Haern remained quiet for a long time.
“Untie me,” he said at last.
“Will you try to kill me?” Deathmask asked.
“Such little trust for someone who wants me to work for him.”
The man shrugged. “Fair enough. Cut him loose, Vel.”
She did so, reluctantly. Haern stood and stretched his muscles, grimacing as his back popped. His arm also ached like mad, the muscles there definitely torn. He glanced about the dim cellar, then turned his attention to Deathmask.
“Tell me everything,” he said.
“We’ll let every member of the Trifect, and every thief guildmaster, know the terms. Let them also know, in no uncertain language, that if they refuse they’ll die. After that, we’ll broker a few meetings, get everyone in one room, and make them agree to these conditions. Anyone who tries to make a fuss, we send you after them. How does that sound?”
“Insane,” Haern said. He looked for his swords, saw neither. “Were you not out last night? The blood clogs the gutters. They’ll never agree, not to anything. You’re delusional, Deathmask.”
“If you don’t accept,” Veliana said, stepping in front of the stairs leading upward to daylight, “then we’ll have no choice. You’ll have no one to blame but yourself.”
“For what?”
“We’ll tell your father of your new name, and of who you really are. How long do you think your little crusade against us will last once he knows? Right now he sees you as a nuisance, a ghost to keep his men on their toes and to cull the weak from his guild. But for Aaron Felhorn to turn against his own flesh and blood…”
Haern stood before her, staring eye to eye. Even wounded and exhausted, he would not back down.
“Do it, then,” he said. “But ask yourself who will find who first…my father finding me, or me finding you? Move aside. Now.”
She tilted her head so she could see Deathmask, who must have made some sort of approving gesture.
“Very well. It was good to see you, Aaron. ”
He stepped out into the street, winced at the daylight, and then hurried away. With nowhere else to go, he headed for Senke and the mercenaries, hoping he might reach there without any other strange women attacking him.
*
“D o you think he’ll change his mind?” Veliana asked once he was gone. Deathmask shrugged.
“Depends on what you mean. Over what I just offered? No. But I never expected him to.”
Veliana raised an eyebrow. “Care to fill me in?”
“Of course. Haern will never put his heart behind a plan I created. It needs to be his own, one he feels will be his legacy. We need his pride involved, otherwise he’ll be ineffective and dangerous. I’ve planted the idea, though. He knows many of us desire peace, and that he can be a key part of it all.”
She sat down on the pile of cushions that had been her bed since Deathmask took her away from the Ash Guild. “Are you serious about the protection money?”
“Of course,” Deathmask said. “Why wouldn’t I be? And why else would I turn the Spider Guild against the Ash?”
Everything clicked into place, and Veliana’s mouth dropped.
“You hope to destroy the Ash Guild, tear it down to nothing but yourself.”
“Not quite,” Deathmask said. “You’ll be there, as well as two or three others who have the skill to endure the bloodshed to come. When the Trifect distributes whatever wealth is decided upon, we’ll get a fair share. But while some will spread that gold through a hundred or so men, well, we Ash will have just a small handful…”
“Then this was your plan all along? But you couldn’t possibly have expected the Watcher to aid you.”
Deathmask chuckled. “No. I thought that I’d be the one who must threaten and kill the various guildleaders. But why risk my own life when Haern might do it for me, and potentially better?”
Veliana rubbed her temples, trying to think. Everything she and James Beren had created, it’d been dwindling since Thren killed James, but they’d still held onto shards of it. Might it all vanish? All those recruits, those friends she’d made over the years…dead or gone? Could she let him do this, destroy the legacy of the Ash Guild forever?
“You’ll ruin everything I’ve worked for,” she said quietly.
“I’ll give the Ash Guild a legacy all of Dezrel will one day learn. I don’t expect it to be easy. We’ll have to kill a lot, yes. But if we succeed, think of all that wealth, that respect. We fill every other guild with the fear of retaliation. We’ll never need to guard, only attack. Those who turn against us will meet death, every single one. Once that reputation takes hold, we’ll be gods in this city.”
“You’re a lunatic.”
He smiled. “Perhaps. But oh what fun it’ll be in the attempt. Are you getting scared on me, Vel? Aspire to greatness, and damn all others. Garrick took your guild. Help me take it back, and mold it into something never seen before in the history of Dezrel.”
She still wasn’t sure, but she’d not let Deathmask know.
“What of the Spider Guild?” she asked. “Weren’t you to meet with Thren?”
Deathmask’s eyes twinkled, and his grin pulled wider. Despite it, she thought she sensed fear hiding behind the guise.
“Come with me,” he said. “Hopefully we haven’t missed the show. I discovered something when in Garrick’s audience, and I’ve rethought what Thren’s reaction to our masquerade will be.”
They removed their cloaks and dressed in drab colors that showed no affiliation. Veliana kept a hood low over her face to hide her scar. Given the cold wind of the morning, no one would think the hood odd. Deathmask led the way, taking a winding path back to the Ash guildhouse. Before they were even halfway there, Veliana could already see the smoke rising.
“What happened?” she asked.
“Careful,” he said, hugging the wall and peering around every turn. “We might have a few more enemies now. Do you remember when the Hawks tried to ambush you, the attempt I broke up? Garrick didn’t do anything, did he?”
“No,” she said. “But what does that-?”
“The Spider Guild attacked the Hawks barely a day later. Why do you think that, Veliana? Why do you think Garrick suddenly grew testicles and dared challenge your hidden control?”
The realization hit her like a battering ram.
“No. That cow-sucking shit-eating motherfucker. I’ll kill him. It’ll hopefully take days, but I’ll kill him.”
“Assuming he’s still alive,” Deathmask said as he led them into an apartment. They climbed the stairs, stopped at a door on the higher floor, and knocked. When no one answered, Veliana kicked it in. The room was disheveled, what little was left. By all accounts, the occupants appeared to have either fled or died. From the small window they could see the guildhouse. Deathmask looked first, then backed away so Veliana might see. The guildhouse was in flames. It had already collapsed on its supports, black smoke billowing. Surrounding it was a circle of thieves wearing the cloaks and colors of the Spider.
While she watched, a man crawled from the wreckage, and even from their distance he looked badly burned. One of the Spiders shot him with an arrow before he could rise to his feet.
“Unbelievable,” Deathmask said as he took a second look. “An army of mercenaries descends upon us, and without hesitation he massacres a fellow guild, all for a single act of betrayal.”
“Thren is not one to hesitate.”
Deathmask muttered and flopped down onto the poorly stuffed bed.
“We need to establish control of the guild, and now, Veliana. I’d hoped for a bit of backstabbing between the two, a thinning of members, but this…Thren’s viciousness is astounding. We must take over before the guild disbands completely, and the rest of the city moves in on our territory. At least the mercenaries will keep them from doing so for a while. As for Thren…if there’s to be any chance of peace, he’ll need to be dealt with, one way or another. Tell me, where will the remainder of the guild flee now this place has burned?”