Demonbane (Book 4) (3 page)

Bronwyn
.

Brionne shrugged her pale white shoulders. “Hmm. My mistake, then.” Her eyes flitted up towards the head of the banqueting table. “It appears that your wife is certainly becoming fast friends with the Baron.”

Maklavir glanced up.

Kara was seated next to Dutraad. Their laughter spilled down across the pile of food on the table.

“Yes,” Maklavir managed to say, “well, she has always been a bit of a free spirit.”

“So am I,” Brionne breathed. She pressed her supple body close to Maklavir. “Well, if she is enjoying the Baron’s company, I don’t see any reason why you and I can’t spend some quality time together as well. Are you staying for the dance?”

Maklavir felt hot. He pushed his wine glass away, determined not to drink any more. “Yes, Kara and I are both staying.” He made sure to emphasize his wife’s name.

Brionne fluttered her eyelashes. “How splendid. Something tells me that you are a very good dancer, Maklavir.”

He smiled awkwardly, feeling the woman’s warm body pressed against his arm and side.

Something told him that it was going to be a long evening.

“Where did Maklavir manage to find a jewel like you?” Dutraad draped one arm over the back of his chair. “I thought I knew most of the noble families in Valmingaard.”

Kara smiled shyly, and buttered a hot roll on her plate. “Well, I’m not from Valmingaard. My family comes from Arbela. We lived in New Marlin after the revolution.”

Dutraad clucked his tongue. “Such a tragic event. Your family must have lost much.”

Kara took a demure bite of the roll. She swallowed, then sighed. “My father had an estate almost as large as this one, just west of Shawnor. Fortunately we fled just in time.” She paused, and looked sadly at her plate. “Many of our friends…were not so lucky. As it was we barely escaped with our lives. I remember seeing the  flames devouring our house as we escaped, hearing the screams of the mob--” She turned her head away, and bit her lip hard.

“I’m so sorry,” said Dutraad sincerely. “It was stupid of me to bring it up. Candle Ice is a time for joy and celebration. Tonight you are my honored guest, Kara. Please consider me your humble servant. If there is any way I might bring you even the slightest bit of pleasure, you have but to ask.”

Kara gazed softly at the man. “That is very kind of you, Dutraad.” She folded her hands in her lap and looked out over the bustling dining hall. The room shimmered in the golden light of the candles. “You know, I
do
feel happy here,” she sighed. “It reminds me of the parties my father would throw at our estate back in Arbela.” She turned her head back to Dutraad. “But where is Lady Dutraad? She seems to have vanished.”

The smile disappeared from the Baron’s face. “She was feeling…unwell,” he said stiffly. “She retired to her room for the evening. I imagine once she gets a good night’s sleep she will feel much better.” He frowned. “Truth be told, Mina has never really enjoyed gatherings like this. She tends to be more of a…solitary soul.”

Kara laid a hand on the man’s arm. “That must be hard for you.”

Dutraad put his own hand over Kara’s. “Come, my lady. Let us speak of pleasant things. I will not mention the Arbelan revolution if you do not mention my wife. Agreed?”

Kara’s eyes twinkled. “Agreed.”

“It’s bloody cold out here.” Hamis shifted where he lay huddled against the alley wall, wrapped in a worn gray blanket. There was already a light covering of snow on top of him. “What’s going on inside? Do you have the Soulbinder yet?”

“Not even close.” Tomas looked back over his shoulder. The Dutraad estate was just visible outside the mouth of the alley, across the lit street. “There’s a wrinkle. Kendril has identified a witch at the festival. He thinks she’s in league with Dutraad.”

Hamis got quickly to his feet. He wore tattered clothes that reeked of alcohol. With the unkempt beard and ragged blanket, he looked the part of a slovenly drunk to perfection. “Does Kendril want us to move on the manor?”

Tomas paused. He looked back hard at the lit town house just across the street. “Go back to
The Crooked Goose
and tell Madris and Olan what’s going on.”

Hamis stared hard at the other Ghostwalker. “You didn’t answer my question, Tomas. Do we move in?”

“Kendril doesn’t think we need to yet,” Tomas responded.

Hamis snorted derisively. “Kendril hates Olan’s guts. Or hadn’t you noticed? I’m asking
you
, Tomas. Is the situation out of control?”

There was another long pause. The cold night wind whipped down the alleyway. Gusts of snowflakes blew into their faces.

