Will slept like the dead, and when he woke, he discovered that although he hadn’t done too much during the fighting, he had still acquired several bruises and a sore back. Probably from when I was jerked backward and landed so hard.
He rose quickly, dressed, and went downstairs where he found Tiny seated in the dining room, an empty plate in front of him. Blake stood by the door to the kitchen. Will glared daggers at his manservant. “You didn’t!”
Blake’s lips twitched, betraying the hint of a smile. “Didn’t what, sir?”
Ignoring him, Will gave Tiny an apologetic look. “I’m so sorry. You shouldn’t have had to eat that.”
Tiny shrugged, his face unconcerned. “I’ve had worse. You haven’t eaten what the new cook for Company B serves these days.”
Will turned back to Blake. “If he dies, it will be your head,” he pronounced in mock seriousness.
Blake laughed. “I’ll take my chances. It wasn’t that bad. In fact, there’s still some left if you want to try it.”
In the kitchen, Will found a small pot still half full of what might have been oat porridge before it had congealed into a passable substitute for brick mortar. He carried it straight to the back door and began scraping the contents into the scrap bin.
“Hey, that was still good!” protested Blake. “I was going to eat the other half if you didn’t want it.”
Will ignored him, then checked the stove to make sure it was still hot. “I’m making a fresh batch. Pay close attention, and maybe we can avoid poisoning anyone else in the future.” He gave precise instructions as he worked, making sure Blake took note of quantities, the amount of water used, how he seasoned, as well as the relative heat of the stove. While he did, he interspersed the conversation with other questions.
“How did it go with the weapons?”
Blake smiled. “A week and they’ll have two spears and two falchions ready. It might have taken longer, but I got him to promise to work on ours first. You’ll be interested to know they just finished a big order of similar items for the king. He ordered them prepared several weeks ago. Luckily for us, the extra leftover materials made things a little cheaper for us.”
Will gave him a sour look. “It would have been even luckier if we’d known what the king knew then so we could have weapons ready now and damn the money. How much do I need to give you for the smith?”
Blake shrugged. “Nothing, it will be paid out of the accounts.”
He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “What accounts?”
“Her Highness’s accounts,” said the manservant with a smug look.
“I have access to those? You never mentioned that before.”
Blake nodded. “She gave the instructions before she left.”
“But you didn’t tell me,” said Will pointedly.
His servant smiled brightly and nodded. “That is correct. I did not.”
“But you probably should have, shouldn’t you?”
“That’s a matter subject to some interpretation. Since you never asked, I never thought to mention it.”
Will glared silently at the man for several long seconds.
Blake held up his hands. “In my defense, I wasn’t sure about you at first. I’ve been taking care of the princess since she was just a girl. I was worried you might be planning to steal or waste her money.”
Will started to growl, but then caught himself. Taking a deep breath, he responded, “Fair enough. Actually, I can’t say that I blame you. In fact, I admire your principles, and to prove my honesty to you, I’m still willing to pay for the weapons. I never intended to have her foot the bill.”
Blake shook his head. “That won’t be necessary, sir.”
“I insist.”
“Truly, Master William. Her Highness would have me strapped if she found out I made you pay for this, especially when it is something so important to your own survival. Trust me, the sum is insignificant compared to her accounts.”
“How much did it cost?”
“For a rush job with new weapons and the silver to do the inlay it was just under two hundred gold crowns.”
Will had nearly five hundred still saved in the limnthal. “That’s nothing. I can cover it.”
Blake shook his head. “Based on what I know of you, that’s almost half of your reserve.”
“How do you know that?” asked Will, feeling mildly alarmed.
“When the princess married you, I started doing some research. Based on what I learned from the Bursar’s Office and the Department of Healing and Psyche, you nearly earned enough to pay the weregild for Count Spry’s son—before the king paid it in your stead. Given your other purchases and what I gleaned from the merchants in the city, you spent close to half of that. Admirably, you spent a significant portion on armor for your friends back in Barrowden. By itself, such generosity isn’t that uncommon among commoners, but that was the first indicator that prompted me to begin trusting your motives.”
“Weregild?”
Blake sighed. “That’s the technical term for what commoners call a blood-price or blood-debt. Sometimes I forget who I’m talking to.”
Damn, he gets snarky when money is the topic of conversation, doesn’t he? thought Will. “I don’t want anything to do with the king’s money. I’d rather pay myself than owe that man anything.”
“This isn’t the king’s money. Princess Selene has her own separate accounts.”
Will growled, feeling stubborn. “Which he gave to her and can probably take back at a moment’s notice. What’s the difference?”
“Begging your pardon, sir, but that isn’t true. While her money did initially come from the royal family, it belongs to her alone. The king can’t touch it unless he personally overturned the control of the banks, which would likely result in a civil war. Her money will only revert to the crown if she dies without child or husband.”
That set Will back on his heels. “Huh,” he said, for lack of a witty response. His mind was blank for a moment, then something else occurred to him. “Is the cellar still empty?”
“It isn’t empty, but it hasn’t been restocked. That won’t be possible until late summer and fall when the harvests come in,” answered Blake. “Why do you ask?”
