The Tower of Bashan (26 page)

“Maybe he was distracted by the tower, Your Majesty.”

Mira cocked her head to the side. “Are you all right, Lela? You really don’t seem yourself.”

Lela looked down, fidgeting. “I apologize. I’m not myself. My uncle is not doing well. And I’m just worried about his health. I was trying to think of a way to ask Your Majesty if I could leave early tonight in order to look in on him.”

“You deserve an early night off after all you’ve done for me.”

Lela bowed, looking sad. “You’re too kind.”

“Not at all. Go.”

“Thank you, Your Majesty.” She backed away from the carriage with a bow.

The coachman called. “The palace, Your Majesty?”

Mira thought for a second. “No. Inform my guards that I’ll be taking a ride around the city.”

I could use a more personal reminder of what I’m fighting for.

CHAPTER 21

Upon leaving the tower, Rondel and Andrasta went to their room, dumping all they had learned about the tower onto paper.

Lela crouched on their balcony listening. She hid in shadow while huddling beneath the awning to stay dry from the steady downpour.

“No. The line going inward is still too sharp,” said Andrasta. “Let me show you.” There was a pause. “Like that.”

“And you’re sure that was the last one?”

“Positive.”

Thank the gods.
She hadn’t yet reported to Chand the details from the meeting at the tower because she wanted to first gauge Rondel and Andrasta’s impression. She thought about asking them outright, but figured they’d be suspicious that she chose not to remain with the princess.

There was a long shuffling of papers, followed by a muttered curse.

“What’s wrong?” asked Andrasta.

“This half-shaded circle often stands for an eclipse, according to my notes. However, there were also just enough references in competing texts that suggested the glyph sometimes is used in place of a turtle. But that can’t be right. Why would one symbol potentially mean two drastically different things?” He cursed again. “We still don’t have enough information.”

“What do you mean? I told you every symbol on the lock and even confirmed all the ones near the frame that you jotted down.”

“I know. But several of these symbols could have alternate meanings. We’re still missing the key to them all.”

“I thought you had the key.”

“I have a key which tells us what each symbol means. What I need is the key that tells us which of the alternate meanings to choose.”

“Sorcerers and their games,” spat Andrasta. “Can’t we just try each option until one works?”

“We could. However, this glyph right here suggests that wouldn’t be a wise decision. It’s an ancient representation of the number three. The one next to it is death.”

“And that means . . . ?”

“It means that we have three chances to get the door open. After that, we die.”

“And I guess there are more than three paths to choose for unlocking the door.”

“More than three dozen off the top of my head.”

She sighed. “So, then what do we do?”

“The key is in the tower somewhere. I know it.”

“So we need to have the princess let us back in?”

Rondel shook his head. “I don’t think that’ll work. The best course of action is to deny her request, wait for Minander to return to the city, and as part of our terms for bringing in Bratanic’s army, we ask for an invite to his party. With so many people, we should have more than enough time to study the walls for the key unnoticed.”

“Still more waiting then.”

“Unfortunately.”

“And what do we do in the meantime?”

“You could spend more time studying my notes. We still have to get past the five guardians once we get inside.”

“Don’t you have that all worked out already?”

“I have some of it worked out. But I can only be so prepared since no one has ever escaped the tower to confirm what stories are true and which are false. For all we know, Thalamanak could have put more than five guardians in place. The solution to get past each guardian will be something we’ll have to finish figuring out once we’re there. No way around it. That’s why we should have as much of this information memorized as possible.”

Andrasta grunted. “All right, give me the notes.”

Sometime later, Lela slid over the edge of the balcony. Rondel and Andrasta had done little for the better part of an hour except read and share a cold meal. It didn’t seem they’d do much more any time soon. The thought of sleep made Lela aware of her own fatigue, but she pushed thoughts of sleep aside as the cold rain pattered down. Drops slid down the back of her neck and under her sari.

She shivered while working her way down the wall of the inn. Though the drumming rain masked any noise she might make, it did little for her grip. Near the bottom, her foot slipped. She fell the last several feet to the ally floor.

Suppressing a yelp, she stood slowly and examined the scrapes on her knee and elbow before heading out of the alley. Chand stepped out of the shadows before she reached the main road.

She tried not to look surprised. “Do you want my report now?”

“No. Beladeva will want to hear it from you personally. Come.”

* * *

“Well?” Rondel asked.

Andrasta moved away from the curtain.
She betrayed us.
“I was right. It was Lela. I told you I heard something. Blasted rain made it hard to hear her sooner. She slipped at the bottom, and met that big guy I saw following us on the way back to the inn. I think he’s also the one that threw her in the wagon last night.”

Rondel swore. “I had hoped her help was genuine.”

“Doesn’t seem that way.”

“No.”

“Makes me wonder if that stuff with her uncle is even real or if that was part of whatever con she’s working.”

“If it wasn’t real then they’re both in the wrong line of work. They’d make a killing in the theater.”

Andrasta strapped on her sword. “Considering they’ve been putting one over on us, I’d say they’re in the right line of work.”

“Maybe.”

“I need to get going before I lose her.”

Again.

“All right. Just confirm what’s going on. Don’t do anything stupid. I’ll have us packed, squared away with the innkeeper, and ready to go by the time you get back. We’ll worry about how best to handle what’s going on once we get settled into a new location.”

