Cold Copper Tears gf-3

by Glen Cook

  I said, "Any guy who can go into a vampire nest shouldn't have problems with this."

  He snorted. "That was do or die."

  We gave it fifteen minutes. Morley stared at Chattaree with obsessive concentration. I wondered if he was mongoose or cobra. His night vision was better than mine. If there was anything to see he'd see it.

  "Give me the layout again," he said. I did. He said, "Let's do it."

  It was a good time. There was no one in sight. But I found myself reluctant to go. I went anyway.

  I was puffing when we reached the temple door.

  Morley looked at me and shook his head. He raised an eyebrow, barely discernible in wan light from inside the temple. Ready? I nodded.

  He walked through the doorway. I ducked out of sight.

  "Hey! Where the hell you going?"

  I peeked. Morley had darted past the guard, who was awake. I wondered if that was a common occurrence. Morley turned to face the man, who was as wide as he was tall.

  I wound up two-handed and stepped into it, whacking him behind the ear with my stick. He went down.

  I let out a big breath. "I didn't think I could put him down."

  "I worried too, the way you've let yourself go."

  "Let's get him put away."

  We used materials at hand, bound and gagged the guy and tucked him out of sight inside his post. Hopefully anybody who came by would figure he'd gone AWOL.

  I led the way. We'd chosen our time well. They'd closed up shop except for one sleeping priest at the main altar. Passing through in the far shadows we didn't disturb his slumber. Morley made less noise than a tiptoeing roach. I found the stairway descending into the catacombs.

  "We have a problem," I whispered, halfway down. It was tomb-dark. We hadn't brought a light. I didn't think I could negotiate the maze without one.

  "I'll go steal a candle, " Morley said.

  He could be a ghost when he wanted. He went right up to the main altar and lifted a votive candle. The priest on duty never missed a snore.

  He came back grinning. He'd been showing off. He hadn't had to snatch a light from disaster's jaws.

  We descended into the catacombs. They seemed more claustrophobic than on my previous visit. A dwarf would have felt at home, but humans weren't made to inhabit mole holes. I worked up a bad case of the creeps.

  Morley did, too. He didn't have anything to say, just tagged along quietly, so alert you could smell it.

  The old memory was cooking. I made only one false turn and corrected that before I'd gone a step. I marched right up to Peridont's door.

  "This place gives me the creeps," Morley whispered.

  "Me too." It was as quiet as a grave in there. I would have been happier if there'd been some guy howling down the way. Thinking just made the creeps worse.

  The door was locked but the lock was of ancient vintage. It didn't take me half a minute to open it. We stepped inside.

  The room was unchanged, though there was more litter on the big table. I told Morley, "Light a couple of lamps."

  "Hurry," he suggested.

  "It shouldn't take long." I moved to the cabinet from which Peridont had taken the bottles he'd given me. Morley fired up a couple of lamps and posted himself beside the door.

  The cabinet doors weren't latched, let alone locked. Sometimes you have to wonder about people. I mean, the stuff stored there was as dangerous as you could get, yet it was just sitting there waiting to be taken. Just because you don't want to think somebody would rob you doesn't mean you shouldn't take precautions.

  I used the votive candle for light. I saw green and blue and red bottles (only one of the latter), plus lemon, orange, amber, indigo, turquoise, lime, and clear, and one that looked like bottled silver dust.

  The temptation was to take the lot, a fortune in useful tricks. But I had no idea what would happen if an unfamiliar bottle was used. You don't mess with the unknown when you're dealing with sorcery. Not if you want to stay healthy.

  I wasn't shy about grabbing all the green and blue bottles. I dithered over the red one, then recalled how effective it had been at Chodo's. I might run into that ape again. I pocketed the bottle, but this time with more respect. I padded it with cotton I found on the bottom shelf of the cabinet.

  "What're you doing?" Morley asked.

  The look in his eye said he had a damned good idea. And he'd love to lay hands on some of those bottles. "Putting tricks up my sleeve. I don't know what these others will do so I'm not taking them."

