“Sorry.”
“I hope this job pays well. This is a new doublet and I still owe the tailor.” Blowing out the candles, he took a seat across from Hadrian.
“How are things up north?” Royce asked.
Albert pursed his lips, thinking. “I’m guessing you know about Medford being taken? Imperial troops hold it and most of the provincial castles except for Drondil Fields.”
Royce sat up. “No, we didn’t know. How’s Gwen?”
“I have no idea. I was here when I heard.”
“So Alric and Arista are at Drondil Fields?” Hadrian asked.
“King Alric is but I don’t think the princess was in Medford. I believe she’s running Ratibor. They appointed her mayor, or so I’ve heard.”
“No,” Hadrian said. “We just came through there. She was governing after the battle but left months ago in the middle of the night. No one knows why. I just assumed she went home.”
Albert shrugged. “Maybe, but I never heard anything about her going back. Probably better for her if she didn’t. The Imps have Drondil Fields surrounded. Nothing is going in or out. It’s only a matter of time before Alric will have to surrender.”
“What about the abbey? Has the empire come knocking?” Royce asked.
Albert shook his head. “Not that I know of. But like I said, I was already here when the Imperialists crossed the Galewyr.”
Royce got up and began to pace.
“Anything else?” Hadrian asked.
“Rumor has it that Tur Del Fur was invaded by goblins. But that’s only a rumor, as far as I can tell.”
“Not a rumor,” Hadrian said.
“Oh?”
“We were there. Actually, we were responsible.”
“Sounds… interesting,” Albert said.
Royce stopped his pacing. “Don’t get him started.”
“Okay, so what brings you to Aquesta?” Albert asked. “I’m guessing it’s not to celebrate Wintertide.”
“We’re going to break Degan Gaunt out of the palace dungeon, and we’ll need you for the usual inside work,” Royce said.
“Really? You do know he’s going to be executed on Wintertide, don’t you?”
“Yeah, that’s why we need to get moving. It would be bad if we were late,” Hadrian added.
“Are you crazy? The palace? At Wintertide? You’ve heard about this little wedding that’s going on? Security might be a tad tighter than usual. Every day I see a line of men in the courtyard, signing up to join the guard.”
“Your point?” Hadrian asked.
“We should be able to use the wedding to our advantage,” Royce said. “Anyone we know in town yet?”
“Genny and Leo arrived recently, I think.”
“Really? That’s perfect. Get in touch. They’ll have rooms in the palace for sure. See if they can get you in. Then find out all you can, especially about where they’re keeping Gaunt.”
“I’m going to need money. I was only planning to attend a few local balls and maybe one of the feasts. If you want me inside the palace, I’ll have to get better clothes. By Mar, look at my shoes. Just look at them! I can’t meet the empress in these.”
“Borrow from Genny and Leo for now,” Royce said. “I’m going to leave for Medford tonight and return with funds to cover our expenses.”
“You’re going back? Tonight?” Albert asked. “You just got here, didn’t you?”
The thief nodded.
“She’s okay,” Hadrian assured Royce. “I’m sure she got out.”
“We’ve got nearly a month to Wintertide,” Royce said. “I should be back in a week or so. In the meantime, learn what you can, and we’ll formulate a plan when I return.”
“Well,” Albert grumbled, “at least Wintertide won’t be boring.”
CHAPTER 2
INTO DARKNESS
Someone was whimpering.
It was a man’s voice this time, one that Arista had heard before. Everyone cried eventually. Some people even broke down into fits of hysterics. There used to be a woman who was prone to screaming, but she had been removed some time earlier. Arista held no illusions of the woman being set free. She had heard them drag the body away. The whimpering man used to cry out but had grown quieter over the past few days. He never wailed anymore. Although not long before, she had heard him praying. Arista was surprised that he did not ask for rescue or even a quick death. All he prayed for was her. He asked Maribor to keep her safe, but in all his ramblings, the princess never caught the name of the man’s lover.