I followed the mayor back to what I assumed was his house overlooking the city. I waited in the shadows while he disembarked from his carriage, berated the guards out front, and entered into the stately abode. And when the lights went out, I made my move.
The large stone wall around the building was easily scalable, and I landed softly on a patch of grass. I listened for the footsteps of passing guards, and when there were none, I moved toward the house.
Going in the front door would be risky, but a mansion this size probably had a servants' entrance or two. Keeping myself close to the house, and keeping an eye out for patrolling guards, I moved slowly until I found a small, nondescript door at the back of the house.
With ease, I picked the lock and slipped inside, finding myself, as expected, in a kitchen. From here, there were really two options for me—hope that Kelsor had an office where he kept a spare signet ring and some papers, or try to lift the seal off him.
I decided to go with option one, for now.
Cracking open the kitchen door, I found two Severian guards standing by the front door with their backs to me. Quietly, I assembled my crossbow and knockout powder then aimed for a spot just above their heads and fired.
The guards looked up, grabbing their swords, but within seconds slumped to the ground. Moving silently, I crossed the main foyer of the house, opening doors until I found one that was locked. I made quick work of the knob, pushing the door open to reveal…Kelsor's office.
"Excellent," I whispered, sliding inside and closing the door behind me with a soft click.
Kelsor's desk was in the center of the room, stacked high with papers and other documents. As quietly as I could, I sifted through the papers, looking for anything that would get the gate open—at least temporarily. If all went according to plan, we could slip through without anyone noticing and be on our way.
Finally, in the bottom of one of the desk drawers, I found a stack of forms that would grant permission to open the gate. Unfortunately, there was a place for a wax seal—but no ring.
Before I could hunt more, cool metal touched my skin.
"What do you think you're doing?" breathed Kelsor behind me.
"Getting passage into Niemen, what do you think I'm doing?" I replied coolly. "Seems to be a lot harder than it used to be."
"Give me those letters," he said.
"I don't think so." In one move, I escaped the knife against my neck and pulled my own, pointing it at him. "You, my friend, have not been a very good mayor of late."
Up close, the Severian man seemed every bit as cunning as I'd anticipated. His dark eyes spoke of a man calculating his chances of survival, and he'd obviously found them to be in his favor.
"Where's the seal?" I asked.
"As if I would tell you," he said. "Or leave it off my person."
"You're fairly lax with these letters," I said, inching backward. In the darkness, I was able to slide my hand into my bag, searching for something of value I could use. "What does it take to get you to sign them, hm? Money? Favors?"
"Who are you working for?" he said, stepping into the space between us.
"The people of Forcadel."
My fingers found purchase on a bag, and without knowing what kind of powder I'd be throwing, I lobbed it toward him. The pouch ignited in a bright burst of light—a flashbang grenade—and I took the opportunity and ran out of the office and then the house.
Behind me, Kelsor's voice echoed into the courtyard, and his guards came running toward me. I flung another bag of something behind me, and the street illuminated in a loud explosion, buying me just enough time.
Shouts and cries of surprise followed me, but I didn't let up. Without knowing where in the city I was, or how I would get out of there, I just kept taking lefts. I needed to put enough space between us so I could find a hiding place.
I turned a left corner and came face to face with three guards, all with swords pointed at me.
"End of the road, thief," the center guard said. "Hand over what you stole."
"Fine," I said, reaching into my bag as if to retrieve the item.
I dug through the bag until my fingers closed around two more pouches. I flung them from inside the bag, the first one landing in the center man's face then turned to lob the other at the men behind me.
My assumption had been correct—all knockout powders. As the guards keeled over, I bolted. This time, I was able to get far enough ahead that I could dive into an alley and hide there until the guards passed. And when I was safe, I let myself exhale and smile.
I'd forgotten how much fun getting into trouble could be.
A voice that sounded an awful lot like Felix's tsked and reminded me how risky my actions had been. But another, stronger voice was louder, saying that we weren't done yet. After all, I only had a stack of signed letters. I needed the wax seal, which was supposedly on Kelsor's person, to get past the gate master.
It was oddly reminiscent of Beswick and his contracts back in Forcadel. Then, I'd snuck into a dance hall and pickpocketed them myself. But all that effort had been in vain—the documents I'd thought would be the proof I needed to finally arrest that slumlord crime boss had been approved by my father.
Something tweaked in my gut, and I forced myself to pause and really consider my next move.
With Beswick, I'd missed the bigger picture. My father had been the one to arrange Beswick's agreement with the Severians, because he was protecting Forcadelian interests. So when I'd presented the contracts to Garwood, he'd not only known about them, but said there was no proof of treason because it had been royally sanctioned. And instead of working rationally—after all, I was to be crowned officially in three days—I'd decided to kidnap Beswick and burn whatever bridges I had left with Felix.