  "You done? We ought to get while our luck's holding."

  He was right. I checked the cabinet, closed it up. It wasn't obviously disturbed. Let them go crazy wondering why somebody bopped the guard. "Done. Let's..."

  "Damn!" Morley jerked a thumb at the door.

  He'd left it cracked so he could listen for footsteps. I heard nothing but that meant nothing. Someone was coming. Wavering light shown through the crack.

  I jumped, extinguished the lamps, blew out the candle, and ducked under the table as the door swung inward.

  It was that creepy Sampson. He held a lantern up and glared around. Morley stood behind the door, ready to cut him down if he came inside. Sampson sniffed, frowned, finally shrugged and backed out, shutting the door behind him.

  I slithered through the darkness, listening but hearing nothing. The light leaking under the door weakened, presumably because Sampson was moving away. He'd pulled the door all the way shut but he hadn't locked it. I was surprised he hadn't been more suspicious, finding it unlocked and ajar.

  I opened up slowly so I'd make no sound, then put my eye to the crack. Sampson was twenty feet away, his back to me, about to turn a corner. He scratched his head, a man who had a feeling something was wrong but who couldn't put his finger on it. He might any minute. "You ready?" I breathed at Morley.

  He didn't reply.

  Sampson shrugged again and moved on out of sight.

  "Come on. Let's get while we can." I hoped I could manage without a light. I had no way to get the candle going again.

  Again Morley didn't answer. I heard the faintest sound, like a fairy's wing beat. It didn't come from where Morley was, though in the dark sounds are confusing.

  I spoke a little louder. "Let's go! He knows there's something wrong. He just hasn't figured it out yet."

  "Right." He was there after all.

  I opened the door, slipped out, extended my hand to the wall, walked slowly. "You behind me?"

  "Yes."

  "Close the door tight."

  "I did."

  That Sampson had to be an insomniac or something. We'd lucked out getting in without bumping into him. We almost ran into him twice before we reached the steps leading upward. We almost got lost, having to adjust our route to keep from colliding with him.

  But get out of the catacombs we did, and exit we did, without incident—until we reached the guard station.

  Four guys jumped me. They'd found the guard and had set an ambush. A fifth, inside, sounded an alarm.

  I spun away from the rush. They didn't see Morley, who had lagged, eyeballing the treasures of the altar, probably figuring how much trouble it would be to get them out. I thumped a guy, my back against a wall. They had their hearts set on bloodshed. I thought I was dead. They kept me too busy to shove a hand into a pocket.

  Morley just walked up, jumped in the air, and literally kicked the side of a man's head in. He ripped another's throat out with his bare hand. I whacked the same guy over the head with my club. The remaining attacker and the guy who had sounded the alarm got a case of the big eyes. One tried to run. Morley folded him up with a groin kick. I put the other one down with my stick.

  "Let's go!" There was all kinds of racket in the depths of the temple. The gods knew who or what lived in those twisty ways beyond the main worship gallery. It sounded like we'd have a hundred men after us in a minute.

  "We're not finished." Morley indicated the three men still alive. "They can identify us."
>
  He was right. They would know what faces to look for and the Church was known for holding a grudge. Hell, they were still trying to get even for things that happened a thousand years ago. "I can't."

  "You'll never learn."

  He used a thin-bladed knife to still three hearts as quick as you could blink.

  I've seen a lot of guys killed. I've had to do a few myself. I've never liked it and I've never gotten used to it. I almost puked. But I didn't stop thinking. I got out the coin I'd taken from Jill's place a thousand years ago and stuffed it under a body. When Morley was past me I smashed a couple blue bottles in the entry-way, hoping their contents would slow the pursuit.

  We ran like hell until we were a block away, hidden in shadows.

  "Now what?" Morley asked.

  "Now we go after the real target." And I told him how Maya and Jill had disappeared into the Orthodox compound.

  47

  Men with lanterns poured from Chattaree. It looked like they'd dragged out every damned priest in the place. Morley said, "Better move out. You have a plan?"

