Chapter 15

SCARLET SCARFED DOWNa bowl of meat and potatoes. She"d just gotten back from a job in the north but had raced to get back for the wedding. She hadn"t made it, but she could still relax with the other Hunters.

Some were using the revelry in the streets to complete jobs undetected, but those who were still at the guild hall were already well into their cups and gambling. Scarlet hurried to eat, keeping a clear head so she could fleece the drunks of their coin in an honest game of chance.

The guild master of the Demerel branch came into the common room with a letter. He looked over the lot of them and pointed a bony finger at Scarlet.

"You. Come." He jerked his thumb and spun on his heels. She sighed, resigning herself to another job. So much for winning more coin tonight. She followed him to his office where he waved to a chair. He tapped on an open letter on his desk.

"The king was pleased that you brought the princess safely home. I"m not surprised you found her first. We lost another Hunter to the forest, even though we warned him that you were the only one who could go in and out of there."

He shook his head in disappointment and sank to his chair, pushing an unopened letter across the desk. "The king included a bonus in the fee along with another request. He insists no one but you read it. I wouldn"t put it past him to have enchanted it to make sure no one reads it first."

Scarlet"s brows rose as she read the letter, then the guild master leaned forward to demand, "Well? What"s he want?"

After she read it twice, it burst into flames. She jumped up and ash fell to the floor.

The guild master peered over his desk to make sure the rug didn"t catch fire.

She looked up at him as dread settled like a knot in her stomach. "He has another job but only wants me to do it."

She had to play this off as no big deal. If the guild master or anyone else in the Hunters found out how much the king was offering for this job, they"d jump into action. Everyone loved the princess, but money was king for the Hunters. A Hunter would kill his own mother for the right price.

The guild master eyed her, making the hair on the back of her neck stand. "It"s a great honor, but you know what happens when people get repeat business from the king."

She nodded, swallowing hard as her spine tingled. "I need to go prepare. It will take a few days, but I"ll check in when I get back," she said.

He nodded, then slumped in his chair and propped his feet up on his desk. "Don"t go getting yourself killed. You"re the best Hunter I"ve got. Fisica protect you."

She nodded and opened the door. "And you."

What could this be about? The letter was cryptic.

Five times the normal fee if you meet me in the castle"s gazebo tonight at eleven for another job.

She repacked her bags and re-saddled her horse before riding through the noble district. The houses were large with walled gardens and narrow alleys between them.

She rounded the edge of the palace wall and followed it to the small gate house in the back behind the gardens. She checked her father"s pocket watch, then snapped it shut. The noise of the revelry in the front courtyard drowned out her footsteps as she left her horse in the alley. He was a swift-footed gelding she"d had specifically trained. He wouldn"t wander off and anyone who tried to lead him away would have their hand bitten.

She peered around the gate house. The portcullis was open, but guards stood under the archway. Two cheered and chugged ale, a small crowd of guards egging them on. The one who finished first lifted his mug, and the crowd cheered. Money was exchanged as she slipped unnoticed behind them and into the garden.

Getting in and out of places came easy to her, which is why joining the Hunters had been a simple choice to make.

Her senses sharpened as she hunted for her target. Where would the gazebo be? She stalked on silent feet over the grass, avoiding the pebbled garden paths. Several nobles were on the back terrace, some smoking roots and talking quietly.

She reached out with her senses, somehow feeling where people were in the garden. Someone was in the gazebo, but it wasn"t a couple seeking privacy. She moved closer, listening to every sound, watching for every aura.

Her grandmother and mother had hoped she"d be a druid. They"d trained her until she"d reached ten, but her druidic magic had never come in. All she had were a hunter"s instincts and aura readings from her father.

Her mother had died thirty years ago when Scarlet was five. She"d lived with her grandmother and Knox until she"d been old enough to join her father on the road. He"d been a fighter, a ranger paid by the crown to do a circuit through his territory and solve problems for the people.

Then he went to war and died.

Scarlet had been filled with anger for a long time after that, and the Hunters had provided a way to channel that into an income. She listened behind the gazebo and looked at the moon.

There were no others around, so she slipped inside. The king paced in the middle and when he turned around, he sucked in a breath and froze in his tracks.

He scowled, "Don"t sneak up on me like that. You"re the Hunter that brought Eirwyn home?"

She nodded, her hood hiding her face and keeping her in shadows.

"You"re going to take her into the forest and cut out her heart. Bring it back to me. The official story is that Eirwyn"s going to run off to the tavern again. But she gets lost in the dark and killed."

Scarlet"s stomach clenched, and her blood went cold. She blinked in surprise. "You want me to kill the princess?"

He nodded. One wrong move, and he"d kill her. She"d heard of it happening before. Her mind raced as she breathed through her surprise. She didn"t move, just focused on breathing and watching him.

His aura was steady. He wouldn"t attack her. Not yet, not unless she refused. A small curl of smoke rose from his nose, his hands behind his back as he stared with those cold, emotionless eyes.

She couldn"t question him too much or he"d see it as a challenge of his authority. A Hunter took a job and did it, regardless of the personal feelings on the matter.

They talked more, but Scarlet sensed another aura. She hurried him along by asking for half the payment. When he left, she"d turned to sense the aura on the other side of the gazebo wall.

She felt it was Eirwyn, recognizing her aura. She pulled out the sleep powder and stepped into the garden.

Scarlet slung the princess over her shoulder before she hit the ground and grunted. She was heavier than she"d thought a petite little woman like her would be. It didn"t matter, though.

