by LJ Maas
I saw it then, the look in her eyes. It became clear to me that Inez must have seen Velasca that night. I'm sure she talked the girl into thinking she had snuck away from the encampment too. Whether Inez had actually seen Velasca participate in Timara's murder, or if Inez had simply run across the older Amazon, it mattered little. Either way, Velasca must have blackmailed Inez and her sister. It was a good bet that Velasca bought their silence, and guileless assistance by threatening to turn Inez in for the murder. There was no motive, but plenty of people in the Amazon camp, and the village, who was sure to have seen the young girl about. Men had been hanged for less circumstantial evidence.
The redeeming factor to Donai and her sister must have been when Velasca assured them that even if they were caught, they were too young to sentence, and the Amazon's had no death penalty. I decided to squelch their last hope.
In a voice dripping with menace I said, "Well, we're not in the Amazon Nation now, are we?"
Her eyes went wide as I leaned back in my chair. Silence now reigned within the room. Inez's sobs instantly quieted, and I watched Ephiny, who was trying to hide the amusement on her face.
"But . . . we . . . I--" Donai began.
Again, I interrupted her frightened stammering, this time with as much concern as I would show for my own child. I moved in front of my desk, seating myself on one edge. "Donai, Inez, I understand the position you've been put in. Inez, you ended up being somewhere you weren't supposed to be, and someone saw you, didn't they?" I asked gently.
Inez appeared as though she wanted to speak, but looked at her sister for guidance. It was then that Ephiny stepped up and began to speak.
"What the two of you have been involved in so far is forgivable, Donai, but don't escalate the problem. You know the truth of what happened on the night of Timara's death. Whatever Velasca told you was really going on, she lied. She is a murderer, and a betrayer of her people. If she's not stopped, more innocents will die."
"Don't fool yourself, Donai," I added. "If Velasca promised you anything, she'll never make good on it. There are a string of bodies over the seasons that prove that she never leaves loose ends. To her, you and your sister will always represent one of those loose ends. Help us put an end to this madness, and I'll see that no harm comes to you or Inez."
When I looked up, Ephiny was staring at me with a strange expression. I could only guess that she'd never seen a gentler Conqueror. It was a new experience for her. Donai looked down at her boots for a few moments, and when she raised her head, she looked at Inez.
Nodding her head in her sister's direction, Donai said, "Tell them."
* * *
For as few candlemarks as I'd slept, I felt surprisingly alert. I think it was the surge of excitement, the thrill of the unexpected one feels right before a battle. It was equal parts exhilaration and terror. Everyone knew their parts in our little play. We hoped to set Velasca up to catch her, certainly, but also to cause her to confess, which would be more difficult. Only Ephiny knew of my other plan, however.
I spent the morning in the Amazon camp, under the pretense of speaking with some of the younger warriors, making a show of good relations between the Empire and the Amazon Nation. I also spent the morning with an unobtrusive eye on Velasca. It was easy to do considering Ephiny had briefed me on the particulars of their tribe. Nearly every question I asked of my tour guides was within Velasca's area of expertise, and therefore she was quite indispensable to me.
Velasca was nervous, especially around me. That was another surprise. I had assumed that anyone who spent more than half their life manipulating, even murdering, those who stood in their way would act somewhat calmer. Her behavior might have come from my reputation alone. She was swimming with the big fish now, and I wanted her to know it.
I warned Ephiny before she left my study this morning. She was to be my eyes. Velasca had a habit of looking to see if I was watching her before she would glare, or roll her eyes menacingly at some underling. My exceptional peripheral vision noticed this tendency. It was apparent that the moments of compassion I had witnessed up to this point were simply good acting on her part. If Velasca did what I anticipated today, Ephiny would catch her when I would deliberately turn my back.
