Authors: John Phythyon
The page, though, was labeled with the legend, “The Hand of Destiny.” It contained an illustration of a left hand, and there were several lines coming out of it that ended in a language Wolf didn’t recognize. Text at the bottom of the page appeared to be in the same language. The words glowed with a soft hint of magic before Wolf’s Shadow Sight.
“Do you have any idea what this is?” he asked Simone, showing her the diagram. She shook her head. “Keep a look out.”
He closed his eyes and put his hand on the page. He cleared his mind of conscious thought and summoned his Shadow power.
Suddenly, he was no longer standing in Silverleaf’s office. His power took him back in time to a dimly lit cavern. He was staring at a large book that was bound in iron. It was open, and the page he read was the same he found in the safe. His right hand stroked the book greedily. It was not his hand, though. This one had black skin, and the nails were ragged and had dirt clumped under them.
“Yes,” he heard himself say, but it wasn’t his voice. It was Sagaius Silverleaf. “Yes, I’ve looked so long for you.”
He tore the page from the book and closed it. Using only his right hand, he folded it and stuffed it into his tunic. Then he turned to go.
“Wolf?”
With a jolt, he snapped back to reality. He was back in Silverleaf’s office and Simone was staring at him.
“Are you all right,” she asked.
“I’m fine,” he said. “Is anyone coming?”
“No.”
Wolf checked the maps to see if they had any special notation on them, but they looked like builder’s schemes. He replaced them, kept the page on the Hand of Destiny and the list of names and shut the safe. As soon as he did so, it receded into the wall and disappeared as though it had never existed. Wolf placed the documents he kept in his tunic and turned to Simone.
“Do you know a man named Tupelov?” he asked.
“Yes,” she replied. “He is a Phrygian general. He sometimes visits Sagaius.”
“Is that where Silverleaf is now?”
“I do not know,” she said. “He only told me he would be away on business. He didn’t tell me where he was going.”
“How often do they meet?
“He has come here twice. If they meet more often than that, I do not know about it.”
Wolf nodded. He had no reason to doubt Simone. She had given him access to critical information without being prodded. Still, he wanted to be sure.
“Why are you helping me?” he asked.
“I’ve already told you. Sagaius is tired of me. Soon, he will dismiss me. I’ve no loyalty to him.”
“Simone,” he began, “if you’re thinking of finding a new, er, patron, I—”
“Don’t be silly,
Cherie
. You are not who you pretend to be. I know that, and it’s okay. But I desired you, and so I decided to have you. No doubt you thought along similar lines, especially if you were hoping I could help you spy on Sagaius. So, you gave me what I wanted; I am returning the favor.”
Wolf smiled. She was a very different kind of woman. He decided he liked Simone de Beausoir very much.
“
Merci beaucoup
,” he said.
“
Je vous en prie
,” she answered.
They exchanged another smile. After a moment, Wolf broke the silence.
“We’d better get going,” he said.
“Too true. I hate to think what Sagaius would do if he knew you were snooping around his office.” She gave him a quick kiss.
“
Bonne nuit
,
Cherie
,” she said. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
She dashed out of the office, glancing behind her just once. Then she was gone.
Wolf lingered a moment, compelled by the brief experience they shared. Then his professionalism returned, and he slipped out of the office, shutting the door behind him. He crept through the shadows again and returned to his room. After hiding the documents he stole, he slipped into bed and pondered what it all meant. Ten minutes later, he was asleep.
***
Galen Lightwater watched the two humans from the safety of a shadow across from the master’s office. They were speaking in the woman’s native tongue, as they had been doing all night, so he couldn’t understand what they were saying.
He didn’t need to, though. They were up to no good. Neither of them had any business in Silverleaf’s office this late at night.
The woman reached up and kissed the man briefly before turning to leave. Galen drew back deeper into the shadow, hopeful she would not see him. She did not, passing by him carelessly on her way presumably to her chambers. The man hesitated a few moments before he left the office too.
Galen slid to the side so as not to risk a second opportunity for discovery. Something strange happened, though. The human stepped into the shadow and vanished. He reappeared a few moments later in the moonlight, only to dash to another shadow and disappear again.
