Spy Glass

13

NOT WAITING FOR FINN TO MAKE THE FIRST MOVE, I threw a dart at him, aiming for his neck. He deflected the weapon with his magic, sending it skittering along the wall before it landed on the ground.

He advanced. “What a lovely reunion. I think I might cry.” Finn mimed wiping tears as he sniffed. “I knew that rat would squeal to you. He resisted my torture and my tricks, guarding his precious little secret. Even my truth serum failed to work. Unfortunately it’s a hit-or-miss type of drug. You babbled on and on about searching for your blood and about your immunity to magic, but I couldn’t get you to tell me how you managed to become immune.”

“Why do you care about my blood?” I asked.

“It’s very valuable. Gentlemen, please escort Miss Rhea Jewelrose back to her cell.”

In the narrow hallway, only two men could rush me. Though they were skilled fighters, I jabbed Erik with my last dart and held off Carrl with a flurry of palm heel strikes until Lamar joined in. Even with my intensive training, the two of them overpowered me. Held between them, I struggled to no avail. They anticipated all my self-defense techniques, rendering them useless.

“Someone’s been practicing. Bravo,” Finn said. He picked the dart from the floor. “A sleeping potion?” he asked me, but didn’t wait for an answer. “I must say I’m impressed with your efforts. When you left Fulgor, I set a watch for you, but I expected you to get caught sneaking in.”

“Councilor Moon knows I’m here.”

He smiled, but the humor failed to reach his eyes. “No she doesn’t. Nor will she. Whatever insurance you left behind will be intercepted before it arrives. Didn’t her new assistant seem too qualified?”

“But her background—”

“Impeccable.” He cocked his head. “Are you going to cooperate or do I need to incapacitate you?” Finn raised the dart.

Horror swept through me at the thought of being unconscious. “No need for that.”

“Secure her hands,” Finn ordered.

On my right, Lamar released his grip. With Finn aiming the dart only a few feet away, I couldn’t resist. Lamar pulled my arms behind me and nausea bubbled in my throat. He snapped the cuffs on my wrists, but he didn’t tighten them. Then he slipped a round object into my palm. Trying to keep the surprise from showing on my face, I automatically fisted it, recognizing the shape.

Finn stepped to the side as my escorts guided me past. They would never be this close again. It was now or never. I held my breath, yanked my arm from the loose cuff and from Lamar’s weak grip and flung the glass ball to the floor.

It shattered on impact, releasing a bright flash and a noxious gas. Finn and Carrl coughed and sputtered and were soon prone. It was one of Valek’s toys, but it had been too big to conceal on my body. I met Lamar’s cocky gaze. Despite the gas, he remained standing.

Several clues clicked together and I groaned. “I shouldn’t have worried,” I said, being careful not to breathe in. “It was a classic damsel-in-distress situation. Who else would save me?”

He grinned. “Better hurry, Opal. I can’t reveal myself. This guy is brutal.” He nodded at Finn. “And hard to figure.”

“Thanks, Janco. Guess you shouldn’t have pissed Valek off or you would have gotten Pellow’s—or should I say—Ari’s cushy job at Dawnwood.”

“And be bored? No thanks.” He shooed me away and crouched in the fumes, inhaling deep breaths. By the time I reached the door, he was unconscious, as well.

The outer entrance to the wing was quiet, but when I slipped into the stairwell, the shouts and pounding of boots echoed below. My exit route was blocked. I had spent too much time with Ulrick and Finn. Panic rolled through me. I allowed the fear to crash and settle before reviewing my options. It was time for my backup plan.

With no way to get past the commotion below, I went up instead. I reached the warden’s office without incident. The lack of COs meant the warden wasn’t inside. Good. Using my lock picks on the four complex locks, I eventually let myself into his office and relocked the door.

Exhausted, I collapsed on his desk chair, wondering how long it would take the COs to inform the warden of my escape. I lounged back and put my feet on his desk to appear casual. My heart, though, didn’t get the whole acting relaxed order and insisted on knocking against my breastbone.

