenes." He took a long sip of his drink. "I need you to find out more."
"I'm trying, but it's difficult," I admitted.
"Why?" His blue eyes watched me intently.
"Partly because they don't think I can do anything and partly because I'm not one of them."
"Use your resources. You'll have to ask Blaze to get you access, and it will help people talk to you," Garren said.
"I have already. I managed to see the victim I didn't know about. She had similar wounds to the ones I discovered. I went to the funeral home with Ragum."
"What do you think of what you've seen? Has it helped you find out anything about the killer?"
I shook my head in frustration. "I know that the wounds are precise. It seems to me that the killer's looking for something, the way he keeps slicing them up. The women aren't resisting when he does it, which means he's dosing them with some powerful drug--stalroot, Ragum believes. All the women are ones who can be ea
sily swayed by coin and strong drugs to go into a dark alley with a strange man. That's as much as I've learned, but I can't seem to get any further. And I can't keep asking, even if I could use Blaze."
"Did I hear my name?" someone asked.
We both raised our heads.
Blaze stood there, watching us. He did not look pleased.
Then I realized what my last words had been.
Oh no.
18
Blaze watched us, his expression none too happy.
He'd overheard me say two words: "use Blaze." Oh no.
Garren pushed back his chair and stood up. I quickly joined him, wondering what was going to happen. Blaze and Garren had been circling around each other like two cats trying to mark a territory but unwilling to go near the other. Blaze had just crossed that barrier.
"Garren," Garren said, offering his hand to Blaze. "It's nice to finally meet Dare's boss."
"Is it?" Blaze clasped the offered hand and shook it slowly.
"It is," Garren confirmed. "Thank you for watching out for Dare and ensuring her safety. The family appreciates it."
I felt myself stiffen at the word "family." Blaze didn't look at me, but I could tell from the slightly raised eyebrow that he'd noticed.
"I took care of myself," I muttered.
Garren continued as if I hadn't spoken. "We worry about her but know she's safe as long as you're around. We know it hasn't been easy."
I sputtered, but neither one of them spared me a glance.
"Yeah, well if you've attempted it, you know it's none too easy," Blaze said. "She seems to want to throw herself into trouble." He released Garren's hand.
"Trust me, I know. She's been like that since she could walk," Garren replied.
I frowned. Garren hadn't been around me much in my childhood. He had no idea what I was like. Or had he? Truthfully, most of my childhood memories seemed to be full of Gwen and Tobin. I wondered how much of an impression I had left on the older Garren. Maybe he had seen me and all the mistakes I'd made over the years. A flush rose to my cheeks as I recalled some of my worst transgressions.
"So you knew she was trouble, and the family decided she might as well make trouble in the most troublesome part of the kingdom?" Blaze was fishing.
"We knew it was the safest place she could be." Garren grinned widely.
That transformed him, and my breath hitched. I must have made a sound because he looked at me, the grin fading as he saw the look on my face. I gave him a weak smile in apology. Constantly being reminded of Tobin was difficult.
"So what do you do, Garren?" Blaze asked, ignoring our interaction.
Garren looked directly in his eyes. "I work for the king."
"I see." Blaze's finger stroked the edge of his dagger. "Will you be telling your king about this meeting?"
"If our king asks me to report to him, then yes, I will. As it stands, this is a personal matter."
"Personal?"
"I'm only here to check in with Dare. I do that from time to time. I'm sure you've noticed me around." Garren gave Blaze a sharp smile.
One of the last times Garren had been around, he helped save Penny from an attacker. Blaze had definitely noticed him.
"Is the king concerned with Dare's well-being?" Blaze asked, fishing again.
"Not as concerned as I am, but yes," Garren said.
Blaze raised an eyebrow. "And why is the king is concerned with Dare?"
"She has a set of skills vital to the crown," Garren replied smoothly.
"Causing problems?" Blaze smiled thinly.
"And managing to survive the outcome." Garren smiled back.
The conversation was making me uncomfortable.
Blaze studied Garren. "Tell me this: how vested is the crown in Dare?"
"We care for her well-being." It was a careful reply.
"And yet they don't supply her with coin? No care is taken that she can afford to live here?" Blaze's disapproval was stamped on his face.
"She's done well for herself. It was thought that she wouldn't require coin." Garren was hedging.
Blaze's frown deepened. "Or you're keeping the purse strings closed so that when she became truly desperate, you would have a method of controlling her."
I wondered if Blaze was right, never having considered that before. I looked at Garren's face, but it gave nothing away.
"Wouldn't that be easier?" Blaze continued. "Make it so that she would have no option but to turn to you?"
Garren's features remained void from expression.
