Chapter 33

The empty streets with Enforcers at every intersection highlighted the wisdom of Alix and Emil's advice to go to ground. But the solitude at home gnawed at my nerves, leaving me restless and edgy with the need to do something. Anything instead of torturing myself by replaying every minute I'd ever spent with Ziola in my mind. The times I'd wanted to shake her. The times I'd wanted to bang her. The times I'd wanted to just laugh with her.

But as much as I ached for her presence, I couldn't live with her willingness to sacrifice others for her own ambition. Even if we didn't really know if anyone would be sacrificed at all.

I was wearing a groove in the floor with my pacing, and I turned my thoughts to the anonymous guild member who had sold us out. The usual rivalries at the guild were one thing, but outright betrayal was something entirely different. I might not want to hand over the Eye, but I definitely didn't want the guild destroyed from within. Emil would have told the directors that there was an informant, but I could ferret out information the others couldn't.

Grateful for the excuse to go out, I went to the City Enforcers' headquarters, shifted into rat form, and spent long hours wriggling through the walls, hoping to overhear something relevant. I learned about a goblin who attempted to rob a bakery but got stuck in the chimney and someone's pet fire salamander that accidentally burned down a bookshop. There had also been a series of smash and grab thefts in a neighborhood near the docks and complaints of an influx of black-market magical items on the streets.

Boredom was making it difficult to stay alert until a discussion about the Fae Council's demand for a citywide curfew reached my ears. I peeked through a crack and saw a portly blond man with embroidered commander rank insignia on his collar and cuffs. He slumped behind the desk and rubbed the bags underneath his eyes with meaty fists.

"Do they have any idea how much manpower it will require to enforce a curfew?" the commander groused. "We're going to have to bring everyone in for extra duty."

"That won't make anyone happy." A balding, middle-aged man in a superintendent's uniform sat in a chair in front of the desk.

"Tell them to squeeze every informant we've got," the commander snapped. "The sooner we find this artifact, the sooner the Council will be off our backs."

"That tip we got about the apartment seemed promising, but it was empty when the boys got there."

"Did the source provide any names?"

"Just an address."

"Have him brought in for questioning."

"But we could lose a useful source in the Guild of Thieves and Spies," the superintendent objected.

"It can't be helped. Finding this artifact is more important."

The superintendent pushed to his feet with a weary sigh and trudged from the office.

My legs were cramping from sitting motionless, but I didn't dare leave to stretch. It would take them a while to round up their informant, but I couldn't risk missing him, so I headed down to the level with the holding cells and interrogation rooms. After an interminable wait listening to my stomach growl and bored Enforcers questioning petty miscreants, there was a scuffle in the corridor as they dragged in a bound, struggling man with a hood over his head.

Instead of putting him in a cell, they hauled him directly into an interrogation room and slammed the door. I shot through a small hole in the wall and quickly made my way through the laths behind the plaster to a spot that gave me a good view of the proceedings.

When I arrived, the man was no longer struggling but sitting at a table with his back to me. All I could see was that he had curly brown hair and a lithe build. A young constable Enforcer with a buzz cut and round, red cheeks sat across from him, facing my spy hole. They seemed to be waiting for someone, and neither spoke.

Eventually, the superintendent I had observed earlier came in and sat next to the constable.

"What in all the hells are you doing bringing me here?" the curly haired man hissed. "Do you know what they'll do if they find out I've been passing you information?"

I froze and barely blinked. That voice was very familiar. Jareth?

"We had no choice," the superintendent said calmly. "It is crucial we find that artifact before someone smuggles it out of the city."

"I gave you the safe house. What happened with that?"

"There were signs of a rapid departure, but no one was there."

The man threw his hands up in the air. "I can't help it if your men are incompetent."

The young constable crossed his arms over his chest and scowled.

"We need names and where to find the people involved," the superintendent said without reacting to the insult.

I clenched my teeth as blood pounded in my ears. If this bastard gave Ziola up, I would take my knives to him. Slowly.