Initially, I wished Gabrielle to stay safely inside, away from harm's way. I know I could have ordered it to be so, and Gabrielle would have reluctantly obeyed me. A part of me truly did want that, but I had to ask myself, was that the way I wished for Gabrielle and I to rule together? I honestly wanted us to be partners, in every sense of the word. Would that happen if I tried to shelter Gabrielle away like one of the delicate roses in my garden? Did I want a fragile blossom, meant only to be displayed like some prized possession? The answer, of course, was no. Hence, the reason my beautiful consort was on my arm now.
I called all the Amazons and Centaurs together. From among our visitors, I trusted Ephiny, as long as she wasn't around Gabrielle, and Kaleipus. They, Gabrielle, and Atrius were aware of what I'd hoped to accomplish on this day. I was tempted to include Solan among those whom I would place my trust in this situation, but since the Centaurs had arrived, he was suspiciously absent from our lives. Gabrielle pointed out that these creatures were his family, and so it made sense that he would find their company comfortable, and familiar.
Once again, I thought back to a memory, the day I first saw Solan as a child. I remembered how, as a child of eight summers, he attacked me. I also remember where he got his information. That's what worried me the most. If what I suspected today came to fruition, I wondered where Solan's loyalty would lie.
Therefore, our company, or prisoners depending on how you viewed the situation, stood before us. I left Gabrielle on the top of the stairs surrounded by her personal guard. I walked down the first few steps and paused.
"I have brought you here, to the palace courtyard, to clear the air." My voice rang out strongly, and confidently. Public speaking had never been a problem for me. In my younger days, I could incite my men before a battle with my voice alone.
I looked into each and every face as I spoke. I took note of every twitch of their skin, and each nervous shuffle of their feet. "We all grieve the loss of the former Amazon Queen and her daughter. Although, I suspect that there might be one of us who grieves not at all. These were murders, and they weren't fabricated in our minds. They were real, and someone you know, perhaps someone you trust, committed them."
I walked to the bottom of the steps, and stepped out before the mass assembled before me. The Amazons stood to my right, Velasca in front. Ephiny stood in the forefront, but a few paces away from our suspect. The Centaurs stamped, and pawed at the earth impatiently over on my left. In between, and all around them were armed soldiers of the Empire. I didn't intend for a repeat on what happened here the other day, but I was reluctant to disarm these two proud nations of warriors.
"The crimes that have been committed are particularly heinous, and being thus, there will be a swift punishment for the guilty."
"And who is guilty, Conqueror?" One of the Amazons shouted out.
I loved a crowd. They were so predictable. I could have foretold that, at that moment, someone would ask that question. It was the perfect lead in to my plan.
"A very fair question," I answered.
I turned to look up at the top of the palace steps. "With the Amazon Queen's permission, I have some information that should lead us to the traitor in your midst."
Gabrielle played her part perfectly. She looked rather regal, and nodded her head in my direction.
I then waved a hand at Atrius, who stood waiting at the top of the steps, beside Gabrielle. My Captain disappeared momentarily. When he stepped once more from the shadows, the two young Amazons, Donai, and Inez followed him.
My back was turned toward the Amazons, and so I had to rely on Ephiny to see what I could not. I couldn't very well start accusations in the middle of the courtyard. I had to exude the confidence that said I was already aware of Velasca'
s betrayal. Before I could actually take Velasca in custody, however, I had to be certain in my own mind that she was guilty. If my suspicions held true, her next action would give her away, and name her accomplice at the same time.
Ephiny's job was two-fold. At my request, she had her eye on Velasca's face. I fully expected the Amazon to give herself away, but as to giving her partner in crime away at the same time, well, I simply had to hope that Athena wished to see justice done as much as myself.
Donai and Inez took two steps forward, putting them in plain view. Armed soldiers flanked them. I wasn't about to take any chances with these girls' lives. I turned my head just slightly, placing Ephiny within view. The Amazon simply nodded once. To tell the truth, she looked rather surprised. I wondered if she thought me clairvoyant, but in all honesty, if I had been a mystic, I would certainly have anticipated the next disastrous sequence of events.
As with all unexpected actions, to say it happened too fast to calculate who did what is perhaps redundant. The first shout I heard was definitely from a male voice.
"Look out, Conqueror!"
