The Ambassador’s Mission: Book One of the Traitor Spy Trilogy (55 page)

Sonea grimaced. “I don’t know. I wasn’t the one who read her mind, and I would have to have asked publicly for Kallen to find out.”

Which would have revealed more about me than I’d have liked.

“I’ll try to find out,” she promised. “Even if she didn’t kill them, if her part was only to break into your hideout using magic, she’ll know who did. Or who ordered it.”

“Skellin most likely,” Regin said. “Unless she did occasional work on the side for other customers.”

“At least we know Skellin can’t have been the actual killer,” Gol said. “He was talking with Cery at the time.”

Anyi made a small humming noise. “It doesn’t make sense. Why send someone to kill another Thief’s family at the same time as inviting them to become an ally?”

They all fell silent for a long moment, frowning in thought.

“Maybe Lorandra knows,” Gol suggested.

Cery shook his head, puzzled. “Well, I do know one thing for sure. We’ve got another rogue to catch.”

“If he’s still in Kyralia,” Regin said.

“Oh, he’s still here,” Cery assured them. “He hasn’t spent all that time and effort on his little empire to scamper off somewhere else. No, there are people here, rich and poor, who’ll fall over themselves to help him, some because they have to, many because they’ll benefit from it. He won’t have that anywhere else.”

Sonea nodded. “His influence over the city is already dangerously strong, but I suspect if he’s removed his empire will fall. We have to find him.” She looked at Cery. “Will you help us again?”

He nodded. “Wouldn’t want to miss the fun.”

She smiled, then stood up. Regin followed suit. “We must get back to the Guild. Thank you for taking care of Forlie and her family.”

Cery looked at the woman, who was watching him expectantly. “I’ll find somewhere safe for you all. Where is their father?” Both women scowled so fiercely Cery couldn’t help but laugh. “Never mind about that then.” He turned back to Sonea and ushered her to the door. “I bet you attracted a lot of attention on the way here.”

She laughed ruefully. “Yes. And the customers downstairs will be talking about it for months.”

“Might not be a bad thing,” Regin said, following her out of the door. “It will remind people who might be considering helping Skellin that you have powerful friends.”

“Well, it wouldn’t hurt if they thought you were still here. It will give us time to make plans before we leave. The more private way out goes through the kitchen and the side door.”

“We’ll go that way, then. Thanks for your help,” Sonea said. “And take care of yourselves.”

“I always do,” he called after them, as they strode down the corridor to the stairs. Closing the door, he turned back to regard the remaining occupants of the room. Looking at the children made his heart ache, and he pushed painful memories away. “Gol, take Forlie’s family downstairs and see if they’re hungry.”

“Right,” Gol replied. He beckoned, and they followed him out of the room. Cery returned to his chair and let out a sigh.

He looked at Anyi. She was frowning. It was not a worried frown, but a puzzled one.

“What is it?” he asked.

She looked at him, then away again. “Remember that magician at the Guild who was dressed the same as Sonea.”

“Yes. Black Magician Kallen.”

“He looked familiar. I didn’t recognise him at first because of the robes.”

“You’ve seen him without robes on?”

She looked up at him and laughed. “Not in the way you just put it. I didn’t get much of a look at what he was wearing the time I saw him.”

“What was he doing?” he asked.

A crease appeared between her brows, then her forehead smoothed and her mouth opened in a circle of revelation. “Ah! That’s it. I went with my friend one day to get rot. Not for me, of course.” Her eyes flicked up to his, serious and concerned. “In the middle of the dealing a carriage pulled up. The man inside wanted rot, and didn’t want to wait. I got a look at his face.”

“Kallen?”

“Yes.”

“Are you sure?”

“Oh, yes.” Her eyes twinkled. “I take special note of anyone who looks like they might be doing something they shouldn’t.”

Cery snorted. “That’d be nearly everyone in the city.”

She grinned. “And in particular if it looks like what I learn about them might be useful some time,” she amended. “Do you think Sonea would be interested? Lots of magicians take rot, I’ve heard.”

