Authors: Jeff Kish
Era complies while watching Fire closely, but she isn’t acting aggressively. Finding his voice, he offers, “I-I’m sorry about ditching you like that. We… I think we took a wrong turn and-”
“Which was it? Did you ditch me or take a wrong turn?” Fire sneers. “Did you think I wasn’t expecting that maneuver? It was obvious what your boss was going to do.”
“Wait, you’ve been following us this whole time?”
“Like I told you earlier, you’re painfully easy to track. I followed the girls to their bath to confirm they’d be out of the way while we talked.”
Era finds himself at a loss for words. The mercenary had not only tailed them with perfect stealth, she planted herself in front of him without waking him. He absent-mindedly rubs at the tender puncture wound on his arm. ‘
This girl is scary
.’
Sensing his uneasiness, Fire offers a wry smile and asks, “Realizing just how out of your league you are? Look, I’m here to find out if the deal is still good. I’m not interested in playing games.” When Era averts his eyes, she barks, “You need to grow a backbone, you know? Make up your own mind, already.”
Meeting her gaze, he insists, “Jem and I are a
team
. She doesn’t trust you, so there’s no deal.”
“You realize I just ambushed you, right? That I could have tied you up with one hand if I’d wanted?” Fire asks, annoyed. “You’ll never make it on your own. You’re oblivious to your surroundings and naïve to your threats.”
“Even so, traveling with you carries its risks,” Era says. “What guarantee can you offer us that you won’t betray us?”
Fire notably ignores Era’s question. “Should’ve figured you’d back out. What a spineless wimp.” Turning her back to him, she barks, “Fine! I’m done with you. Best of luck.” She runs into the forest and disappears into the thick of the trees.
Era breathes a sigh of relief, wondering if maybe this is for the best. However, as a thought strikes him, he yells out, “H-Hey, wait! Does that mean you’re hunting us again!?” The woods fail to answer him, and his head spins at the realization he’s just made the situation worse. Hoping he doesn’t see anything he shouldn’t, he runs to warn his companions.
* * *
Jem wrings her hair out one last time and sits to put her boots on. Di, sitting at the water’s edge in her undergarments, is furiously scrubbing her feet.
“Come on, Di,” Jem urges.
“Can’t,” Di grunts as she continues to scrub. “My feet are disgusting! I had no idea hiking would make them so gross.”
“Might as well get used to it. We’re still far from Canterin.”
Di wrinkles her nose in disgust. “No way, you told me this might be the last bath I take, so I’m
cleaning my feet
.”
“You already spent an eternity on your hair,” she grumbles. “You should let me cut it. Long hair isn’t fit for traveling the woods.”
“NO!” Di nearly shrieks, startling Jem. “Daddy loves my hair. You’re not touching it!”
Jem holds her hands up, surrendering to the girl’s determination. “Yeesh, you’re as obnoxious as Era.”
Di stops scrubbing and turns to Jem with a frown. “Why are you so mad at him? He did all that last night because he cares about you.”
“No, he did it because he’s full of himself and thinks he can do anything,” she scoffs as she sits on a large rock. “He can’t be a one-man army all the time! He needs to learn that.”
The girl goes back to scrubbing. “Has he done this before?”
“Oh, he used to do it all the time. We’d enter a new town and the first thing he’d do is try to steal something from the market! He’d fail, and we’d be run out of town.”
Di smiles at the thought. “That does sound like him. He wants to prove himself to his unique father,” she says with a frown. “He’s not going to be working with you forever, you know.”
Jem leans on her elbows. “I know that. Era’s strong. He won’t need me forever.” Slamming her hand against the rock, she exclaims, “But he needs me now! Thinking he can take on a professional assassin… and then
doing
it! He’s going to have such a big head after this. I need to make sure he regrets it.”
As she finishes saying this, she sits up in alarm, startling Di. The schoolgirl waits anxiously, knowing better than to say anything. Jem grabs her dagger and jumps to her feet as Di hears the rustling of leaves. Her heart pounds while she watches the tree line, and she slowly grabs her clothes and clutches them.
Era stumbles out of the woods with his hands over his eyes, out of breath. Di shrieks and dives into the water.
Jem sheathes her blade with an exaggerated sigh. “Really, Di!?” Di offers her a sheepish look, but she keeps herself below the water nonetheless.
“And
you!
” Jem barks as she storms up to Era. “This is the second time you’ve barged in on us today. We could have still been bathing!”
“Fire’s here,” Era lets out between breaths, peeking through his hands.