So, Wolf Dasher wasn’t just the new ambassador to Alfar, if he even held such a post. He was a Shadow. And he’d been sneaking around the villa at night. Most likely, he worked for Her Majesty’s Shadow Service and was here on some errand other than diplomacy.
The kiss he shared with the whore confirmed what he suspected when she first argued so vociferously for his entrance and then disappeared with him after dinner. They were lovers.
Wolf Dasher was a dangerous enemy. He was snooping around the master’s office after dark and bedding his mistress in between. Silverleaf would have to be informed.
Galen crept into the office and had a look around. All the doors were locked, and the safe was undisturbed. At least the dirty human hadn’t been able to look at any of Silverleaf’s secure documents.
Galen smiled. Tomorrow the master would return. Then things would be set straight.
Chapter 16: Two Problems
(Thirty-nine Hours before Revelation Day)
Sagaius was relieved to be home. The enchanted air of his compound took the last remnants of the bitter taste of the Jifani air out of his mouth. He detested the Phrygian general; the man was only interested in conquest. But it appeared everything else was at the ready. Now that he was home, he could focus on bringing the final details of his plan to fruition.
Ravager walked casually behind him as they entered the manor. His face was expressionless. He rarely showed any emotion of any kind. Sagaius wondered just what he thought of his orders. He suspected Ravager didn’t care. Sagaius sensed in him the heart of a sociopath. So far as he could see, killing was the only thing that gave Ravager joy. Typical human. Typical Shadow. Sagaius thought it not at all unusual that, so far as anyone knew, only humans became Shadows. They were a corrupt and pathetic race. It was no wonder they were susceptible to The Rift’s dark magic.
Lightwater met him in the foyer. He seemed as relieved to see his master as Sagaius was to be home.
“Welcome home, Master,” he said in Elfin. He looked at Ravager and gave him a vaguely disdainful nod. Ravager appeared unfazed.
“Thank you, Lightwater,” Sagaius said. “Is everything in order?”
“Not exactly,” Lightwater replied with some hesitation. “We have a guest.”
“A guest?”
“Yes, Master.”
Sagaius was shocked. Who would be coming to see him? He had no pending appointments, and Lightwater knew better than to admit anyone to the villa when Sagaius wasn’t home.
“Who—” he began, but he got his answer immediately. Passing into the foyer at just that minute was a human. Upon seeing Sagaius, his face lit up with joy, and he came forward.
“Good morning, Ambassador,” the human said. “It’s such a pleasure to see you again.”
If Sagaius was shocked to find he had a human guest in his house without invitation, he was even more stunned to see whom it was. The man came forward and offered his hand. It was the Urlish fop who had fleeced him at Conquest at the Dubonney Club.
Sagaius stood with his mouth agape for a moment, unsure how to react. Wolf Dasher’s appearance in his home was so surprising, he was unable to move at first.
“I’m so thankful for your hospitality,” Dasher continued.
That moved Sagaius. He snapped out of his confusion and put a stern look on his face.
“I’m pleased you are grateful, Mr. Dasher,” Sagaius said, “but I don’t recall offering you a room in my home.”
“Sure you do,” Dasher said, that infuriating smile on his face. “You said the next time I was in Alfar, I should come see you. Well, I made it to Alfar, and here I am!”
Sagaius looked at Lightwater, who gave him a look that asked what he wanted the master to do.
“You’re right,” Sagaius said, bile in his throat. “Forgive me. I had forgotten. I confess I hadn’t expected to see you so soon or, in fact, at all. What brings you to Alfar?”
“You’ll never believe it,” Dasher said, an irrepressible grin on his face. “I’m the new ambassador to Alfar. We’ll be seeing a lot of each other across the negotiating table.”
Sagaius felt like the world was turning upside down. This irritating Urlander had taken a lot of his money and then shown up in his home a little over a week later. Before Sagaius could even catch his breath over that news, he learned the fool was also the new representative of Her Majesty’s Government. And hadn’t Ravager arranged his assassination with Starfellow? He turned and glared at the Phrygian, who gave him the slightest shrug.
“Who’s your friend?” Dasher inquired.
“Forgive me,” Sagaius said again, still feeling off-balance. “This is Ravager.”