“Oh, I think she’ll find this interesting,” Cery told her. “I think she’ll find this
very
interesting. It’ll be a good excuse to sneak into her hospice again. Or maybe I’ll wait until I have something useful to tell her about Skellin.” He looked at Anyi and grimaced. “We’re going to have to be real careful who we trust. Skellin has a lot of friends, and I doubt I’m one of them now. We’ve got to help find him without getting ourselves caught. Things are going to get wild.”

Anyi nodded, then smiled and rolled her eyes. “How many times do I have to tell you? Nobody says things like ‘wild’ any more.”

W
ith a final push of magic, Lorkin swept the last of the dust, hair, food scraps and unidentifiable particles into a small pile, then went to fetch a basket to dump it in.

A few weeks had passed since he’d taken up residence in the men’s room. It was a large room, filled with rows of narrow beds. Most were empty now, but from the possessions tucked under their frames it was clear nearly all had regular occupants. Though he knew most of the regulars’ names, there were a few who stayed for three or four days then disappeared for a few more that he’d not yet been introduced to.

“These beds are for men who don’t want to stay with their family any more, and who haven’t paired with a woman,” Vytra had told him. “There isn’t space for everyone to have their own room.”

“Are there women’s rooms?” Lorkin had asked.

“Sort of.” She had shrugged. “Sometimes friends and sisters share rooms.”

At first he’d been a novelty to the male Traitors, subjected to plenty of questions about Kyralia, how he had come to Sanctuary, and what he planned to do there. The latter he could not answer to their satisfaction. He could hardly tell them about his interest in Tyvara, and they scoffed at his plans to negotiate links between their people and the Allied Lands.

“You’re a magician,” one had pointed out. “Surely you’ll be given something to do that involves magic.”

Despite Savara’s assurance to the other Speakers that she’d find him work to do, he hadn’t been set any task or duty yet. So the men had given him the job of keeping their room tidy. They’d been surprised to discover he didn’t know how to, and were impressed that he’d had servants to do such menial tasks for him in the Guild. It didn’t get him assigned to any other task, however. They gave him some rough instructions, then left him to work it out for himself.

He’d asked plenty of questions in return, learning about the rules and laws of Sanctuary, including those subtle ones about manners and fairness that people set and stick to in order to reduce the conflicts that arise when living in close contact with each other.

As Chari had warned, Sanctuary was ruled by women. But while men were blocked from the highest positions of power, they were involved in all other activities in the city. The founders had decided that Sanctuary would be foremost a place where women were in charge, but beyond that it must be a place where people were equal. Lorkin was impressed to find that men had more freedom and respect here than women did in Kyralia. He’d been worried that Traitor society may be the opposite. It made him appreciate, in ways he’d never considered before, how unfair Kyralian society actually was to women. Though it was a lot better than some other societies – like Lonmar’s. And the rest of Sachaka’s.

Still, there were some notable ways that women were favoured over men here. Men were taught magic, but not black magic. Only women knew how to prevent a pregnancy, and all children belonged to them.

In the small storeroom off the main room – in which, he noted, even there, gemstones were set into the ceiling to provide illumination – Lorkin found what he was looking for. He grabbed a tightly woven basket from a stack and checked it for holes.

“It’s going to happen soon, I say.”

The voice was male and came from the main room. Lorkin hesitated.

“No,” another man answered. “It could take years yet before we’re ready.”

“But they’ve doubled the battle training sessions. We have more scouts out there than ever before.”

“And we’ve got hundreds of gems still only half grown. No war is going to happen until they mature, and that’s going to take months, if not a year.” The man sighed. “I’m hungry.”

War?
Lorkin looked at the basket, knowing that if he hovered here and one of the men came into the store to get something to eat they’d know he’d been listening. He forced himself to walk out of the room, then straighten and smile as he saw them. They looked at him in surprise.

“Greetings,” he said, despite knowing they found the term of welcome odd. “You’re back early. Can I get you anything?”

The two men glanced at each other, then the one who’d said he was hungry started toward the store. “No, but thanks for offering.”