When the distinct sound of a key shoved into a lock reached me, my heart jumped. I chanted the word relax in my mind, but I still froze with fear when the warden entered his office. His diatribe trailed off as he noticed me. The COs who had been enduring a dressing-down gasped.

For a moment we all just stared at each other. Then the officers moved toward me, splitting up to go around each side of the desk.

“Stop,” the warden ordered.

They halted mere feet from me. Furious glares promised I would pay dearly for my escape.

“Is this the prisoner you seek?” the warden asked.

“Yes, sir,” the guard on the left said.

“You’re certainly a bold one,” the warden said to me.

“I just did what you wanted, Grogan.”

He glowered, and I suppressed the urge to sink under the desk.

“Explain,” he ordered.

“You issued me a challenge to find anything wrong with your officers or prison. I sneaked in disguised as a prisoner and escaped. I’d say that qualifies as something wrong.”

“You didn’t fully escape,” he said.

“Doesn’t matter. You said anything.” I leaned back in his chair, exaggerating the motion. “Besides, if I wanted to leave, I could have ambushed you when you entered your office and used you to escape.”

He laughed. “Wouldn’t work. We all know our lives are forfeit if we’re taken hostage.”

I shrugged. “I still managed to get into the SMU before coming up here. And I found other problems.”

As I talked, color rushed into his face. “Get Finn. Now,” he ordered the COs. They bolted.

Not good. I swallowed. “Finn isn’t reliable. He’s been torturing the SMU prisoners.”

“He’s my right-hand man. I’m sure he can explain your allegations.”

I stood. “They’re not allegations. They’re facts.”

We glared at each other until one of the COs burst into the room, panting.

“He’s…gone, sir.” The guard motioned to me with his hand. “She was…in the wing…knocked every…one out.”

Lamar and Carrl entered behind the guards. The gas in the glass ball didn’t last near as long as the sleeping juice.

Grogan aimed his anger at them. Carrl blanched, but Lamar…Janco kept his face neutral. Although a spark of humor flashed in his eyes when he met my gaze.

“Where is Finn?” the warden asked them.

“She must have done something to him,” Carrl said.

“I’m impressed that you think I’m strong enough to move an unconscious man.”

“When we woke, sir. Finn was not among us,” Janco said. “I believe he was working here under false pretenses.”

And then it hit me. Finn had overheard Ulrick and knew where to find my blood. I caught Janco’s attention. He understood my sudden need to leave.

“Why wasn’t I informed?” Grogan bellowed.

“Truthfully, sir. Finn is scarier than you,” Janco said.

Carrl nodded in agreement, but he still appeared nervous. “Do you think he’s gone for good?”

“If not, he will be,” Grogan promised.

I edged toward the door.

“Should I escort our…guest out?” Janco asked.

“Not until you get details on how she managed this…” He swung his arm wide, indicating me and the room. “I want a full report on my desk in one hour.”

“Yes, sir,” Janco snapped.

He held my arm and we left. The warden’s loud orders to Carrl followed us until the door closed.

Janco and I raced down the stairs.

“Think you’ll have time for that report?” I asked.

“Doubtful. Too bad, I live to write reports.”

Unfortunately, we were stopped a few times by COs. Janco informed them the prisoner had been captured and to return to their regular duties. Even though I wore a CO uniform, a few squinted at me with suspicion, but Janco was a hotshot and therefore outranked them. Handy.

We reached the street and ran to the nearest stables.

“How long?” I asked.

“Finn has about an hour head start.”

Damn. We arrived at the stables and roused the owner, renting his two fastest horses. The man would have an interesting tale to tell.

As the horses chewed up the miles to Hubal, the sun rose. We didn’t slow when we reached the downtown. People scattered and cursed at us. The trip to Ulrick’s glass factory located in the woods passed in a blur. We rushed around the back of the building and dismounted. The sandpile had been removed, but evidence of where it had been remained along with more recent activity.