  "I told you the plan."

  "Get the women out? That's a plan?"

  "It's the one I've got."

  We were across the street from the gate where the women had entered the Orthodox compound. A group of Church priests were set to head our way. I dashed across the street. Morley stayed at my heels. "Even if they saw us I don't think they'd come in after us," I whispered.

  "Shit. You're such a goddamned genius."

  I vaulted the coach gate. Morley followed. He had more difficulty because he was shorter. I'd barely landed when a couple of guys came out of the gate house. They weren't armed but they were looking for trouble. I gave it to one with my stick. The other dove for an alarm bell. Morley landed on his back.

  We'd barely gotten them inside when the Church bunch roared up. I stepped outside. "What's going on?"

  "Thieves. Murderers. Invaded the temple." They all wore priestly garb. I, as an Orthodox employee, should have no trouble knowing what temple they were from. "See anybody go by here?"

  "No. But I heard somebody run past a minute ago. Going like crazy. That's why I came out."

  "Thanks, brother." Off the gang went.

  "Good thinking, Garrett," Morley said when I stepped back inside. I didn't look for the guards. Morley was nothing if not certain about covering his ass. Those guys weren't going to come to, get themselves loose, and raise an alarm. "You ever been here before? Know your way around?''

  "Once when I was a kid. They used to let you wander around the grounds."

  "You're a wonder. Don't you ever plan anything?"

  In the circumstances it was hard to argue with him. I didn't waste my breath. "You can back out any time."

  "I wouldn't miss it. Let's go."

  Needless risk-taking isn't like Morley Dotes. He wouldn't do this sort of thing unless he had an angle somewhere.

  No skin off my nose. If somebody looted the temple or this place, I'd have my suspicions but I wouldn't be heartbroken. Morley would just look at me blankly, baffled, if I suggested he'd had anything to do with it.

  We found a whole complex of buildings behind the first stand of trees. The biggest was the main Orthodox basilica in TunFaire. It was as grand as Chattaree but had no name except something generic like All Saints. Morley and I slipped into some shrubbery and reviewed everything we'd heard about the compound, which wasn't much. We could identify only three of the cluster of seven buildings, the basilica itself and two structures housing monks and nuns. Those had featured prominently in the scandals.

  "Isn't there suppose to be an orphanage and a seminary?" Morley asked.

  "Yeah. I think so." That would identify two more buildings. But which two?

  "Logic would suggest a building with kitchens and whatnot to feed all the people."

  "Unless each has its own."

  "Yeah."

  "How's this sound? If you grabbed a couple women wouldn't you maybe stash them in the nunnery?"

  "Maybe. Unless they have jail cells or something."

  "Yeah. But I've never heard a rumor like that." Short of searching the complex, building by building,

  I had no idea what to do. I hadn't thought this part out. Like Morley said, I tend to jump without looking.

  "Hey."

  Somebody was doing a sneak from shadow to shadow. It was too dark to tell much but he came close enough to identify as a monk. Morley suggested, "Let's follow him."

  That seemed as good an idea as any.

  I let Morley lead since he could see better and walk more softly. In a minute he reached back and stopped me. "He's checking to see if anybody's watching."

  I froze. After a minute Morley tugged at my sleeve. We didn't go twenty steps before Morley stopped again and urged me into some shrubbery.

  The man had climbed steps to a side door of the building I thought was the nunnery—which explained his sneaking.

  He tapped a code. The door opened. He embraced somebody, then slipped inside. The door closed.

  "Think that would work for us?" Morley asked.

  "If we had somebody waiting."

  "Let's check that door."

  It took only a second to discover that it was barred inside. It took only a few minutes to learn that all the building's four entrances were barred. The ground floor windows were masked by steel lattices.

  Morley muttered, "See what happens when you bull ahead with no research? We don't have the equipment we need."

  I didn't argue. I went around to that one side door and tapped the code the visitor had used earlier. Nothing happened. Morley and I got into a brisk discussion about my tendency to act without thinking. I didn't put up much of a defense. As Morley was getting irked enough to walk, I tapped the door again.