I opened my eyes to the dark alley. Now, I had a similar situation. A man in power, something on his person. This time, I would take the rational route and gather a little more information before I made another move. It was a nice compromise between my earlier paralysis and my reckless idiocy.
I quietly retraced the path I'd taken across the city, but on the rooftops. If Kelsor wasn't out and about, he would be back at his house. Either way, I'd have a chance to eavesdrop.
Happily, my chance came sooner than expected. The man himself was in the city square, surrounded by a group of guards with varying degrees of interest, based on their body language. The Forcadelians seemed much less engaged than the Severians as Kelsor described the thief who'd been so brazen.
"I didn't get a good look, but I believe it's a woman," he said. "About this high. Forcadelian, I think."
A Forcadelian guard raised his hand. "What did she steal, anyway?"
"Something valuable," Kelsor snapped. "And if you ask any more questions, I'll have you demoted. Just find the thief and bring her to me."
Oh, now that was interesting. One would think Kelsor would tell the guards what I'd stolen, perhaps even send out the signal not to open the gate. That would've been a logical reaction, and yet…
If he was keeping his bribery from his underlings, that might be the exact pressure point I needed to get him to cow to me.
"Patience, Brynna," I whispered to myself. After sending the others away, the only people left in the square were Kelsor and two Severian guards.
"What did she take?" the guard on the left asked.
"I told you, nothing important." Kelsor sniffed. "I just hope these Forcadelian idiots are better at capturing thieves than guarding the city."
I cast my gaze down to the town square, but Kelsor was otherwise unguarded. I pawed through my weapons bag, clucking my tongue when I found no pouches—not even a trace of knockout powder. What I did have was my crossbow, some sticking arrows, and my knives.
Attaching one of the arrows to the crossbow, I leaned over the edge of the roof and aimed. Once I had a good shot, I squeezed the trigger.
The arrow tore through one of the guard's shoulders, pinning him to the wall.
"What the—"
I notched another arrow and hit one of the other guards, the arrow slicing through the outside of his leg and securing him to the wall next to him. That left me with two guards, plus Kelsor.
I leapt off the roof, the air gathering in the pockets of my cloak, and landed in a crouch.
"You again," Kelsor snarled.
"Funny how you didn't want anyone to know what I'd stolen," I purred as his two guards pulled their swords. "Almost like you're trying to hide it. But from whom, is the question."
The guards rushed me, and I parried one with my sword and the other with my knife. I kicked my leg, and it landed square in one guard's gut. The other received an elbow to the jaw and fell backward, out cold. Turning back to the first, I pulled my crossbow out and pointed it directly at his face.
"How loyal are you to him?" I asked with a knowing smirk.
The guard scrambled to his feet and ran off.
And then there was just Kelsor.
"I ain't afraid of you," he said, holding his sword in the air. The slight tremor in the blade belied his words.
"No, but you are afraid of what Ilara might do," I said, lowering my crossbow. "How many ships have you let through, Kelsor? How much money have you pocketed without the express permission of the queen?"
He swallowed hard and his face paled. "S-she gave me—"
"The sweat on your forehead says otherwise," I said, raising my crossbow. "Now, this is going to go one of two ways. The first, you hand over the seal, let me and several ships that have been in port for a while through, and Ilara won't be the wiser."
"What's the other?"
I smiled. "I tie you up, stick you in a boat, and float you down to Ilara to handle. I doubt she'd be as amenable as I am right now."
He reached into his coat pocket and hurled something at me. I caught it just before it hit my face—the wax seal.
"There, take it," he said, rubbing his hands together. "Just leave me alone."
"One more thing," I said, walking toward him. "You will double the number of patrols in the city. These are your people now, and you will keep the peace here. Understood?"
He nodded, and for the first time in I wasn't sure how long, I actually felt like I'd accomplished something.
"I still tied him up," I said, leaning over Kieran's railing as we sailed past the open gates. "Left him for his guards to find."
"Damn, Veil," Kieran said with a shake of his head. "Remind me never to get on your bad side."
"Glad to know I can still strike fear into the hearts of men," I said with a a small smile. Kieran had taken the wax-sealed letter to the gate master, and within an hour, the gates were open and we were making our way into Niemen.
"This won't last, though," I said, watching a Forcadelian ship sail past us in the opposite direction.
"Take the victory," Kieran said, nudging me slightly. "You got us passage. One step closer to reclaiming your throne."
Yeah, that. In all the fun, I'd nearly forgotten why I was getting myself into trouble. I glanced behind me to where Sarala was manning the ship. "Do you think what I'm doing is right, Kieran? Is this—reclaiming my throne—worth all this trouble? Would things be better if I just allowed Ilara to remain in charge?"
"Only you can answer that," he said, catching my gaze. "But if you're looking for a sign from the Mother, it seems you got pretty lucky tonight. Perhaps you should keep going until your luck runs out."