by K Hanson
“Sure.” They walked back into the bedroom.
While she bent down to pick up the scattered parts of his uniform, he glanced at the body on the bed and seemed on the verge of retreating back into his shell.
“Don’t look at her,’ she said. “It won’t help anything. Focus on what you need to do to get out of here. Right now, that’s putting these back on. Do I need to slap you again? Because I will if you go into la la land again.”
“No, I can do this.”
“Good,” she said as she shoved his clothes into his arms. “Now, hurry. We’ve wasted enough time already.”
While waiting for the guard to put his uniform back on, she grabbed her own cloak from next to the door to drape over her shoulders. When she saw that he had finished dressing, she beckoned to him and said, “Follow me and don’t talk to anyone.”
He just nodded in response.
She turned away from him and opened the door. Peering into the hallway, she made sure that nobody else was walking by who could look in and see a dead and bloody body on the bed. When she was sure that the way was safe, she slid out from the doorway with the guard following close behind.
Nereyda grabbed the guard’s hand and pulled him close. “Now, pretend you’re happy. We just had an amazing threesome with a gorgeous woman.”
“I’ll try.”
As they descended the stairs into the main tavern area, Nereyda let out a little giggle. “Oh, that was simply spectacular. Once we walk around town a bit, we’ll have to see about another round of fun.”
The guard gave a smile, but it didn’t come across as very genuine. He would be a terrible poker player. Hopefully, people would just a see a nervous smile rather than a guilty one.
Fortunately, nobody paid them much more than a passing glance as they walked through the main seating area. Nereyda breathed a sigh of relief as they exited the tavern onto the street outside. Once they had walked a block away from the inn, she let go of the guard’s hand. No need to keep up the act any longer.
They meandered their way through the bustling town that linked the mines to the outside world. She led them on an indirect route, just in case someone spotted them and tried to follow. She knew that she was paranoid, but at this point, so close to finding a way to getting her crew out of that hole in the ground, she wasn’t going to take any chances. Finally, after they walked well into a more rundown part of town, where money didn’t flow quite as readily, Nereyda spotted a shabby inn.
She walked in with the guard behind her and stepped up to the counter. “How much for the night?” she asked the innkeeper, a rough looking man with a scraggly beard and dirty brown clothes.
“With me, dear? If that’s what you’re into, I’ll take your coin, but a looker like you could probably do better elsewhere for free.”
Nereyda had to laugh. “No, just a room will be fine. Thanks, though.”
He shrugged. “Worth a shot. Five gold will be enough for the evening, six if you want your friend here to join you.”
“Six it is, then.” She dropped the coins on the counter.
“Room five upstairs,” he said as he handed her a key.
She and the guard captain walked up the stairs to find their room. Once she found room five, she unlocked the door and pulled it open. It looked far simpler than the lavish room from the other tavern. Here, there was just a simple straw bed that was barely large enough for two people. Aside from that, a bare dresser sat against the wall, and a rusty chamber pot was tucked into the corner. Apparently, this part of town didn’t have running water yet.
Nereyda let the guard walk past her into the room, then shut the door and locked it behind them. Now that they were out of sight from anyone else, she drew her sword. As the guard turned around at the sound of steel on leather, Nereyda grabbed him across his shoulders with her left arm and shoved him against the wall. She held her sword against his throat.
“Now that we’re away from that mess, you’ll listen to me.”
“What is this? What are you doing?”
She leaned forward, the steel of her blade pressing into his skin. “We’re going to talk about my price for clearing up that mess back there.”
“Price? We’re in this together.”
“Not by a long shot. You have way more to lose than I do. I can just slip away, never to be seen again. You, though, you’re in the military. If you disappear, you become a deserter and lose everything you’ve worked for in your career. You might even find yourself working in the same mines where you’ve been a guard. Are you ready to listen to me? Or should I kill you here? Perhaps people will think that you were so filled with guilt after killing that woman that you decided to take your own life rather than live with your shame.”
He gazed at her with rage burning in his eyes but slumped his shoulders in defeat. “What is it that you want?”
“I have a friend in the mines. I want to get a note to her, and you’re going to help get her out.”
“Impossible. Go to hell,” he spat. “It would ruin me to betray the Empire like that.”
Nereyda leaned harder against him, her blade on the verge of slicing the skin on his neck. Her face just inches from his, she hissed, “Would it ruin you more than facing trial for murder or dying in disgrace after a murder-suicide? Besides, it will only ruin you if you get caught. So, just don’t be terrible at it.”
“Who am I supposed to find?”
“Her name is Brynja, and she is with the crew of the Storm Raven.”
“So all I have to do is get your note to your friend and somehow get her out of the mine. What reason do I give for her being able to leave?”
“That’s up to you. I’m sure you can be creative enough to think of something good. Maybe a noble relative arranged to get her out. Or a rich merchant paid for someone experienced on a ship. Whatever you think will be convincing.”
“Where will she meet you?”
