Lander started forward, but Brin grabbed his arm and gave a quick shake of his head. "Just go close the door," he said. Lander blinked, but nodded. As he pushed past Jacerryl, he could smell wine even over the stink of the sty. The man's stagger wasn't due to any injury.
"What is it, Jacerryl?" Brin asked mildly. Jacerryl wobbled a little closer to him.
"It's Tycho," he said. "He's gone bad-him and that Shou friend of his. They attacked me!"
"Why would they do that?"
"It's your beljurils. I heard that Tycho tried to cheat you out of them yesterday but that you gave him time to give them back. The next thing I knew, though, I heard from a friend that he was putting out word that / had stolen the beljurils!"
Last night at the Ease, Tycho had said something about
Jacerryl, but Brin had been so intent on Li Chien Lander caught Brin's gaze. The halfling's eye just narrowed and he shook his head at him. To Jacerryl, he said, "Did you?"
"On Tyr's holy balance, no!" Jacerryl gave a shiver. "You know I'd never cheat you, Brin! As soon as I heard what Tycho was saying, I went out looking for him."
"And you found him."
Jacerryl nodded enthusiastically. "Bind me, I found him! I confronted him but he had his Shou beat me up!"
"Did he have his Shou get you drunk, too?"
Jacerryl gaped and whined in protest, but Brin just gave him a hard snarl. Jacerryl shut his mouth. Brin glared at him. "It takes a brave man to come to me just to claim innocence. Why not go to your brother?"
"If I went to Mard, I'd have to tell him why I'd gone looking for Tycho in the first place. He'd have thrown me out of his house if he didn't throw me into a guard station jail!"
"So you went and drank until you decided it was better to come to me."
Jacerryl shook his head. "Just one glass, Brin! Just one! It's not like you're an easy man to talk to!" A grasping edge of desperation crept into his voice. "I know what Tycho did with the beljurils-what he was going to do anyway. I heard him and the Shou talking about it."
"That was clumsy of them." Brin put his elbow on his knee and rested his chin in the palm of his hand. His eye was a hard black gem focused on Jacerryl. The man swallowed.
"They thought I was unconscious," he said quickly. He held out his hands. "Sweet truth, Brin! Don't you believe me?"
Brin stared at him. "I believe you're a piss-desperate liar who has worked himself so far down a dragon's throat that he actually thinks he can get out by going all the way through to the other end."
He flicked a finger.
Lander choked and scrambled for the fence around the sty. Jacerryl, too drunk and scared to think, didn't have a chance. Black Scratch let out a bellow. Hooves churning snow and muck, the boar charged. Jacerryl managed to scream as the animal's tusks ripped through clothes and flesh, tearing into skin and muscle. Blood splattered the snow. Brin's other pigs squealed in excitement at the mayhem.
A second toss of Black Scratch's bristly head opened a gash from hip to chest. Lander heard the cracking of bone even over the squeals and bellows. A third toss caught… something… and Jacerryl was lifted up into the air, shrieking terribly. Black Scratch twisted and shook. Jacerryl came flying free and rolled across the sty to crash into the fence right in front of Lander. Splintered ribs poked free of his wounds. Ruined organs spilled bile and foul juices. A choking cough shook him and bloody froth sprayed out of his mouth. Brin leaped down off the table and shoved past Black Scratch. Jacerryl's eyes rolled toward him.
Brin pulled out a dagger, spun it around his fingers once, and plunged it straight into the man's heart. Jacerryl spasmed-and died. The halfling whipped the dagger free. Black Scratch snorted and snuffled at the corpse, and turned away to chase back the other pigs.
Lander stared at the savaged body for a moment then looked up at Brin. "He could have told us where the belju-rils are." Brin shrugged and wiped his dagger on the dead man's clothes.
"Doesn't matter. Tycho will know, too. He'll tell us." The dagger went into Brin's belt. He stared at Jacerryl's body as well, but when he glanced up, there was a wicked grin of inspiration on his face. "Take him over to Tycho's rooms and dump him there."
Lander grimaced. "What about Veseene? "
"Don't worry," said Brin. "She's not there."
