The Queen's Blade Prequel II - God Touched (29 page)

“
She won't grant it.”

“
You don't know unless you try.”

“
I think the chances of an assassin gaining an audience are
even slimmer than any other commoner, and that happens rarely.
You're being silly. Even commoners spit on assassins.”

“
Well they shouldn't. And you're not just an assassin; you're
the Master of the Dance.”

“
I doubt the Queen even knows what that is,” he said, “and it
wouldn't impress her if she did. And you really think her guards
will allow a killer into her presence?”

“
You're an assassin. Everyone knows you won't kill without a
client. No one would pay you to kill the Queen, and even if they
did, you wouldn't do it, because you're Jashimari.”

“
I'd have a better chance if I didn't tell them who I
am.”

“
So you'll do it, then?” She looked eager again.

“
No. It would be a waste of time, and the palace guards would
probably arrest me just for trying.”

“
They can't. There's no crime in asking for an audience. Even
if you were only allowed to meet her chief advisor, he could give
her the message.”

Blade sipped
his wine, becoming irritated. “The palace guards could easily
concoct a reason to arrest me, or they may just kill me and throw
my body down the closest cesspit. Assassins are considered to be
vermin, remember? Killing one hardly constitutes a crime.”

“
You killed Lord Rothwayer and Graleth. I'll wager you could
sneak into the Queen's bedchamber if you wished.”

He chuckled.
“Oh, that's a good idea. As soon as I woke her up to put my
proposal to her, she'd scream the place down and her guards would
chop off my head. I got away with those killings because I left no
one alive to raise the alarm, but I can hardly do that to the Queen
if I want to talk to her, can I?”

“
You could do what you did to me. Make her fall
asleep.”

“
I can't talk to her while she's asleep.”

“
No,” she said, “you make her sleep, then you bind and gag her.
You speak to her when she wakes up, then make her sleep again and
untie her.”

“
How will she agree if she's gagged? And how likely do you
think she is to agree after I've just broken into her room and
assaulted her?”

“
But it will also prove that you could kill the Cotti King. I
mean, if you can get into Minna-Satu's bedchamber, you'd have no
trouble getting into Shandor's would you?”

“
Except Shandor lives in an army camp, not a
palace.”

“
Doesn't that make it easier?”

He shook his
head. “Not really. There are several thousand seasoned warriors
around him. Besides, I think the Queen's palace will be a little
harder to get into than Graleth or Rothwayer's mansions.”

Lilu sighed
and picked up Blade's wine cup, sipping from it. “You don't really
want to do it, do you?”

“
Not particularly, no.”

“
Do you think you'll fail?”

“
I don't think I'll be granted an audience with the
Queen.”

“
But what if you did?”

“
I won't,” he said.

“
I think you might. Why don't you just try? Prove me wrong.
What harm can it do?”

“
Apart from getting me arrested or killed?”

“
If you don't tell them you're an assassin, they won't arrest
or kill you.”

“
Until they see my mark.”

“
How will they? Do you plan to go there without a
shirt?”

Blade
retrieved his wine cup and refilled it. “They'll search me. If they
see my mark... I'm a dead man, most likely.”

“
But maybe not.”

“
Gods, Lilu, leave it alone!” He glared at her, thoroughly fed
up with her nagging. “I'm not going to ask for an audience or break
into the Queen's bedchamber. It's ridiculous. And even if I did, by
some miracle, get an audience, she won't hire me. Why should she,
when she has thousands of soldiers at her beck and
call?”

“
Because they can't do what you can do. They won't be able to
kill Shandor.”

“
She doesn't know that.”

“
She will, when more of her men have failed.”

“
She still won't know that I could do it, and if she does
realise it, let her send a messenger to hire me.”

Lilu sat back
and folded her arms. “Maybe she will.”

He snorted.
“And maybe potpigs will fly.”

“
If you don't –”

Blade banged
his goblet down, slopping wine. “Enough now!”

