Death and Honor: Book 1 of 2 (18 page)

Both men got to their feet and drew their swords, but stayed crouched behind the crates. When the servant was a few steps away he drew a pouch out of an inside pocket of his uniform. It must be his drug buying uniform, most servant’s uniforms didn’t have pockets for fear they’d fill them with the good silverware. The dealer smiled and it was clear they had met before. The scowl on the servant’s face made it clear he would rather be about anywhere else. In a minute he’d really rather be somewhere else.

Gabriel couldn’t hear what they were saying, but the dealer brought out a small pouch and they traded. When they both looked down at their respective pouches Gabriel said, “Now!”

They leapt up and raced across the street. The dealer spotted them and ran, dropping the money pouch on the ground, coins spilled out in the dirt. “I’ll get this one,” Gabriel said. “Watch him.”

Gabriel sprinted after the fleeing dealer, confident his partner wouldn’t have any trouble with the gray haired servant. The dealer, Johan, was quick but Gabriel slowly closed the gap. With a huge effort he got within five feet of Johan.

The dealer must have felt him closing the gap because he put on another burst of speed and pulled away. He wouldn’t catch the speedy man dressed in armor. Gabriel whipped his arm forward and slung his sword between the fleeing dealer’s legs, tripping him up and sending him sprawling the ground. Before he could think about recovering Gabriel leapt on him and punched him hard in the back to force out whatever wind he had left.

Gabriel got up, recovered his sword and his breath then flipped Johan over and put the tip of his sword under his chin. “Get up, and so help me if you try to run again I’ll run you through the gut. It’s not a pretty way to die.”

Johan put his hands up. “Easy, I’m not going anywhere.”

“Wrong, you’re going to headquarters. Now get moving.”

With several none to gentle prods Gabriel guided his prisoner back to the alley. He found Griff and the buyer had attracted an audience of half a dozen bored freight handlers. Gabriel ignored them and focused on Johan, lest the man try to run again.

Griff looked his way as they approached the starting line of their race. “I thought I was going to have to come looking for you.”

“Don’t start.” Gabriel offered a good natured grin. “Did he have the goods?”

Griff dumped four glittering, crimson, stones out of the small pouch into his hand.

“How much was he getting for those little beauties?”

“I counted the coins while you were gone. There were one hundred pieces of platinum in that pouch.”

Gabriel whistled. That was more coin than most people made in a lifetime. “You two do realize the penalty for buying and selling blood rubies?”

Sullen silence answered him. “Well.” Gabriel looked at the servant. “For buying, you’ll receive life at hard labor in the iron mines. Don’t worry though a man of your age won’t last more than a few months. Johan, you have a less pleasant fate. For selling blood rubies you’ll be drawn and quartered in the city square. I understand it’s quite painful.”

The dealer was shivering. “You don’t want me. I’ll be replaced in a week. You want my supplier. If you can get me out of this alive I’ll tell you who it is.”

“I can put in a good word for you if you’re honest with me.”

“I want to live. The guy you want is Alec Shazar, a big time gem merchant. He smuggles the blood rubies in along with this regular merchandise and no one’s he wiser. It’s a sweat deal.”

“Not for you,” Griff said.

Gabriel hadn’t heard a word after Alec’s name. Gods above, why did it have to be Morgrin’s mentor? There had to be half a dozen gem dealers big enough to handle smuggling blood rubies.

Griff elbowed him in the side, knocking the dismal thoughts out of his head. “You okay?”

“Fine.” Gabriel turned to the old man. “How about you? Want to tell us who you’re buying for?”

The servant sniffed. “My master will have me out before the day is done.”

Gabriel laughed. “Do you think your master will risk getting involved in this to save you? You’ll be replaced by the end of the day not freed.”

The servant looked away without a word.

“Suit yourself,” Gabriel said. “Let’s run them in.”

They made it back to headquarters with their prisoners without anyone trying kill them which suited Gabriel quite well though he would have rather faced a dozen sell swords than the conversation he would have to have with Duncan.

They processed the prisoners without trouble, turned over the coins and drugs to the desk officer, and retired to the desk they shared. Gabriel sat down with a weary sigh.

“When do we go after the gem merchant?” Griff asked.

“Tomorrow.”

Griff raised an eyebrow. “Why the delay? You’re usually eager to get after them.”

