Heart of Lies

by Connor Whiteley

  A few moments later, the large wooden door slowly opened and Alessandria walked in.

  Thankfully she was alone and I appreciated the fact she opened the door quietly.

  Sitting back up on my bed, I smiled at her as I saw her strong black metal armour and brown cloak.

  She passed me a damp cloth. As I wiped my face, partly hating the damp feeling of the cloth against my skin. I laughed briefly as I forgot the blood was still on my face.

  “You okay?” she asked.

  “I must thank you for making me go. I never liked that Ares’ character,”

  “I don’t think many people do. Where’s Harrison?”

  Deciding that I had to smile at the question, I replied: “It turns out, we both forget people outside the Nobility have to work real jobs,”

  Alessandria gave a nod of agreement.

  “Daniel, what can you tell me about the contract?”

  Digging into my trench coat, I pulled out the contract and passed it to her.

  Alessandria unfolded the contract.

  “Wait, he wanted a lot of ships and men,”

  Her eyes widened as she read the price, he was going to pay us.

  “He couldn’t have expected us to sign this off. Not without at least the Queen’s signature,”

  “My theory is he thought we have commoners do all our work like the other Nobles Houses,” I suggested.

  “And a commoner would have presumed this was normal?”

  “It’s logical,”

  Alessandria nodded.

  “What about the food supplies, Daniel? He must know we don’t have control over them,”

  Now, I had to smile because that comment just shows how little the rest of my family knows about how we make our money, and the legal powers we’re granted.

  “Incorrect, dear sister,” I lent closer towards her. “Whilst the Greenscales are the Nobles who have control over the food industry. If we need rations for the military, I can and normally write a formal request and they normally grant it. Or I can invoke legal powers to make them give us the rations,”

  Alessandria nodded her head in surprise.

  “Why do you ask?”

  “Well, Daniel. Ares must have some sort of backup plan if he wants his rogue crusade to happen. How else could he get the rations without raising too many eyebrows?”

  Now, I had to think about it. Spinning my dulled blade slowly in my hand, I thought about how I would gather secret rations.

  “Alessandria, he would have more legal powers than me. He could force the Greenscales to provide him with the supplies without going through any sort of court,”

  “You know the Greenscales Daughter, right?”

  “Albania. We’re still friends and she does have a great knowledge of military history,”

  “Good to hear. At least you have someone else to talk about your limited interests with,”

  I nodded with a bit of delight. As much as I don’t like people, I did enjoy Albania’s company. Especially, when her family found some ancient war object in the fields. I remember a lot of great evenings with her.

  “I’ll go and see her for you,”

  “Thank you, and one last thing, if I may?”

  Of course, I knew she was going to ask about Nemesio but she wanted to be nice, so I supposed I needed to play along.

  “What?”

  “Why are you still avoiding Nemesio? Hasn’t he proved himself yet?”

  I shuffled across the bed to sit closer to her. As I breathed in her sweet perfume, I replied:

  “I am getting there. Please just be patient. I’m still coming to terms with what he caused, and I still wake up screaming most nights at the nightmares,”

  She slowly nodded her head and looked to the floor. Clearly, ashamed of bringing it up. I didn’t have the heart to tell her my arms often feel like they’re burning from my own wounds and the wounds inflicted upon me during my torture sessions.

  Against my better judgement, I slowly and awkwardly hugged her. Focusing on the good I was doing her and ignoring my hate for contact.

  Feeling her smile, I replied: “If you let go, I’ll try and get the Greenscales to pledge support to you?”

  Alessandria gently hit me and let go.

  CHAPTER 7

  Staring out the window of Hellen's office since her office was unavailable apparently, Alessandria looked out over the stunning castle grounds to see the lunch crowd walking into the city to eat and drink at the local cafes.

  Memories of the busy loud streets packed with life and laughter made Alessandria smile and desperate to go out soon for a fun night with Hellen.

  Even the thought of eating and drinking out made her mouth water and sweet meaty tastes form on her tongue.

  Pulling her attention away from her food fantasies, Alessandria looked at her clear neat wooden desk with only a pile of folders on it. Then she looked at Hellen's desk. It was a symphony of chaos as piles were knocked over and stains of tea painted the documents.

  Alessandria loved her friend but she needed to be more organised. Yet Alessandria couldn't understand why she had to share an office with Hellen. She was a Dominucus Procurator, so surely she would share an office with her equal who looked over the Crowd's land?

  Shaking her head, Alessandria moved away from the window as she felt the beaming sun through the window start to burn her skin.

  Looking around, Alessandria acknowledged the dull cream stone walls and thought about getting some paint and artwork. At least it would add some colour and character to the room. One of the reasons Alessandria hated doing all her Dominicus Procurator work was because she felt as if the room sucked the life from her. Even the silence now in the office felt wrong and creepy.

  Shaking the negative thoughts away, Alessandria wandered over to Hellen's desk, her feet tapping gently on the floor, and she started to flick through the files.

  Although, the concerning thing was each file she moved kicked up the smell of damp orange and lemon from Hellen's tea. Making Alessandria concerned that Hellen had spilt her drink on them. Where the files ruined?