Something in the way he said it sent a shiver up Lander's back. The wheelbarrow he had used to muck out the sty the day before was leaned up against the side of the pig shelter. He rolled it over. An old blanket hung beside the shelter as well; Lander wrapped it around Jacerryl's body and managed to get him into the wheelbarrow without getting too much blood and filth on himself. Brin watched, one hand idly rubbing at Black Scratch's neck. "Hurry back," he said. "Things are moving."
Lander nodded and trundled the wheelbarrow off through the alley. He was halfway to Bakers Way when people began shouting and pointing. He looked up.
A thin column of smoke, growing thicker and darker as he watched, stained the sky. It was roughly in the area of the Wench's Ease.
Things are moving. Wheelbarrow rattling, Lander picked up his pace.
CHAPTER 12
The Hooded's men chuckled. The one standing beside Tycho hauled him to his feet, bent down, and heaved him over his shoulder like a sack of grain. Blood went rushing to his head. The bard protested, but it did no good. Li was yelling, too, and he could hear the Shou struggling. It sounded like it was taking both the third guard and tall Cado to restrain him. Tycho tried to squirm out of his captor's grasp. The man just gave a sharp bounce that slapped Tycho's gut hard against his shoulder. Tycho groaned. The sound of a punch was followed by a similar groan from Li. "Let's go," said Cado.
They began to move. Tycho could tell from the echoes of their footsteps when they stepped out of the cell. He could also tell from the way the other two men grunted that they must be carrying Li between them. The man carrying him laughed.
"Guess I got lucky with the small fish!" He gave a few more bounces-apparently just because he could. Tycho groaned with each one. "I don't know, though. I guess he's so small the only thing we can do is throw him back!"
That got a strained laugh out of the other men. The sound of water that had filled the vaults was getting louder. Tycho's stomach twisted. He had only managed to tell Li half of the tale about the Hooded's victims. They were found wearing hoods, yes, but they were also found floating offshore, drowned. How they got there was a mystery. Tycho could guess now, though. The Hooded's deep cellar held some kind of underground stream or borehole to the ocean. He offered a desperate prayer to Tymora, the goddess of luck-because they were going to need a lot of it-and shuddered. His captor must have mistaken it for more struggles, because he gave an especially hard bounce.
Tycho's hood slid around on his head. The ends of the drawstring that pulled it tight dropped right beneath his chin.
Chance or actual divine favor, Tycho didn't care. Thank you, blessed Tymora! He dug his chin down against his chest, wiggling until he got it between the ends of the string and under the fabric of the hood then thrust out sharply.
The hood loosened around his neck. Tycho shook his head frantically back and forth.
"Bind me!" his captor spat. "I think the little fish is trying to bite my butt!" He gave him a jostle, but Tycho just kept shaking his head, trying to get the hood to loosen more. It fell over his chin and into his mouth-he spit it out and shook hard. His captor growled in annoyance. "Hey! Cado! Give this fish a swat!"
He spun around just as Tycho gave one last hard shake.
The hood fell off. Tycho twisted his head and found himself staring-upside down-at Cado. "Hey, you!" the bard snarled desperately. He fixed his eyes on the tall man's. "While you were gone, we made a deal with your friends. They're going to let us go and dump you in the water!" He focused his will and poured magic into a burst of song. "Believe me-they're going to betray you!"
For less than a heartbeat, Cado's expression went slack then "Shar damn you both!" He dropped L
i, leaving the other guard staggering under the Shou's weight, and took a sharp step away.
Tycho's captor spun back around to face him and Cado whirled out of his field of vision. Tycho craned his neck, trying to get a look around. They were in another low, vaulted chamber. The sound of water was very close. He twisted the other way and caught a glimpse of a pool of dark water, roiling with unseen currents. The Hooded's passage to the ocean. His stomach twisted again at how close they had come to it!
"He's lying, Cado," the man holding Li was saying. He grunted, and there was a thud and a groan as Li hit the stone floor. "We didn't even talk to them-"
Cado just snarled back, "You're a stinking piece of chum, Ledek!"
Metal scraped on leather-a knife being drawn. "Hold on there, Cado!" gasped Tycho's captor. He shrugged and suddenly Tycho was rolling off his shoulder. He landed on his side and pain screamed through his shoulder. For a moment, all he could do was lie there, gasping and watching as Cado circled the other men. The tall guard had a knife in his hand, held low and ready to strike. He stepped slowly, warily.
