Theft of Swords Page 8

  “Of course, but what makes you think he has any clue?”

  “I don’t know anything for certain. But he’s not asking for money, just a fresh start. That reminds me, here are some clothes to give him.” There was a brief pause. “Look, he seems trustworthy to me. I think if he was lying, he would request gold or land.”

  “It’s just so … strange. Hilfred’s not even with you. It’s as if you’re walking around without a shadow. It’s unnerving is what it is. Just coming down here with you, it’s—well, you and I, we—you know. We’re brother and sister, yet we hardly see each other. In the last few years, I think I’ve only spoken to you a dozen times, and then only when we visit Drondil Fields on holiday. You always lock yourself up in that tower, doing who knows what, but now—”

  “I know, it’s strange,” Arista replied. “I agree. It’s like the night of the fire all over again. I still have nightmares about that evening. I wonder if I’ll have nightmares about tonight.”

  Alric’s voice softened. “That’s not really my point. It’s just that we’ve never gotten along, not really. But now, well, you’re the only family I have left. It seems strange to be saying it, but I suddenly find that matters to me.”

  “Are you saying you want to be friends?”

  “Let’s just say I want to stop being enemies.”

  “I didn’t know we were.”

  “You’ve been jealous of me ever since Mother told you elder daughters don’t get to be queen as long as little brothers are around to be king.”

  “I have not!”

  “I don’t want to fight. Maybe I do want to be friends. I’m the king now, and I’ll need your help. You’re smarter than most of the ministers, anyway. Father always said so. And you’ve had university training; that’s more than I’ve had.”

  “Trust me, Alric, I’m more than your friend. I’m your big sister, and I’ll look out for you. Now go in there and see what this man has to say.”

  As Alric entered the kitchen, Hadrian brought the hilt of his sword down on the back of his head. The prince collapsed to the floor with a dull thud. Arista rushed in.

  “I said not to hurt him!” she scolded.

  “He would be screaming for the guard right now otherwise,” Hadrian explained. He tied a gag around the prince’s mouth and placed the sack over his head. Royce was already up from his seat and securing Alric’s ankles with twine.

  “He’s all right, though?”

  “He’ll live,” Hadrian told her as he secured the hands and arms of the unconscious prince.

  “Which is a whole lot more than he had in store for us,” Royce added, pulling tight the noose around the prince’s ankles.

  “Keep in mind he was certain you killed his father,” the princess said. “How would you react?”

  “I never knew my father,” Royce replied indifferently.

  “Your mother, then.”

  “Royce is an orphan,” Hadrian explained as they continued to wrap the prince in twine. “He never knew either of his parents.”

  “I suppose that explains a lot. Well then, imagine how you’ll treat the person who sent you to the chapel tonight, once you find him. I doubt you’ll be very charitable when coming face to face with him. In any case, you gave your word. Please do as I ask, and take good care of my brother. Don’t forget I spared your lives tonight. I’m hoping that fact will keep you to your word.”

  She held out the bundle dropped by her brother. “Here is a set of clothes that should fit him. They used to belong to the steward’s son, and I always thought he looked about the same size as Alric. Oh, and remove his ring but keep it safe. It bears the royal seal of Melengar and is proof of his identity. Without it, unless you encounter someone who knows his face, Alric is just another peasant. Return it to him when you reach the prison. He’ll need it to get in.”

  “We’ll hold up our end of the bargain,” Hadrian told her as he and Royce moved the bundled body of the prince toward the open basin. Royce pulled the opulent dark blue ring from Alric’s finger and stuffed it in his breast pocket. He then climbed to the bottom of the cistern. Using the rope tied around Alric’s ankles, Hadrian lowered him headfirst to Royce. Once the prince was down, Hadrian grabbed the torch and dropped it to Royce. Then he entered the hole and dragged the grating back into position. At the bottom of the ladder was a five-foot-wide, four-foot-high arched tunnel in which a shallow river of filth flowed.

