Chapter 18

18

On a frosty morn, a track without ice crystals is freshly made.

~ Ranger Founder Saruk

Kaylina waited in the dark until the door thudded shut with Spymaster Sabor's departure. Since she assumed the search would continue, she was about to start down the stairs when the bookcase slid open. The intrusion of the lamplight wasn't bright enough to make her squint, but Targon's glowering face did cause her to grimace.

"I had a hunch," he said.

"There wasn't enough time for me to climb down—I was worried about making noise." Kaylina looked past his shoulder to make sure he was alone in the office.

"Sure you were. You're a practiced eavesdropper."

"If that were true, I wouldn't get caught all the time."

Targon grunted, pointed at the floor, and said, "Stay there," before sliding the bookcase closed again.

Though the order without any explanation rankled, Kaylina waited for him to return. She wanted to know when the guards left and make sure Frayvar had continued to elude them. If they found her brother, they might think to use him—to threaten him—to get her to turn herself in.

The thought chagrined her. Already, he'd been hurt numerous times, all because he was a loyal sibling who'd followed her north, believing she needed his assistance. And she did need it, at least when it came to starting a business.

Long minutes passed, and she didn't hear any triumphant shouts to suggest the guards had found Frayvar. She didn't hear anything else either, not until footsteps sounded in the office again.

Once more, the bookcase slid aside. This time, Frayvar stood in the light, a pack and books gathered in his arms. Targon stood behind him.

"I want both of you out of here, and don't come back unless you've cleared your name." Targon gave Frayvar a shove, but not a hard one, only enough to send him into the dark nook with Kaylina. "Maybe not even then. Apparently, the Virts are claiming you're one of them, and with Spymaster Sabor now interested in you…" He curled his lip and closed the bookcase without finishing the thought.

Kaylina found her brother's arm in the dark, gripped it, and patted him on the back.

"Hugging." Frayvar said it as a warning to forestall the unpleasant activity, and she didn't need light to know he was wincing in anticipation.

"I wasn't going to, but that's something you should allow from a sibling when you've narrowly escaped being captured by the Kingdom Guard, if not the Castle Guard. How did you avoid their notice? Targon said there weren't secret doors in the infirmary."

"There was a somewhat hidden cabinet large enough to hold me. Barely. I have some fresh dents in my side. Penderbrock locked me in there before I knew what was happening. I think he saved me because he was grateful that I organized his medicine cabinets."

"As demonstrated by him locking you in? What would he have done if he hadn't been grateful?"

"Handed me to the guards, I suppose. I have the maps and my plans for researching Bloomlong and clearing your name. Do you want to?—"

"Go to the castle to test my honey on that plant before dawn? Yes."

"That's… not going to clear your name."

"I know, but there's more going on. We may need?—"

A thump sounded on the bookcase.

"Have your meeting elsewhere," Targon grumbled from the other side.

"Right. Thank you." Kaylina released her brother's arm, found the stairs with her foot, and whispered, "Follow me as we talk. And watch your step."

"I thought I'd dance, leap, and spring my way down."

"I've seen you dance. I wouldn't recommend it even when there is good lighting."

"Ha ha."

Hands on dusty wooden walls, Kaylina led the way slowly down the stairs while relaying the conversation she'd overheard, as much as she could. Since she couldn't say anything that would lead her brother to guess Vlerion's secret, she couldn't be as complete as she wished.

"Because the Virts are claiming we're aligned," she finished, "we may need to help the authorities find their press to stop the printing of their secret newspaper. Maybe that would prove we're not involved with them."

"Before the authorities will let us help them, we'll need the testimony of the poisoner who sold vials to Jana Bloomlong, or that of the messenger who delivered the tainted mead."

"We can work on getting those things. After visiting the plant."

"How is messing with that plant going to help anything?" Frayvar grunted as he lost his balance. The steps weren't even.

"I want to see if the druid honey makes it… happy." What she wanted was to see if it lifted the curse on the castle so she would be closer to figuring out how to lift Vlerion's curse. Those words she couldn't speak aloud.

" It's not going to give its testimony."

"You never know."

"Be logical, Kay."

"You know that's not my strength."

Frayvar harrumphed like Grandpa.

Even feeling her way carefully through the dark passage, Kaylina cracked her knuckles against the hard wall that marked the dead end Targon had mentioned. After cursing sufficiently, she slid her fingers over the rough bricks and aged mortar, counting from the bottom to locate the secret switch. Nothing obvious stuck out, but when she found the right brick and pushed, a hidden door ground open.

It sounded like the heavy stone lid of an ancient sarcophagus shifting aside, reminding Kaylina unpleasantly of her time in the catacombs. But, as Targon had promised, his passageway opened into the sewers, not the catacombs.