"You've always had it in for me, haven't you, Vencil? You were jealous because the Hooded favored me. You wanted to move up. And you, Ledek-I've seen you hanging around my stash." Ledek's eyes narrowed and darted off toward one of the vaults. Cado snarled. "I knew it!" Ledek drew a sharp breath, stepping over Li's fallen form and into an area of unobstructed footing.
Li must have sensed that he was clear. He twisted and started rolling away from the conflict-and straight toward the roiling pool! Tycho choked. "Li, stop! Stop! "
The Shou froze just in time, only inches away from the water's edge. Unfortunately, Tycho's warning brought Ledek and Vencil's attention back to their prisoners. "Bind me," hissed Ledek, "it's a trick! Cado, it's all some kind of trick!" He turned to grab-or push! — Li.
"Sweet chum right, it's a trick!" Cado growled. "One I'm not falling for!" He lunged at Ledek's exposed back and Ledek yelled as the knife sank into his shoulder. With a gasp, Vencil leaped for Cado.
Tycho stretched out his legs, tangling Vencil's feet. The man went down hard-and took an even harder blow as Cado, whipping his knife out of Ledek's shoulder, jumped back and stomped down hard on his hand. Vencil howled and clutched the injured hand close. His good hand snapped up and latched onto Cado's belt, pulling him off his feet. Cado twisted and stabbed as he fell.
Beyond the two struggling men, Ledek was staggering unsteadily. "Li!" shouted Tycho. "Roll toward me now!"
Li spun his body around and right into the back of Ledek's legs. With a startled yell, the Hooded's man toppled back. He almost caught himself and for a moment his arms flailed through the air as he fought for balance-and lost.
He splashed back into the dark pool. His last scream was choked off as the current sucked him under.
Cado reared up, whirled around at the noise, and looked down. Vencil lay still beneath him, Cado's knife buried in the side of his chest. Confusion washed across the tall man's face. "Bloody-"
Tycho sang magic at him. Light, sharp and bright, flashed briefly in front of his eyes. Cado reeled back, stumbling over Li's still-rolling body. Guided by the brief moment of contact, Li gave a tremendous shout, drew back his legs, and kicked hard. His feet took Cado square in the backside and sent him slamming headfirst into the stone wall of the vault. He hit with a meaty thud and slid down to sprawl limply on the floor. Li struggled to his knees, panting, hood still in place, but poised to attack anyone who came near. Tycho drew a deep breath. "Li," he said, "it's over."
"There's one more," snarled Li.
"Cado did him." Tycho got himself up onto his knees and shuffled over to Vencil's body. He plopped himself where he could grab the hilt of Cado's knife with his bound hands. It made a wet, sucking sound as it slid free. "Come here and hold out your hands."
It was tricky work, cutting rope that neither of them could see with a knife that was slippery with blood. He managed to do it without nicking either himself or Li more than twice. Hands free, Li immediately ripped off his hood and stared around. His eyes settled on the water of the pool. His mouth opened and, for a moment, no sound came out. Then he gasped, "How close did I come to that?"
"You almost went where Ledek did." Tycho let the knife clatter from his fingers and twisted around. "My turn."
Li cut the rope around his wrists and the bonds on their ankles. Tycho stretched gratefully and swung the shoulder on which he had fallen in gentle arcs. The joint protested, but not badly. He climbed to his feet and checked on Cado. "Unconscious, but not dead." He dug through the tall man's pockets and reclaimed his silver coin. Li, however, took a second knife from Vencil's body and looked in the direction of the stairs. Tycho followed his gaze. "The Hooded," he said.
"Yu Mao," said Li. "Do you still doubt it? Do you still think I'm wrong in what I have to do? He knew who I was and he tried to kill us anyway."
Tycho hesitated. "No," he said finally. "I don't doubt it." He held out his hand and Li gave him one of the knives- the smaller of the two. Tycho closed his fist around the handle. "But before you kill him, I want to get Brin's belju-rils. You may not need to talk to him anymore, but I still need to buy him off!"