  “Remember,” the princess whispered through the metal grid. “Go to Gutaria Prison and speak to Esrahaddon. And please, keep my brother safe.”

  An incomprehensible series of mumbles emitted from the prince under the potato sack. While they were not certain exactly what he was saying, Royce and Hadrian could tell the prince was doing his best to shout and was decidedly displeased with his situation.

  The cold water backing up from the Galewyr River into the sewer had woken him. They were waist deep in it now and while the smell was better, the temperature was not. As they looked out through the end of the cistern, the first pale light of dawn revealed the difference between the forested horizon and the sky. Night was melting away fast, and they could hear the Mares Cathedral bell ringing for early service. The whole city would be waking soon.

  Hadrian calculated they were below Gentry Square, not far from Artisan Row, where the city met the river. Determining their location was an easy guess, because it was the only section of town with covered sewers. A metal grate blocked their exit, and Hadrian was relieved to find hinges and a lock sealing it instead of bolts. Royce made quick work of the lock, and the rusted hinges surrendered to a few solid kicks from Hadrian. With the way clear, Royce went out to scout while Hadrian sat at the mouth of the sewer with Alric.

  The prince had worked his gag loose, and Hadrian could recognize his words now. “I’ll have you flailed to death! Release me this instant.”

  “You’ll be quiet,” Hadrian replied, “or I’ll let you go into the river and we’ll see how well you tread water with your hands and feet tied.”

  “You wouldn’t dare! I’m the King of Melengar, you swine!”

  Hadrian kicked Alric’s legs out from under him, and the prince fell facedown. After allowing him to struggle for a few moments, Hadrian pulled him up. “Now keep your mouth shut or I might leave you to drown next time.” Alric coughed and sputtered but did not speak another word.

  Royce returned, having slipped into the sewer soundlessly. “We are right on the river. I found a small boat by a fisherman’s dock and took the liberty of commandeering it in His Majesty’s name. It’s just down the slope in a stand of reeds.”

  “No!” the prince protested, and shook his shoulders violently. “You must release me. I’m the king!”

  Hadrian gripped him by the throat and into his ear whispered, “What did I tell you about talking? Not a sound or you swim.”

  “But—”

  Hadrian dunked the prince again, pulled him up for a short breath, and dunked him once more. “Not another sound,” Hadrian growled.

  Alric sputtered, and Hadrian, dragging the prince with him, followed Royce down the slope.

  The craft was little more than an oversized rowboat, bleached by the sun and filled with nets and small painted buoys. The heavy smell of fish from the boat helped mask the stench of sewage. A tarp, stretched to form a little tent used to store gear or to serve as a shelter, covered the bow. They stuffed the prince underneath, pinning him there with the nets and buoys.

  Hadrian pushed off the bank with a long pole he found in the boat. Royce used the wooden rudder to steer the small craft as the river did the work of propelling them downstream. Near the headwaters, the current of the Galewyr was strong, and forward momentum was no problem. They found themselves working to keep the boat in the center of the river as they moved swiftly westward. Just as the sky was turning from a charcoal gray to dull steel, they passed under the shadow of the city of Medford. From the river, they could see the great tower of Essendon Castle, its falcon s
tandard flying at half-mast for the dead king. The flag was a good sign, but how long would it be before they discovered the prince was missing and they removed it?

  The river marked the southern edge of the city, skirting along Artisan Row. Large two-story warehouses of gray brick lined the bank, and great wooden wheels jutted out into the river, catching the current to power the millstones and lumberyards. Because the shallow waters of the Galewyr prevented the passage of deep-keeled ships, numerous docks serviced flat-bottomed barges that brought goods from the small seaport village of Roe. There were also piers built by the fishing industry, which led directly to fish markets, where pulleys raised large nets and dumped them onto the cutting floor. In the early morning light, the gulls had already begun to circle the docks where fishermen had started to clear the lines on their skiffs. No one paid particular attention to the two men in a small boat drifting down the river. Nevertheless, they stayed low in the boat until the last signs of the city disappeared behind the rising banks of the river.