As soon as the pungent aroma of effluent struck her, making her nostrils sting, she decided the catacombs might have been preferable, even with Kar'ruk statues that spat poison.

"Do you have a lantern handy?" Kaylina could hear water flowing, but no grates let in light from the city above, at least not in this area.

"Of course. Give me a moment." His voice sounded odd. He was probably doing his best to breathe through his mouth, possibly while pinching his nostrils shut. "I might try to find a gag too. Or a bag to put over my entire head."

"This is better than if guards had charged into the infirmary and captured you," Kaylina said, though she also didn't want to linger in the sewers.

"Are you sure? They might have been interested by my organization methods, which could have led to a lively and stimulating conversation."

"I can't believe you accuse me of having hallucinations."

"You've admitted to seeing things before."

"Only when I'm absorbed by my visions for the future."

"By your schemes." After striking a match, Frayvar lit two small lanterns.

"I should have left you in ranger headquarters."

Unfazed, he handed her a lantern.

"Thank you."

With the wan light to lead them, they followed a stone ledge along a murky channel. Sludge and slime covered the walkway, making the footing treacherous. It coated the nearest wall as well, and Kaylina was loath to touch it for balance—or for any reason at all. That was hard when they had to duck under periodic chutes in the wall with more effluent flowing out, splashing down into the main channel.

"This might be Targon's revenge for my irreverence." Kaylina wiped her watering eyes, the potent air affecting her ten times more than cutting onions. "Or he wants to make sure Vlerion isn't attracted to me."

"Why would the ranger captain care if Lord Vlerion is attracted to you?"

"Because…" She realized she shouldn't have made the joke. "I'm a commoner, and he doesn't approve of his rangers getting horizontal with such riffraff."

"He said that? The rangers tend to gossip, and I've heard he's been with a lot of women, nobles and commoners."

"Double standards." Kaylina hurried around a corner. It was getting harder and harder to avoid saying anything that might give him clues about Vlerion's secret.

Intersections forced them to make more turns than she wanted, and she worried they would come up in front of ranger headquarters. Or a pair of kingdom guards. Not that she'd yet seen any ladders or ways out. Maybe there weren't any. Since Targon wanted her to disappear, he might have decided having her get lost for weeks in the city sewers would be a good way to accomplish that.

"There's a grate." Frayvar pointed toward bars across a narrow rectangular opening in the ceiling, a few drops of rainwater trickling down. Though night was deep, a hint of light from a nearby streetlamp brightened the area under the grate. "Have we gone far enough? We might be able to get out there."

"There isn't a ladder, and I don't see a manhole or a way through those bars."

"Let's look closer. My nose is ready to escape this miasma of stenches. Another minute, and it'll be permanently damaged, and I'll lose all my ability to be an effective chef."

"You'll still have your tastebuds."

"A good chef uses all of his senses to cook."

"Really? I haven't seen you stir a pot with your ears."

"I've used my lips when my hands were full."

"A skill Lady Ghara would swoon over." Kaylina stopped a few steps from the opening, listening for horses, wagons, or anything else that might be above. They didn't need witnesses spotting them climbing out of the sewer. She touched the variegated and slick growth on the wall, doubting she could climb it. "Are you going to boost me up?"

"You know how great my strength is."

"So, you want me to boost you up."

"Probably. I—" Frayvar stopped as a shadow blocked the grate.

Kaylina hadn't heard whatever it was approach, but she stood still, hoping it would move on. It didn't. Snuffling sounds came from above.

"Is that… a taybarri?" she whispered, though it was too dark to make out fur or the shape of a head. "Or a stray dog?"

An indignant whuff floated down.

"Not a dog," Frayvar said.

"Crenoch? Or Levitke?" Kaylina couldn't recognize any of the taybarri from a whuff alone and was guessing.

The answering whuff sounded like one of agreement.

"How did they find us?" Frayvar whispered, though they couldn't tell if there was more than one.

"I don't know. You can't tell me the scent of my honey is detectable with the other odors down here overpowering it."

"It might be. Animals have better noses than we do."

A clink came from above as taybarri fangs wrapped around two bars of the grate.

"Uhm," Frayvar said.

A great wrenching of metal sounded, and pieces of brick and mortar trickled down as the taybarri tore the grate out.

"Whoa," Frayvar said. "I didn't know their jaws were that strong."

"A reason not to piss them off."

"Oh, I already had a list of reasons not to do that."

The shadow—the head—disappeared from view as the taybarri flung the grate away. Kaylina winced when it clattered on the cobblestone street. She hoped it was as late as she believed and that nobody was around to hear or see that.

"I'll take that boost up now." She stepped under the opening.

