* * * * *
The final rasp of the paper cutter sent a nervous quiver through Amaranthe’s stomach. She and Books stared down at the culmination of their work. Elsewhere in the cannery, Akstyr was hanging paper on lines. Outside, Maldynado stood watch. Newly nailed boards across the broken windows shut out the night’s chill and, more importantly, denied prying eyes.
Amaranthe pushed a kerosene lamp closer, and Books inspected both sides of their first completed twenty ranmya bill. A legitimate bill rested beside it for comparison.
“It looks real,” she breathed.
“An accurate facsimile.” Books held the fake bill up to the light. “The image is perfect. The paper is...well, we can wash the bills and crinkle them up. I think they’ll pass all but a thorough inspection.”
Though this had been Amaranthe’s plan all along, and their success should have elated her, misgivings tangled her mind. Even if she meant her scheme to save the emperor, counterfeiting was high treason—punishable by death—whether she intended to circulate the bills or not. Nobody had been hurt yet, but how long could her luck hold? Did she have the right to risk these men’s lives? Even if their sacrifices might save Sespian? And if luck favored her, and the counterfeiting succeeded, could she actually bluff Hollowcrest and Larocka Myll into succumbing to her demands with these bills?
Yes, the answer had to be yes, or she might as well give up now. But she could not do that. Sespian deserved a chance to rule as he envisioned, and after seven hundred years of war and conquering, the empire needed someone who’d rather wield a pen than a blade. And, philosophical factors aside, she needed her name cleared. Sicarius might be able to walk the streets with a million ranmya bounty on his head, but she wasn’t the fighter he was, and she wouldn’t live long with people hunting her.
“I am uncomfortable with this.” Books set down the counterfeit and reached for a pungent bottle of apple brandy.
“As am I, but what choice do we have?”
“The choice to do nothing and let events unfold as they will.”
“That’s unacceptable,” Amaranthe said.
Books considered the two inches of liquid left, removed and replaced the cork a couple times, but ultimately set the bottle back down without taking a swig.
“Saving the rest for later?” she asked.
“I haven’t had a drink today. I was thinking of quitting.”
“Oh?” Normally, Amaranthe would applaud the resolution, but having one of her few resources incapacitated for days with the shakes would not be convenient. Still, she could hardly encourage him to drink. “An admirable goal.”
Books shrugged and looked away. “How do you know your boy emperor will be any better than Hollowcrest or whatever lackey Forge would put forth?”
“He’s better. I’ve met him. He’s a good man.” She tried to forget she was basing her beliefs on a couple of three minute conversations.
“I hope you’re right.”
Akstyr sauntered over. Paperclips hung from his ear lobes, his nostrils, and the hem of a threadbare shirt several sizes too big for him. “Is that a finished one?”
“Indeed,” Books said.
“Let me see.” Akstyr reached for it.
Books jerked the bill away. “Careful, you’ll damage it.”
“I’m not a three year old.”
“No, you only dress like one.”
“Gentlemen.” Amaranthe plucked the bill from Books’s grip and handed it to Akstyr. “I’m sure there will be no damage done, but if there were, we do have plenty more.”
After a quick sneer at Books, Akstyr surveyed both sides. “Want me to try spending it?”
“No,” Amaranthe said and Books shouted.
If not for the gust of cold air blowing snow through the back door, Amaranthe would not have noticed Sicarius’s entrance. He glided to their counter, white flakes dusting his hair and shoulders. They had finished researching Larocka’s long list of properties that morning. She did not know where he had been since then.
Books returned to the press to prepare the next batch.
Wordlessly, Amaranthe gestured for Akstyr to let Sicarius see the bill.
Sicarius studied it briefly. “Sufficient.”
“Ready for a mission?” Amaranthe asked him. “You too, Akstyr.”
“Huh?” Akstyr glanced at Sicarius. “With him?”
“You wanted someone who could watch your back while you worked your science, didn’t you?” She smiled, willing Akstyr to forget that Sicarius had threatened to break his neck a couple days earlier. “There isn’t anyone better.”
“Uhm.” Akstyr didn’t look sold.
“What mission?” Sicarius asked.
“I would like a chance to observe Larocka Myll. We’ve got a long list of businesses and properties she owns, but if we have to visit each personally, hoping to catch her there...it’ll be fool’s luck if we run into her before the emperor’s birthday. Someone with as many apple tarts in the oven as she has won’t be personally overseeing any of her businesses. Our best bet will be to catch her at home.”
“Which is likely warded,” Sicarius said.
Akstyr’s eyes twitched; he recognized the term. Good. While she doubted someone so young would have much of a magic arsenal, if he could identify it being used, that alone would be worth a lot.
“Maybe,” Amaranthe said. “That’s what we need to verify. We can’t assume that just because Hollowcrest’s assassin had trouble getting in means there isn’t a way. That fellow didn’t have Akstyr’s help investigating. And he was an unprofessional lout.”
“So, we scout the house.” Sicarius nodded.
“And if there is a way in—”
“I’ll kill her tonight,” Sicarius said bluntly.
“Er, yes, that would preclude the need for me to observe her.” Amaranthe would have preferred a solution that did not include killing people, but she doubted Sicarius would agree and did not want to argue with him in front of the others. “Just make sure she doesn’t have accomplices with orders to carry her work on. Forge could be a large coalition.”
“I know how to question someone,” Sicarius said.
“Of course.” She lifted an apologetic hand.
Though his expressionless facade remained in place, he seemed testier than usual tonight. Did he simply taste the chance to rid the emperor of his biggest threat? Or was something else going on? Where did he go when he wasn’t with them at the cannery?
“Boy, come.” Sicarius gestured for Akstyr to lead the way out the door.
Akstyr gulped and glanced at Amaranthe before scurrying for the exit. Remembering Sicarius’s earlier admission that all these men were disposable, she hoped she wasn’t endangering Akstyr’s life. But surely Sicarius would recognize the advantage of keeping a fledgling wizard around in a city where magic was believed the stuff of myth.
“You look concerned.” Books turned the wheel to screw down the press.
“It’s my new normative state,” Amaranthe said. “Are you up to helping me with some research tomorrow? If they don’t succeed in killing anyone tonight?”
“What do you need?”
“I want more information on Larocka and her businesses. I have names for all of them, but some aren’t illuminating. Right now, we know where she lives and where her properties are located. That’s a good start, but it’d be useful to know more about her history and her connections. Maybe they could lead us to other members of the Forge group. Also, if her home is magically protected, how did that come to be? Has she traveled out of the country? Does she bring back wizards like others bring back souvenirs?”
“You suggest a trip to the library?” Books said. “Some time spent perusing the newspapers and industry publications?”
“I think it’d be an enlightening experience.”
“Enlightening enough to keep me from having to stand outside tonight, pretending I know how to pull watch duty?”
Amaranthe smiled. “Perhaps.”
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The Emperor's Edge (a high fantasy mystery in an era of steam) Page 26
