The Beast of the North (28 page)

‘My medallion should have stopped the White Brother from finding me,’ I told him. ‘But he did. Perhaps he still can.’

‘Perhaps he was following your horse?’ Taram snickered. ‘Did he know its name?’

‘Sand is dead, and you are joking?’ I spat at him with spite.

‘I’m always having some fun, Maskan. Life is dreadfully short without pleasure. But I will help Father from now on, and you relax. The Brother won’t find us now. Perhaps Father’s craft with his books and artifacts is not so keen after all. Perhaps it only works for our family. I don’t know how he builds them. I know not.’

‘Balan said they were looted from Hel’s armies,’ I said.

‘And perhaps they were,’ he told me impatiently, thinking me tedious.

‘Where is Lith? If she was not available to go after me?’ I asked him.

He chuckled. ‘Lith and Shaduril. How you all vex me. I really hate the thought of you buzzing around them. And Shaduril seems to love you. Gods know what you thought when you reached for her, peasant, but that letter was pretty indicative why Father wanted to keep me in the dark. He agrees. Incredible. Shaduril and you. I cannot fathom it.’

I cursed, turned, and ripped him from his horse. His eyes betrayed incredulity as I slammed him onto the leaves and grass. His hand moved for his dagger, and I suddenly remembered the magic he had wielded, but I was beyond caring. Sand was dead. He mocked Sand. And me. ‘Balan promised me Shaduril. And she loves me more than anything. And I love her. Nothing can change that.’

‘Really?’ he chuckled. His face flared in a hideous grin. I blinked a few times, but when I looked at him again, he had calmed himself. His eyes were cold and calculative. ‘Does she?’ Taram hissed and ripped himself off me. ‘We will see.’ He pushed past me and mounted his horse. We traveled through the night and came to the Broken Crown road. We traveled hills and meadows by the road, avoiding it. There were riders on it, mostly peasants working very late, or early, depending on the point of view. They were hauling food and drink for Dagnar, which was preparing for Yule feasts. Finally, we arrived at the end of the road and went past the familiar village. Taram stopped suddenly in front of the whitewashed tavern where I had gotten the horse from. He guided his horse aside and gazed at the stables by the tavern. They were full of horses. He dismounted, tied his horse to a pillar and walked into the tavern. He turned to look at me. ‘Come then. Let us go apologize for your lost beast.’ He laughed and went in. I hesitated and followed him.

Inside, there had been a massacre.

Lith raised her face to look at me, in shock. Shaduril turned, equally shocked. Both were covered and spattered in blood, and so were their men, a gloomy band of Blacktower men. There were dead everywhere. On the stairs, the tables and the floors. Many had been wrapped up for removal and burial.

Taram snickered. ‘Is this the Shaduril you love?’

‘You bastard,’ Shaduril said and looked from Taram at me.

She had slain men. It was clear. Her beautiful sword was stained with it. At her feet, there were the bodies of the mop-haired boy and a woman. Others had been pages and servants of Crec and Gal. Blacktower warriors stood in silent ranks on the walls, eyeing her, waiting for her reaction. I took a horrified, hesitant step forward. Lith had been bent over Gal, whose face and chest was one ragged wound. ‘Maskan?’ Shaduril whispered.

‘What in Hel’s rotten tit is going on in here?’ Taram asked her with mocking laughter. ‘Excuse me, our friend has quite forgotten his voice.’

She straightened herself and glowered at Taram. ‘Get out!’

‘Oh, don’t think you need to explain yourself to him,’ he told Shaduril. ‘Lith had him this day. I heard it. They were at it for an hour. But I am going to be fair. She took your face. I doubt that matters to you, eh?’ The man laughed and bowed at her and went out.

Lith wiped her face on the back of her hand and adopted a stern look. She nodded at the guards, some of whom hauled still living men aside, some five villagers. They had not killed everyone yet. ‘It is not true, Shaduril,’ she said with a worried voice. I felt half grateful to her, but then I remembered she had planned on extorting me and now she could not. I looked at Shaduril’s face. The girl that had sat on the beach with me was gone. In her place, there was a hopeless thing whose eyes glowed with anger. She turned from me, her explanations banished, and walked to the side, where she sat down and stared at me and Lith. Lith looked at her carefully and then turned to me. ‘I don’t know if that can be fixed. She will want us dead. So. You have seen this. What now?’