I forced down my rage in case it triggered an unexpected shift. It had never happened before that time with Ziola, but I had rarely experienced the strong emotions that seemed to plague me recently. The last thing I needed right now was to explode through the wall plaster as I turned into a man. Stark naked, no less.

"A guy named Remy," the informant said.

The constable pulled out a quill and piece of parchment. "Remy what?"

"Dunno."

"Where does he live?"

The man shrugged.

"Where does he hang out?"

"I never see him in the bars we usually go to."

"Friends? Family?"

"If he has friends, they're not in the guild. I've never heard anyone mention family."

The superintendent sighed and scraped a hand down his face.

"Human?"

"As far as I know."

"What does he look like?"

"Average height, lean build, brown hair."

"That describes half the men in the city. Is Remy even his real name?"

The informant cocked his head to one side. "I never thought to ask. Everyone calls him Remy."

The superintendent levered himself out of his chair with a grunt.

"Get more information on this Remy. Right away."

"This is beyond our agreement."

"If your information leads to the artifact the Council is looking for, your reward will be substantial." The superintendent departed, leaving the brown-haired man and the constable.

"Let's get you out of here," the constable said. He loosely tied the man's hands behind his back and put a bag over his head. Opening the door, the Enforcer hustled him out and down the hallway.

I stayed where I was for a long time, deciding how to handle this. Now that Halder was no longer with the guild, no one there knew much about me on a personal level. Despite all my years working with them, even Lorget didn't know personal details like where I lived. And no one knew about all my non-guild activities. That left Ziola. Once he realized no one had more than superficial information, he'd go after Ziola. The only question now was whether to remove the problem myself or pass his name to the guild and let them handle it.

When I slipped out of the Enforcers' headquarters, night had fallen, and a heavy fog blanketed the streets. I returned to the nook with my clothes, shifted, and dressed. The Enforcers were going to have a tough time tracking movement through the city this evening with the fog impeding their vision and dampening sound.

As I tugged on a boot, a possible solution to the Halder problem popped into my mind. I sat on a step and mulled it over. It might actually work. Worth a try anyway. I stood and glided through the fog toward City Center.

Near Scepter Seraphim, I once again hid my clothes and shifted. With a twitch of my tail, I scurried to the hole I had previously used to gain entry. I might not be able to carry anything large in this form, but I could drag a fair amount of weight and I could dig. I squeezed inside and peered around the dark space beneath the liquor cabinet.

Yes! The jeweled dagger with the trapped elemental spirit was still there.

I slid back outside and excavated as fast as I could to enlarge my access crevice. Dirt flew as I scooped it with my front paws and shoved it farther out with my back paws. My sides were heaving when I finally had a shallow hole wide enough for the knife. Returning inside, I gripped a small ring on the side of the hilt with my teeth and heaved with all my might. Inch by slow, painful inch, I dragged it to the opening.

I crawled outside and rested for a moment, wishing I could just sit there and take a nap. But with gargoyles on the roof and a guard at the front door, that would be a very poor idea. This next part was going to be tricky, and the sooner I got on with it, the better. After glancing around to be sure that the fog hadn't lifted, I lay flat on my belly and shifted.

My very bare ass quivered at its vulnerable position as I shoved my fingers into the hole and groped for the knife. Sliding it out, I couldn't suppress the grin that spread across my face or the tingle of excitement that always accompanied the union of danger and success. My instincts screamed to turn and run, but I forced myself to crawl away from Scepter Seraphim with chelonian speed. For the first time, I was grateful for the extended Enforcer activity because there were no casual pedestrians to notice a naked man slinking down the street.

Re-clothed and on my feet, I secured the elemental dagger in my vest alongside my many other blades and patted it affectionately. I headed home through the deserted streets and hoped Halder would accept the dagger in exchange for the Eye. Given his occupation, I couldn't believe he wouldn't find a blade that housed a bloodthirsty elemental spirit invaluable. Hells, only the potential horrors the Eye could unleash were making me willing to give it to him. I would send Halder a message as soon as I got home to set up a meeting.