The whore
glowered at him, then jumped up and flounced away, this time
genuinely angry. He sat back and sipped his wine, trying not to
think about Lilu's suggestion and its pitfalls. It was a foolish
idea, and she was wrong. As for sneaking into Minna-Satu's
bedchamber to speak to her, that was ridiculous, and a recipe for
parting his head from his shoulders. He shrugged it off. Perhaps
Minna-Satu's soldiers would succeed.

Two moons
later, Blade relaxed on Lilu's bed while she was in the taproom
collecting another bottle of wine. Mid-afternoon sunshine crept in
through chinks in the dirty curtains to spot the rumpled sheets
with flecks of gold. He was glad that Lilu washed her bed sheets
regularly, so, although old and grey, they were clean. He had just
returned from practicing on his platform outside the city, and
drying sweat prickled his skin. He would have gone to his rooms to
bathe, but his exertions had given him a thirst that he wanted to
slake first. The whore was taking a long time to fetch the wine,
however.

Just as he was
about to go in search of her, she entered, locking the door behind
her. He eyed her when she sat on the chair beside the bed,
wondering why she had locked the door. She poured two cups of wine
and handed one to him, and he noted the excited sparkle in her
eyes.

“
I've just heard that all the soldiers the Queen sent to Cotti
failed to kill the King,” she said. “Two dozen men.”

He sipped the
wine. “What of it?”

“
You should go, and…”

He raised a
finger and wagged it. “I've already told you I'm not going to ask
for an audience, and why. Don't nag.”

She frowned at
him, her excitement fading. “I'm not nagging; I'm just saying that
you could do it if you wished. Not only kill the Cotti King, your
enemy, but also earn huge wealth and honours. All for the small
risk of being arrested if the palace guards find out you're an
assassin.”

“
Not to mention the far greater risk of being caught in
Shandor's camp and eviscerated. That's what they do, you know. They
stake you out on the sand and slice open your belly, then the crows
peck out your eyes, and –”

“
Enough, Blade!” She looked sick.

“
It's true. Is that what you want to happen to me?”

“
It won't. You're too good at what you do, and you know
it.”

“
You don't know how I do what I do, so how do you know it will
work in Cotti?”

Her brows
rose. “Why wouldn't it? Sneaking about will work anywhere.”

“
Maybe. But I'm still not doing it. I have a good life here.
Why would I want to ride all the way to Shandor's camp to kill him,
then drag his undoubtedly annoying son back to Jondar? I don't like
riding, and I like camping in forests even less.”

“
Wouldn't it be worth it, to kill the Cotti King? Don't you
want vengeance for what they did to you?”

Blade glowered
at her. Her words struck a raw nerve and sent a twinge of vengeful
lust through him, stronger than he had experienced for many years.
It was impossible, however, and he shook his head. “No matter how
much I'd like to kill that bastard, it's impossible. Now leave it
alone or I'll go back to my rooms.”

Lilu sighed,
but changed the subject. Blade listened to her prattle about the
other whores and their problems with half an ear while he thought
about the prospect of using his hated trade to finally exact
vengeance upon the Cotti. It almost seemed as if fate had given him
the chance to repay them for the atrocities they had committed upon
him. Perhaps it was. He was almost at the age when assassins
usually retired, and while he did not think his speed or agility
had suffered yet, they probably would in the not too distant
future, no matter how hard he trained. Then all he had to look
forward to was empty years of teaching foolish youngsters and
drowning his bitterness with wine. Even if he died in his attempt
to kill the Cotti King, it was a worthy endeavour, and would
guarantee his reputation in the Guild forever. If he succeeded, not
only would he have his vengeance, he would gain unassailable fame
in the Guild.