“I need a dungeon,” said Will. “Nothing fancy, just enough room to keep one prisoner. How much do you think it would cost to refit the cellar for that?”
Blake lifted one brow and gave him a curious stare. “Can I assume you aren’t planning to take up torture or other illegal practices, like abducting free citizens?”
Will rubbed his chin. “I can’t promise that I’ll be following the law at all times, but I don’t plan on torturing anyone or hurting innocents. Also, it will need to be built to accommodate a prisoner that may have strength well beyond human norms.”
“A vampire cell, then?”
Will nodded. “I need a pig too.”
“You’ll need a mason to do some work. Most of the walls are stone, but some aren’t, and you don’t want it to be able to dig out. Then you’ll need a smith to do some ironwork. We’ll have to make sure the shackles can’t be torn free. Would you prefer a cage or shackles?”
“I’ll need to access the creature to take, uh, samples, so shackles might be best. Perhaps a large cage with shackles inside? That way we can feel safe that it won’t escape but I’ll still be able to get to it when I need to.”
“That sounds reasonable. May I ask why you need such a thing?” asked Blake.
“We captured one last night,” said Will. “The things are faster than you’d believe and stronger than even someone like Tiny. There are potions that can be made to improve a soldier’s strength and speed, and it just so happens that their blood is the primary ingredient.”
Blake shuddered almost imperceptibly but kept his expression blank. “You plan to feed the pig to it so you can harvest its blood?”
“It’s a fate befitting a vampire, don’t you think? They feed on our blood to survive. I intend to bleed it to help our effort to destroy them.”
“Do you need equipment to create these potions?”
Will shook his head. “I have arrangements with the Alchemy Department already. I rent a laboratory from them. Oh! Before I forget, I need a hard leather case with a soft lining and places for potion vials.” Taking out one of his journals, Will ripped a page out and used a charcoal stick to sketch out what he wanted. “Can you find something like that, or have it made?”
Blake nodded. “We had something similar when I was serving the king. I’ll see about finding one.”
A bell chimed, informing them that someone was at the door. “Tell whoever it is that I’m not taking visitors,” said Will.
“Understood.” Blake left to check the door while Will ladled the fresh porridge into two bowls. There was still enough for Tiny as well, for Will had figured the portions with the assumption that the big man would still be hungry.
Blake returned a moment later. “It’s a young woman, Janice Edelman. She says she is a classmate.”
She knows better than to try and visit, thought Will. “Let her in and bring her to the dining room.” He reapportioned the porridge, two small cups, one for Tiny and one for Blake, since they’d already eaten, and two bowls, one for himself and one for Janice. Placing them on a tray, he carried them into the dining room just as Janice entered.
She was gazing around the room with wide eyes, then she looked at Will. “They hired you to be the cook here? I thought you married the princess.”
Will put the tray down on the table. “Ha, ha, ha. Tiny, this is my friend, Janice Edelman. Janice, this is one of my friends from the army.”
“Tiny?” she said uncertainly.
Tiny was already on his feet, bowing deeply. “Begging your pardon, miss. My proper name is John Shaw, but my friends call me Tiny. I’d be pleased if you did the same.”
A bit of color rose to her cheeks as Tiny straightened and Janice stared up at him, presumably stunned by his size. After a few seconds, she tentatively held out her hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mister Shaw.”
“Squire Tiny,” corrected Will. “I forgot. He’s been squired recently.”
“Just Tiny is fine, Miss Edelman,” said the big man, blushing.
“Janice will do,” she replied. “I think we’re all friends here.” She tore her eyes away from the giant and looked at the bowl Will had put in front of her. “What’s this?”
“Oat porridge,” said Will. “I made a second portion to put my man Blake in his place.”
“Your man?”
Blake entered the room and gave a quick bow. “Word, Blake Word, Miss Edelman. I’m pleased to make your acquaintance.”
A minute later and they were all seated. Janice was on her third spoonful of porridge, and Tiny was just finishing his cup, a mournful expression on his face. “What is this again?” she asked.
“Oat porridge,” Will supplied.
“Are you sure?” Tiny asked. “I’ve never had anything quite like that.”
“I don’t really like oats, usually,” said Janice. “Mushrooms? Why would you put mushrooms in?” She mumbled as she spooned in another large bite.
He smiled. “I take it you like it? I used mushrooms, onions, and salt pork, plus a bit of sage to lighten the flavor.”
“It’s terrible,” said Blake, spitefully.
“You really don’t like it?” said Will, surprised.
The manservant lifted his empty cup. “No, damn you. It was too good to resist.”
“I didn’t even notice the onions,” said Tiny.
“That was where the hint of sweetness came from,” Will replied. “I minced them before cooking them until they were dark. They almost disappear into the final dish.” While Janice was only a quarter through her bowl, Will had finished two-thirds of his own. He pushed the rest across the table to his large friend. It was a gesture familiar to them both from their time together in the army.
Tiny finished it with a grateful smile and no comments.
Janice leaned forward as she paused between bites. “I found some interesting information. Maybe we can talk privately after I finish this?”