"He may want to reward you for killing his rival." "That's not the sort of thing I want a reward for." They bound Cado, gagged him with a strip of cloth, and tucked him away in the darkest corner they could find. Vencil's body they dumped into the pool-Li shuddered as he saw the speed with which the water seized it and took it away. With the obvious signs of their struggle gone, someone would need to look closely to find Vencil's blood on the shadowed floor. There was no one else in the cellar, but there was also no guarantee that there was only one way in and they didn't need anyone raising an alarm.
Li led the way up the stairs, creeping slowly, knife at the ready. Both of them were alert for anyone coming down from above. No one did. Just before they reached the top, Tycho touched Li's leg. "Let me go first," he whispered. "If there are more of the Hooded's men in there, I can take them down with a spell. I might even be able to catch Yu Mao." Li frowned. Tycho shook his head. "It won't hurt them," he reassured him. Li's frown didn't lighten, but he stood aside. Tycho squeezed past and climbed to the top of the stairs. Putting one hand on the door handle, he held the other up to Li, three fingers extended.
He folded the first finger and his hand tightened on the handle.
He folded the second and drew a deep breath.
He folded the third, ripped open the door, and stepped through, spell on his tongue.
The Hooded's hall was empty.
"Bind me!" he hissed as Li came bounding in after him. He darted over and checked the gang boss's table. Its top was clear, though the stroke of Li's scimitar cut a light line across the wood, and there were no drawers underneath. Other than the table and its matching chair, the room was empty.
"Three other doors," said Li quietly. He pointed at one. "The leatherworker's shop."
Tycho pointed as well. "Cado brought me a chair from that one. It's probably a storeroom."
"Or a private room."
Tycho's finger paused and swung to the third door. "That one? Which way did the Hooded's men come from before?" Li shook his head. Tycho hissed. "All right." He strode up to the third door and opened it.
Gathered around a table, talis cards in their hands, three men looked up in surprise. One of them dropped his cards and grabbed for a cocked crossbow.
Tycho choked and slammed the door shut. An instant later, there was a sharp thunk against the other side. He whipped the door open again. Exactly at head height, a crossbow bolt quivered in the wood. The men were on their feet, cards forgotten in favor of daggers and swords. Tycho swirled his hand through the air and sang out a spell, powerful yet at the same time as soft and gentle as a breeze.
First one man, then another, and finally the third, staggered and slid to the ground in deep slumber.
Li looked in past Tycho and nodded in impressed approval.
He pointed at a fallen sword with a questioning look. "Go ahead," Tycho told him. "They won't wake up." He stepped into the room himself and looked around. Table, bench, a bed-and no other way out. He cursed.
"The other door," said Li. He picked up the sword and took a second and offered it to Tycho. The bard shook his head. Li shrugged and put the weapon back down. "How long will they sleep?"
"Not long." Tycho led Li back out into the hall and closed the door. He took the Hooded's chair and wedged it under the handle. "That should hold them long enough if they wake up too soon."
"Can you cast that spell again?"
"If I need to."
They opened the final door more cautiously. There were chairs-the one Cado had produced for Tycho and two others like it-set just beyond, but there was also another flight of stairs, this time going up. They ended in another door.
Li wrinkled his nose and said, "I smell incense and pipeweed."
Tycho nodded and led the way once more. This time, however, he listened closely at the door. He could hear murmuring on the other side-but only one voice. No, there were two, but one was very faint. The Hooded and his young interpreter. Tycho caught Li's eye and counted down on his fingers again. One. Two. Three.
The upper door swung open to a room draped in silks and rich hangings, lit by softly glowing magical lanterns, and strewn with thick carpets and cushions. In the midst of this luxury, the Hooded and his interpreter scrambled to their feet. The Hooded-his robes set aside to reveal a simple tunic and trousers, but the leather hood still draped over his head-leaped for a rack of swords. His interpreter, however, reached no farther than her belt, snatching out a knife and sending it flickering at Tycho.
He threw himself into a roll and the knife soared above his head, though Li, plunging through the doorway, was very nearly not so lucky. He jerked back as the bright metal flashed just in front of his chest. "Mother to dogs!" he snarled in Shou. The Hooded's interpreter reached back to her belt.
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