  She really didn't want to find out so Alessandria rushed back over to her desk and looked at the small clock she had on there. As she looked at the time, her stomach knotted at the thought of Nemesio being gone for over an hour. What if the contact he was seeing had hurt him?

  Whilst her feelings were mixed towards him with flashes of affection washing over her from time to time. She still didn't want anything bad to happen to him. Or at least too bad after what he caused Daniel to go through.

  After a few moments, Nemesio walked into the office wearing his blue and fiery red armour. He smiled at her.

  “I take it things didn’t go perfectly with your contact?”

  “They went just fine,”

  “Did he give us anything useful?”

  Nemesio shrugged and took a few steps closer to Alessandria.

  “I’m not sure, but what do we know about these assassins?”

  Alessandria stepped away from Nemesio and paced around in the office.

  “We know they were in the crowd. They would have had to pass at least five checkpoints,”

  “Really?”

  “Well Nemesio that’s if we presume, they sneaked in as guests,”

  “Unlikely, the guests had to be searched by Order of the Queen. Only people she personally invited didn’t have to be searched. Like us and Daniel,”

  “What about Hellen and the other security people?”

  “As far as I know they weren’t searched or checked,”

  “Who appoints?” Alessandria asked.

  “Ares was in charge of security, so it had to be him,”

  Alessandria allowed a small smile to break her serious expression as she remembered Hellen’s shocked expression at being summoned by the grumpy Ares.

  “Nemesio, how would Ares get twenty assassins in the castle?”

  Nemesio shook his head slowly.

  “Hypothetica
lly, one of my jobs in the Inquisition was to examine places and find all weak points,”

  “And let me guess hypothetically, it’s easy to sneak people and supplies into the castle?”

  “Yes,”

  Alessandria made a note of that on her desk to make sure these weak points were strengthened. Anything to protect her family... and the Queen, of course.

  “Okay. Someone in security was involved, but who were the attackers? The Procurators say they were hired blades,”

  “I agree. My contact added they were probably in the employ of The Serpent Guild,”

  “Really? The Serpent Guild?”

  “Yes, you know the biggest criminal gang in Ordericous. You must know them as a Dominicus Procurator?”

  “I have heard of them, but they stay away from Fireheart Land. I’ve never investigated them, but I hear they’re great at controlling the underworld,”

  Nemesio nodded.

  “Wait, doesn’t the Inquisition have some sort of agreement with them?”

  The Former Inquisitor’s face paled.

  “Not the Inquisition per say. The Order of the Sacred Fire, before we thankfully destroyed it, did have an agreement. Saying they must inform us of all activity, or we would slaughter them and burn their families alive,”

  Alessandria’s eyes widened and she nodded. Even after seeing the extremes of the Inquisitorial Order, Alessandria was still amazed at the horrors and butchery the Inquisition was prepared to commit in the name of their so-called divine missions.

  “Any other Orders?”

  “No, the Guilds tend to stay away from the Inquisitorial Orders,”

  “For good reasons?”

  Nemesio smiled and nodded.

  Looking around to see if she had forgotten anything, Alessandria headed towards the door and said: “Right then, let’s go and see the Head of The Serpent’s Guild,”

  Nemesio touched her back quickly.

  Alessandria wished he would do more.

  “Alessandria, your brother. Does he still hate me?”

  Slowly, she turned to face him. Seeing the conflict and sadness in his eyes. Maybe he did truly regret his actions?

  “Hate is a strong word. He is trying. Give him time and he might forgive you. But you must remember what you did to him, or what you caused,”

  Nemesio’s eyes fell to the floor.

  “I hate myself every day for what I caused him to go through,”

  Alessandria rubbed his hands briefly.

  He seemed to smile at her touch.

  “Give him time,”

  CHAPTER 8

  As the cold coffee touched my lips, an explosion of chocolatey notes filled my taste buds with the bitter taste of the coffee.

  Lowering the mug, I carefully placed it back on the small circular table in front of me and did one of my favourite activities- people watching. Whilst I played with my dulled blade in my hand.

  Looking to my left I peaked down at the crowds of people in the dirt filled street as they hurried about their afternoon business. Some in their brown work clothes rushed to deliver goods and complete their Master's jobs. Others in their assortment of colours leisurely and rather pointlessly strolled about visiting the various shops on either side of the street.

  Now, I might hate people and especially pointless people but I do appreciate people are fascinating.

  Rising my head to look at this rooftop garden of the coffee shop, it was thankfully empty with a few rows of small tables with parchment menus on them. A waitress walked past and winked at me. I rolled my eyes.

  The distinctive smell of bitter coffee and sweet cakes filled my nose as steam jetted out of a nearby vent. Normally, I would hate the feeling of the warm steam but the smell of coffee made it tolerable.

  Finishing off my coffee, I looked down at the street again to see if Albania was coming. Sure, the messenger confirmed she was attending this urgent meeting but the Greenscales weren't exactly the most punctual of families. Which did have its comedy value. Especially, when the Greenscales were meant to come out with us one day and they were three hours late.