Lorkin began sweeping the rubbish into the basket. It was not easy getting the dust particles from the flat floor into the circular woven vessel, and he was concentrating so hard that he lost track of where the other men were.

“Lorkin,” a sharp, female voice said close behind him.

He froze. Which was better than visibly jumping, he decided as he recognised the voice. Straightening, he turned to smile politely at the woman.

“Speaker Kalia,” he replied.

She looked him up and down. He was wearing the simple trousers and tunic that the other men favoured – those that did not prefer the shift that both men and women wore.

“Follow me,” she said.

She turned on her heel and strode toward the door. Putting the basket down, he hurried after her. He glanced at the two men, who both grimaced in sympathy.

Kalia walked quickly for someone with short legs and a plump body. Lorkin found he took one step for every two of hers, yet she did not appear to tire. He imagined that anyone seeing them both would know instantly who was in charge.
Definitely not me. Ah, how low I’ve sunk since leaving home …

Her pace and expression didn’t invite conversation, but this woman had wanted Tyvara executed. He was not going to let her intimidate him. Or, at least, he wasn’t going to let her know he was intimidated.

“Where are we going?” he ventured.

“Somewhere you can be put to work at more appropriate duties than cleaning your room.” She glanced at him; her eyes were sharp and calculating. “Here in Sanctuary we try to give people tasks to suit their temperament and talents. I’m not sure if the task I have for you will suit your temperament, but it definitely will suit your talents.”

Somehow she managed to quicken her pace even further, hinting that no more conversation was welcome. When they reached a large archway she stopped, her breathing a little laboured. She drew in a deep breath and let it out, gesturing at the contents of the large room beyond.

As in the men’s room, there were rows of beds. But instead of being empty at this time of day, plenty of these were occupied, with men, women and children. Familiar smells reached Lorkin’s nose, along with some he did not recognise.

The smells of sickness and medicines.

His stomach sank, but not at the presence of so many sick people. Instead, it was at the realisation that the Traitors had found the best way to avenge themselves on him for his father’s betrayal. And to test his own resolve to teach them Healing only if they gave something equally important in return.

“This is the Care Room,” Kalia told him. “You’ll be working for me from now on.”

aga moths – pests that eat clothing

anyi – sea mammals with short spines

ceryni – small rodent

enka – horned domestic animal, bred for meat

eyoma – sea leeches

faren – general term for arachnids

gorin – large domestic animal used for food and to haul boats and wagons

harrel – small domestic animal bred for meat

inava – insect believed to bestow good luck

limek – wild predatory dog

mullook – wild nocturnal bird

quannea – rare shells

rassook – domestic bird used formeat and feathers

ravi – rodent, larger than ceryni

reber – domestic animal, bred for wool and meat

sapfly – woodland insect

sevli – poisonous lizard

squimp – squirrel-like creature that steals food

yeel – small domesticated breed of limek used for tracking

zill – small, intelligent mammal sometimes kept as a pet

anivope vine – plant sensitive to mental projection

bellspice – spice grown in Sachaka

bol – (also means “river scum’) strong liquor made from tugors

brasi – green leafy vegetable with small buds

briskbark – bark with decongestant properties

cabbas – hollow, bell-shaped vegetable

chebol sauce – rich meat sauce made from bol

cone cakes – bite-sized cakes

creamflower – flower used as a soporific

crots – large, purple beans

curem – smooth, nutty spice

curren – coarse grain with robust flavour

dall – long fruit with tart orange, seedy flesh

dunda – root chewed as a stimulating drug

gan-gan – flowering bush from Lan

husroot – herb used for cleansing wounds

iker – stimulating drug, reputed to have aphrodisiac properties

jerras – long yellow beans

kreppa – foul-smelling medicinal herb

marin – red citrus fruit

monyo – bulb

myk – mind-affecting drug

nalar – pungent root

nemmin – sleep-inducing drug

nightwood – hardwood timber

pachi – crisp, sweet fruit

papea – pepper-like spice

piorres – small, bell-shaped fruit