“No,” said Tomas at last. “Not yet.”

“This whole situation is out of control.” Maklavir flopped into a chair against the wall of the bedroom. “Did you see the way Brionne was hanging on me? She mentioned Balneth. How does she know about
that
? What if she says something to Dutraad?”

Kara sat on the edge of the bed. She brushed the red hair back out of her face. “I thought you would have enjoyed the attention she was giving you.”

“
You
certainly seemed to be enjoying Dutraad’s attention,” Maklavir replied testily. He looked over at Kendril, who was leaning against the wall by the fireplace. “Brionne’s really that courtesan from Llewyllan, isn’t she? The one you mentioned. Bronwyn.”

Kendril stared pensively at a patch of floor. “Yes.” He looked up at Maklavir. “Think carefully. Did she recognize you?”

“I honestly don’t know.” Maklavir frowned in thought. “Didn’t you say that Bronwyn was some kind of a…witch?”

Kara looked over at Kendril. “She’s here, and she’s using a fake name. So what do we do?”

Joseph leaned forward in his own chair. He clasped his hands together. “We have a plan,” he said quietly.

“I thought we
already
had a plan,” said Maklavir sourly.

“Things have changed,” Kendril said.

“You mean things have gotten
worse
,” the diplomat quipped. He looked over at Kendril and Joseph. “The two of you seem to have no trouble roaming about the house. Why don’t
you
start ransacking for this Soulbinder?”

Joseph rubbed his face. “Dutraad has armed guards in the halls. I spotted at least a couple more around the stairs. We barely made it here to the room. There’s no way we could get upstairs.”

“At least not without a fight,” said Kendril darkly.

“Yes, well if we’re going to do that we might as well call all your Ghostwalker friends in and start a war.” Maklavir got up from the chair and paced over to the window. “This whole thing is a bloody disaster. I should have seen it coming.”

“It’s
not
. Not yet, anyway.” Kendril tapped his chin. “This is still our best chance. We know that Bronwyn and Dutraad wouldn’t let the Soulbinder out of their sight. It has to be somewhere in this house. Maybe even
on
one of them.”

“Dutraad is interested in me,” Kara said quietly. “If I play this right I could search him and his room for the Soulbinder—”

“Do I have to keep reminding you that you’re a married woman?” Maklavir turned hotly from the window. “Besides, how do you know Dutraad is interested in you at all?”

Kara gave a mysterious smile.  “Please, Maklavir. I’m a woman. I know when a man is interested in me.”

Joseph shifted uncomfortably in his seat.

“Look,” Kara said with a wave of her hand, “we want to find this Soulbinder, right? That’s why I’m here, because I’m a
thief
. Well as a thief, I’m telling you that this is my best chance. Seducing Dutraad gets me past the guards, with luck gets me upstairs, and gives me time.”

“That just leaves Bronwyn.” Kendril lifted his eyes and stared intently at Maklavir.

“Why are you looking at
me
?” the diplomat asked sulkily.

“Because I need you to distract Bronwyn. Keep her away from Dutraad, then lure her to somewhere else in the house.”

Maklavir narrowed his gaze. “Why?”

“Bronwyn knows where the Soulbinder is. Once you get her out of the main hall, Joseph and I will grab her, drag her somewhere private, and get the information out of her.”

“Somewhere private?” Maklavir raised his eyebrows incredulously. “Like where?”

Kendril shrugged. “The stables. The cellar. I don’t know. It’s a big house. I’m sure we’ll figure something out.”

“And how exactly am I supposed to lure Brio--I mean
Bronwyn
away from the celebration?”

The Ghostwalker sighed. “Do I really need to spell it out for you, Maklavir? Kara said that Bronwyn was practically hanging on you all throughout dinner. Just use that boyish charm of yours.”

“Let me get this straight.” Maklavir crossed his arms and cocked his head. “You want Kara to seduce Baron Dutraad, ransack his room, and search him for the Soulbinder,
and
at the same time you want me to feign interest in Bronwyn, get her to an abandoned room so that you can coldcock her, tie her up in the cellar, then torture her for information?”

“I thought I’d let Tomas do the torturing,” said Kendril with an evil grin. “He’s much better at it than I am.”

Maklavir sank back in the chair, his hand over his face. “Oh, why do I even
bother
?”

“I won’t have torture,” Joseph said sternly. “I don’t care if she’s a servant of the dark powers or not. We can question her, but not hurt her.”