Jem watches the woods in concern. “Where? Did you see her?”
“She got the jump on me,” he admits. “Said she’s been tailing us this whole time. She followed you two here and then came back to me.”
Jem raises an eyebrow and looks Era over. “Doesn’t look like you had a fight.”
“No, no fight,” he says. “She wanted to know if the deal was still on, and I said no. So now I think she’s back to tailing us.”
“
Great
, Era! I swear this whole thing is your fault,” she growls as she pokes him in the chest. “Now get out of here so the princess can dress.”
Era hurries back into the woods, and Jem beckons to the embarrassed girl. “Come on, bath time’s over. Guess it’s a good thing I snagged some clothes from Andrea after all, eh?”
Di cautiously emerges from the water, her school clothes drenched. She looks up into the trees and whispers, “But what if Fire is watching?”
Jem shrugs. “You can walk in those wet clothes for all I care. You’ll already be carrying them so they can dry off, thanks to your spectacular maneuver.”
The girl looks one more time into the trees, then surrenders and retrieves Andrea’s clothes as Jem packs her own things.
* * *
“Okay, so here’s the plan,” Jem says quietly to Era as they hike. “There’s a town up ahead we can use for cover. We’ll find an inn and act like we’re spending the night. Then we sneak out after midnight, taking a path out of town that will give us good cover.”
Era bites his lip. “Once she sees us enter the inn, she’ll be watching it closely. And besides, she’ll know what we’re planning. I can’t imagine she’ll expect us to actually spend the night.”
Jem grimaces. “It’s not the best plan, but this is it unless you’ve got a better idea.”
Di does her best to keep up, hauling her drenched clothes over her shoulder. She now wears an orange summer dress that Jem cut off at the bottom since it was too long. “But she’s injured, right? What can she do?”
“You saw what she did to me,” Jem recalls. “There’s plenty she can do with a single arm.”
“Okay, then why not just fight her directly?” she persists. “Era did a good job last night by himself. She won’t be able to take you both on.”
“It’s not a bad idea,” Jem says, “but how do we catch her? She’ll just lead us in circles until we’re tired, and then she’ll hit us when we’re exhausted from the chase.”
“Besides,” Era adds, “we can’t be certain she’s alone. She had all night to round up help, after all.”
“That’s not the case,” Jem declares. “If she had help, she would have attacked us this morning, not to mention while we were bathing. The fact that she didn’t seize the opportunity means she doubts her own ability to take us on.”
“Then maybe your plan isn’t so bad,” he agrees. “A main road will make her hesitant to attack, and the town is our best chance to lose her.”
With glee, Jem says, “My favorite part of this plan is that it goes completely contrary to her orders.”
“Ha, now we just need a fire,” Era observes. “Er, well, not the
assassin
Fire. Just the regular… well, you know what I mean.” He scratches his head and admits, “That name is not convenient.”
“Nothing about her is convenient,” Jem states.
“Well, she’s small.”
She raises an eyebrow. “Oh? You like your girls short?”
“I meant that it should help us in a fight,” he insists. “Plus it made her easy to carry.”
“Already enjoying some physical intimacy, I see. Anything else you like about her?”
“Besides her cold blue eyes of death?” He shrugs. “I guess I like her narrow face. It accentuates the piercing gaze.”
“Ugh. You would.”
Di pouts. “I’m plenty short,” she mutters, though no one pays her any mind.
The three find the main road leading to Ugorzi, and they follow the path as it bends and winds through the hills. Era and Jem keep their eyes peeled, watching for their pursuer while staying on guard against the travelers they encounter.
Coming to the crest of a final hill, they find their destination. Nestled between two cliffs, Ugorzi is built alongside a river that carves its way through the hillside. The road goes straight through the town and escapes on the other side.
Jem snaps as an idea strikes her. “Era, this is perfect! There’s no way she’ll be able to follow us in without us knowing!”
Era frowns as he surveys the landscape. “But does she need to follow us? The cliffs offer a great view of the entire city. Plus there are only two ways in or out, so she doesn’t have much to watch.”
“Sure, but what if we wait her out?” she asks. “We stay in an inn for a couple days, never leaving the building. She’ll eventually have to sleep, and, when she wakes up, she’ll have no idea whether she missed us or not. If we’re lucky, she’ll be chasing us west while we’re still here!”
Era wonders if such a plan could work. “In the same way, we wouldn’t know for sure if she’s gone or not, but I guess that might be our best chance.”
The familiar sound of gasping and panting approaches them from behind. “Is that… is that it?” Now using the damp clothes to cool her head, Di collapses to her knees as she looks down the hillside.