“This is a special case. My adopted brother works for the gem merchant. I can’t kick his door down without speaking to Uncle Duncan first.”

Griff blew out a breath. “I don’t envy you that conversation.”

“I’m going for a walk, perhaps inspiration will strike. See you tomorrow.”

Griff nodded. “Good luck.”

Gabriel wondered the streets for the better part of an hour but inspiration kept itself well hidden. At last he gave up and headed home, determined to get it over with.

It was an hour until sunset when he got home. One of the new servants, a young woman whose name he couldn’t recall and who had no domestic skills to speak of beyond the fact that she giggled at the least provocation and had a body that made his aunt’s face turn red whenever she was in the room, hung up his cloak.

“Thank you, dear.” Gabriel unbuckled his sword belt. “Is Uncle Duncan home?”

“No, sir but you have a guest.” The new servant, Domino he remembered at last, said in her high, cheerful voice. “Lady Amanda’s waiting for you in the lounge.”

“Thank you, Domino, and please call me Gabriel.”

She looked away and her cheeks flushed. Gabriel smiled. She was a sweet girl, unlike the last slut Duncan hired. She lasted all of two weeks until Aunt Jolie caught her half naked in bed with Morgrin. When Uncle Duncan had told him the story he could hardly keep from laughing.

Gabriel hung his sword up on a peg near the door and went to the lounge. He found Amanda seated on a small couch reading. She looked up when he entered and he was struck all over again by how beautiful she looked.

“I hope I haven’t kept you waiting long.”

Amanda set her book aside. “Not at all, I didn’t know what time you’d get home, so I came over as soon as classes ended.”

Gabriel sat beside her and she snuggled up under his arm. The tension melted out of him. “I’m glad you came by.”

Amanda looked up at him. “Bad day?”

“The worst is yet to come I’m afraid.”

“Want to talk about it?”

Gabriel told her everything that happened ending with the discovery of Morgrin’s mentor being a drug smuggler. “I’m not sure what’s worse, having to tell Uncle Duncan or having to deal with Morgrin’s reaction to me arresting his mentor. We’re not close as it is, but now he’ll hate me.”

“It’s not your fault his mentor is smuggling drugs, surely Morgrin will understand.”

Gabriel’s smile was bitter. “No, he’ll think I arrested the merchant on purpose to hurt him even though he has nothing to do with it. Sometimes I don’t think his mind works quite right.”

“I don’t know,” she said. “Most noblemen imagine they’re the center of the universe, why should Morgrin be any different?”

The front door opened and he kissed Amanda on the forehead. She squeezed his hand. “Good luck.”

“Thanks.”

Gabriel got up and went to the entryway. Duncan was hanging up his cloak. The older man’s head drooped in a way he’d never seen before. “Bad day, Uncle Duncan?”

“Not the best I’ve ever had.” Duncan managed a weak smile. “You?”

“Mine wasn’t the best either, in fact if you have a moment I need to talk to you.”

“I know that look, Gabriel.” Duncan closed his eyes and sighed. “We’ll talk, but not until after dinner.”

“Of course.” Gabriel put a hand on his adopted father’s shoulder. “You looked tired.”

“I’m getting old.” Duncan grinned. “Now you know why I sleep in so often.”

Dinner was quiet with both Duncan and Gabriel absorbed in their respective problems. Amanda did what she could to lighten the mood with stories about the girls from her school, but the attempts fell flat. Aunt Jolie looked bored by it all.

When they finished eating Gabriel escorted Amanda to the door. “Good luck,” she said.

He kissed her. “I’m afraid I wasn’t good company tonight.”

Amanda smiled and he helped her on with her cloak. “I understand. I hope he takes it all right.”

“Uncle Duncan may play the part of a bumbling nobleman sometimes, but he’s strong. He’ll be okay.”

Amanda’s carriage rolled up to the door and he helped her in. When she’d gone he went back inside and found Duncan in his den with a glass of brandy. He looked up when Gabriel entered. “Did your young lady leave?”

“Yeah, we weren’t a very cheerful party tonight.”

“No, I guess we weren’t at that.” Duncan held up a second glass. “Drink?”

Gabriel shook his head. He’d never gotten a taste for the stronger liquors Duncan favored. He sat down across from Duncan. “You want to go first or shall I?”