CHAPTER 22

Any trouble Andrasta thought she might have had following Lela was cast aside as the large man led her casually through the city. The few people braving the weather turned their way, eyes going first to the man, then to Lela. Some did a double take. Some bowed. Others hurried off without a second glance.

A man who has little to fear.

Andrasta kept her distance, moving among the shadows and over the rooftops.

Eventually they reached a part of the city near the docks. It consisted of old warehouses with crumbling mortar and blackened walls from both grime and soot.

A pair of guards stood outside a first-level entrance to one of the more rundown buildings on the block. They stepped aside for the two to enter.

Andrasta left the shadows, ran across the street, and found purchase on a pockmarked wall away from the front entrance. She climbed, reaching the top quickly. As was common among other buildings in the area, several skylights protruded from the top of the flat roof. She moved to the nearest and peered inside.

At least a hundred people, ranging in age from younger than Lela, to so old they could barely stand on their own, worked tightly around tables mixing powders and liquids. Though Andrasta had never been one to experiment with drugs, she had no trouble recognizing the production of them.

She hustled along the roof to the next closest skylight, pausing briefly to watch workers package what she assumed to be finished products.

Two more skylights later, near the back corner of the warehouse, she found Lela. The man with her led her into one of several partitioned rooms. In the room sat a man dressed all in white except for a black turban atop his head. A jade jewel sparkled in the center of the turban. A dozen armed men stood around him.

That’s got to be Beladeva.

Andrasta whipped out her dagger of Relian steel, prying open the skylight. Activity in the warehouse below masked the grating noise the hinges on the skylight produced.

A strong tar-like scent assaulted her. She dropped inside onto a rafter, swung over to another beam, and hustled across the narrow, makeshift walkways crisscrossing the high ceiling until she hovered above the room where Lela recounted her report of the meeting between Princess Mira and Lord Rickar.

The man she spoke to grunted. “Obviously, this major house she spoke of is Brahma. His involvement could complicate things.”

“He won’t get involved though unless the princess can muster an army.”

“For now. But he’s too powerful to assume he’ll remain cautious. What about Rondel and Andrasta? Have you spoken with them?”

“No. But I did spy on them at the inn. They’re much further along than where they were before, but not quite where they need to be. Rondel said he needs more time to find a key among the tower’s glyphs in order to ensure he’s reading them correctly. He plans to stall Mira in hopes of getting the prince to place him on the guest list for the tower party before the Raivataka festival. He wants to study the glyphs more then. Afterward, it sounds like they’re going to try to break in as soon as possible.”

Andrasta squeezed the rafter she crouched upon, angry at the young girl for betraying them, angrier still that her plan to steal the jewel of Bashan seemed to grow ever more complicated.

“Good,” said the man in the turban. “It sounds like we know more than enough to make sure things continue as we need them to.”

“You mean I don’t have to continue spying on the princess any longer?”

“No. She’s desperate and running out of options. If we eliminate Brahma, she has nothing.”

“And Rondel and Andrasta?”

“They’re too much of an unknown and have already proven themselves to be a problem.” He turned to the man at his right. “Chand, take some men and go to their inn. Capture them alive. At least Rondel, anyway. He seems to have all the information on the jewel.”

“Does that mean I’m all right to keep working for you?” asked Lela.

The man in the turban shook his head. “No. I have no more use for you and you’ve tried to play me once before. I don’t believe in second chances.”

So, she tried to work several angles. Help us all and see who is closest to success before committing. But now we know and she has no one left to help her.

Andrasta needed to get back to Rondel to warn him. She turned on the rafter toward the skylight.

“But you have my uncle! Why would I betray you? I can still be of use.”

Andrasta paused.
All because of the uncle. Too bad.

She felt a tug in her chest, and swore to herself.
Don’t. You aren’t Rondel.

She inched forward again.

“No. I
had
your uncle,” said Beladeva. “He died a few hours ago. Too much opium it would seem.”

“You’re lying!” screamed Lela.

“No. And as you reminded me, without your uncle, I can never fully trust you.” Andrasta looked over her shoulder as Beladeva stood. He patted Chand on the shoulder. “Before you go after Rondel and Andrasta, take care of her.”

Andrasta’s hands balled.
Don’t get involved. It’s too much risk. She made her choice. She made the jewel that much harder to get.

Beladeva left the room. Chand walked to Lela. The girl was on her knees sobbing. “Get up, Little One.”

Lela didn’t move. Chand’s open hand struck her. Andrasta jerked in surprise, anger crawled across her skin.
Just turn around and go.

Chand gestured to the shadows. “Get her on her feet and bring her outside. We’ll do it by the docks.”

Just go.

The two men picked up the limp little girl whose soul seemed crushed.

Just go.

They carried Lela out of the room and through the warehouse.

Just go.

She wondered what Rondel would do in her situation and immediately regretted doing so.

Just go.

A door opened and the two men dragged Lela outside to meet her fate.

Andrasta clenched her jaw and went after them.

* * *

Too weak to do much of anything, Lela let the guards drag her, thick hands under each arm. The tops of Lela’s feet scraped over the ground, yet she barely noticed. She was too numb.

Lela was no stranger to pain. She knew loss and sorrow like she knew her own skin. Losing both her parents at the age of four nearly killed her. When Kunal saved her, he repaired not only her physical health, but her mental state as well.