“
Privet
,” Ravager said.
“That’s Phrygian,” Dasher said, amazed. “What’s a Phrygian doing way out here?”
“Ravager is a defector,” Sagaius explained. “He was a member of their People’s Defense Bureau.”
“Wow!” Dasher said as if he’d never heard of such a thing. The man was ridiculous.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Dasher—” Sagaius began.
“Ambassador,” Dasher interrupted.
“Excuse me?”
“It’s Ambassador Dasher now,” the human said. Sagaius thought he detected a slight smirk, but he couldn’t be sure.
“Forgive me,” Sagaius said. “Ambassador Dasher I can’t extend my hospitality any further. I’m needed in Al-Adan.”
“No need for apologies, Ambassador,” Dasher replied. “I was expected in Al-Adan yesterday, but I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see you and your magnificent home. I’ve just finished breakfast and will be leaving shortly.
“If you’ll excuse me, I’ll finish packing and then say my goodbyes.”
“As you wish.”
“Wonderful to see you again, Ambassador. Nice meeting you, Mr. Ravager.”
With an affable wave of his hand, Dasher turned and left in the direction of the staircase. Sagaius waited until he was out of sight and, presumably, earshot. Then he turned on Ravager.
“I thought you arranged for the new ambassador’s assassination,” he said, fixing the Phrygian agent with a hard stare. Ravager seemed unaffected by it.
“Something must have gone wrong,” he said with a shrug.
Sagaius stared at him for another few moments, but it was apparent this was all the Shadow had to say on the subject. He turned to Lightwater.
“Why did you admit him?” he asked. “You know I don’t permit guests when I am absent.”
“
Mademoiselle
de Beausoir forced me,” he answered. “She said you had invited him while you were in Urland and insisted refusing him could create an international incident.”
Sagaius turned that revelation over in his head. Simone must have known he was being sarcastic during the game when he invited Dasher to his home. Why would she insist he be admitted? He posed the question to Lightwater.
“She is in league with him for some purpose,” Lightwater answered. “I observed the two of them talking in your office last night well after midnight. They spoke her beastly tongue, so I could not understand them, but she kissed him before they parted, and they were intimate earlier in the night.
“Also, the Urlander is no ambassador. He is a Shadow. Whatever his purpose is in Alfar, I very much doubt it has anything to do with negotiating the withdrawal of Urlish soldiers.”
“How do you know he is a Shadow?” Sagaius inquired. He was growing both very concerned and extremely angry.
“I observed him moving from shadow to shadow in the moonlight. When he was in the light, he was visible. But when he was in shadow, he completely vanished. The darkness alone was not enough to enshroud him.”
So, Wolf Dasher was not some silly Urlish fop, who’d managed an appointment from the Queen to a job he was clearly unqualified for. Her Majesty’s Shadow Service was involved. He should have known something was wrong when Dasher sharked him at the Dubonney Club. The man was a lot more dangerous than he appeared. His stupidity and lack of etiquette must be an act.
If that was true, it meant the encounter in Urland was no accident. Wolf Dasher forced the confrontation and then sized up Sagaius during the game. He finagled an invitation here, so he could learn more.
“Did they find anything in my office?” Sagaius asked.
“No,” Lightwater answered.
“How can you be sure?”
“I checked all the doors and drawers. Everything was locked and nothing was missing from the unlocked ones. Dasher was over by the vase, but the safe was not exposed.”
“And no one knows the password but me,” Sagaius commented. “Good.”
Cold fury boiled inside Sagaius’s heart. He hated Urlanders and their arrogance. Now one of them was spying on him at the worst possible time – just when he had his final plans starting in motion. Moreover, the fiend had cuckolded him. With an effort, Sagaius suppressed his rage.
“Ravager,” he said. “We have two problems: an unfaithful lover and an Urlish Shadow. Take care of them both immediately.”
“
Da
,” the Phrygian said and went off in the same direction as Dasher.
Wolf Dasher had fleeced him twice. He’d stolen Sagaius’s money playing Conquest, and he’d stolen his lover while visiting virtually uninvited. He was about to learn the penalty for theft in Alfar was high.