My world tilted and I sank to my knees. Dirt piled next to a fresh hole in the ground. My blood was gone.

Janco crouched near the hole. He scooped a handful of dirt and sniffed it. Scenting the wind as if he were a dog, he scanned the area. He put a finger to his lips and drew a dagger from his boot.

I jumped to my feet and followed him toward the abandoned factory. The back door was locked. Janco pointed and I popped the lock in a few seconds with my picks. Impressed, he raised his eyebrows. My speed had improved while working with Valek.

Turning the knob, I eased open the door. Janco rushed in without making a sound. I stayed right behind him. We stopped in the main area. Finn stood in the middle of the empty room with a sword in his right hand and a large glass bottle filled with a bright red liquid in his left. They had drained more blood than I thought. From the color, I knew the blood had been preserved by magic.

“Lamar, how very unexpected,” Finn said with a disapproving tone.

Magic brushed us. Janco flinched, but held steady.

“Even now I can’t sense your deception. No matter. We’ve already proven you’re no match for me.”

Janco grinned. “It’s never wise to beat your boss. Good thing you’re not my boss anymore.”

I stifled a laugh. Not only had he used the word wise, but Janco’s current position in Ixia had been gained by beating a succession of his superior officers.

“Give Opal her bottle,” Janco said.

“No. Someone is willing to pay an outrageous amount of gold for this.”

“Who?” I asked.

“Someone who hates you very much.”

Janco glanced at me. “That narrows it down to half of Sitia.”

“Not funny.” Because if I considered the people who were upset and inconvenienced due to the loss of my glass messengers, he might be right. “Hand it over, Finn.”

“Seems we’re at an impasse,” Finn said. “If we fight, or if you use one of your darts or that nifty gas ball, I might drop the bottle, spilling your blood. You’ll have to decide if you want to risk it or not.”

“All right. How much?” I asked.

Finn jerked with surprise, but recovered. “You can’t afford it.”

“Try me.”

He peered at me as if assessing my net worth. “Did the Council let you keep the diamonds from here?” He pointed down.

“Yep. I’m richer than Vasko Cloud Mist.”

Finn flinched at the name. “Doubtful.”

“How much?” I asked again. Would I be willing to give him all my money for that bottle? Yes.

He hesitated.

“Despite his claims, Finn’s not doing this for the money, Opal,” Janco said.

Janco was right. Better to spill my blood than for it to get into the wrong hands. “Janco, why don’t you entertain Finn with one of your rhymes?”

“My pleas—” Janco froze.

I reached and encountered a bubble of magic around him.

“I’m not in the mood for a fight,” Finn said. He sheathed his sword and yanked out a blowgun. Loading the pipe without rushing, he was confident I wouldn’t be a problem.

“Too bad,” I said as I snatched Janco’s dagger.

Finn blocked my first attack with the blowgun. I parried and my blade hacked chunks from the wooden tube as he used it to protect himself. He backed up as I advanced, pressing my advantage.

“Well done, Opal,” he said when the dagger sliced his blowgun into two.

I stepped closer and he chopped my wrist. He used this move before to the same effect, stunning my hand with the edge of his palm and taking the weapon from me. At least this time, I saw it happening. Didn’t help, but it was progress.

Finn touched the tip of the dagger to my neck. “I’m growing quite fond of you. My patron paid for your blood, but I imagine you would bring a higher price. Or perhaps you would pay me to release you?”

Oh no. Not this again. I leaned back away from the blade and kicked forward, hitting him in the ribs. Not hard, as I was unbalanced, but enough to distract him while I shuffled out of reach. He surrounded me with a thick bubble of magic. It weighed me down and slowed my movements. Holding a dart, Finn stalked me.

Frantic, I splayed my hands and without piercing the bubble of magic I pushed it away from me before Finn could aim. It moved. I did it again until I was free.