  And to our astonishment it opened.

  We gaped. The woman said, "You're early …" then started to yell when she saw we weren't who she was expecting. We jumped her, and managed to keep her quiet. We dragged her into the little hall behind the door, which was about six feet long and four wide and lighted by a single candle on a tiny stand. Morley yanked the door shut behind us. I let him take the woman, then I darted to the end of the hallway and looked both ways, but saw nothing.

  I turned. "Let's make it quick."

  Morley grunted.

  I told the nun, "Two women came in today. A blonde, middle twenties, and a brunette, eighteen, both attractive. Where are they?"

  She didn't want to play.

  Morley placed a knife at her throat. "We want to know. We aren't worried about the sin of murder."

  Now she couldn't answer because she was too scared. I said, "Cooperate and you'll be all right. We don't want to hurt anybody. But we won't mind if we have to. Do you know the women we want?"

  Morley pricked her throat. She nodded.

  I asked, "Do you know where they are?"

  Another nod.

  "Good. Take us there."

  "Mimphl murkle mibble" came from behind Morley's hand.

  "Let her talk, " I said. "Kill her if she tries to yell."

  We were convincing because Morley would have done it. She said, "They put the blonde woman in the guest house. They put the other one in the dining-hall wine cellar. It was the only place they could lock her up."

  "That's fine," I said.

  "Dandy," Morley agreed. "You're doing wonderfully. Now take us to them. Which one first?" That to me.

  "The brunette."

  "Right. Show us this wine cellar."

  Somebody knocked on the door, just a gentle tippy-tap. Morley whispered, "How long before he gives up."

  She shrugged. "I don't know. I've never not shown up."

  "Been late?"

  "No."

  I suggested, "We could use another door. Which building do you use for a dining hall?"

  She was reasonably calm now, and pliant. She explained. Morley said, "Let's go. And quietly."

  "I have no wish to die. Why are y
ou doing this? The Holy Fathers won't tolerate it. They'll have you hunted down."

  "The Holy Fathers won't have time. We approach the Hour of Destruction. We have entered the Time of the Devastator. The heretic will be devoured." I couldn't get much passion into it because it sounded so silly but I doubted she was calm enough to hear that. "Show us the way."

  She balked. Morley pricked her. I said, "We will have those women, with or without you. You have only one chance to see the sun rise. Move."

  She moved.

  We went out another secondary door. The dining hall proved to be a one-story affair between the nunnery and monk's quarters and behind the main temple. A seminary, occupied by yet another bunch of people, stood behind the dining hall. Maximum convenience. I asked about the other buildings in the complex. Stables and storage, she told us. The guest house, orphanage, and a few other buildings, like homes for several of the Holy Fathers (four of Karenta's twelve lived in TunFaire), were scattered around the grounds, in semi-seclusion. I thought it must really gall the Church to be stuck with one oversized block while the Orthodox maintained a whole city estate. But that's the way it goes when you're number two.

  We reached the dining hall without incident. It wasn't locked. Morley muttered something about moving too slow, that sooner or later there was going to be a change of guard at the gate and an alarm would sound.

  I tried to hurry the nun.

  48

  The nun seemed a little old for clandestine assignations. I guessed she had fifteen years on me. But maybe we never get tired of the great game.

  "There'll be a guard," Morley whispered. "Let me go first."

  I didn't argue. He was better at that sort of thing. "Don't cut him if you don't have to."

  "Right." He went down the stair like a ghost. It wasn't a minute before he called up, "Clear." I herded the nun down. Morley waited at the bottom. "I'll watch her. Get the girl."

  Thoughtful of him.

  The guard slumped on a stool in front of a massive oak door strapped with iron, hung on huge hinges. There was no opening in it. It was secured by a wooden peg through a hasp. Effective enough, I guessed.

  I touched the guard's throat. His pulse was ragged but it was there. Good for Morley. I opened the door, and saw nothing but darkness. I used the guard's lamp to give me light.