"I thought you were boosting me ," Frayvar grumbled but came forward. "Please tell me you don't want me to get on hands and knees to be a stool. The ground here is disgusting."

"We're going to need a bath after this anyway."

"Yeah, but will we get the opportunity for one?"

"You could always fall in the river again."

"I adore being your brother." Frayvar sighed and lowered himself to all fours.

"Thank you." Kaylina carefully stepped on his back as she braced herself against the wall. It was as disgusting as the ground. "You're a good brother."

"I'm an amazing brother."

"I'm not arguing."

With him boosting her, Kaylina gripped the ragged edge left by the grate removal. Pieces of mortar and brick crumbled under her grip, and she hesitated to hang her weight from her fingers.

"I don't suppose you taybarri brought a rope," she called softly.

The shadows stirred but not because of a head this time. A thick taybarri tail drooped through the opening.

"You want me to grab that?" Kaylina asked. "Won't that hurt?"

She wasn't sure she could get a good grip since the tail was a lot thicker than a rope. Despite the fur, they always reminded her more of lizard tails than those of mammals.

The two whuffs that floated down sounded amused. Kaylina reminded herself that she'd seen enemies swing axes at the taybarri. They were tough creatures.

"All right." She ended up hugging the tail more than gripping it like a rope, then risked shifting her weight from Frayvar's back to it.

The taybarri took a couple of steps, pulling her up. Her shoulder bashed against the side of the opening, knocking more debris free, and Frayvar groaned as pieces pelted him.

"Sorry," she whispered, rolling away from the opening as soon as she could.

In the street, Kaylina pushed herself to her knees, intending to turn and lower a hand down for her brother. But her taybarri helper had already backed close and lowered his tail again. Her tail. By the streetlamp, there was enough to see Levitke's familiar snout and warm brown eyes in her blue-furred face.

A male taybarri stood nearby, but that wasn't Crenoch. He was probably still with Vlerion in the preserve. Maybe Levitke had batted her lashes and lured this one away from headquarters to help. The male had his nostrils in the air, his floppy ears twitching as he sampled the city scents—and whatever wafted up from the sewer opening.

"Uhm?" Frayvar's voice wafted up.

"That tail is for you. Grab on." Kaylina refrained from using the word hug since he had an aversion to that.

"Do I… jump?"

"Do chefs not do that?"

"I'm not sure how much weight a tail can handle."

Levitke looked over her shoulder, then backed closer to the hole so it would lower further. The bend in her tail did not appear natural. It usually stuck out horizontally, swishing back and forth low to the ground as the taybarri walked.

"That's as low as it's going to get." Kaylina crouched near the hole so she could help.

"Give me a second. I'll try to get a running start. Without falling."

Having seen her brother attempt athletic feats, Kaylina winced. She also hoped he wouldn't hurt Levitke.

"Is it easy to kink your tail like that?" Kaylina asked the taybarri as she looked around, not recognizing the street where they'd come up. Brick row houses lined either side, with a fountain at a well-lit intersection a half a block away. She hadn't spent much time exploring residential areas since they'd arrived. "Or are you doing us a huge favor?"

Levitke curved her body so that she could lick Kaylina's face.

"Favor. Got it. Hurry up, Frayvar."

A scrape and thump came from below, followed by a grunt. "I'm on."

Levitke walked forward, the weight on her tail not noticeably bothering her. As soon as Frayvar's head came into view, Kaylina grabbed him under the armpits and helped him into the street.

He let go of the tail and wiped his hands on his clothes several times before standing—and several times after. Kaylina couldn't blame him. A bath sounded appealing, but she doubted they would have an opportunity for that any time soon.

The two taybarri started walking away. At first, Kaylina thought they'd done what they came to do, somehow knowing she and Frayvar needed assistance, and were leaving. But Levitke paused and looked expectantly back.

"Do we follow? Are you leading us somewhere helpful? Like Stillguard Castle?"

The affirmative whuff was promising.

Kaylina and Frayvar followed the taybarri. Surprisingly, they didn't stop and offer themselves as mounts. Instead, the creatures' big heads kept swinging toward each other as they strode ahead, walking side by side over the rain-dampened cobblestones. It was as if they were exchanging meaningful looks. Did taybarri do that the way humans did?

After passing the fountain, the taybarri led them several more blocks, turning at a stone building that seemed familiar. It wasn't until Kaylina saw the river and a bridge in the midst of being repaired that she identified it. The last time she'd visited the city jail, they'd entered through a back entrance.

The taybarri stopped in front of the area where Vlerion and Targon had battled Virts who'd been buying time for a jailbreak. Tonight, there wasn't anyone in view—not anyone upright anyway. Levitke stopped in front of a cloaked figure lying prone on the ground. Lying… dead on the ground?