I ducked and turned at the same time, hoping to avoid what was obviously either a weapon, or a body, attacking my unprotected back. In the tick of a heartbeat, which was certainly all the time it took for me to spin around, I witnessed Velasca fall to the ground. She had a Centaur crossbow bolt sunk so deeply into her chest that the arrow's head protruded through her back. That's when the courtyard erupted into chaos for the second time in as many days.
It was a controlled sort of chaos, lasting for only a matter of heartbeats. I had carefully set up over a hundred Empire soldiers along the parapets of the castle, and the walls surrounding the courtyard. Every one of those soldiers, including the overwhelming number of foot soldiers on the ground, now had a crossbow trained on the delegations of Amazons and Centaurs. There were many shouts, curses, and cries, but all movement within the courtyard froze as my soldiers took immediate control. I learned long ago that whoever held the playing field, usually took the battle. This instance merely proved my theory.
I motioned to Ephiny, and my soldiers let her pass to meet me at Velasca's body. In the meantime, I could hear Broh, one of Kaleipus's Centaurs, shouting repeatedly.
"She had a weapon, I saw it. She was drawing a dagger from her boot to kill the Conqueror. I saw it, didn't you? Solan, boy, you saw it, surely."
I was kneeling over Velasca's dead body when I looked up to capture Solan's expression, as he was standing beside his old friend, Broh. My son appeared as confused as everyone else did. He rapidly turned his head between Broh, and myself.
"I--I'm not sure . . . I think..." he paused and trained his eyes on me. "I think . . . maybe she did. Yes, I think she did."
I turned Velasca's body over, her arms falling limply at her side. I saw the bulge against the fawn colored boots. Reaching into the leather boot, I drew out a throwing dagger. I looked across at Ephiny, who knelt on the other side of the body. I raised my eyebrows in silent question, as I handed over the dagger for her to examine.
"It's hers. Anyone who knows her would have known she carried this in her boot, though," Ephiny whispered.
"Yes," I paused. "Anyone who knows her."
I straightened up and nodded to the Amazon. She called two women forward to care for Velasca's body. The Amazons were chomping on the bit, as it were, to make someone pay for another Amazon death. I am positive that most of the women there had no idea what Velasca was like, but just as certain that there were perhaps a closed-mouth few, who were not surprised by the turn of events. I left Ephiny to explain Velasca's part in the murders to the rest of the women.
I slowly walked to the group of Centaurs. My men, along with the help of Kaleipus's command, disarmed Broh, who complained mightily the whole time.
"I save your life, Conqueror, and this is the thanks I get? Treated like a common criminal?" Broh complained.
"I wouldn't want to be remiss in thanking you, Broh, although it comes as somewhat of a surprise. I would have thought my death would have caused some happiness on your part."
Like Kaleipus, Broh was one of the older Centaurs who remembered me from my siege against Corinth. Many good warriors lost their lives in battle during that campaign, Broh's twin brother, Branah, among them. Broh took to hard drink for many seasons after that, but I remembered him, and the subtle attempts at assassination that he made on my life.
It was when I first went back to the Centaur Nation to see Solan. Only eight summers old, my own son tried to attack me. He admitted that he had been told of me, told that I killed his mother and father. He could have heard those tales anywhere. After all, there were no easy feelings between the Conqueror, and the Centaur Nation. I suspected it was Broh, however, and my suspicions had been confirmed after only a fortnight among them.
It seemed that Broh was a constant companion to Solan, and I always suspected that Broh had discovered my secret regarding Solan. Kaleipus said the boy had been good for the older Centaur, and so I said no more, but now . . . it all caused me to worry.
My suspicions had led me all along to believe that a Centaur was involved in some way, but it seemed evident that Velasca was a part of the plan, as well. I believed it had to be one or the other until my talk with Atrius. He helped me to see that two very different people, even hated enemies, could come together for a common purpose. There was one thing Velasca forgot about, however. Murderers rarely have a conscience, or are willing to think twice about killing their partners. Ephiny confirmed this last bit when she nodded to me.