‘Are you not supposed to be in Dagnar?’ I asked Shaduril while ignoring Lith. ‘Why did you kill these—’

‘She was needed here,’ Lith said softly. ‘Forget it.’

‘Yes, I see you were needed here,’ I told her and looked around the room. I blanched as I spied two very young boys amidst the corpses. And a maid. The floor was awash with sticky blood. I shook my head in shock when I spied Crec amidst the dead. ‘There are your people. The village is yours,’ I whispered. ‘And how will you deal with the quest now? You killed your allies.’

‘It was necessary,’ she whispered. ‘This was the ideal place to ambush them. But the villagers must not expose us.’ Lith sighed, and I fixed my eyes away from her. She pointed a finger at the dead. ‘This is part of the war. Murdering and killing in the dark are a means to an end. You knew we were capable of it,’ she said. ‘They made a mistake.’

‘How will you achieve anything without them?’ I despaired. ‘The two lords.’

‘Balan has a plan for that,’ she said. ‘I agree it is desperate. But we have you. We will use your face.’

‘I cannot …’ I began, but yes, perhaps I could. I went quiet and she nodded.
Murderers.
There were children.

‘It will be perilous and hard, and much will be asked of you,’ she whispered. ‘And I am sorry Taram screwed up you two.’ She nodded at her sister.

‘She will want to die now,’ I said, looking at Shaduril.

‘She will want to kill us first, I said. And if she does want to die,’ Lith said softly, ‘you have me.’

‘Gods laugh,’ I said and spat at her feet.

She frowned at that but went on. ‘Taram was cruel to bring you here,’ Lith said. ‘Love, you need not worry. One day all this will be over. You will smile again. Dreams are born of nightmares.’

I did not listen to her. I only stared at Shaduril. Something had died in the girl I loved. I saw it. She shook her head and went to stand in the corner, in the shadows. I looked at her and felt miserable. No matter the reasons, no matter what had happened, she was hurt. It was my fault, no matter if I had been fooled.

‘Gal was an ally we needed,’ I whispered. ‘He had a way to the Tower. I am not sure I can change that with a simple face trick. Keys and passphrases will be needed.’

‘There is a lot to learn, but we will do well. Crec is an issue, and the Brothers will have to be dealt with, but we will do our best. We have to think about it. Do not worry. Please. We have an excellent chance to change many things.’

‘I see,’ I told her, thinking how strange she was. She had been a loving, even vulnerable creature in my arms, not so long ago. Now, she was a practical killer who did not flinch standing over a child’s corpse. Like Shaduril.

‘Sand?’ she asked me. ‘Taram was sent men and then to find you.’

‘Sand died,’ I told her. ‘This amulet did not work. We were ambushed by the White Brother.’

‘I am sorry,’ she said softly. ‘I knew he would be in danger eventually. He was not really useful for the plan, other than to keep you in check. And he felt left out, no doubt. You were showered with promises, he was forgotten.’

‘Yes,’ I whispered. ‘It is my fault.’

She saw I was heartbroken. Distraught, hurt. Terrified of the scene and the murdering things before me. She stood there, swaying for a long time, wondering, thinking and finally, she sighed. ‘Go to Balan. It will be all right. In the end, all will be well. Even Sand. I promise you this.’

‘You cannot speak for Hel,’ I told her.

‘I can try,’ she grinned.

‘Shaduril?’ I called out.

She waved her hand at me. She turned to look at me. There was despair in her eyes, but also a desire. And she voiced the desire. ‘I really want to see you die, Maskan, painfully. Just to make you feel what I feel right now.’

‘But—’

‘Go away, Maskan,’ Lith said with a whisper. ‘It’s over.’

I cursed and walked away. I went out and saw Taram sitting on his horse. I hesitated. I should run, I thought. But I would not. They are all mad, evil. Taram winked. ‘I did not have to show you this, did I? But I wanted to. Grows you up. It is over. There was nothing real with Lith and you. And now there is nothing with Shaduril.’

I spat at his feet. ‘Truly you cannot hurt me any worse.’