She turned to go through the back gate of the gardens, juggling the princess on her shoulder.

The guards were now passed out drunk on the ground outside the gate house. Scarlet clung to the shadows and slipped past them.

She tossed Eirwyn over the front of the horse, wincing as she flopped. Knox would not be happy about this. He"d clearly been smitten with Eirwyn, and there was no way she could go through with the king"s request.

But she couldn"t let anyone else go through with it, either. Eirwyn had been nothing but kind to her. When Scarlet had first seen Eirwyn in the tavern years ago, she"d been telling the most fascinating story with bursts of light figures dancing on the ceiling. Red had kept to herself and ignored most of the patrons, but she liked to keep her ears and eyes on gossip in town, especially when the royals were in residence.

It was always best to be prepared.

She swung into the saddle behind Eirwyn and led them through the back alleys toward the edge of town. Then she turned to the Lone Road and pursed her lips.

It was a full moon, and the fear and adrenaline from the king"s words had grown within her chest, threatening to drown her. She focused on her breathing even as fear licked at her heels.

She kicked the horse into a gallop. They had to reach Grandmother"s house before the Growlers caught their scent.

****

Ashur eyed the cylindricaltube warily as they crept down the hallway of the castle. "Are you sure that"s going to work?"

The rambunctious crowd in the courtyard had provided good cover to get into the castle. They"d easily picked the lock and knocked a guard out, entering through a parlor of some sort.

Knox shook his head and peered around the corner. "We"ve tested it for weeks, Ashur. It"ll work."

Ashur sighed and muttered a common prayer to Borga, but Knox didn"t look at him as they continued to the servant"s stairs. They went up to the main floor. At the top of the stairs, was a door that led to the kitchens.

They walked toward the door, his heart racing. If the king captured any of them, it would be the end of all their hard work. Fear beat at him, but he couldn"t stop now.

The king"s forces were still pushing into the forest. Will hadn"t been able to stop them, and the king didn"t respond to their letters in the newspapers.

With Auckwald reclaimed, it was time to lower the taxes and stop the war. Then Knox could send all the bedraggled and weary villagers in Vidrland back home. That was the only way to get peace in the forest.

But first, they had to rob the palace.

Knox took a deep breath and opened the door. There was a bustle of activity, and no one paid him any attention. Until he lifted the magical tube, pressed the three gems on the side, and blew into one end.

His green gas mixed with the magic in the tube, changing his gas from a deadly poison to only a sleeping gas. John had gone back to his brothers, the dwarves, to perfect the invention.

They"d tested it on almost every person in Vidrland, including the magic users. The mages in the forest weren"t as well-taught or magically gifted as the nobles or king. Knox just hoped it was powerful enough to last the thirty minutes it was supposed to.

The green gas sank to the floor, mixing with the feet of the kitchen staff. No one noticed it billowing up around them. Several yawned. When the green reached their knees, they began to slump over where they stood. The cook laid her top half on the table, falling on the jam covered pastries.

It reminded him of Eirwyn. When they were all put to sleep, he walked through the kitchen toward another door, swiping an olpertine as he went. He put it in his pocket to give to Eirwyn later.

The door opened onto another small hallway. Several nobles were going into a few doors on the side, and Knox stepped into each one, even the ladies" facilities room. When he"d walked through all the surrounding rooms, he stepped into the back of the ballroom.

Ashur and the other Robins had taken a preventative elixir to counteract the effects of the sleeping gas. Knox took a deep breath, growing dizzy from the deep breathing. The green and white smoke began to fill the room, sinking to the ground as nobles danced. Knox breathed out, his eyes scanning the crowd as he looked for a black-haired beauty.

The dancers slowed, and the music faded. Within seconds, snores were heard throughout the room. The Robins moved in, picking pockets and shoving gems and jewelry into bags.

Knox walked the perimeter before going onto the outdoor terrace and putting more people to sleep. Ashur disappeared up the grand staircase to finish his part of the mission. They"d spent weeks meticulously planning this heist.

He blew more gas into the ballroom, watching it roll across the floor. He walked up to the king and queen, both slumped in their throne chairs on the raised dais on one end of the room.

He stared at the king. Eirwyn had grown up with this man, this selfish tyrant who couldn"t decide whether the forest killed his parents or the Glathens. Knox knew the truth, though.

Or rather, he suspected the truth since he"d been there when their parents had died. Perhaps he could tell Eirwyn about it soon. Not tonight though since they had plans.

He smiled and walked away from the sleeping drakin king, blowing more sleeping gas through the crowd. The external rooms would be waking soon, and he wanted to give them one more pass.

Two shots each. Less than an hour to get in, put them to sleep, and get out. The plan was working well, yet the more he walked around, the more his stomach tightened. Eirwyn was nowhere to be found; she was supposed to be here at the reception ball celebrating with her brother and the new queen. Perhaps she was upstairs in her room.

Knox shook his head. If she were, Archer would see her when he completed his mission above stairs. Ashur was going to use sleep darts on anyone he met though. Knox looked around, calming himself.

She wasn"t the type to hide in her room during a party. She was vivacious and full of life.

No, the more logical explanation was that she wasn't in the palace at all. Perhaps she was already on her way to the tavern.

He smiled, anticipation building within him even as his hands began to shake and his eyes blurred from using so much magic. It was time to wrap this robbery up and get out of there. He had a princess to woo.