Frayvar sucked in a breath as he spotted the person, and he and Kaylina were the ones to exchange long looks.

The nearby jail made Kaylina hesitate to get close. What if guards walked out and spotted the body, and her and Frayvar standing next to it, and believed they'd been responsible? Kaylina's entire episode with the rangers had begun because she'd been caught in proximity to a murdered noble.

"Let's leave that for the authorities to find," Kaylina whispered when Levitke looked expectantly back at her again. She pointed down the river in the direction of the castle. "I've got some honey I can share once we get to Stillguard."

Levitke's tail swished, but she didn't leave the body. The male sniffed the air again, his long furry form tense, his tail not moving. If he'd heard and understood the honey offer, he gave no indication of it.

"Is something dangerous about?" Kaylina asked. "The person who did this?"

Against her better judgment, she crept toward the body. After a quick look, they could leave. If the taybarri wanted, they could stay until some rangers found them.

A dark damp puddle had formed on the cobblestones under the man. Blood. This couldn't have happened that long ago, or the earlier rain would have washed it away.

Even before she got close, Kaylina suspected he hadn't been run through with a sword. And she was right. Something with claws had torn out his throat—it had torn his head half off.

The male taybarri moaned. Kaylina hadn't heard that noise from one of them before and didn't know what to make of it until she realized the fallen man wore black leather armor. Ranger armor.

"Is this one of your people?" Kaylina peered more closely at the face and realized it was one of the men who'd accompanied Targon into the preserve. He must have returned and been sent out on a patrol of the city. "Or," she guessed, her intuition striking, "your rider?"

The male taybarri moaned again.

Levitke looked at Kaylina.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do anything." She didn't understand why the taybarri had brought her here. Why didn't they go to ranger headquarters for Targon and some of his men?

Levitke stepped closer, facing Kaylina fully and gazing into her eyes as if she longed to convey a message. Or… a warning?

"Do you know who killed him?" Kaylina wished she could read the taybarri's thoughts.

The male sniffed the air again, then lowered his large snout toward the dead ranger. With their keen noses, they might know exactly who'd killed the man.

"An animal, right?" Kaylina asked.

It had to be. Though the body and the claw marks reminded her uncomfortably of the dead Virts from the dungeon under the royal castle—men the beast had killed. She didn't believe Vlerion could have had anything to do with this murder though. He wasn't even in the city.

The two taybarri exchanged long looks again. She almost wondered if they could read her thoughts.

"Or maybe one of the Kar'ruk sneaked into the city?" Kaylina suggested. "Do they by chance tame wild animals and train them to fight?"

Levitke whuffed, but Kaylina couldn't tell if it was a negative, an affirmative, or an acknowledgment of the possibility. Maybe the taybarri wasn't answering at all and was simply unsettled by the situation.

"It wasn't anything to do with Vlerion, right?"

The taybarri looked at each other and shifted their weight on their large paws. The male's tail swished in agitation.

"I know he wouldn't hurt one of his own people," Kaylina said, but she didn't know that. As a man, he wouldn't, but as a beast, would he recognize friend from foe? Not based on what he'd admitted.

The clip-clop of horse hooves sounded on the road across the river. Numerous horse hooves.

"Kaylina," Frayvar whispered. "We need to get out of here."

"I know." She backed away, though Levitke's sad eyes made her want to stay and help the taybarri get to the bottom of this. "We'll find out who's responsible, all right?"

Levitke whuffed, but the male had turned toward the bridge. He trotted in the direction of the approaching riders.

When Frayvar gripped Kaylina's arm, she let him guide her into the shadows. They rounded the corner of the jail and slipped into an alley but not before she glimpsed horses and taybarri riding into view, rangers and guards on their backs.

She picked up the pace, passing her brother and urging him into a jog. As soon as the authorities spotted the dead ranger, they would start searching for the responsible party. Since Kaylina and Frayvar didn't have claws, they shouldn't be considered suspects, but she had other reasons to avoid being found.

"Why did you ask the taybarri if Vlerion had something to do with that man's death?" Frayvar whispered as they jogged down a street toward Stillguard Castle.

Kaylina winced. Since her brother had been quiet while Levitke showed her the body, she'd forgotten about keeping Vlerion's secret from him.

"He was with that ranger in the preserve," she said.

"They ought to be friends, then, right? Why'd you tell the taybarri that he wouldn't hurt his own people. Of course he wouldn't." Frayvar hesitated. "Right?"

"Right," she said firmly. Feeling his eyes upon her, she added, "Just forget I said anything, Fray. Please."

He hesitated. "Okay."

Despite his agreement, she imagined the cogs and gears in his mind turning, and she sighed, afraid Vlerion's secret would be harder to keep than she'd guessed.