eh?”
“No.”
“No? You want to bring Bune and Lubin into the conversation again. We know how that goes.”
“That’s the point, isn’t it?” Giffen said. “You don’t think I know what happens once I’m no longer useful. No, Lady Chamberlain, we need to work out something else. I realize I can put off a beating by telling you what you want to know, but then what? We’re going to start thinking long term, you and I.”
Stasha bit her lower lip while she thought about that. “What do you want?”
“Out of this dungeon.”
“No.”
“I don’t expect you to set me free. I’m not a fool. But lock me in some room with a bed and light. I can’t tolerate this dank hole any longer.”
“You tell me what I want to know first.”
“No,” he said. “We need to figure some way to trade what we want. I don’t trust you, and I can’t imagine you trust me. I have three pieces of information I know you will need. As we go along, other issues might arise, and perhaps I will have answers, but at the very least, I possess three items of information, which are essential, and I am the only one who has this information. On that you must take my word. Here is what I propose. The first item of information is an object you must possess.”
“I thought this was the final component.” Stasha indicated the ruby in her palm.
“To the doorway, yes,” Giffen said. “But where is it? How to find it? Without my help, you could look for a hundred years and never get close.”
“Go on, then,” Stasha said.
“I tell you what the object is, and in return, you move my incarceration to a more hospitable location,” Giffen said. “It will take you some time to locate this thing, and I don’t fancy rotting down here in the meantime.”
“Tell me what it is,” she said.
“No, first your promise,” Giffen insisted. “I tell you, and you let me out of this sodding hole. Then when you’ve found it, I’ll tell you how to use it.”
Stasha considered, then said, “You have my word.”
“The duke’s signet ring,” Giffen said.
Stasha frowned. “What of it?”
“Klaar is one of the oldest holdings in Helva,” Giffen said. “The Veraiin house is centuries old. The ring is more than just a symbol of Klaar, more than just an heirloom. It’s been handed down from one generation to the next to guard a very specific secret. I am privy to that secret. When you find the ring, I’ll tell you the rest.”
Giffen allowed himself a smug smile. Searching for the ring would keep the bitch busy a good long while, and in the meantime, he could enjoy a proper bed in a room not crawling with rats and that didn’t stink of his own excrement. During the Perranese occupation of Klaar, Giffen had searched high and low for the ring and had finally assumed the brat Rina had taken it with her when she fled the city.
Stasha considered Giffen for a moment, her face blank. Maybe she was trying to decide whether Giffen were telling the truth.
Stasha Benadicta dipped two fingers into her blouse between her breasts and came out with a thin silver chain. At the end of the chain hung a ring.
“Do you mean this ring right here?” Stasha asked.
Giffen gaped. Damn the woman .
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Darshia stuck her head into the Birds of Prey barracks and counted the girls. Nine. The rest were either on guard duty or attending to personal matters. She thought about picking the three she wanted, but the fact was they were all good. They trained hard. They wanted to be Birds of Prey. They were proud of it. It wasn’t just some job. It was a way out of an old life.
And into a new one.
“Hey!”
All nine of them stopped what they were doing and looked up. They knew the sound of their captain’s voice.
“I need three volunteers right now,” she said. “Armor up and follow me.”
She turned and left without waiting to see who volunteered. Let them work it out among themselves. A second later, she heard them clanking down the hall
“No.”
“No? You want to bring Bune and Lubin into the conversation again. We know how that goes.”
“That’s the point, isn’t it?” Giffen said. “You don’t think I know what happens once I’m no longer useful. No, Lady Chamberlain, we need to work out something else. I realize I can put off a beating by telling you what you want to know, but then what? We’re going to start thinking long term, you and I.”
Stasha bit her lower lip while she thought about that. “What do you want?”
“Out of this dungeon.”
“No.”
“I don’t expect you to set me free. I’m not a fool. But lock me in some room with a bed and light. I can’t tolerate this dank hole any longer.”
“You tell me what I want to know first.”
“No,” he said. “We need to figure some way to trade what we want. I don’t trust you, and I can’t imagine you trust me. I have three pieces of information I know you will need. As we go along, other issues might arise, and perhaps I will have answers, but at the very least, I possess three items of information, which are essential, and I am the only one who has this information. On that you must take my word. Here is what I propose. The first item of information is an object you must possess.”
“I thought this was the final component.” Stasha indicated the ruby in her palm.
“To the doorway, yes,” Giffen said. “But where is it? How to find it? Without my help, you could look for a hundred years and never get close.”
“Go on, then,” Stasha said.
“I tell you what the object is, and in return, you move my incarceration to a more hospitable location,” Giffen said. “It will take you some time to locate this thing, and I don’t fancy rotting down here in the meantime.”
“Tell me what it is,” she said.
“No, first your promise,” Giffen insisted. “I tell you, and you let me out of this sodding hole. Then when you’ve found it, I’ll tell you how to use it.”
Stasha considered, then said, “You have my word.”
“The duke’s signet ring,” Giffen said.
Stasha frowned. “What of it?”
“Klaar is one of the oldest holdings in Helva,” Giffen said. “The Veraiin house is centuries old. The ring is more than just a symbol of Klaar, more than just an heirloom. It’s been handed down from one generation to the next to guard a very specific secret. I am privy to that secret. When you find the ring, I’ll tell you the rest.”
Giffen allowed himself a smug smile. Searching for the ring would keep the bitch busy a good long while, and in the meantime, he could enjoy a proper bed in a room not crawling with rats and that didn’t stink of his own excrement. During the Perranese occupation of Klaar, Giffen had searched high and low for the ring and had finally assumed the brat Rina had taken it with her when she fled the city.
Stasha considered Giffen for a moment, her face blank. Maybe she was trying to decide whether Giffen were telling the truth.
Stasha Benadicta dipped two fingers into her blouse between her breasts and came out with a thin silver chain. At the end of the chain hung a ring.
“Do you mean this ring right here?” Stasha asked.
Giffen gaped. Damn the woman .
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Darshia stuck her head into the Birds of Prey barracks and counted the girls. Nine. The rest were either on guard duty or attending to personal matters. She thought about picking the three she wanted, but the fact was they were all good. They trained hard. They wanted to be Birds of Prey. They were proud of it. It wasn’t just some job. It was a way out of an old life.
And into a new one.
“Hey!”
All nine of them stopped what they were doing and looked up. They knew the sound of their captain’s voice.
“I need three volunteers right now,” she said. “Armor up and follow me.”
She turned and left without waiting to see who volunteered. Let them work it out among themselves. A second later, she heard them clanking down the hall
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