My heart sank. Is that true?
"She's free to do what she wants," Garren said. "She's free to live wherever she pleases."
"Is she?" Blaze's voice was icy.
A tense silence followed.
"You know she can hear you," I hissed, "and she's been listening to you talk about her like she wasn't there the whole time, right?"
Garren's stoic expression broke. He raised his hand to hide a smile.
Blaze frowned at me. "You could have spoken up. You didn't."
I let out a noise of exasperation. True, I hadn't spoken up, but I had been as riveted as Blaze by Garren's answers. I hadn't known the king was keeping up on my status, but that made sense. I wondered if he updated my father on my well-being. I wonder if my father even cared. I had shamed him by being exiled from the castle, so I doubted he would keep touch with what I was doing.
"Well, I don't like being talked about like I'm not here."
The two of them looked at me. I was unnerved by how both hazel and blue eyes seemed to hold the same look, patience with a hint of frustration.
Blaze studied me. "I'll leave you to it." He gave Garren a nod in farewell.
"Did you enjoy that?" I asked Garren peevishly.
His blue eyes were still watching Blaze walk away to stand with some of his men, his back to us.
Then Garren spoke up. "Yes, actually I did."
"You'll be reporting this conversation, won't you?"
"Of course. It's not every day a king's man meets the notorious criminal leader of the Blights. I expect there to be much interest in my meeting."
"Will you be reporting to the king?"
"No," Garren said.
I hated to ask, but I did anyway. "My father?"
Garren's eyes found mine, and a tinge of pity stirred in them. "No."
Disappointment stirred in me. "I see. So it's some secret spymaster?"
Garren's gaze sharpened. "Are you interested in working with me? Working for the person I report to? You know your position here is unique. We could use you on our side."
I made a face. "Use" me? No, thank you.
"You know what I mean. The information you could provide would be invaluable."
"The information would concern Blaze, wouldn't it?"
"Yes," Garren confirmed.
I shook my head. "I won't do it."
"It wouldn't be information used to harm him," Garren said.
"You don't know that. Do you know exactly how all the information you provide is used?" I shook my head again. "No, I still don't feel comfortable with it. It feels too much like running to the governess and telling tales."
"You wouldn't be telling tales. You'd be helping people. If you decided to help, I could provide you with more information about things, such as who we suspect is murdering the women here in the Blights."
"You have a suspect? And you didn't say?" I gaped at him.
"We have a list, and I'm not at liberty to tell you," he admitted.
"Even if it will help stop the murders?" I stared at him, flabbergasted.
"It wouldn't."
"If you suspect someone and we know who it is and we tell the girls to be careful around him, wouldn't that help stop the murders?" I couldn't believe he would keep that information from people it might save.
"We're monitoring them from our side."
"Women are still dying."
Garren didn't say have anything to say to that.
"You know I'm right," I insisted. "You should let me know who you suspect. You could save lives."
Garren rubbed his mouth. After a few heartbeats, he said, "I can tell you we suspect it's someone from the castle. I can also tell you that he has increased in erratic behavior. We believe he's spiraling out of control."
"I could have told you that." I frowned at him, frustrated by his information. "I need more. What are the names of the people you suspect?"
"I can't tell you that," Garren repeated.
"Why?" I growled in frustration.
"Because we won't stain the reputations of people we only have under observation. If I share the names with you and you tell Blaze, do you know what will happen? Those men will mysteriously disappear the second they step foot in the Blights."
"That wouldn't happen," I argued.
"Which part? You telling him or them disappearing?"
"He wouldn't make them disappear." I wasn't so sure about that part, but I wanted Garren to give up the names.
"Maybe not him personally, but his men would. And what would we tell the families in the castle? Sorry, we thought your father, brother, son, was a killer, and we let the Blights thugs kill them without trial?"
I bit my lip, frustrated by knowing he had suspicions that could possibly help me.
"Dare, I want you to work with us because working for the crown ensures you're on the side of the law. As long as you're not, then you're part of the criminal faction. It's better for you not to be too immersed in that."
"What does it matter? I'm already part of the criminal faction, in case you forgot. I'm an exile." I pointed around me. "This is my life now."
"Believe me, it matters. You will return from the Blights someday, and when that day comes, it would be a shield for you to have worked for a noble cause."
A laugh escaped me. "You think once the prince holds the kingdom, he will reverse the order of exile and welcome me back home with open arms? Is that when I will need to have been on the side of the crown? Think he'll care about noble causes?"
Garren's expression became shuttered. The change was so sudden that it raised an alarm.
A suspicion bloomed in me. "The prince will replace the king, won't he?"
Garren stayed quiet.