He hesitated. ‘I can’t? Let me think about it for a moment. ‘ His face twitched and his eyes gleamed dangerously. I walked past him for the Crimson Apex. He turned to ride before me. He rode ahead of me the whole way, not saying anything. When we arrived at the Crimson Apex, I stared at the old keep, but it looked dead. As dead as Shaduril had. The bastard Taram. The fool Maskan.

Balan met us at the doorway. He was scowling at Taram and then pointed a finger at me. ‘You killed a guard.’

‘He killed himself,’ I told him, feeling sorry for the man. ‘And you killed a village.’

‘What?’ he breathed. ‘Who—’

‘Taram took me to visit the village in question,’ I grimaced as I stared at the man.

He nodded, rubbing his face. ‘It has to be a secret Crec and Gal died. You see? The villagers would know.’

‘No,’ I said spitefully.

‘And you took my book,’ he accused me with a quivering voice. ‘Why?’

I laughed. ‘And that’s it for the village? Why? You kill left, you kill right, and you promise away family and friends and allies so fast you probably cannot even remember what you have agreed and with whom. That book is filled with shit I can burn you with. Or anyone,’ I told him bitterly. ‘I’ll never return it. I’ll use it to make sure you will not become a ruler of the land. Oh, we will kill the royals, but that book is mine now.’

Balan’s eyes turned to Taram, who smiled smugly. ‘I knew you were a mistake,’ Balan told him. ‘You are mad.’

‘I am,’ Taram agreed. ‘But I will help you now. Want me to kill him?’

Balan cursed us both softly. ‘No. I don’t like this.’

‘I don’t like many things,’ I told him. ‘You are one manipulative bastard. Who will be the king? Not you.’

‘We will find a king, boy,’ he told me softly. ‘Crec has a son, I think. He might grow into our man. But you? You are risking our endeavor. You are ruining us. You stole our most excellent book, the ancient bit of history. You were very nearly caught …’ he said. ‘Get clear, boy,’ he told Taram, who bowed stiffly.

We heard a rumbling noise.

‘Come inside,’ he hissed and pulled at me. I poked a finger at him and pushed him back. I turned to look at the old keep. From it, an army emerged. There were dozens, then hundreds of well-armored men marching out. Hundreds. Spear points bristled, shields clanked and cowled men looked ahead in the dark. There was one leading them, larger than the others were, and he was not cowled. ‘Valkai?’ I whispered.

‘Valkai,’ Balan agreed. ‘He did not die of the hanging. We spared his life. He is impossible to kill. I have armed all my own men and bought hundreds of others, lots, and lots, and Valkai there will lead the last of them to Dagnar for the day of reckoning. There are ways in and he knows them all. He knows the Old City. There are a thousand there already, and these will make a formidable army.’

‘Shaduril is in much worse danger now,’ I said darkly. ‘You expect me to fill in the shoes of those two men?’

Balan turned me around. The blacks in his eyes were tiny, his face drawn. ‘Grec and Gal betrayed me. They would have disposed of me. And you. And Shaduril. The whole family. The Mad Watch would have blamed us for the crime and off to hang we would have gone while they enjoy the fruits of our work and sacrifices. No. You will take Gal’s place after the queen dies. We will use Valkai’s tunnels of the Old City to hide the men and sneak them near the Thin Way. You will get them in. It will be messy. But it will be done.’

‘I see,’ I told him. ‘And when Crec and Gal won’t return home?’

‘I will send letters signed by them to the families,’ he said with a small, ferret-like grin. I have their seals as well. They are busy and out of town for a week. Don’t worry about the details. Soon, things will be back to normal. What you will need to do, Maskan, is to kill the queen, and then meet the new lord of the mint wearing Gal’s face. You will lead them in. Later, you will be Crec and command the troops to purge the enemy from the city.’

I looked at the marching, ominous army. They would take the route to the city and stage an assault into the Tower of the Temple. People would die. There were a thousand of them now, some were not armored but apparently peasants. Others were young, others old.

‘I’m taking all my people to war,’ Balan said softly.

‘Fine.’

He scowled and hesitated. ‘Fine. I am sorry for your friend. I am. But I am not happy about the theft.’