When no shout of alarm rose above the general noise of the chaos below, Valek climbed to the top edge of the wall. From this angle, only the shadows of the guards were visible. Once again, his next move required decisiveness and no mistakes. He reviewed each step in his mind, envisioning the actions until he felt confident. Then he waited for the shadows right above him to clear.
His window of opportunity arrived a few minutes later. Valek scrambled onto the top of the wall, startling a cluster of guards five feet to his left. He saluted them, dived for the opposite edge, twisted so he went feetfirst over the wall and stopped his fall by grasping the edge with his hands. Once he found toeholds, he climbed down.
The yells and shouts sounded when he was halfway to the ground.
“Stop!”
“There! He’s there!”
“To the left!”
With about ten feet remaining, Valek dropped the rest of the way, landing with a soft thud on the cold earth. An arrow slammed into the ground right next to him. Valek zigzagged as he dashed into the woods. More arrows whizzed past and one burned a line of fire along his thigh. But he didn’t stop.
He reached the protection of the forest only to realize soldiers filled the woods. While he’d been clinging to the wall, they must have gone through the gate. And they were converging to block his escape route. Valek found a hiding spot to plot his next move.
What would be the last thing they’d expect him to do? He bit down on a groan. They’d never guess that he’d return to the garrison. All his survival instincts screamed at him to ignore that advice and to head for home right now. He wiped his forehead with his sleeve, but the fabric was wet. The thought of being caught soaked with Dumin’s blood spurred Valek into action. They’d tear him apart.
Heading away from the guards, Valek neared the wall, but he stayed in the woods as he looped around the garrison. He searched for an empty section, but soon realized that would require a miracle, so he picked a spot with just a few soldiers. And when their attention was elsewhere, he crossed to the wall.
His abused muscles protested as he climbed. When he reached the top, he peered over the edge and waited until the guards were not looking in his direction. Pain throbbed in his leg as fatigue shook his limbs. When the prime opportunity arose, he stayed low as he traversed the wall, moving slowly so he wouldn’t attract any attention.
The compound below appeared empty, but Valek eased down the wall and didn’t relax until he reached the shadows at the base. He circled around. The bag with his clean stable-boy clothes remained hidden. Valek changed and stuffed the bloody ones into a burn barrel before he washed up.
Lanterns blazed in the stables and a couple of horses were missing. Reedy saddled a big mare while the Stable Master put a bridle on another.
“Where’ve you been?” Reedy demanded.
“At the latrine,” Valek said and helped the boy with the girth straps.
“All this time?”
“Until all hell broke loose. Then a captain ordered me to stay in Barrack A until the ruckus died down. What happened?”
“The assassin struck again. I heard he got two men before they spotted him climbing over the wall.” Reedy’s voice held a combination of awe and fear.
They worked to saddle more horses as officers left to join the chase. When the flow of officers slowed, the Stable Master questioned Valek on his absence. He repeated his story.
The Stable Master backhanded him across the cheek, spinning Valek to the ground as pain exploded on the right side of his face.
He crouched next to Valek. “I’m your boss, not some captain. Next time you get your ass back here right away or I’ll pound on you until you look like raw meat and then I’ll feed you to the horses. Understand?”
“Yes, sir.” Valek considered adding the Stable Master to his to-be-assassinated list.
Valek worked at the stable for another month. He viewed the effects of his double assassination with amusement. Twice the number of guards traversed the walls, extra locks were installed on all doors, patrols swept the woods surrounding the garrison every night and soldiers patrolled the compound, checking shadows.
Right now Captain Aniol was untouchable. On Valek’s next day off, he left and never returned. He had spent a total of three and a half seasons as a stable boy and had learned so much more than he’d expected. Someday, he’d finish the job. No doubt.
He reported to Hedda’s office when he reached the school.
“What the hell were you thinking when you killed Edvard?” she demanded. Two red splotches on her cheeks matched the color of her hair.
“I wasn’t—”
“That’s right, you weren’t thinking!” She stood and jabbed a finger at him. “Never kill a target in front of witnesses.”
“But they were...”
She waited.
“You’re right. It was a disaster.”
“You’re lucky you weren’t caught,” Hedda said.
Valek couldn’t resist. “Luck had nothing to do with it.” He smirked.
A steely glint flattened her green eyes. “And what did?”
“Your excellent training.”
She snorted, but she settled behind her desk. “And did my training include leaving clues?”
“Clues?”
“Those black statues. They’re calling you the rock assassin.”
“Not very original,” he said.
“They can be traced back to you.”
“How?”
“Asking around at the market, finding the person you bought them from.”
He smiled. “I didn’t buy them nor did anyone see me carve them.”
If she was surprised, she hid it well. “You better make sure no one does. Now, where’s my cut from your wages?”
He handed her a small pouch.
Hedda dumped the coins into her palm. “Not much. Talk about slave labor.”
Valek shrugged. “I found the experience to be very valuable.”
“Did you, now?”
“Yes.”