10
2.24p.m.
Lister arrives swiftly in a billow of dust and Relter looks up from his card game with the twins and pays for it as I see Harry palm a card. I look up at Lister from the throne and watch him expectantly.
Scuffling on the ladder is indication enough that Draven and Gabby come to hear what Lister’s news is as well.
Sneering, Lister eyes the two on the ladder and looks back to me, “We got a rat, and you won’t believe your ears, Boss.”
“Try me.”
“Flanders rolled on Simms today, straight up. Heard it from Twitch not two hours ago who got it from Vern who was escorting a well-to-do in the Judge’s Quarter. Flanders is leaking like a stuck pig but not nearly as much as he’s going to when I get close enough to him.”
“You are not to move against Flanders,” I say evenly. “What about Simms, how is he?”
“Johnston heard from the innkeeper who knew the, ah, previous owner of the store he’s running, that Simms killed two of the fat fuckers Ferns usually wallows with and nearly got away. He lives I think but things are getting weird in the city, Boss, my guess is that they’ll torture him. Word is, Flanders took a lick too even after he gave them the low down on Simms. That fucking bastard.”
I purse my lips, torture is the reason I figured on Simms being the man for the job. If there was anyone with something to prove it was Simms and he wouldn’t bend for anyone.
“I repeat, Lister, you are not to move against Flanders.”
“Boss, that rat bastard rolled on one of us! He knows where almost everyone is, who knows who will be next, he’s mine!”
“Do I have to detain you here, Lister? I said no. We needed someone on the inside, I sent Flanders to get it done.”
Lister’s jaw drops a mile and Relter grins from ear to ear.
Slowly, Lister put words to his unusual silence, “You sold us?”
Draven sidles to the doorway and loosens his short sword and I shake my head quickly, Gabby wide eyed and worried.
“Lister, you’ll hear fairly soon that Flanders rolled on our location but you are absolutely forbidden to return here until given word. We’ve got a false location being set up by Beebee and Alton north of the city. Under no circumstance do I plan on giving up any more of the 20, but Flanders and Simms walked into the city knowing their job.”
Shaking his head with a wide grimace of dislike Lister shifts his weight. I carefully keep my eyes on his face but notice the quick dance his fingers do near the hilts of his weapons.
“Fuck it!” Lister snarls and turns, just now noticing Draven and pushes him out of the way and nearly walks into Amm, standing like a barrier in the doorway.
Unconsciously Lister takes a few steps back as does Draven who is the next closest.
Amm is dripping blood into the dirt from a wound in her arm and a bolt appears to be sticking through a thin piece of skin in her left arm but it is hardly her wounds that make her presence outstanding.
Her hair is jet black and what I had taken for black tears before is still laced down her cheeks. I can’t meet her eyes; they are so bright and searing that I hurt when looking straight on.
The card game is now completely paused and Gabby has her back to a stall, fingering her long dagger.
When Amm sways I am the first to her, off my throne to catch her before she hits the ground. “There are things in the woods…” she murmurs and then appears to drift off into sleep.
“Lister, you wait until night to leave. Draven, to the roof with the crossbow and Relter, get the doors closed and barricaded. Gabby, help the twins ready anything they’ve got and stand by.”
4.55p.m.
But the rest of the day is quiet and we spent the hours of tense waiting caring for Amm and her many wounds, the least of which is not the long claw mark on her back. She woke twice and mercilessly apologized to me before falling asleep again.
Now I give Lister a nod in answer to his constant barrage of “Can I go now?”
The bolt removed and her injuries taken care of, Amm sleeps soundly in a nest of hay in the stall farthest from the door. I check her twice before I leave her to walk out close to the door where the others are gathered quietly.
“Gabby, go through the city and find Beebee and Alton and get them out of there. I’ll expect you back tomorrow night at latest. Here is some money, split it three ways and each of you pick up rations in different places on the way back so it doesn’t look like we’re buying in bulk.” Accepting the money, Gabby sidles to the door, glancing at Draven who nods reassuringly.
“Also,” I say loudly and Gabby turns back, “come back through the south gate and stop at the stables to look at some livestock, see what Nod has to say.”
“Sure, Boss,” Gabby replies meekly and she’s gone.
‘Boss, are you sure she should be out on her own? I mean, what Amm said…” he trails off.
“It’s bad enough we’ll have three traveling with goods back to the barn, we don’t need any more to gather attention.”
Draven nods but I know he’s unsure and worried. He should join the club. I don’t speak these words, I just go back to sit with Amm who slumbers restfully, her wounds closing quickly.
10.04p.m.
“I calmed down almost as soon as I left, I knew you didn’t mean anything by it, we’re all tense.” Amm is lying with her head on my leg, her hair almost bled of the black and the stains on her cheeks have faded. “I stayed out so I could think; I spent a lot of time around you when you were at the east point and the rest near the river.”
I don’t respond; I feel as if I owe her my silence, my ability to listen, not to comment.
“I came up on a camping group of police near the Little Hand docks while they were packing away their tents and getting ready to move. I kept at the edge of their camp watching for some indication of which way they were headed or if they had information we could use.”
She pauses, her breathing even, and after several minutes I look down to see if she isn’t sleeping. My movement may have interrupted her reverie as she begins again soon after, “Whatever was shadowing them came up on me fast and I was fighting hard just to stay alive. We fell into the camp and startled the police and a few died when they didn’t move fast enough to escape the wild actions of the creature.”
“It was obvious to me pretty quick that it wasn’t with them when it caught the first volley of bolts and turned on them. I caught it as it killed another man but they were firing on me now also and after one caught me in the arm I threw the creature into them and got out of there.”
“Now I just wonder if they got out of there.”
Combing my fingers through her hair I nod and she looks up at me. “Do you think they did, Hank?”
“I think you gave them a fighting chance and I would like to think those men were grateful and quick witted enough to get while the getting was good.” Her eyes are brown and warm and reflect the smile that is on her lips now.
All is quiet. Draven is sleeping in the loft, Relter is on the roof Harry is at the northern watch, Larry at the eastern; the southern point is abandoned for the night.
I do not know how long I’ve watched her breathing but the black has drained from her hair completely and the crickets outside the dark doorway of the barn have started their song.
Her features are the soft beauty of her daytime persona and I run my finger along her jaw line and smile when she shivers as if cold.
“Amm, so much has happened and I get more and more worried about everyone, especially you.” I pause and she sighs, squeezing my leg. “I just… I love you, Amm.” My eyes burn and I blink away the tears rapidly.
Almost inaudibly, I hear her soft snoring and almost laugh out loud. Talking to myself I smile and lay my head against the wall to sleep, “So much for intimacy.”