As they neared where Second Cross met Copper Road, Kharl could not only see but sense the Watch patrollers coming up the darkened Copper Road, even before he heard their boots on the yellow brick pavement of the street, not that he could tell the color in the darkness, but he recalled it all too well. “Patrollers are coming.”
Demyst, Cevor, and Alynar all checked their sabres. Belatedly, so did Erdyl.
Kharl stopped at the intersection, waiting.
“Where are you headed?” The lead patroller barked at Kharl. Then as his eyes took in Demyst, Erdyl, and the two guards, he added, “Ser.”
“I was taking an evening walk, patroller,” Kharl said politely. “I was told it was unwise to walk alone. So I brought some friends.”
The patroller looked at Kharl, then at Erdyl and the others. “Can be, ser. Take care. Best to avoid the area just above the harbor.”
“Thank you.” Kharl watched as the patrollers turned and headed back along Second Cross.
“ … hate that … have to tell the serjeant … five of ′em … three guards … think I’m going to take on that …”
“ … serjeant understands …”
“Captain doesn’t …”
“Serjeant won’t tell him … never does …”
Only when the patrollers were a good five rods away did Kharl turn onto Copper Road, heading toward the tannery and the rendering yard.
Kharl could smell the rendering yard long before they reached it, except the pungency was not what he had recalled. “That’s the renderer’s.”
“Looks like the gate’s boarded up,” Erdyl said, stopping momentarily.
Kharl tensed momentarily, then took a deep breath. Werwal had been known for speaking his mind. “Is there a proclamation or anything posted there?”
“No, ser.”
Werwal would have to wait. There was little Kharl could do now. There might be little enough he could do for Enelya, but if the other server at the White Pony knew where she was, she would not be safe from Egen long. Kharl kept walking.
Uphill from the renderer’s was the serviceway off the alley, and Kharl recalled both all too well. He stopped and studied the short serviceway beyond the alley.
“You going in there, ser?” asked Demyst.
“There aren′t any brigands or beggars here,” Kharl replied softly. He eased forward along the alley, then turned into the serviceway, stopping short of the brick wall. Behind it were hidden two walls less than four cubits apart, one the brick wall of the renderer and the other stone wall of Drenzel the tanner. Even in the dim light the ancient and worn yellow bricks of the wall directly before him stood out from the newer red bricks paving the serviceway. He cast his order-senses beyond the wall that was but a head or so above his own height. One person crouched in the hidey-hole that had been Jeka’s. Enelya? Who else could it be?
“She’s alone,” Kharl whispered to Demyst. “I’m climbing over.”
“Ser!” hissed the undercaptain.
“I’ll be careful.”
Kharl scrambled up to the top of the wall, then used his order-senses to harden the air just outside where Enelya crouched in the hidey-hole Jeka had made-or found. He stumbled slightly coming down off the wall, but caught his balance. There was no sound from behind the worn burlap that concealed the hidey-hole.
“Enelya, I’m someone Jeka sent.”
Still no sound.
“You stay here, and Egen’ll find you, sure as I’m standing here.”
She lurched from the hole, half-staggering, half-lunging at him, using a sabre broken off a span short of the tip-but with a sharp and jagged edge that almost came to a point.
Clang! Fragments of metal sprayed off the hardened air shield onto the summer-hardened clay between the two walls. Enelya went down in a heap.
Kharl could sense the knife.
“The knife won’t help. You can either trust me, or wait for Egen to find you.″
“Won’t go … no one …″
Kharl stood there. What could he do? He didn′t know the gentler uses of order. After a moment, he tried again, speaking softly and trying to use his order-senses to project a sense of truth and calm. “I’m trying to help you.”
“No one can.”
“I can.” He dropped the air shield, but remained ready to call it up again if he needed to.
“Sure … and I’m Lady of Brysta.” Enelya sat up, her eyes taking in Kharl. Abruptly, she swallowed, looking at the fragments of metal on the clay, then at Kharl. “You some kind of mage?”
“I know a little.”
“Why didn’t you …” She shook her head.
“It doesn′t work that way. It’s better for defense.” Kharl didn’t like mentioning magery, but he didn’t know what else to say.
“You … you coulda killed me.”
“I’m trying to keep you from being killed.”
“Why me? You’re some sort of mage … or a lord. Easier to buy a girl from the Bardo …″ Enelya slowly stood, her eyes glancing past Kharl to the wall behind him.
“I’m not looking for that. I’m trying to pay a debt.”
“Think I’d pay a clipped copper for that?” The woman snorted.
“For a friend. Jeka helped him, and he said you helped her. He said that you’d been through hard times. You lost your sister. Everyone thought she drowned in the harbor. Jeka told my friend that she almost drowned as a child. She was afraid of water, and wouldn’t go near it.”
“What do you want?”
“I want to give you a position in my house, as a helper to the cook and as a server for dinners. I’ll pay you well, maybe not so much as you get at the White Pony, but you’ll keep every copper, and you’ll have a room of your own in a place where Egen won’t find you. Even if he did, he’d have to cross his father and his brother to hurt you.”
“He would? How’s that?”
“I’m the Austran envoy here in Brysta. I’ve been here less than two eightdays.”
“Sure …”
Kharl sighed. “Do you think that I’d go to the White Pony, and climb over renderer’s walls just to find someone for bed? Besides, you need a bath.”
Abruptly, Enelya laughed, if softly. After a moment, she said, “How are you going to get me to your place safe-like?”
Kharl gestured to the wall. “I have three guards and my secretary waiting to see if you’ll accept the offer.”
There was a long sigh. “Guess I’ve got little choice.”
“Ah … the knife …” Kharl said. “If you want to keep it, then you go over the wall first.”
“I’ll keep it.”
Kharl stepped back until he was almost against the stone wall. “Then you may go first.”
Enelya nodded, then nimbly climbed the wall.
Kharl followed, half-amazed that the woman was waiting in the serviceway when he descended. Then, the four men had stepped back.
“This is Enelya. I’ve offered her a position as a retainer at the residence. You’re not to mention her name to anyone except to people in the house.”
“Yes, ser.”
Kharl, his order-senses half on Enelya, led the way back to the residence. He did make one detour, to avoid another set of patrollers, but in half a glass, they stood in the back hall of the residence as Kharl rang the bell for Fundal.
The steward appeared, dressed in his trousers and boots, and in a hastily donned tunic.
Fundal looked from Kharl to the bedraggled Enelya. “Ser?”
“This is Enelya. She’s going to help Khelaya … and you, when she’s not working in the kitchen. She has some experience serving, but it’s mostly in taverns.″
“Ah … ser,” stammered the steward.
“It’s not like that,” Kharl snapped. “She once helped someone I knew. Someone I owe a lot to. There’s a man after her who’d kill her if he could. I’m paying a debt, and I don’t want a word about her going out of the residence. It does, and you go with it.” Kharl’s last words were cold.
Fundal took a step backward and swallowed.
“She’ll need some better clothes, but I imagine Khelaya can help with that, and she’s to have something to eat and a chance to clean up.″