Page 186 of Turncloak

Some part of him, buried beneath the scorched earth of his trauma, must still want to live.

He was free—if he wanted to be.

There was a boat waiting for him in the harbor. He could go to Mersina as planned.

And do what? he asked himself bitterly.

The answer was already there.

For every hand he’d severed in the name of extracting information, he would heal a wound. For every life he had stolen in his mother’s name, he would make another better.

With one final look at Dematus, he turned and walked away. Toward the harbor, toward his new life. But as he reached the end of the street, the compulsion over the Grand Arbiter shuddered and dropped—he was obviously still depleted from the battle in Lunes.

He expected to hear the cry of a killing curse, to feel that vicious fork into his back, but when he peered over his shoulder, the last thing he saw before rounding the corner was Dematus lifting the yew wand to her own chin.

A few moments later, he felt, rather than heard, her body hit the ground.

76

• • • •

One Final Letter

Though Karvas’s death sent shock waves through the Order, Auria was privately thrilled to see Tenébo Jebat behind the captain’s desk.

“Congratulations on your promotion,” she said, taking a weary seat in front of her mentor. Exhaustion had turned the marrow in her bones to lead.

“Many thanks, Marriosan.” Jebat too seemed utterly drained. He poured them both a cup of much-needed coffee. “Of course, the circumstances are rather grim, but…”

“You’ll be a far better captain than Karvas ever was.” Auria lifted her chin defiantly. “You won’t let the highest-profile prisoner in decades escape, for one thing.”

Jebat handed her a gold-rimmed cup of coffee, then raised his own in a mock toast. “Here’s hoping.”

“Captain, I…Saffron.” Auria swallowed hard. “Is there really nothing we can do?”

Jebat sighed, long and slow. “You and I both know she was undercover. Naszi knows too. Could vouch for her, testify for her. But if Killoran is really going to dig her heels in, refuse to testify for herself…what can we do?”

“Sebran lied,” Auria said, hurriedly, as though the words were so bitter she didn’t want to taste them for too long. “I read his transcripts from the conversation with the kingpin. Why would he do that? Why would he tell Celadon that Saffron had turned him in?”

Jebat shifted in his chair. “That I don’t know. Aduran has been placed on a leave of absence following his imprisonment in the Bloodmoon compound. He will spend the next few weeks or months recovering, debriefing. For now, my best guess is that he simply wanted to hurt the kingpin as much as possible. Revenge for his own capture, I suppose. Although I sense there’s a missing piece we’re yet to uncover. In Lunes…he and the kingpin seemed to have an especially charged conversation. I was nearby, but couldn’t quite make out their frantic mutters. It was as though they knew each other beyond their roles as scarlet and silver.”

“There’s always a bigger picture, isn’t there?”

“Always.”

A column of despair towered in Auria’s chest. “We can’t see Saffron hang, sir. Please.”

“That is a matter for the courts and the courts alone.”

“Perhaps I should represent her,” Auria suggested, knowing already what Jebat’s response would be. “I successfully defended myself and Nissa at the inquest. Maybe—”

“Clean hands, Marriosan,” Jebat replied gently. “Embroiling yourself in this mess, representing a known traitor…you could wave goodbye to the Grand Arbitership forever.”

Would that not be worth it, to save the life of my friend?

A decision for another day. Saffron’s trial was high-profile; there would be months of preparation. Auria had time to figure out how to help, if at all.

“So what happens now? With the kingpin having escaped.”