“That’s it!” Era proclaims. “Do you need a rest?”
Di shakes her head, tired of being out in the sun. She stands and runs down the hill, grateful to have gravity on her side and laughing with delight as she races toward the small town.
Era is amused by the sight, but Jem isn’t happy as they start walking down the hill. “She doesn’t know the meaning of the word
inconspicuous
, does she?”
“Do any of us?” Era quips. Getting serious, he quietly mutters, “Jem, remember what Fire said about the military?”
“Yeah, what of it?”
“Well, does that change anything? This isn’t the Smith’s Hammer anymore. We might be up against the entire army for all we know! We fought a
commander
on the train roof, and we-”
Jem waves her hand in the air, cutting him off. “First of all, unlike you, I don’t trust everything that monster says. And second, even if it
is
the military, there’s no indication they’ve sent a lot of troops after us. If anything, it seems like it’s the opposite!”
“Let’s not make assumptions,” Era cautions. “It might have taken a while to spread the word. We should be on guard.”
Jem is impressed. “Look at you, being all thoughtful. You’re right, though. If it
is
the military, we’ll need to be wary of the town guards.”
The two watch as Di reaches the bottom of the hill before collapsing to her knees again. Era finds himself both impressed and amused by the unfit schoolgirl’s clash between willpower and endurance.
“Listen,” Jem says in a hushed voice, “it’s a pretty big deal if the military
is
after her. We can probably negotiate a higher price if we find out what makes her so special.”
“Wait a second, I thought we were in this for the
reward
money. You’re making this sound a lot like
ransom
money,” Era says with a smile.
“Reward… ransom… they’re the same thing when it comes down to it,” Jem says. “In the end, we bring Di home, we get paid, and everyone is happy! I just want to get as much as I can for all the trouble this has been.”
“I won’t disagree with that,” Era says.
The two meet up with Di as she again gets to her feet. With the sun at late afternoon, a small crowd is leaving the city. It doesn’t take much for the three to mix into the masses, happy to have cover from Fire’s watching eyes.
Chapter 9
The land surrounding Ugorzi’s entrance has been heavily farmed and irrigated to take advantage of the river cutting through the cliffs. Even as the three enter the edge of town, vendors are planted alongside the edge of the road, their carts filled with fruits and vegetables. Each one loudly offers his or her delicious produce to the newcomers at discounted day-end rates.
They head into the market district, where the crowds are the thickest. Even more vendors line the street here, each offering something for purchase. Di can hardly contain her excitement when someone offers her two apples for a half-venni. She turns to Jem, who shakes her head and walks past. However, Era slips the girl a fel coin, and she happily trades it for the fruit.
The buildings are all built from rock and mortar, which is impressive for such a remote town. There’s quite a large crowd, and likely with good reason: Era hasn’t seen such a wide variety of produce in all his travels. The crowds seem to be a diverse group, consisting of shoppers from many different regions.
Following the two girls, Era glances upward to the impressive cliff tops that tower over the narrow city center. If Fire could find a decent perch, there’s no doubt she’d be able to spy on the entire village. He catches up to Jem and says, “If we’re going to stay a couple days, we need to stock up on food. It’ll do us no good if Fire spots us trekking to the market each day.”
“But we can’t risk her seeing us buy two days’ worth of food,” Jem contends. “So go light. We have rations that can keep us going if we run out of the fresh stuff. You grab some veggies, and we’ll grab some bread.” Sternly, she insists in a hushed voice, “And
no stealing
. We don’t need attention being drawn when you get caught.”
“I wouldn’t have gotten caught,” he mutters to himself as he breaks off from the two ladies, remaining hidden amongst the largest crowds. Finding a stand with fresh vegetables, he makes a selection and exchanges his money for the food.
As he turns, his eyes land on a soldier across the plaza carefully eyeing the crowd. Swallowing hard, Era becomes aware of several such soldiers patrolling the crowds. They don’t look like local police, but he knows some towns hire the military for such services.
Counting three soldiers in total, Era finds the two girls and hurries to them. Jem catches his eye and nods her head toward one of the soldiers, indicating she’s seen them. Era holds up a hand with three fingers extended. His partner affirms she gets the message, and she signals for him to keep his distance for now.
Jem finishes her transaction with the baker and politely asks him for directions to the inn. He points down the street, and Jem thanks him as she leaves. Di eyes the freshly-baked bread with desire as she walks alongside, but Jem notices and switches hands, keeping the girl at bay. Era walks behind the girls at a distance to avoid being seen as a group of three as they head across the river to another section of town. He again eyes the guards, but they don’t seem to pay the group any particular mind.