Then there was
the reward the Queen offered, which was tempting, too. He would
have more to do after his retirement if he had an estate to run,
and he would have to teach fewer apprentices. The Guild required
him to pass on his skills, but it did not specify how many boys he
had to train. Most elders had no choice in the matter, since they
needed the income the young assassins were obliged to give them.
Mostly, however, the possibility of slaying the Cotti King, and
probably a few soldiers, tempted him. Humiliating the Prince also
had its attractions. Even if the Queen did not grant him an
audience, he could go to Cotti and do the deed, or try, and if he
returned with the Prince as his captive she would have to give him
the reward. He did not require any help from her, although he did
need a client. Then again, the fact that she wanted Shandor dead,
and had offered to pay for it, meant that he could claim her as his
client. It met all the Guild’s requirements.

Blade sat back
and sipped his wine, watching golden speckles of sunlight wander
around the dirty floor as a breeze swayed the moth-eaten curtains.
His existence remained tawdry, for all his deadly reputation and
high standing in the Guild. The money he had amassed was enough to
ensure a comfortable life, but he was not a wealthy man by any
measure. There was simply not enough work, even in a big city like
Jondar, and only the rich could afford his services now. Would the
skills he had honed to such a high calibre over the years be enough
to ensure his success? His eyes drifted to the darkest corner of
the shabby room, where he suspected the ghost of a black cat sat,
watching him. More than anything, he wanted revenge for Rivan’s
death.

The Cotti had
made a lifelong enemy out of him on the day they had slit his
familiar’s throat, yet all his hatred was futile if he never put it
into action. Perhaps this was his destiny. Perhaps everything he
had suffered had been leading him along this path, to this
juncture, where he must decide to make it all worthwhile and kill
the king of the barbarians who had stolen his life from him. If he
failed, his death was assured. There would be no wandering whores
or elder assassins to save him in the desert. It would be a painful
demise, though, and that gave him pause. If he went to Shandor’s
camp in a female disguise, however, his chances of being caught
where slim.

The desert
warriors scorned women, and treated them as servants or worse. He
had witnessed their ill treatment of the whores in the Cotti camp
when he had been their prisoner. Even though some soldiers would
see a woman with the King just before he was killed, they would
never believe she was capable of slaying a man, never mind their
warrior King. They would probably blame Prince Kerrion for it,
especially if he vanished afterwards. The thought almost made Blade
smile. If the Queen tried to negotiate peace with Kerrion, and sent
him back to his people afterwards, Blade was sure the Prince’s
brothers would accuse him of killing Shandor. That would make his
triumph even sweeter. If he returned triumphant, he would not only
add a king to his tally, but be instrumental in the downfall of a
crown prince, too. The more he thought about it, the more appealing
the idea became, although he was still unsure of whether or not he
would do it.

Chapter Sixteen

Blade gazed up
at the trees that overhung the palace wall. On the outside, a
gnarled puffwood sent spindly limbs over the obstacle, on the
inside, a fire tree's spreading branches mingled with the
puffwood's. A tenday had passed since Lilu had told him about the
failure of the Queen's men, and he had spent much of it considering
her suggestion while he sipped wine in his gloomy corner. He had
pondered many ways of gaining access to the Queen and discarded
most.

A message
would not reach her, and whoever read it would undoubtedly discard
it. Disguising himself as a noble was fraught with pitfalls, since
those who frequented the palace were well known, and a stranger
would not be granted a private audience. Similarly, the palace
servants were known to the guards, and most dwelt in the palace's
vast servants' quarters. Lilu's idea of sneaking into the Queen's
bedchamber was ridiculous, and would undoubtedly result in his
death if she was left alive.

The only
option that had any chance of success was for him to request an
audience. He had little confidence that it would work, but, as Lilu
had said, he would never know if he did not try. He had not told
her that he was even considering it. In truth, he was still not
sure he wanted to risk his life attempting to gain an audience with
the Queen. The prospect of killing Shandor goaded him, however.
That was something he wanted more than anything. The bonus of
wealth and lands also tempted him. He could kill the Cotti King.
Even if he was thrown into the palace dungeons or handed over to
the Watch, he had to try to speak to Minna-Satu.