  The day’s light grew strong, as did the pull of the current. Rocks appeared and the river trench deepened. Neither Royce nor Hadrian was an expert boatman, but they did their best dodging the rocks and shallows. Royce remained at the tiller while Hadrian, on his knees, used the long wooden pole to push the bow clear of obstacles. A few times, they glanced off unseen boulders, and the hull lurched abruptly with a deep unpleasant thud. When it did, they could hear the prince whimper, but otherwise he remained quiet and their trip was a smooth one.

  In time, the full face of the sun rose overhead, and the river widened considerably and settled into a gentle flow with sandy banks and rich green fields beyond. The Galewyr divided two kingdoms. To the south lay Glouston, the northern marchland of the kingdom of Warric. To the north was Galilin, the largest province in Melengar, administered by Count Pickering. At one time, the river had been a hotly disputed division between two uneasy warlords, but those days were gone. Now it was a peaceful fence between good neighbors and both banks remained lovely, untroubled pastoral scenes of the late season, filled with hay mounds and grazing cows.

  The day became unusually warm. Because it was so late in the year, there were few insects about. The cicadas’ drone had disappeared, and even the frogs were quiet. The only sound that remained was that of the soft gentle breeze through the dry grasses. Hadrian reclined across the boat with his head on the bundle of the steward’s son’s old clothes and his feet on the gunwale. His cloak and boots were off and his shirt was open. Similarly, Royce lay with his legs up, idly guiding the boat. The sweet scent of wild salifan was strong in the air, the fragrance more pungent after the plants’ surviving the year’s first frost. Except for the lack of food, the day was turning out to be quite wonderful and would have been even if they had not just escaped a horrible death hours before.

  Hadrian tilted his head back to catch the full light of the sun on his face. “Maybe we should be fishermen.”

  “Fishermen?” Royce asked dubiously.

  “This is pretty nice, isn’t it? I never realized how much I like the sound of water lapping against a boat before. I’m enjoying this: the buzzing of a dragonfly, the sight of the cattails, and the bank drifting lazily by.”

  “Fish don’t just jump into the boat, you know?” Royce pointed out. “You have to cast nets, haul them in, gut the fish, cut off their heads, and scale them. You don’t just get to drift.”

  “Putting it that way makes it sound oddly more like work.” Hadrian scooped a handful of water from the river and splashed it on his warm face. He ran his wet fingers through his hair and sighed contentedly.

  “You think he’s still alive?” Royce asked, nodding his head toward Alric.

  “Sure,” Hadrian replied without bothering to look. “He’s probably sleeping. Why do you ask?”

  “I was just pondering something. Do you think a person could smother in a wet potato bag?”

  Hadrian lifted his head and looked over at the motionless prince. “I really hadn’t thought about it until now.” He got up and shook Alric, but the prince did not stir. “Why didn’t you mention something earlier!” he said, drawing his dagger. He cut through the ropes and pulled the bag clear.

  Alric lay still. Hadrian bent down to check if he was breathing. Just then, the prince kicked Hadrian hard, knocking him back toward Royce. Alric began feverishly untying his feet, but Hadrian was back on him before he cleared the first knot. He slammed Alric to the deck, pinning his hands over his head.

  “Hand me the twine,” Hadrian barked to Royce, who was watching the wrestling match with quiet amusement. Royce casually tossed him a small coil, and when Hadrian at last had the prince secured, he sat back down to rest.

  “See,” Royce said, “that’s more like fishing; only fish don’t kick, of course.”

  “Okay, so it was a bad idea.” Hadrian rubbed his side where the prince had hit him.

  “By brutalizing me, the two of you have sentenced yourselves to death! You know that, don’t you?”

  “That’s a bit redundant, don’t you think, Your Majesty?” Royce inquired. “Seeing as how you already sentenced us to death once today.”

  The prince rolled onto his side, tilting his head back, squinted against the brilliant sunlight.

