“It’s kilometers away, and the exact location and depth is kept secret.”
Of course. “But the location of the pipes that transport the water to Zirdai are not.”
“Correct. There are the ones that go into the prince’s rooms, but there are others that are used to fill the jugs and skins.”
“And they’re guarded.”
“All sun jump, three-hundred and sixty jumps a circuit.”
“That means the water dealers must bribe the guards.”
“Some do. Although the guards are only assigned the duty for short periods of time to limit that. Some dealers find other sources.”
Shyla resisted asking the obvious question—what other sources. Instead, she asked, “How would you obtain water for us?”
Rendor smiled and, damn, the man had a melt-your-insides smile. She almost forgot what they’d been discussing.
“I’d tap into the outflow pipes,” he said.
A strange word. “Outflow?”
“There’s plenty of water that flows through the prince’s level. A prime example is the fountains. You’ve seen those.”
More like gawked at them—a very decadent waste of precious resources. “Yes.”
“That water is collected and piped out of the city to eventually flow into another city’s aquifer,” Rendor continued. “There’s an entire network of aquifers and underground rivers throughout Koraha. But the key thing is that outflow water is still drinkable and, as far as I can tell, no one knows about it.”
“How do you know about it?” Hanif asked.
Rendor gazed at Hanif for a moment as if deciding whether the question was accusatory or asked out of mere curiosity. Back when he’d stayed in the monastery, Hanif had clearly disliked and distrusted him. Shyla laid her hand on Rendor’s forearm and squeezed, reassuring him. Then she clamped down on her mental shield again. Even after sleeping so long, her energy was already flagging.
“When I was working my way up the ranks in the prince’s guard, I had some free time,” Rendor said. “I used that time to explore and learn everything I could about the prince’s organization so I would become an invaluable resource.”
“Can you tell us where the outflow pipes are?” she asked.
“No, but I can show you.”
Ah, tricky, but understandable. Rendor was part of the Invisible Sword. It was time for everyone to accept it. “All right.”
Another smile, this one equally dangerous to her insides.
Hanif cleared his throat. “Well then, let’s keep moving.” He led them to the Second Room of Knowledge on level eleven.
Shyla ducked inside and retrieved the torque she’d hidden, then rejoined Hanif and Rendor. In case of a cave-in, each room was in a different section of the monastery. The Fourth Room had been built in the southeast corner on level seventeen!
“How deep does the monastery go?” she asked Hanif. She’d explored as much as possible when she was a child, but had always been stopped from going further than level twelve.
“I can’t tell you all our secrets, Shyla.”
“At least twenty-five levels,” Rendor said.
Hanif skidded to a stop and rounded on him. “How… When… There are guards.”
“Yes, there are. And I may have led you to believe it took longer for me to heal than it did.”
“I should have put a tail on you sooner,” Hanif muttered.
“Do you think it would have made a difference?”
