the sable spy

CHAPTER TWO,

"She came from the docks," Laurence finally said. "Just arrived back in Arecia, I think. Most likely was attacked there. The crew on the ship would have helped her otherwise. She comes in the middle of the night. Alone. We found her luggage abandoned near an alleyway full of blood. Two men dead. Her work, I think."

"I thought she retired."

"Well, not exactly," Laurence mused. "She doesn't really work for Secret Service anymore, that's for sure. She never really belonged here anyways. She's Saian through and through. Always been a patriot, our Cass, even though the current dynasty banished her entire family and took everything she owned away. It's one of the most interesting facts about her, really." He knew that. A bit too well. It was why he hadn't talked to her in six years. "I heard that the Emperor is considering letting them back, though their dukedom would only be a slice of what it was before. The Sable could build it back up, I think."

"I never saw her around. I've barely ever seen her in the past six years."

Laurence blinked, nonplussed. "You never realised?"

Marcus stared. "Realised what?"

"She only stopped showing up regularly, asking for missions around three years ago. When her family began making progress in communications with the Yie dynasty. Most likely they told her to at least try to stay away, since the Saians don't trust us all that much. We all know what happened six years ago. Most of us agreed that it'd be best if you were kept separate."

"You guys... purposefully separated us?" He asked, incredulous.

Laurence gave him a look of confusion. "Is it that surprising? You've done the same for some agents."

"No. I just didn't expect it, that's all," he muttered.

The door swung open, and Cadieux moved out, the doctor behind him. "She'll live," the doctor told them. "The knife didn't hit anything major. I've stopped the bleeding. The wound didn't seem to be poisoned, so she should be alright after some time. Call me if there's any change." Then he started down the corridor and vanished down the stairs.

Marcus let out a breath of relief. Cadieux said, "I'll send a note to Cirinique. She'll want to come here. She'll be perfectly alright, stop pacing, Dalton, you're making me nervous. She's the Sable Cub. Little Sable. She's her great-aunt's girl through and through, she's not going to die from a measly stab wound."

"I'm just dreading when she wakes up," he managed weakly. "I can't tell if I want her to flay me alive with that tongue of hers or for her to shower me with gratitude."

"I, for one," Laurence began, "am more interested in figuring out who was trying to kill her. A thousand times more fascinating, wouldn't you agree?"

Marcus glared. Cadieux looked faintly amused.

"It was an ambush, not an attack on a whim. I don't recognise any of the dead men, and there's no specific marking in him that might affiliate them with anyone. Then again, this is our Cassalyn we're speaking of. In the last three years alone, she's probably pissed off half the world's governments and criminal enterprises. Not to mention that she has mentioned that a few of her cousins aren't extremely fond of her. Any enemy of Cirinique's might be hers as well, and we all know our other little sable has earned the jealousy and ire of far too many debutantes and heiresses. This could be an attempt at forcing Ciri into mourning to force her out of the ton's eyes, though one could argue that those brainless highborn ladies probably don't have the guts for it." Laurence was enjoying this greatly, and most of it was nonsense, but Marcus let him continue. "Many are aware that our dear Dalton here has a tendre for Cass—" to that, Marcus grit his teeth "—so this could be one of them trying to hurt you. This could be one of the Saian nobles who got a piece of the Dai fortune trying to pick them off one by one, knowing very well that they're almost in the Emperor's good graces."