Suddenly, Era realizes why Jem isn’t drawing the usual attention. As he scans the crowd, he finds two other Allerians perusing the markets. To his recollection, this is the first time seeing an Allerian besides Jem outside a port town. Unfortunately, his hopes for remaining inconspicuous are dashed when Jem draws the attention of someone else in the crowd: another Allerian. The middle-aged woman spots Jem and eagerly moves toward her. “Hi!” the Allerian woman calls out as she happily greets Jem.
Startled, Jem resists the reflex to draw her dagger. She subtly prods Di, indicating she should keep moving. “Hi…?”
“It’s so rare to see an Allerian that isn’t a local!” she excitedly exclaims. The woman sports a long, plain dress, and she’s holding a bag full of apples. Her darkened skin and facial features make it obvious she’s not from Valvoren. “What is your hometown? Why are you here?”
Jem shoots a glance to Era to make sure he sees the situation, and he gives her a sign for ‘keep moving’. She rolls her eyes at the obvious signal and looks back at her new friend. “I’m from Duroshe, and I’m here to pick up some… fruit. For a festival tomorrow.”
“Oh, you simply must purchase some apples at the vendor over here,” she says, pointing behind herself. “And is your husband here with you as well?”
Jem’s eyes bulge. “Husband!?”
“Oh, well, I suppose I made the assumption based on your age. And besides that, every other Allerian woman I know in this region is at least betrothed.”
“I’m not betrothed or married or anything,” Jem insists.
“So are you free for dinner tonight?” the woman asks. “You can’t make it back to Duroshe this late in the day, and I’d love to chat with you.”
Tired of the conversation, Jem says, “Look, lady, I’m not sure why you think I’d be interested in having a meal with a stranger, but-”
“A stranger!?” the woman gasps. “We need to stick together when we’re fortunate enough to find one another.”
“Why?” Jem challenges. “Why do you assume I want to associate myself with other Allerians?” Realizing she’s drawing attention, she turns away and mumbles, “Sorry, but I’m not interested.”
Aggravated, the Allerian woman turns away with a huff. Jem spots Era, happy to see he’s keeping an eye on Di. Hoping she can better avoid attention, Jem hurries along toward her original destination.
Several small inns line the street, each unlikely to have more than two or three rooms. Jem enters one to negotiate price while Era leans against the outer wall of the inn. Di paces, impatiently waiting for Jem to come back with the bread.
While they wait, a short, well-dressed man walks up to Era, apparently intending on making conversation. “Say, are you two looking to spend the night here in Ugorzi?”
Era ignores the solicitor, hoping that he’ll take whatever wares he has with him when he leaves. However, Di obliviously answers the question in his stead. “Yes, we are! Why do you ask?”
“Well, I’m glad you asked, little one! I’m the owner of an inn of sorts. I was hoping to obtain your business.”
“Which one is yours?” Di asks, glancing at the inns behind her.
“Actually, mine is on the west side, over there.” He points toward the edge of town, but it’s impossible to tell which building he means.
Era waves him off. “Get lost, we’re already staying here,” he says as he jabs his thumb toward the inn behind him. However, the angry shouts from within are a sign his statement is soon to be proven inaccurate.
“But you need to pay these innkeepers for their services. Whereas with me, I’ll pay
you
.”
“Come again?” Era asks in confusion as Jem stomps outside, annoyed to find her companions engaged in conversation.
“It’s quite simple. I’ll pay you two thousand venni if you accept,” he boasts.
“T-Two thousand?” Era exclaims. “To stay in your inn?”
“An inn of
sorts
, I said.” The man adjusts his suit coat and explains, “I happen to have a manor on the edge of town sitting vacant. I’ll pay you the money if you stay all night.”
“And the catch?” Jem asks.
“The catch is you’ll
die!
” a nearby shopper calls out. The property owner scowls as the stranger warns, “Don’t be fooled! This sleaze is trying to get you to stay in a haunted mansion! That house has claimed more lives than the war did, it has!”
“It is
not
haunted!” the broker insists. “I’ve personally examined it a dozen times.”
“You go through there during the day, when it’s
safe
. Nighttime is when it happens. That’s when the last owners were killed. Even
you
won’t inspect the house after dark.”
Jem’s patience is rapidly fading. “Let me get this straight. You want to sell the house, so you’re willing to
pay
strangers to sleep there and prove it’s not haunted?”