Duncan shrugged. “Mine’s no big deal. I spent the afternoon listening to the merchant’s council complain about the increase in bandit activity. Of course they want me to do something, but no one wants to pay more taxes so I can afford to hire more men to patrol the roads. It’s an old argument, but they feel the need to rehash things every so often. Your turn.”

Gabriel took a deep breath and said, “Earlier today I caught a man dealing blood rubies and in exchange for avoiding the death penalty he offered his supplier, a gem merchant.”

Duncan groaned. “It’s not who I think it is?”

“Alec Shazar.”

“Damn it all to hell, are you sure?”

“Nothing’s for sure until we raid the man’s business but I can’t imagine the supplier lying when his life is on the line.”

“Nor can I. Have you told your brother yet?”

“No, I was afraid he might warn his mentor we were coming, and we’re not on the best terms anyway so I thought you should tell him.”

“You’re probably right. What do you have planned?”

“I was hoping you could ask Morgrin to join you for lunch tomorrow and we could move in while he’s gone. I rather not have him there when I arrest his mentor.”

“Yes, that would be a problem. According to the law you’d have to take Morgrin in as well and that wouldn’t do. All right, I’ll firmly suggest he join me for lunch tomorrow.”

“Thanks, Uncle Duncan. I hope we’re wrong and the search turns up nothing.”

Duncan nodded, looking ten years older.

A
bout an hour
before noon Gabriel and Griff camped out at a tavern across from Shazar’s Gem Emporium. Duncan said Morgrin was to meet him at high noon for lunch. Once he left they would move in and raid the shop. On the way out that morning Gabriel had borrowed a pewter cup and a skin of white wine. If they had to he planned to check every ruby in the shop to be certain there were no drugs. Gabriel kept a close eye on the door through the tavern window, waiting for Morgrin to leave.

“If this guy’s smuggling blood rubies,” Griff said. “Why would he take Morgrin on as an apprentice?”

“Because it adds to his cover. Who would ever suspect someone with the Lord Mayor’s son as an apprentice of doing anything illegal? And, if someone did find out they’d be reluctant to do anything for fear of angering Uncle Duncan.”

“Yeah, but if Morgrin found out he’d be in real trouble. What’s to keep the kid from telling his father or you for that matter?”

Gabriel shook his head. Griff didn’t know Morgrin at all. “Duncan and Morgrin don’t get along very well and he and I mix like oil and water. We’ve disliked each other since we were kids and Duncan adopting me didn’t help things any.”

“Speak of the devil.” Griff pointed across the street. Morgrin shut the door behind him and turned toward the mansion.

“Good, we’ll give him a five minute head start then head over.”

Gabriel was eager to raid the shop and get out before Morgrin returned. The wait seemed to drag on but at last he said, “Let’s go.”

They left the tavern and walked across the street. Gabriel pointed toward the rear of the shop, Griff nodded and went to cover the back door. Gabriel took a steadying breath and walked up to the front door. The sign said closed for lunch but it was unlocked. Gabriel went in without knocking.

Earth tones and wood paneling decorated the inside of the shop. Skylights illuminated the interior and display case placed around the room held fine rings and necklaces. A dark haired man with a trimmed and oiled beard emerged from the back of the shop.

“We’re closed, come back in an hour,” the man said.

“Alec Shazar?” Gabriel tapped the lion patch on his shoulder. “I’m not here to shop. I’m Gabriel Kane of the city watch and I’m here to search your shop for contraband.”

“This is an outrage!” Alec yelled and stomped around. “I have wealthy friends. You’ll be busted out of the watch so fast you won’t know what happened. If you leave right now I might, might mind you, be inclined to forget this insult.”

Gabriel crossed his arms. “Are you finished?”

Before he could reply there was a crash in the back room. A few seconds later Griff emerged with a skinny young man in tow. “Caught this one trying to sneak out the back,” Griff said.

Gabriel shot Alec a glare. “Not a bad idea, you throw a fit so your accomplice has a chance to sneak out the back. I’m somewhat offended that you thought I was too stupid to cover the back door.”

“Twerp had this on him.” Griff tossed a leather pouch to Gabriel.

Gabriel tipped the pouch up and four glittering rubies rattled out on one of the display cases. “Well, well, what have we here?” He set the pewter cup beside the rubies and poured two inches of wine into it. Do you want to admit your guilt now or do I have to test these?”

Alec looked away.