“Unbelievable,” Finn said. The bubble dissolved. “You have an affinity with magic, but it can’t affect you…I wonder if your immunity is fueled by magic.”

I rushed him to keep him from making that last logical connection and slammed into an invisible barrier. Too late. He figured it out and erected a null shield. Magic couldn’t pierce it. Stunned, I blinked at an ecstatic Finn. He held his hand out and the barrier forced me back until the shield trapped me in a corner.

“A null shield,” Finn said in amazement. “I love the irony! This is going to make my life so much easier.” He threw the dart.

I couldn’t move my arms to block it. Hitting my shoulder, the drug worked fast. The room spun into darkness.

“Opal?”

An ungentle nudge. I swatted at the disturbance.

“Wake up, or I’m leaving you here,” Janco grumped.

I groaned. My head ached and the floor swayed.

“Killer hangover, isn’t it? Finn used the hard stuff.” Janco pulled on my arm. “Come on. It’s getting dark.”

He helped me to my feet. I glanced around the abandoned factory and I remembered. “Finn? My blood?” Relief spiked as I realized he hadn’t taken me.

Janco grimaced. “Gone. After he knocked you out someone called from outside. He jabbed me and left. When I woke, I tracked him to the road, but once he reached it, I’ve no idea which way he went.” He gestured to the windows. “We were asleep for hours and he stole one of our horses. I had to chase down the other.”

We trudged to the Dolomite Inn, leading the remaining horse. Even Mister Paul’s delighted welcome couldn’t dispel the gloom that had settled on us. The thought of oyster soup turned my stomach, but Janco enjoyed it while I ate bread and a few mouthfuls of beef.

My thoughts lingered on my failure. All those months of training, planning and sacrifice for naught. Nothing for me. Finn made out well. I scowled.

“Something wrong with your dinner?” Janco asked. He had removed his disguise, revealing his thin face and scarred ear.

“The food’s fine. My companion needs to start explaining why I had to endure the whole prisoner experience when he was already one of the hotshots?”

“Think about it, Opal. You already know the answer,” Valek said from behind me. He and Ari joined us.

“Wonderful,” I muttered. “The gang’s all here.” I eyed Ari’s white-blond hair. He’d also ditched his disguise. “Won’t Devlen miss his buddy, Pellow?”

Ari shrugged. “He’s made friends with half the COs in the joint.”

I wanted to savor my foul mood, to let it ferment and turn into an all-out temper tantrum. But these men didn’t act without a plan and I should focus on the positive.

“Finn’s truth serum didn’t work, and Janco couldn’t get Ulrick to talk? So you needed me,” I said.

Valek nodded in encouragement.

“Why didn’t you tell me he was there?” I asked. No one answered, letting me puzzle it out on my own. I could have been captured and forced to expose Janco, ruining months of undercover work. Plus my actions in the prison might have been different if I knew Janco was there. Working under the impression I was on my own, I couldn’t relax or be lazy. I grudgingly agreed with his strategy.

As Ari ordered enough food to feed the whole table, I reviewed all that I had learned. I should have spotted Janco when I read through the hotshots’ files. Who else would escape from Wirral in record time? He even beat a magician.

After the server left an array of steaming plates, I said, “You had Janco in place before talking to me about my blood back in Booruby. Why?”

“They used blood magic,” Valek said. “And could again. I didn’t trust the Sitian Council to deal with them properly or in a timely manner.”

“You were going to assassinate them?” I gaped at Valek. “Until you found out about my blood, then decided not to.”

“It is always a good idea to wait and watch. Unless Yelena is around at the time of death, it’s hard to interrogate someone once he’s dead.”

I looked at Janco. He didn’t strike me as the assassin type. “Could you…?”

“No,” Valek answered for him. “That’s my job. He was there to gather information only.”

Which reminded me. “How did he manage to fool Finn? He’s a powerful magician.”

Janco pulled a necklace from under his shirt. A large round pendant hung from the chain. He took it off and handed it to me. The white circle was sticky with magic.