  “You!” he shouted, amazed. “But how did you—Arista!” His eyes narrowed in anger. “Not jealous, is she! My dear sister is behind all this! She hired you to kill my father, and now she plans to eliminate me so she can rule!”

  “The king was her father as well. Besides, if we wanted to kill you, don’t you think you’d already be dead?” Royce asked. “Why would we go to all the trouble of hauling you down this river? We could have slit your throat, weighed you down with rocks, and dumped you hours ago. I might add that such a fate would still be considerably better than what you had planned for us.”

  The prince considered this for a moment. “So it’s ransom, then. Do you intend to sell me to the highest bidder? Did she promise you a profit from my sale? You’re both fools if you believe that. Arista will never allow it. She’ll see me dead. She has to in order to secure her seat on the throne. You won’t get a copper!”

  “Listen, you little royal pain in the ass, we didn’t kill your father. In fact, for what it’s worth, I thought old Amrath was a fair king, as far as they go. We also aren’t ransoming or selling you.”

  “Well, you certainly aren’t trussing me up like a pig to get in my good graces. Now exactly what are you doing with me?” The prince struggled against his bonds but eventually settled down.

  “If you really want to know, we are trying to save your life. As strange as that may seem,” Hadrian said.

  “You’re what?” Alric asked, stunned.

  “Your sister seems to think someone residing in the castle—the same lot that killed your father—is plotting to kill everyone in the royal family. Because you would be the next likely target, she freed us to smuggle you out for your own safety.”

  Alric pulled his legs up under him and worked his way to a sitting position with his back resting up against the pile of white-and-red striped buoys. He stared at the two of them for a moment. “If Arista didn’t hire you to kill my father, then exactly what were you doing in the castle tonight?”

  Hadrian provided a quick summary of his meeting with DeWitt, to which the prince listened without interruption.

  “And then Arista came to you in the dungeon with this story, asking you to abduct me to keep me safe?”

  “Trust me,” Hadrian said. “If there was another way to get out of there, we would have left you.”

  “So you actually believe her? You’re dumber than I thought,” Alric said, shaking his head. “Don’t you see what she’s doing? She’s out to have the kingdom for herself.”

  “If that were so, why would she have us kidnap you?” Royce asked. “Why not just have you killed like your father?”

  Alric thought a moment, his eyes drifting to the floor of the boat, and then he nodd
ed. “She most likely tried.” He looked back at them. “I wasn’t in my room last night. I slipped out for a rendezvous and fell asleep until I heard the noise. It’s very likely an assassin was sent for me but I wasn’t there. After that, I had a guard with me at all times until Arista convinced me I had to come alone to the kitchen. I should have known she was betraying me.”

  He swung his bound legs into the mound of nets. “I just never thought she could be so cold as to kill our father, but that’s how she is, you see. She’s extremely clever. She told you this story about a traitor, and it was believable because it was true. She only lied about not knowing who it was. Once her assassin missed me, she used you. It was more likely that you’d agree to a kidnapping rather than murder, so she set you up.”

  Royce did not answer but glanced at Hadrian.

  “There was this boat,” the prince went on, looking around him, “perfect for your needs waiting at the river’s edge.”

  Alric dipped his head at the tarp next to him. “How nice to have a boat with a cover like this to hide me under. With a nice boat, and a river, you wouldn’t be tempted to stray off the water. You can’t go upstream from the city. The headwaters are too rough. You have to go toward the sea. She knows exactly where we are, and where we’ll be. Did she say where to take me? Is it somewhere down this river?”

  “Lake Windermere.”

  “Ah, the Winds Abbey? It’s not far from Roe, and this river travels toward it. How convenient! Of course, we’ll never make it,” the prince told them. “She’ll have killers waiting along the bank. They will murder us. She’ll say you two killed me, just as you killed my father. And, of course, her guards killed you when you tried to flee. She’ll have a wonderful burial for me and my father. The next day she will call Bishop Saldur to perform her coronation.”