“Is this about my vampire research the other day?” asked Will.
Janice glanced at the others, then relaxed slightly. “I guess they’re in this with you?”
He nodded. “No secrets here.” Then he paused for a second, thinking. “Actually, let me amend that.” He looked at Blake. “Just in case there’s anything I don’t want a certain someone to know, would you mind starting on those errands we talked about?”
Blake smiled. “Certainly.”
A moment later he was gone. Tiny frowned as he asked, “You don’t trust him?”
“I trust him,” said Will, “but I don’t trust the king. Blake still has to report to His Majesty, and Lognion is impossible to lie to. Anything I don’t want the king to know about I have to keep from Blake. Which reminds me, anything involving Selene is off limits around him.”
“But you don’t mind the king knowing you’re planning to hunt vampires?” said Janice.
“He already knows,” Will replied.
“Oh, well no use crying over spilled milk then.” She pulled out a journal and opened it on the table in front of her. “I did a little research after we split up the other day, and I took some notes. It turns out that there’s nothing in the library about vampires.”
“What little there is, is kept in the vault,” said Will.
Janice frowned. “And you know this, how?”
Will smiled mysteriously but said nothing.
She sniffed and returned to her journal. “Since I couldn’t find anything on vampires, I looked into the creator of that spell you wanted, Ethelgren’s Illumination. There weren’t many mentions of him, but I did find a Linus Ethelgren, who lived before the Terabinian War for Independence.”
“Do they have a history or biography about him?”
“There was a biography, but it wasn’t on the shelf when I looked for it. I even asked at the desk, and it appears the book was lost or stolen decades ago. They just forgot to remove it from the catalog.”
“So someone’s trying to hide information about a historical vampire hunter?” asked Will, fascinated.
“Someone decades ago,” corrected Janice. “It could be anyone.”
“A vast vampire conspiracy,” whispered Tiny.
Will shot him a dark look. “Let’s not get ahead of ourselves. This is interesting, but it doesn’t really help us.”
Janice licked her lips. “I’m not finished. I couldn’t shake the thought that the name sounded familiar to me, and today while I was in class, wondering why you didn’t show up, it came to me.” She turned the journal around and shoved it across to him.
Will scanned the page. It appeared to be her notes from Foundations in Artifice. “What am I looking for?”
“Remember when you asked about relics in class not long ago?”
He nodded.
“It was in my notes from a few weeks ago. See the list there?”
There was a list of notable relics on the page. Will’s eyes went through it rapidly, and there on the page, third from the top, was what Janice had found. “Ethelgren’s Exhortation,” he mumbled. “He created a relic?”
Her head bobbed, “Not only that, but it’s here, at Wurthaven.”
His brows went up. “Really?”
“There’s a collection of ancient relics at the Artifice building, but guess what…”
“What?”
“This one isn’t in the display cases. They keep it in secure storage down in the basement.”
That didn’t make much sense. From what he had learned, no one could use ancient relics, since their enchantments were either tailor-made for the owner or (as he believed) modern wizards simply didn’t have the necessary ability to adapt their turyn for them. Either way, no one would have wanted to steal it. “Is it made of gold or something?” he asked.
“From what I heard, no,” answered Janice. “It’s a long rod made of iron with silver runes inlaid in it. Valuable, sure, but not enough to warrant stealing.”
Will rubbed his chin. “How did you find all this out so quickly?”
“Drake Barstowe told me about it.”
“Who is he?” asked Will. Tiny had remained silent during their conversation, but Will could see him watching intently. His eyes never left Janice’s features as she talked.
Janice smiled. “He’s a fourth year who is specializing in artifice, but he’s been after me for a date for months, so he was more than happy to talk.” She glanced at Tiny for a moment, then added, “I didn’t promise him anything, though. He knows I’m not interested.”
Was that for my benefit or someone else’s? Will wondered. He pushed that aside and focused on the matter at hand. “This is all interesting, but no one knows how to use the relic and we don’t know whether it has any useful properties for this situation anyway.”
Janice deflated slightly. “I’ll keep looking into it, and anything else that might be useful. It’s the least I can do.”
“I do need a favor,” said Will, which was true, though in part he simply wanted to give her something to do that would be more useful.
“Sure.”
“I need some materials for potions, and I don’t know if I have time to go to the Alchemy building. I’ll make a list if you wouldn’t mind going for me. Usually I talk to Professor Karlovic directly.”
“I can do that. What do you need?” she replied confidently.
“Come upstairs and I’ll make a list for you. I have the references in my room.” He rose and started to move, followed by Janice, but he stopped before he reached the door. Glancing back, he saw Tiny staring at him with an intense expression. It took him a moment to realize what was wrong, and when he did it caused him to chuckle. “I’m married, Tiny. What do you think I’d do?”
The big man blushed, then looked away. “I didn’t say anything.”
Janice put her elbow into Will’s midribs. “He’s just looking out for me. Don’t embarrass him.”
Will stared at her quizzically. Surely, I’m imagining this. After a second, he waved at Tiny. “Come with us. You can be our chaperone.”