“Ivory?” I asked.

“No. Bone.” Janco looked queasy.

“Animal?”

His grimace answered my question. Not animal. Human. I set the pendant down carefully. “How?”

“Yelena found a…volunteer, willing to help disguise Janco’s real thoughts,” Valek said.

“A soul.” I swallowed. Yelena had channeled a person’s soul into the bone pendant. It was amazing and creepy at the same time.

“Lamar Krystal died in the line of duty,” Janco recited as if from memory. “A prisoner in Compton killed him with a shank. Yelena found him wandering in the shadow world unable to find peace.”

I studied my friend. Janco hated magic and yet he had lived with a soul near his heart for seasons.

“And the poor guy hasn’t found much peace hanging out with Janco,” Ari said, breaking the sober mood.

“If he’d been with you, he’d have been bored to death,” Janco countered.

“That’s impossible. He’s already dead,” Ari said.

“Souls can cease to exist, and therefore die,” Janco said.

Ari laughed. “That’s ridiculous.”

I tuned out their argument over dying souls. My thoughts returned to Valek’s earlier comment about assassination being his job. Even though the mission hadn’t gone as planned, Ulrick had revealed the location of my blood.

Cold fingers of realization touched me. There was no reason for Valek to wait any longer to go through with his original strategy to assassinate them.

I met Valek’s flat gaze. He’d watched me while I had sorted through the information.

“Wait. Please,” I said to him. My response surprised me.

He didn’t react. “By the time the Council decides to do the right thing, more damage could be done.”

“But—”

“We’ve shown the prison is easily infiltrated.”

“But—”

“The officers can be compromised.”

“But—”

“We were lucky Finn only desired your blood and didn’t want to learn how to perform blood magic. We won’t be so lucky next time.”

“It’s not your decision,” I shouted.

Ari and Janco ceased their bickering.

Unperturbed, Valek said, “I disagree.”

“Besides,” I said into the ensuing silence, “they’ll need to be incarcerated in glass like the Warpers from before. You’ll need Yelena.”

“No they don’t. They have no magic. The Warpers still had the magic they were born with. If you had discovered your siphoning powers back then, we wouldn’t have needed those glass prisons at all.”

I wilted. Valek’s argument made sense when viewed with cold logic, but on the emotional level, it was all wrong. Then horror swept through me.

“What about Devlen? Him, too?” I asked.

Valek glanced at Ari.

“No,” Ari said. “He’s committed to making amends.”

I inhaled as powerful relief welled. “So could Ulrick and the others. You need to give them a chance.”

Just as fast as it had come, the feeling of respite fled when the three men exchanged a look. I stood on shaky legs. “It’s too late. Isn’t it?”

“Your escapades in Wirral provided the perfect distraction,” Valek said. “They didn’t suffer, and I left evidence pointing to Finn as the assassin.”

As all sensation fled my body, I gaped at Valek. “All of them?”

“No reason to kill Gressa and Akako. They don’t know how to use blood magic.”

A minor concession. My mind couldn’t steer away from the knowledge Valek had used me to kill five men. My escapades had allowed him to… Grief flooded. Poor Ulrick. I had hoped he would… What? See the error of his ways?

“Come on, Opal.” Janco stood and hooked his arm in mine. “You’re exhausted. I’ll escort you to your room.”

“You just don’t want me having a fit in public.”

“Of course. I’ve a reputation to maintain.” He shot me a grin, but it died just as quick. “Almost forgot.” He picked up the necklace and put it on. Tucking the pendant under his shirt, he tapped the slight bump it made. “I promised Yelena I would keep Lamar safe.” He looked at me with a very un-Janco expression. “We all make sacrifices for what is right. And you’ve experienced firsthand the horrors caused by blood magic. To be truly safe, we should assassinate Devlen regardless of his efforts to redeem himself.”

I clutched his arm to keep from shouting the words. “Then why didn’t you?”

Ari said, “Because of you.”