The Amazons job in this scenario was to watch Velasca. My hidden card in this little game was Donai, and Inez. I played the odds, and hoped that once Velasca thought her plan, if not her very life, was in jeopardy; she would turn to her partner for either help, or encouragement. Ephiny's signal to me told me that Velasca did as predicted.
It took some convincing that morning to talk Kaleipus into helping me. Finally, all I could convince him to do was position Broh at the end or their group, perhaps off to one side. I wanted Velasca to have a clear shot at eliciting his help, but most importantly, I wanted there to be no confusion to Ephiny, that when Velasca thought all was lost, she would look up and over at her accomplice in a plea for assistance.
"Why don't we go into the Great Hall," I directed my words to Kaleipus. "We can sort out who did what, away from the eyes of the Amazons."
"Aye, Conqueror, a good idea," Kaleipus answered.
My Centaur friend's voice was tinged with sadness, though. I think he was just realizing that my suspicions regarding Broh were coming true. I worried more for Solan, though. The boy had been through so much recently. It's a hard thing, to realize your childhood idol has feet of clay.
Once I saw that Gabrielle was properly protected, I agreed when she asked to stay and speak to the Amazons. Who was I to refuse her request? She was their Queen now, but I think it would always be this way between us. It would take many, many seasons before I could convince Gabrielle of her own measure in this world.
* * *
"A crossbow is your specialty weapon, isn't it, Broh?" I asked as I turned the Centaur's weapon over in my hands.
"I pride myself on my ability with it," he answered arrogantly.
I'm sure he thought he was beyond reach, having killed the only witness that knew of his part in the murders. Then there was Solan. Broh would end up, unwittingly, or not, using my own son against me in this. I don't think Solan would lie. He had recently come to understand and develop such attributes as integrity and honesty. He was young, however, and he was being called on to stand up for a friend. I sent a silent prayer to Athena that this young man would be able to live with his part in all of this.
"Tell me again, Broh, what did you see before you shot?" I asked.
"We've been over this six times," he grumbled. "Very well, it was simple. I saw you turn your back, and the Amazon went to draw a dagger from her boot. It was obvious from where I stood, I'm sure
you saw the same thing, Antis." Broh asked the Centaur next to him for confirmation.
"I can't say as I was actually looking that closely, Broh. I could have missed it, I suppose," he replied haltingly.
"Well, I know Solan saw it," Broh turned to me once more. "He was standing right next to me, right lad?"
"Well, yes, I suppose I did see it . . . I think."
"You think?" Broh laughed. "Why it was as plain as a blossom in the snow!"
"Well . . . I, um--"
"Solan, come here and look at this," I requested.
Solan left Broh's side to stand before me, and I held out the dagger for him to examine. In truth, I wanted him away from Broh. I was uncertain about the Centaur, his hooves clicked on the stone floor impatiently, as his tail swished about in an involuntarily nervous gesture. I didn't want to take the chance that, if confronted, Broh would use Solan to make an escape.
"Is this the dagger, Solan?" I questioned him.
"Um . . . I suppose, I mean I guess it could be. It was rather far."
"It's all right, Solan, take your time." I placed my hand on his shoulder and allowed myself a small smile at my son. I wanted him to know that his best would always be good enough for me. I could feel the muscles in his back relax a bit at that.
"It could be, but . . . I mean, it happened so fast!" He looked at me, then turned to Broh with his words. I didn't like the expression of hatred I now saw in Broh's face, and I think Solan was noticing it for the first time. "I'm sorry, Broh, but I don't know if I can say for certain."
"She's made you soft, boy! Being with women'll do that to you!" Broh hissed.
The statement surprised me as much as Solan. "Wait a minut--" he took a step toward the Centaur, but I stopped him by grasping his arm.
"Which boot, Broh?" I asked.
"What?" he stopped and looked around.
Kaleipus took a step away from the angry Centaur. Whether the move was intentional or not, it's effect was in my favor. Broh now felt as if he were standing alone.
