Basilard slipped in behind Amaranthe and also gave her a curious look. She noticed her hands were still balled into fists and raised one to cover a fake yawn, as if she hadn’t been concerned at any point in the mission thus far.
Sicarius manhandled the fireman into a position on the back wall next to the engineer. Both men were alive and glaring at him, though gags in their mouths kept them from voicing complaints.
“I hadn’t planned to take over the cab.” Amaranthe tucked stray strands of hair back into her bun. “Was it necessary to subdue them?”
“They would have grown suspicious when the guards left and did not return,” Sicarius said.
True, but inconvenient. Now someone would have to stay up there and drive the train. Maybe two people. She cursed under her breath. When they charged into the emperor’s car, she would need all of her men. That one fastidious corporal was spawning a lot of headaches.
Amaranthe eyed the front of the cab, wondering if there was a way to automate the train. The furnace was set into the left half with heavy cast iron doors that could swing open and closed again when someone stepped on a floor pedal. A shovel leaned to the side of it, beneath several wheels attached to pipes. Amaranthe had no idea what they controlled. All she knew was that shovel would need to be used again soon. A boiler capable of powering a locomotive would need heat applied constantly, lots of heat.
The engineer’s seat was on the right side of the cab, and all manner of gauges and levers adorned that station. The only thing Amaranthe could identify was the steam-whistle chain dangling from the ceiling. She leaned over the seat to peer out a vertical rectangle of a window. The long cylindrical engine took up most of the view, but she could see a little ways to the front of the right side of the train. She wasn’t sure what kind of lights were burning above the brush guard, but they didn’t illuminate as much of the rail as she would have thought. She hoped there’d be time to stop when they saw the landslide.
“We’ll be going slower when we start ascending into the mountains,” Sicarius said. “We can throw them and the other prisoners overboard without critically damaging them.”
“I’m glad you’re thinking of ways not to damage people, but what I’m really wondering is who’s going to drive this thing while we go after the emperor?”
Muffled words-curses most likely-came from the engineer. His shoulders flexed and strained as he tried to loosen his bonds. The fireman was glowering at her with eyes seething with hatred. She tried to offer them a disarming smile. They glared more fiercely. For all they knew, her team meant to assassinate Sespian and blow up the train, and she didn’t have time to explain otherwise, not that they would listen anyway.
“One of the men,” Sicarius said, ignoring the straining prisoners. His gaze shifted toward Basilard.
Basilard’s eyes widened. My people are simple nomads. I know how to hunt, fight, and put up a tent. He stared at the controls for a moment before adding, This looks a lot more complicated than a tent.
“Maldynado then,” Sicarius said.
“Dear ancestors, do you want us to crash?” Amaranthe asked. “Besides, we need everyone if we’re to have a chance against a car full of soldiers. How many people are in there with Sespian? Twenty?”
“Twenty-three soldiers and bodyguards. And the woman.”
Who might have skills as a practitioner. Lovely. And then there was the fact that there were more soldiers in the neighboring cars. If they didn’t figure out a way to retrieve Sespian quietly and quickly…
“We need everyone,” Amaranthe repeated.
“Talk the enforcer woman into doing it,” Sicarius said.
That… might work. As a rural enforcer, she’d know how to drive a lorry. How much different could it be? Amaranthe considered the furnace, the engineer’s station, and the prisoners. It was a lot to ask, especially when Yara hadn’t promised full support-or any kind of support-for the mission. Still, it would keep her out of the way of the fighting.
“Basilard, will you get her please?” Amaranthe unfastened one of the lanterns mounted on the wall and handed it to him. Maldynado would need to see Basilard’s hands to know what he was saying.
Basilard nodded and slipped back outside.
“You intend to defend this point until we reach the pass?” Sicarius asked.
“I don’t know. Maybe we’d be better off letting the furnace burn out while we’re getting Sespian. Then we can grab him, jump off when the train slows, and disappear into the woods. We can find a way to meet up with the others and…”
Sicarius was shaking his head. He pointed to a clock on the wall. “We’re two hours from the pass-nearly a hundred miles. It’d take us days on foot, and we’d have dozens of soldiers following us through the forest. Hundreds when word gets back to Forkingrust.”
Despite their predicament, Amaranthe managed a smile. “You say that like it’d be difficult for you. I thought evading soldiers was one of your favorite hobbies.”
“Not if I can’t harm them,” Sicarius said, gaze hard and unwavering.
Amaranthe dropped her smile. “Then we better plan to return here and maintain control at all costs.” She knocked on the back wall of the cab. “We’ll have a bargaining chip-the power to control the train-and, if need be, we can defend this position. It’ll be hard for them to get over the coal car and at us without exposing themselves.”
“If we aren’t going to shoot them, they won’t fear to expose themselves.”
Uh, yes, that was a good point. They needed a better plan.
Amaranthe grabbed the shovel next to the furnace. How were they going to defend a position when they couldn’t use their weapons? She stepped on the floor switch to open the furnace door. The fire had already burned low in the short time since Sicarius had taken down the fireman and engineer. She shoveled fresh coal into the furnace until the red embers along the bottom disappeared beneath leaping flames. Waves of heat flowed from within. Maybe they could do something with fire? No, she dismissed that idea as quickly as it came. She’d end up with the entire train on fire if they flung flames back toward the coal car. The mere thought made her glance about until she found a fire station: an axe, bucket of sand, and hose reel mounted on a narrow strip of wall behind the engineer’s chair.
Aware of Sicarius watching her, Amaranthe said, “Don’t worry. I’ll think of something.” She used the shovel to sweep the coals spilled on the floor back into the pile beneath the chute.
“Before or after soldiers are streaming into the locomotive?” Sicarius asked.
“I’ll let that be a surprise.” Amaranthe winked. If only she felt half as confident as she pretended.
“Quit pushing,” came Yara’s voice from outside. “Don’t touch me at all. Ever.” She came into view on the other side of the window, inching her way toward the door.
Wind gusted against her, flinging her short hair to one side, but Amaranthe didn’t think it was the source of her irritation. Maldynado came into view, crawling along the outside of the train after her. Ah, yes.
Yara lunged around the corner and into the cabin, grabbing the back of the engineer’s seat for support. Maldynado hopped in behind her.
“You can not be any fun in bed,” he told Yara.
“You’ll never find out,” she growled back.
Amaranthe was sweeping the last few coals into the pile beneath the chute. She was about to say something, but Maldynado spoke first.
“Boss, are you cleaning? In the middle of our train-infiltration mission?”
“No.” Amaranthe blushed and set the shovel aside. “I’m just tidying what may become a fighting area. I don’t want anyone slipping on loose coal.” Before he could make any silly comments, she added, “What are you doing up here, Maldynado? I told Basilard to get Yara, not you.”