  Although, I have to confess I hate late people. Hate it with a passion. How hard is it to arrive on time? It isn't.

  Hearing more footsteps coming towards me, I looked over and smiled as Albania came towards me. In all fairness, she was on time. I was just extremely early.

  As Albania came towards me, I appreciated her good dress sense with her light bluish-green dress that flowed in the light breeze and her strong long blond hair blow gently in the wind.

  She gracefully sat down and a waitress came over with two cups of black coffee and a slice of a sickly chocolate cake for Albania. She nodded her thanks.

  After Albania cleared her throat, she elegantly said “We were certainly surprised to receive your letter, Daniel Fireheart. We believed your House was destroyed and the Queen only acted out of pity,”

  My eyes narrowed.

  “Now, now dearest Albania. How long did your father make you practice that paragraph?”

  She nodded and cocked her head.

  “It is good to see you once more, Daniel. How are things at the castle?”

  Now, Daniel cocked his head. Why was his old friend being so formal and distant?

  “Albania, you know I don’t do chit chat. So I ask you why are you being so... different and quite frankly annoying?”

  The Daughter of the Greenscales raised her hands and rested her face in them.

  “I’m sorry, Daniel. It’s work and everything. I’ve not had a normal person to talk to for ages,”

  “I do not class myself as normal, but I’ll forgive you for that oversight,”

  I continued to play with my dulled bladed as Albania slipped her coffee.

  “Has the military come to you recently?” I asked.

  Albania coughed and choked on her coffee.

  “Um, no,”

  “Do not lie to me my friend. The military wants rations. Your family controls the entire food supply in Ordericous. They came to you,”

  Albania nodded and looked around.

  My eyes narrowed at her concern. Did she really think she would be followed?

  Leaning in closer, Daniel asked: “What’s going on?”

  “My father and Mother are being kept under house arrest and I am having to deal with Ares and his goonies. They have sieged all our yield for the year. Ordericous will starve in a matter of months,”

  I nodded.

  “Our farms are being patrolled by soldiers and our own military detachment has turned against us. Our people are slaving away in the fields,”

  “Do they know you are here?”

  Albania paused.

  “That’s the weird thing. They wanted me to come here. They demanded it. I wanted to stay and protect my people, but they wanted me gone,”

  “Did they give you a message?”

  “No, they just said to tell you everything. There’s nothing you can do,”

  I leaned back in my chair. Allowing the warm afternoon sun to heat my skin. I smiled at the arrogance of the military. Did they really think the House of Fireheart was weak and powerless against their plot to raise an illegal army and kill the Queen? The sheer ignorance of the idea was laughable.

  “So, you’re telling me the military has seized your land and taken you all prisoner?”

  “Yes, but it’s all legal,”

  Thinking about her last comment, I knew she was right. It was within Ares’ power to do all these things. Of course, using the legal powers to this extent hadn’t been done in over a thousand years. Yet it was all legal. Nonetheless, Alessandria needed to hear this.

  “Albania, do you want your land back?”

  She looked confused.

  “Yes! Those are my people. It is my duty to protect them and make money from them,”

  “Alessandria and I will free your land for a price?”

  “Don’t be stupid Daniel,”

  My dulled blade spun faster.<
br />
  “You cannot free my land. Your House isn’t powerful enough,”

  “Do not concern yourself with the method. But we want something in exchange?”

  “Fine. I doubt this will cost me anything. What do you desire then?”

  Looking her dead in the eye before I remembered how much I hate eye contact, I firmly said: “Alessandria wants to change the law about gays becoming Lords of Noble Houses. When her legal change comes to the vote, we want your House’s unquestioning support,”

  She busted out laughing.

  “Wow, the House of Fireheart really has lost itself. That will never get to court. The legal change will be rejected,”

  “As I said leave the method to us,”

  “Fine. You’ll never be able to get my land back but if you do, sure. We will support your legal change on our honour,”

  “Thank you,”

  Having enough of her negative words, I stood up, fought the urge to throw her drink over her nice dress and I walked away. Ready to prove her wrong.

  CHAPTER 9

  With four men either side of them gladded in thick heavy metal armour, Nemesio and Alessandria walked into a great chamber deep under Ordericous.

  Looking around Alessandria sneered at the chamber at its ugliness as it was cruelly carved out from the various cave systems under the country.

  Yet the tunnels of the cave system were cold dark and damp with the constant sound of dripping water. Not the nicest of places to rule the criminal underworld from.

  Nevertheless, Alessandria knew this criminal gang leader must have enjoyed it. Judging by the hundreds of rotting corpses at the entrance of the caves. She recognised some of them from gangers she had arrested over the years.

  Whilst, Alessandria might not have placed them at the entrance to warn off other criminals and Procurators. She always appreciated people with flare and character.

  A constant dripping sound filled the chamber as a new crack appeared in the cave ceiling and more water dripped down. Making the already damp floor considerably worse. This couldn't be healthy.

  The hairs on Alessandria's arms stuck up as a freezing breeze rushed past. She would love to be above ground in the sun again.