“She’ll learn that from the note. In case you’re thinking of reading it, then ambushing us later, don’t bother. You won’t know the location I’m talking about.”
“What if I follow her straight to you?”
“Then we’ll flip a coin for who gets to kill you.”
“I do this, and you’ll make this mess with the whore go away?”
“Absolutely.”
“Fine, I’ll do it. Give me the note.”
Nereyda reached into her pocket and pulled out the folded piece of paper. The guard took it and stuffed it into his own coat. She released him from her grasp and dropped her sword from his throat.
“You can stay in this room if you want. It’s paid for. Meanwhile, I have work to do.”
“Get out of my sight. I never want to see you again.”
“The pleasure has been all mine, it seems,” she said with a wink. Turning on her heel, she slipped back out into the inn and descended the stairs to leave the building.
She went back to the upscale tavern where she had first found him, and where she had left the prostitute covered in blood. Walking in and upstairs to the room, she unlocked the door to find the red-haired woman bundling the stained sheets from the bed.
The woman looked up at her, “Did the guard enjoy the prank?”
“Oh, yes, he freaked out at first, but once I told him it was a joke, he thought it was hilarious,” replied Nereyda with a grin.
“I hope you got your money’s worth,” the lady said, with a wanting look in her eyes.
“I did. And you probably want this.” The pirate reached into her pocket and pulled out the large sack of gold.
The woman smiled. “Just set it on the dresser over there.”
“Need help cleaning this up?”
She shook her head. “All part of the job. And you’ve paid me enough to cover it. Thank you for the business.”
“Thanks for your help.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Brynja sat in her cell, resting after yet another day in the mines. She glanced around the spa
ce, which now seemed luxurious compared to her accommodations during her days wallowing in the deep cells. She had enough light to walk around and see what she was doing. She had enough space to stretch out, even if just barely. She had an actual bedroll to use to sleep instead of the cold hard ground. And she didn’t have to endure the screams coming from the torture chambers that they housed near the deep cells.
It was actually a relief to be back in the routine of mining next to her crew after the bleak and black experience of her isolation. She never thought that she would actually welcome the feeling of swinging her pickaxe at the wall and the sound of the guards yelling at them. After her week in the deep cell, without being able to move more than a few feet in any direction, being able to move around and talk with someone, anyone, was a welcome relief. She’d do anything that it took to never go back into that pit of despair.
She somehow even managed to miss the horrible food that they served up in the mining mess hall. The food that she had eaten in the deep cell must have been whatever remained at the bottom of the pans they used, the dregs of the slop that they mass produced for the slaves.
That was the only upside. It was clear that the week she had been down there had not been kind to her crew, either. They looked just as wrung out as ever, and they had all received more punishments in her absence. Most of them had fresh red lines across their backs, their shirts torn to rags. As they swung their pickaxes at the wall, their backs slumped with exhaustion.
Maybe it really would be best for her to give in and go along as their supervisor for real this time. Her crew needed her to be their leader. If Nereyda wasn’t going to show up to help them, it was her job as first mate to look after them. Even if that meant hurting them. Even if that meant them hating her.
On her first day back, she had been ordered to give each of her crewmates ten lashes. When she had hesitated, her supervisor had threatened to send all of them to the deep cells. Not wanting to subject her crew to the horrors of that place, and not knowing if she could ever stomach going back there without losing her own mind, she had relented. Brynja would bear their hate if it meant keeping them alive and sane as long as possible.
As she pondered these thoughts, a clang from her cell door jolted her from her musings. A guard stood in the door. Actually, as she looked at him more closely, she saw that he was a guard captain. He clutched an envelope in his hand.
“Brynja, yes?”
“That’s right.”
“You have mail.”
“How do I have mail? People can’t send messages to the slaves here.”
“I was told to give it to you. As a guard captain, I can get around many of the usual regulations and restrictions.”
Brynja walked over and took the paper from the guard and opened the seal. As she unfolded it, she quickly scanned it. She couldn’t believe what she read. Nereyda was actually coming for them.
Brynja didn’t know what to feel. Part of her felt hopeful that maybe Nereyda could help get them out. Another part dreaded what would happen if they failed. The last piece of her resented Nereyda for waiting so long to ride in like some sort of hero. Despite all of her complex emotions, Brynja needed to go meet Nereyda and do whatever it took to get the rest of the crew out from the mines.
“So you’re just going to dump me outside the walls and then help us get back in later?” she asked the guard.
“That’s right. Before you go, though, I need to talk to you about how exactly that’s going to work.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
As soon as Nereyda had heard from the guard that he had passed along his message to Brynja, Neryeda had set out to Antalia. She didn’t trust the guard captain but didn’t have any other choice except to proceed with her plan. Nereyda moved restlessly as she and her horse approached Antalia. Her rear end would be sore for days after this, as her domain was a ship helm, not a saddle. She had to double check the signs as they neared the town, as a new city wall had made the outer edge unrecognizable.
