Things behind the scenes are going south in a hurry for Linvin’s family.
Summer turned to autumn and the rainy season followed in turn. When the clouds lifted after the winter months, they revealed the robust spring for which the region was renowned. Though Fraylic was immense and wealthy, not all areas of the city shared in the prosperity. A dilapidated warehouse district occupied the south side of the city. Buildings that once were prized property, had fallen into disrepair and lack of use. Even the roads in the district, that once were paved of the finest stone, had degraded to such a state that their former greatness seemed more fantasy than reality. It was a moonless night. Only the occasional working streetlamp lit the area in which the sun had given its merciful daily reprieve. The cloak of darkness enveloping the area hid a multitude of evils. Even the Town Guard, usually diligent in their duties, turned a blind eye to the region. Theories ranged from payoffs to a simple fear of the vermin on two or four legs. Regardless of the reason, the area was scarcely patrolled and became a haven for those not wanting to be found or bothered. The quiet blackness was disturbed by the sound of shoes walking along the street. Their pace was erratic. At first, they were steady steps, but as the figure in the darkness neared an illuminated area, the steps came to a halt. Then slowly, the sound returned, as the person went to great lengths to remain in hiding. After traversing a seemingly short distance over a long period of time, the hidden figure neared an alley with a working street lamp at its entrance. Out from the shadows, stepped a young human woman wearing a cloak over what appeared to be a servant’s uniform. She looked apprehensive as she pulled the cloak tight and peered about. There was no movement on the street. She sighed without seeming particularly relieved and turned down the alley. Refuse lined the sides of the passage and rats of ever increasing size scurried near her feet. Her steps were taken more and more slowly. Even so, as she looked behind, the light on the roadside looked distant and hardly discernible. When she turned back to her original direction, she stepped squarely into a man of great size who had emerged from the darkness. Startled, she jumped backward and ran directly into a second person. Before she could react, the second person grabbed her arms and prevented her from moving. The assailant in the front, pressed a blade firmly against her throat. “Scream and you die,” said the voice of a man in the front. The woman did not flinch. There was silence, as the blade pressed so tightly against her skin, blood began to trickle from her neck. Even as the blood ran, she did not move. “People say there could be frost this spring,” the man with the knife stated. “Not in the south,” she said firmly. The blade was removed from her neck. She immediately kicked the instep of the man holding her and elbowed him in stomach, then she turned her wrath on the man with the knife. She kicked it out of his hand and with a spin, kicked again, this time colliding with the side of his head. The man staggered but did not go down. He lashed back surprisingly fast and struck her in the jaw with his fist. The man from behind joined the fray and the three ferociously exchanged blows. “Enough!” yelled a voice from the dark end of the ally. With that one word, the three participants immediately ceased hostilities and stood panting. “You are all professionals,” the voice called, “act like it.” The woman gave one last kick to the shin of the man who had held the knife to her. “You cut me Two!” she snipped as the blow landed. “If you hadn’t answered the question right I would have shown you a real cut,” Two answered while rubbing his shin. “What’s your problem Six,” the man who had held her arms said. “I’ve had worse cuts shaving my face. Of course, you probably have too.” Six turned to him and kicked him in the groin. He fell to the ground and she stood over him. “Come now, Three,” she chided. “I get worse pain than that from wearing these shoes.” “I said enough,” the mysterious voice called again. He was joined by two other figures from the blackness. “On this mission we work as a team, not individuals. Our target is not in this ally. The next person to step out of line will become my target. Clear?” Five voices answered in unison, “Clear One.” “Alright then,” One said as he approached Six. “What is the status of the target?” Six stepped forward and gave her answer, “I have steadily increased the dosage of the poison in her food as planned. Her condition has deteriorated to the point where she should be dead by now.” “Does anyone suspect anything other than natural causes?” One asked. “It is unclear,” Six answered. “She has been increasingly attended by physicians and others. The poison is very difficult to trace. The symptoms are ordinary in nature. It would take a knowledgeable doctor to detect the poison.” “With the finances at her disposal, we must assume that she has such a doctor,” One concluded. “Is our presence suspected?” “Not that I can tell,” Six answered. “I made sure the final doses would be administered by unknowing servants. Not being there when she died, I would never be suspected.” “Let’s get to the point,” interrupted Two. “Did you find the prize?” Six looked sheepish as she sought the proper words. “I located it two weeks ago under her bed. Each day I checked to make sure it was still there. It was there this morning when I took her breakfast, but when I left this evening, it was no longer under the bed.” The other five voices started to murmur in despair. One stopped the bickering once again. “Quiet!” he said. “If she was as bad off as you say, I do not think she would have had the strength to hide it. Correct?” “No Sir,” Six answered confidently. “Then someone else must have taken it,” One surmised. “Did she have any visitors today?” “The doctor came in the morning but he did not have it when he left,” Six answered. “It would have been impossible to hide.” “Anyone else?” pressed One. Six was quiet for a moment, then she spoke quickly. “Her brother came to visit this afternoon. I…I did not see when he left.” “What do you mean?” Two demanded. “How could you not see him leave? Did he take the prize or not?” “I said that I don’t know!” fired back Six. “It’s not like I could just sit there and watch the door all day. How inconspicuous would that be? In order to maintain my cover, I had to see to chores. When I went back to check on her, he was gone.” “And that is the point where you noticed it was missing?” One asked. “I did not have the opportunity to check until the end of my shift. At that point, I noticed the prize was gone.” “Maybe it was hidden somewhere else in the house,” Five said. “If it was,” One surmised, “there is no way to search it with her now being dead. The mansion will be crawling with Town Watch and investigators.” “So we are foiled!” hollered Two. “Great. All these months of work blown in one day!” “Shut up!” Six snapped. “You would have fared no better.” “This arguing is pointless,” One affirmed. “The most likely fate of the prize is that the target suspected foul play and gave it to her brother for safe keeping. If that is the case, then there are two destinations we are most likely to find him. Either he will be at his home on the other side of town or he will have gone to his nephew’s in Missandor.” “So do we split up?” Five asked. “No,” answered One. “We will search faster together. First, we will tear the brother’s house apart. If we do not find it there, then we will move on to her son. Failure is not acceptable in this mission. Now everyone move. We will not sleep this night.” As they scurried down the alley, Two could not help but jab at Six again. “It figures you would blow this for all of us.” “We will have the prize soon,” Six answered back, “but if you say one more thing I will kill you where you stand.” “Save it for our new targets!” yelled One as they entered the street.
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