“Me?”

The big man shifted in his seat, appearing uncomfortable. “Do you really believe we would eliminate someone you’re in love with?”

I sputtered. “I’m not—”

Ari held up a hand. “He’s helping you, then. That’s important to us.”

Staring at him in shock, I finally asked, “Love trumps logic?”

“Every time,” Valek said. “Plus he’s being watched. One move toward his old habits and I’ll pay him a visit.”

Overwhelmed, I let Janco pull me away from the table. On the way to my room on the second floor, I sorted through the conversation. How could Ari think I was in love with Devlen? We’d kissed a few times. That was all. No big deal.

After I said good-night to Janco, I locked the door and faced my empty room. At least it matched the hollowness in my chest. No blood. No magic. No Kade.

Kade had stayed away just like I asked. Finn planned to sell my blood to someone who hates me. And magic… Not my friend. The happy discovery that I could move it had been countered by Finn’s effective use of the null shield to trap me. My immunity to magic was no longer an asset.

All in all, a horrible day.

The next morning the four of us headed north to Valek’s small stable. Once there, we discussed options on how to find Finn.

“I’ll alert my network throughout Sitia. Someone will spot him,” Valek said with confidence. “Once we pick up his trail, I’ll have a chat with him.”

Annoyance flared. “I thought you said Finn was my problem.”

“As an obstruction to your goal, he was. But now we know he has a different agenda.”

Still unhappy, I grumped. “If you’d taken care of him in the beginning, we wouldn’t have this different agenda.”

Unfazed, Valek cocked his head. “Then we wouldn’t know about this other player. The one who is willing to spend a lot of gold for a vial of your blood.”

Player. Interesting word choice. This wasn’t a game to me. In a foul mood, I left the three of them to plan.

I visited Quartz. Just seeing her warm brown eyes melted my frustration. Not bothering with a saddle, I hopped onto her back and let her choose our path. The landscape streaked by, and I released all my tension. Concentrating on the movement of her powerful muscles against my legs, I became an extension of her.

When she slowed to a walk, I returned to my problems. I didn’t doubt Valek would find Finn. As for recovering my blood, at this point I gave us a fifty percent chance.

After rubbing Quartz down and filling her water bucket, I sought Valek. If he planned to confront Finn, he needed to know about the null shields. I found him in the kitchen, bent over a map of Sitia.

He might keep his secrets, but I believed in full disclosure. “Valek, have you ever encountered a null shield?”

He glanced at me with a frown. “I don’t think so. Why?”

I explained about Finn’s attack. “I moved the magic around me and Finn followed the logic.”

He straightened. “That is concerning.”

Trust Valek to downplay it. “It can trap you.”

“Perhaps. But your immunity seems to be different than mine. I can’t move magic.”

“Have you tried?” I asked and covered my grin when surprise flashed on his face.

“No. It always feels like syrup. I assumed it moved like a viscous fluid and would ooze.”

“That’s how it feels to me, too. But when I panicked, I spread my hands and pushed.”

“Interesting.” He drummed his fingers on the table. “Can a weapon pierce a null shield?”

“Yes. Anything but magic can. You can defend yourself as long as your arms aren’t pinned.”

“I guess we’ll need to experiment when we have some time.” Valek tapped the map. “First we need to find Finn. The three of us are going to split up, and search all the cities we can reach between here and Booruby.”

“Three? Booruby?”

“You need to go home to help your mother.” He slowed his words as my confusion continued. “And we’re going to meet you there for the wedding.”

“Mara!”

Valek laughed. “Even spies take time off for weddings.”

I groaned aloud. “I don’t have a gown or a date. I asked Kade. But he never replied, so I’m guessing it’s a no. How am I going to explain his absence to my mother?”

The humor dropped from his face and an emotion I’ve never seen on him replaced it. Guilt? Chagrin? Hard to tell with Valek.

He pulled a letter from his pocket. “Been meaning to give you this. It’s from Kade.”