Retribution

Bait

A day and a night passed. A violent storm washed across the city bringing sudden and ferocious rains, before vanishing as quickly as it came, leaving the morning to be clearer, crisper and far more fragrant. But despite the drastic events in the skies, there was no movement down on the ground, especially around the house of the Saul Kahn brothers. They remained confined within their own house. I had extended an offer to them that they could despatch a messenger to my quarters should they wish to reconsider their silence on certain matters, but nothing had arrived.

Carlon’s report from the Drennar couple proved consistent with the other deaths. The lacerations had been identical; there were rope marks around their wrists, suggesting they had been restrained perhaps to a chair or a bench as wounds were inflicted upon them. The only difference between their end and that of the others was simply that the innards had been used to bind them in death. It was a public spectacle, one designed to cause maximum publicity and humiliation. Carlon speculated that our murderers were now starting to enjoy the ritual killings.

We had not found any jewellery, and an investigation of their surprisingly modest and almost spiritually austere home proved useless. Their dwelling was littered with frescos and artworks all depicting death, and a discreet painting related to the cult of Hymound. That the old gods were involved somehow seemed a curious link.

There was a skull on their bedside table, and I wondered what kind of mentality desired to be surrounded by such things. I’d heard of certain scholars wanting to be reminded of death as it spurred them on to make the most of the day, but a reminder was one thing — theirs was an obsession.

‘At least now they have got the best reminder of all,’ Leana had commented at the time.

The city was beginning to display signs of a frightened culture. Trade had diminished so rapidly from the marketplaces that the queen was, according to Sulma Tan, beginning to panic. This lack of trade meant that what military resources there were went to the public squares in order to inspire confidence. It struck me that all it did was show how much of a militaristic, centrally dictated state Koton was in reality. No politicians had debated this, Sulma Tan said, annoyed that precious resources were being redirected from the potential border conflict with Detrata. It was simply an order from the queen, and one that didn’t work. It could be seen in the faces of all those passing by the lines of soldiers — glum faces, fearful expressions. Those who had not heard of the numerous murders in the city would be confronted with almost an invasion force in their own lives. It was the sign of a frightened queen, not one in control and certainly not one looking after her people.

Meanwhile, Sulma Tan had seen to it that twenty soldiers took different shifts watching the house of the Kahns. They stationed themselves in secluded alleyways around the property, some taking on the guise of the homeless, others that of traders going about their business, and — much to the Kahns’ relief — a number with full military weaponry inside their house.

The Kahns would not have felt completely safe given that they were aware of being targets for murder, but they would be protected. Two lives would be saved, at the very least, and that was something to take from all of the carnage that we had seen.

I had instructed the brothers to go about their routines as normal, for it was routines that the murderers had always seemed to understand. From Bishop Tahn Valin to Lydia Marinus there was a clear understanding of the victims’ movements.

In this relative calm while we waited for an attempt on the Kahns’ lives, I speculated who could know the routines of these people. Who could have access to all levels of society, from a simple priest to the wealthiest woman in the land? Something did not sit right with me on that issue. Not even Sulma Tan knew of such matters, and she perhaps had access to more information than most people. She theorized that perhaps there was a network of murderers, where they were able to exchange information with ease, and that thought was consistent with my own, that it required multiple people to be able to capture, torture and kill a couple. Did it have anything to do with the number of private guards available in the city? Had a powerful network formed with access to intimate secrets?

If that was the case, what was the point in all of these murders, and what had any of it to do with the island of Evum?

To her credit, Sulma Tan had not yet let on to the queen that she knew about an island previously unmapped. That in itself was brave, because it would be part of the queen’s territories and she would want to know about it.

Sulma Tan had spent several hours in the city’s library, browsing the rolls of paper that ought to have shown the whereabouts of Evum. She paced back and forth, and consulted numerous administrators — again without letting on that the island existed — in order to find every map and chart that had ever been constructed. It transpired that several charts were missing, though no one had ever really checked for the better part of twenty years. The maps that were there were newer, with official seals and no Evum marked. Sulma Tan could only conclude that the official records had been altered, and if Evum had been on any map, those maps had been removed.

This made my desire to see the island all the more potent.

I considered that we would have to go very soon, and leave the two brothers to the mercy of the military. They would have to make their own decisions. Perhaps I could lend them Allius Golt to keep an eye on the property while we were at sea — then, should anyone attempt to gain entry to their house, they would meet a formidable opponent.

But it turned out that we did not have to wait long.

On the second night, as I spoke with Sulma Tan in her office in preparation for leaving for Evum, we received an urgent message.

There has been an attempt on the lives of the brothers. An individual has been captured.

In quiet haste, I fetched Leana and left Nambu to her sleep. In front of the door to our quarters the ever-watchful eye of Allius Golt peered into the corridor.

As moonlight glittered in the puddles from the evening shower, the three of us sped across the city.