“Make no mistake.” Kendril looked around at all of them. “Bronwyn won’t hesitate to kill all of us if she knows who we are and what we’re doing here. Our only advantage here is speed and surprise. Either Dutraad has the Soulbinder, or Bronwyn does. If it’s not on either of them, then it’s undoubtedly hidden nearby. Bronwyn will know where. We need to find that Soulbinder, get it out of here, and eliminate Bronwyn. That means doing two things at once. Kara goes after Dutraad, and we go after Bronwyn.”

Joseph sat up in his chair. “What do you mean
eliminate
Bronwyn?”

“I mean
kill
her.” Kendril snapped.

Maklavir looked up at the ceiling. “I just love the magic of Candle Ice. Such a joyous time of year.”

“We can’t kill her,” Joseph protested.

“We can, and we will. But not until after we’ve questioned her. She may be the only one who knows where the Soulbinder is.” He nodded towards the door. “In the meantime we have to assume that Dutraad and all the house guards are in the know, and on her side. We move fast and quietly. If we play out cards right, we’ll have the Soulbinder by midnight.”

“And if not,” Maklavir said, “we’ll all be hanged as thieves and kidnappers.”

For a moment no one spoke. From outside the door of the room came the muffled sounds of the Candle Ice celebration. Snowflakes lashed mercilessly against the window.

“We’re in this up to our neck,” Kendril said at last. “There’s no going back now. If any of you want out, this is the time. There’s no telling what the rest of this night will bring.”

Joseph stood. Fire glinted in his eyes. “We all knew what we were signing up for when we came here. We’ll see this through. All the way.”

Kara stood as well. “In that case,” she said with a smile, “I’m going to have to ask you boys to leave.”

They all stared at her.

The redhead pointed to the sparkling white dress laid out on the bed. “I have to
change
,” she said.

“This will do.” Kendril looked around the inside of the stables, lit only by a lantern that rested on the edge of an empty stall. “Lillette said we were the only ones sleeping out here, didn’t she?”

Joseph nodded. He rubbed his hands briskly together against the cold. “It’s far enough away from the main house, and I haven’t seen anyone but Tomas and us come out here tonight.” He stole a glance over his shoulder at the town house that loomed in the snowy darkness behind them. He gave Kendril a weighty look. “I mean it, Kendril. I know the Soulbinder is important, and I know that Bronwyn knows where it is, but I won’t be party to any torture.”

“I doubt it will come to that,” Kendril said. He ran a hand along the edge of a stall. “We’ll need to grab Bronwyn quickly, then bring her out here without anyone seeing us. Did you bring that herbal bag of yours?”

Joseph nodded towards the open stable door. “In the baggage compartment of the carriage. All things considered, I thought it would be good to have along.”

“Anything that might help us?”

The grizzled scout considered for a moment. “Xoma scent packs a powerful kick. I’ve got a flask of it in my bag. It’s fast, too. Soak some on a cloth, put it over her face and she’ll be out in seconds.”

“Good. As much as I’d love to bash her over the head, we can’t risk killing her. Not yet, anyway.” He tilted his head towards Joseph. “You’ve had this Xoma scent on you the whole time and never thought of using it stop Maklavir’s prattling for five minutes?”

“Oh, believe me, I thought about it.” Joseph looked out into the yard again, squinting to see through the falling snow. “Most people are staying inside, even the servants. No one wants to be out in this cold. I think if we’re careful, we should be able to get Bronwyn out here without anyone noticing us.”

“Good.” Kendril tapped his hand anxiously against the side of the stall. “We need to find Tomas. He should be back by now. We’ll have him keep watch and make sure the coast is clear. You and I will grab Bronwyn.”

“So I guess now we’re adding kidnapping to our list of offenses?” Joseph’s flash of a smile quickly disappeared. “Kendril, are you sure this plan of yours is going to work?”

The Ghostwalker turned to the door. “It has to.”

“You look absolutely beautiful, Kara.”

The redhead blushed. “Thank you, Maklavir. You look very dapper yourself.”

The diplomat turned, offering his arm to the girl. “I miss the goatee, though. It adds a bit of mystery. I feel so naked without it.”

She linked arms with him, and the two began the walk down the hallway towards the main hall. The glowglobes had been turned off throughout the house, replaced with the sparkling glitter of crystal-sleeved candles. Music drifted in from the open hall doors.