It had been over three years since she had been to Antalia. Then, this town had been a loosely governed border port. It had been a popular destination for pirates, thieves, and smugglers who did business in and around the Empire. Now, it seemed that it had been locked down. The boot of the Empire had landed upon the city. With the heavy guard presence that roamed the walls and stood outside the gates, Nereyda instinctively drew her hood tighter around her face. She didn’t think that anyone in the city would recognize her, but she wasn’t going to take any chances. If Erhan had actually made it off of the island, he would scour the Empire looking for her.
She pulled the reins to slow her horse as she drew up to the main gate to the city. A guard that stood near the entrance walked up alongside her. “Do you have your permit to enter the city?”
Nereyda reached into her saddlebag and withdrew forged entry papers that she had acquired and passed them to the guard. She hoped that it was an accurate enough copy that she could get in without trouble.
“Do you have any goods that you need to declare?” he asked.
“No, sir.”
The guard walked around the horse, inspecting her and her belongings. He looked at Nereyda sitting on the saddle for a long moment. His eyes examined her face to see if he recognized a criminal or saw any threat. Without a word to her, his eyes passed over her as he gazed around for any potential contraband. He flipped open her saddlebags and ruffled through the contents. Finally, he closed them and stepped back. “Okay, you’re clear to enter,” he said to her as he waved to the guards operating the gate.
“Thank you, sir,” said Nereyda as she yanked on the reins to get the horse moving again.
The head guard just gave her a curt nod and stepped back to his post next to the gate.
As she made her way through the short tunnel that passed to the other side, the air echoed with the sound of her horse’s hooves falling on the stone ground. She saw that the wall must have been at least twenty feet thick of solid stone. Poking through in some places, she saw steel or iron bars that reinforced the structure. Nereyda had never seen walls built like that. If someone tried to siege this city, they wouldn’t be getting in by making a hole in the walls.
A pair of guards stood at the end of the passage.
“Is the Empire building all of their walls like this now?” she asked one of them.
“What do you mean?’
“With the metal reinforcements.”
He shrugged. “I couldn’t say. I don’t really pay attention to the walls. I just go and do what they tell me to do. It’s not my job to know how things are built or why they are that way. It doesn’t much matter to me as long as they keep trouble out.”
Nereyda sighed, unsatisfied with the answer she had received. If the Empire was increasing security across their territory, or even just at the edges, life as a pirate was going to get increasingly difficult. The Storm Raven wasn’t built to shoot through walls and, without a forger to produce fake papers, they wouldn’t be able to just sail into the harbor.
“Do you know if the Bawdy Bard is still around?”
“Enough questions. Go away.”
Nereyda left the unhelpful guards. She’d just have to find out for herself if the bar was still in business. If the Empire had purged the more unsavory elements, the typical patronage of the place had likely dried up. If it was gone, she’d have to figure out another way to link up with Brynja, if and when she arrived.
She pulled her horse up to a public stable that advertised that it had space available for rent. Pressing a few coins into the hand of the stable hand, she passed the reins to the boy who took the horse to be fed, watered, and groomed.
The changes in the city confused her, but soon she found that her feet still knew the way. As she passed through the city square, she remembered that it had once been a bustling marketplace where people could trade goods and money, much of it obtained through less than honest means. Instead, a gallows now rose from the center of the square.
A platform with three hanging stations cast a shadow over the mood in the area. People who had to pass through the plaza spoke in hushed tones. While the nooses hung empty now, Nereyda had a feeling that this place had played a major role in culling the criminals that had once traveled through and lived in Antalia.
Nereyda followed her nose toward the briny, salty smell of the sea. When she turned a corner to walk downhill, she saw a scattering of masts across the harbor. It was nowhere close to the forest that had once dominated the port.
She found a familiar cross street a few blocks from the road that ran along the port. Along the side of the street, she saw the familiar sign of the tavern she looked for. These few years had not been kind to the building. The paint had cracked in the coarse salty air, and the chain of the sign that hung on the outside had rusted stiff.
Turning the latch on the door, it creaked as she pushed it open and walked into a dimly lit seating area. Only a couple of other people sat scattered at tables throughout the space. When Nereyda had last been there, finding an open chair had been impossible. A tired looking bartender leaned against the bar and turned around to face the new customer walking into the building. Her eyes widened with recognition.
Before she could speak, Nereyda held her finger up to her lips as she walked up to the counter. “Hey Fariha, it’s been a long time,” she whispered as she pulled up a stool.
“Nereyda, I never expected to see you walk through my door again. You shouldn’t be here, it’s too dangerous.”
“I’m beginning to see that. I’d ask how things have been, but walking here from the gate answered that question, I think.”
“Wait, what do you mean you walked from the gate? Where is the Raven? And why are you alone?”
“It’s a long story. We hit a bump in the road, but I’m working on that now.”
“Is Brynja all right? I thought I’d at least see her with you.”
“We got separated. She’s actually why I’m here. We’re supposed to meet here. If she got my message, that is. I take it she’s not here yet?”