“The townsfolk all believe you’ll die if you stay in there after dark,” the dealer admits. “The last two owners of the manor were both killed, but they were probably murdered as part of a robbery. That could happen in
any
house!”
“Those weren’t no robberies!” the local insists. “The valuables were still in there after the killings. Not a thing was stolen!”
“Okay, I’ve heard enough!” Jem interrupts, concerned about the attention they’re drawing. “Sorry, but no deal. I don’t want to stay in a scary haunted house, even if you pay me two thousand venni! Stay there yourself if you believe it’s not haunted.”
Dejected, he begs, “Please, won’t you reconsider? I’ll pay three thousand!”
“Get lost, little man,” Jem growls.
The owner gives an angry glare to the local who ruined his plans before heading off in search of another set of visitors. The other man proudly waves as he departs, certain he just saved the three travelers’ lives.
Di breathes a sigh of relief. “I thought for sure we’d be staying there when he said three thousand!” Looking at Jem, she admits, “I don’t believe in haunted houses, but this place sounds terrifying! I’m glad you think so, too.”
“You’re cute,” Jem says as she pats Di’s head. Turning to Era, a large grin spreads across her face as she says, “Come on, we found our inn for the night. Where did he say it was?”
“I thought you might say that,” Era says as he points to the west. “Sorry, Di.”
The turn in conversation surprises the girl. “B-But, you turned down
three thousand
venni! Why are we staying there!?”
“Keep it down, Di!” Jem hushes as she prods the girl westward. “We’re trying to remain inconspicuous, and what better way to do that than to spend the night in a place where no one would look? And for free, no less!”
“But you turned down the money…” Di repeats, still bewildered by Jem’s decision.
“If I had accepted it, that shady fellow would have bragged to the whole town we were out there.”
Di stops walking. “But I don’t want to stay in a haunted house!”
“You
just
said you don’t believe in haunted houses. Make up your mind!”
Era places his hand on the girl’s shoulder. “Don’t worry, Di. We’ve taken on bandits, assassins, and bounty hunters! I think we can handle a few ghosts.”
Jem’s brow furrows at Era’s comment. “When
did
our lives get so exciting? You must be a curse to us, Di. You’d better be worth all this,” she grumbles.
The manor on the west side of town is easy enough to find, standing far taller than any other home. The foliage around the house is overgrown, and a few of the nearby houses have also been abandoned. The windows and front door are boarded up.
“No wonder that guy wants to sell this place,” Jem comments as she sneaks among the abandoned houses. “Can you imagine the price for something like this? It’s even bigger than Andrea’s!”
Era holds Di’s shoulder, guiding her along and trying to keep out of sight as he glances skyward. The cliffs offer visibility of this part of town as well, but with any luck they’ll be able to avoid Fire’s watch. They hurry to the manor’s wall and slide along it, looking for an entrance.
Jem finds a poorly-boarded window and pulls at the planks until one snaps off. Pulling the other boards back, she beckons for Di to crawl in. Jem follows her inside, and, after making one last look at the cliffs above, Era ducks in as well.
The three find themselves in the living area of the house. A thick layer of dust lies undisturbed on the furniture and floor. It’s obvious no one has been in the house for quite some time. Era dumps his travel and grocery bags and lets out a whoop as he jumps onto the sofa, creating a dusty cloud that erupts into the air. Jem coughs and waves her hand to clear the air as she dumps her own bags and looks for a place to sit. She wipes a chair off as best she can and has a seat.
Di creeps forward, looking around in anxiety. “H-How long are we going to stay here?”
“Two, maybe three days tops,” Jem replies.
“What!?” Di exclaims with a gasp.
“We need to stay hidden,” Era explains from his dusty couch. “Fire is likely watching the town from the cliffs above, so we need to wait her out. If we can outlast her, we’ll ditch her.”
“You didn’t tell me that was the plan!” Di complains. “This is
not
acceptable! I can’t stay here for three days!”
“Spoken like a true princess,” Jem mutters. “Of
course
we didn’t tell you. You would have made a scene, and people would have overheard our plan.”
“Don’t worry! We brought lots of food,” Era says in an effort to comfort her.
Di frowns at the bags tossed on the ground. “That’s not enough food.”
“Geez, Di, would you quit complaining?” Jem barks, growing ever more annoyed with the girl. “If we had bought three days’ worth of food, and Fire had seen it, she would know our plan!” Reaching into her travel bag at her feet, she procures a piece of dried bread and tosses it to Di, who barely manages to catch it. “Here you go, snack away! We have plenty.”