David Dalglish - Blood of the Underworld

“Well, that’s the first thing Laerek’s been right about so far,” Percy said, but he was the only one to laugh.

“The city seems to know you well,” Nora said. Carson could tell his wife was examining her closely, trying to reach an opinion of some sort. He trusted her ability to read someone, and when their talk was done, he’d listen well to what she had to say. “Yet I wonder why. All you’ve done is kill a few members of a guild. Others do it all the time. Why are you so special to Laerek, or to us?”

“People die all the time,” the strange woman said. “I give the city something to remember, to both fear and enjoy.”

“What’s your real name?” Carson asked, putting aside his pipe.

“Don’t you know? I’m the Widow.”

The woman laughed, and something about it unsettled Carson’s stomach. He shifted in his seat, and his hand reached for the sword strapped to his belt.

“Keep your secrets, then,” Nora said. “Whatever Laerek’s plan is, let him keep it. But why are you here? What business do you have with us?”

“I’m here to help you,” she said.

Percy laughed, and even Carson had to fight to keep down a chuckle.

“Is that so?” he asked. “Who are you to help us? And help us do what, exactly?”

“I know this city,” the Widow said. “Know it far better than you. I’ve seen its gross underbelly, know its scabs and scars. If you want, I can draw the Watcher out. You’ll have a clean shot, all of you. All I ask is that you kill him quickly. I don’t want him to escape, and trouble me further.”

Carson looked to the other two. Nora’s nod showed she approved. Her gut told her that the Widow was to be believed. Percy merely shrugged.

“It’s either the Watcher, or the Ash,” he said. “We need to stick together no matter who we go after.”

Carson nodded, but Percy’s remark about trusting no one still echoed in his head. He looked to this strange, nameless woman, then gestured for her to continue.

“Go ahead,” he said. “Let’s hear your plan.”

The first night was terrible, but Nathaniel managed. Several times he woke up thinking he’d heard a noise, or that he’d seen movement in the shadows.

“Zusa?” he called out each time, squinting to see. Always nothing, but he couldn’t help but think monsters lurked within the dark corners of his room. Normally he told himself it was Zusa, but he knew it wasn’t. She’d left. Somehow, by the way his mother had kissed him goodnight, he knew she was gone. The night crawled along, until at long last daylight met his ragged eyes.

The day came and went, him sleepwalking through most of it. At one point he fell asleep at the table, his uneaten food beside his face. One of the servant women had scolded him harshly for that, and he’d only been able to offer the most meager of apologies. All the while, he waited for Zusa’s return. And waited. The servants whispered of how the previous night had been far safer, and that Victor was winning over the city. Nathaniel knew this should have made his mother happier, but it did not.

Night came again, and Zusa still hadn’t returned. Nathaniel once more tried to sleep alone in his room, but this time he heard monsters scratching, and every shadow bore a blade. He squeezed his eyes shut and pushed his face into a pillow, but then they were all around him, stepping closer, mouths drooling, claws reaching. Zusa wasn’t there to protect him. His mother’s guards weren’t about to rescue him. It took all his courage to pull down his blankets and look, and no matter how many times he saw his room empty, he knew without a doubt they were there.

At last he’d gotten up and left. He felt like a thief sneaking through the dark halls, but at each corner stood a house guard, looking somber and dangerous in the lantern light. They watched him as he passed, and it made his skin crawl. At his mother’s room, he stopped and gently pushed open the door with his arm.

“Mother?” he called out. At first, nothing, then louder, “Mother?”

“I’m here, Nathan,” she said, and he saw a feminine form lean up from the pillows.

Nathaniel curled his shoulders together, and he grabbed his stump with his other hand, as if he were cold.

“I’m scared,” he said. The question within was implicit, and his mother heard it well.

“Come here,” she said. “The bed’s big enough.”

He climbed up and then crawled forward until he reached the top. His mother’s arms wrapped about him as he curled against her and lay his head on a pillow. Immediately he felt his fears ebbing, and his exhaustion clawed at him with pent up fury.

“Getting too big for this,” Alyssa said as she moved to give him room.

“I’m sorry.”

She kissed the back of his neck to show she wasn’t angry. Nathaniel shifted and slid his legs underneath the blanket.

“Mom…when is Zusa coming back?”

For a long while she did not answer.

“I don’t know,” she said at last. Nathaniel closed his eyes, glad to be safe from the monsters, glad that he could rest. Still, the question nagged at him.

“She is coming back, isn’t she?” he asked.

An even longer pause. His mother sniffed, and he realized she was crying. It made his stomach queasy, and he pulled himself into a tighter ball to fight the uncomfortable feeling growing in his chest.

“I hope so,” his mother said. He felt her fingers brushed against his face, lovingly touching his features with her fingertips. “Gods, I hope so.”

He didn’t know what to say, but he wanted to comfort her. He wanted to make her feel better.

“I hope so, too,” he said.

He closed his eyes and slept. Come the morning, he awoke to find himself alone in the bed. Feeling embarrassed, he slid out from the blankets and hurried back to his room to change. On his way there, he passed by his grandmother’s room. The door was cracked open, and he heard voices from within. The past two nights had left him wary, and something about the hushed tones made him slow. Pressing against the wall, he peered inside to see Lord Gandrem talking with his grandmother. Melody sat on the bed, and he could just barely see her hands as they gestured along with her words. John stood before her, arms crossed. His face was turned away, so he could not read his expression.

“I cannot leave my lands unprotected,” John was saying. “Surely between Stephen and your daughter, the house guards are sufficient.”

“They aren’t,” Melody insisted. “Alyssa lost so many, and is yet to rehire, instead focusing on repairing her mansion. She puts her faith in that strange woman, Zusa. I don’t trust her, John. I just don’t. And Stephen’s guards are loyal only to him.”

John sighed and looked away, right toward the door. Nathaniel’s breath caught in his throat, and he pulled back and pressed himself tighter against the wall. Counting to five before peering in again, he saw his grandmother had stood and put her arms around John’s waist.

“My lands are tame, and my steward is a good man, and runs my affairs well,” he said. Nathaniel could hear weakness in his voice, a bending of his will toward his grandmother. “Are you really so sure we need more men to protect us? What of Lord Kane? They say Victor has done much to make the city safe.”

“I’m scared, John,” Melody said, pressing tighter against him. “I came back from such a dark place. I don’t want to be scared anymore. Victor can’t be everywhere, and those thieves are like rabid dogs. You saw what they did to our mansion. They’ll come again. They’ll come, with torches, with daggers, with…with…”

She buried her face into his neck, and as she shuddered, John wrapped his arms about her.