Land of Smoke and Ashes

Deadly Plans

"Hey darlin', don't go so fast."

His voice was far closer than she'd like it to be, and Natalie felt him grip her arm a second before she was spun around and shoved against the cold stone wall. Jake the soldier leaned in, and she couldn't help screwing up her nose as the scent of stale sweat and beer washed over her.

His face was inches from hers now. "Give us a kiss."

Natalie froze as he leaned closer. Her muscles tensed, coiled, as she readied herself to spring forward, crash her fist into his nose. And then the soldier's face went slack.

Natalie stayed where she was, staring. Jake the soldier blinked. He was still holding her against the wall, but his grip was light now, not pinning her there any longer, and he looked shell shocked and stupid, blinking at her in confusion.

Thank god. A rush of relief went through her. The truth stone had kicked in just in time.

"What were we talking about?" His voice was slow and slurred, though it could have been from the beer just as easily as the stone. "I can't remember."

Natalie considered tearing herself out of his grip for a second, but this would be the perfect cover if any of his friends did come around the corner. They looked like two people in the middle of a passionate embrace, rather than one person spilling a lot of illegal secrets to the other.

"You were just about to tell me about the queen's plan for tonight," Natalie said softly. "Keep going."

"Oh year." A slow, stupid smile crawled over his face, and his eyes had gone glassy. "Right, we were talking about that, weren't we? I was just sayin', the feast is because of that king fellow. He keeps trying to make peace with her."

She felt her stomach drop, and her nails bit into the palms of her hands. She already knew that. What if all of this had been for nothing and there was no plan? She was wasting time she could have spent looking for her mother. Well, she could still use the stone to her advantage. She shook herself loose from him and fished into her pocket for the photograph.

"Do you know where I can find this woman?"

The guard looked disappointed that she'd pulled away, but he seemed momentarily distracted by the photograph, squinting down at it blearily.

"Oh yeah, I know that one. Take the occasional shift in the tower. Gods, she don't look that good anymore." He reached out for the photo and missed, his hand swiping clumsily through the air.

Natalie's stomach sank. She really didn't like the sound of this tower, or the fact that her mother looked so different now. That couldn't mean anything good. "Tell me about the tower."

The guard jerked his thumb back over his shoulder, in the direction they'd come. "Yah, north wing tower. She's the queen's favorite prisoner. Mad scientist or some such, I dunno. Way above my paygrade. All I know is she's got a lot of junk in there, like herbs and potions and stuff. Tower entrance is down the hall that way. Turn right at the end." He jerked a thumb haphazardly over one shoulder.

"Right." Natalie began to turn away, heart beating hard against her ribs, intent on following his directions to get to the tower. Then she paused. It was worth one more try.

"And the feast tonight? What's she planning?"

"A distraction." He mumbled this, and then blinked bleerily at her, like he wasn't sure why he'd said that.

"What?" Natalie turned back to him, grabbing his shoulders, hard. "Tell me, what does that mean? A distraction for what?"

"She's going to fix the water supply, if you get what I mean. Release her toxin from the top of the north tower so it poisons the river. The rebels and traitors will die first." The soldier grinned, and his head lolled a little to the side. His eyelids had begun to droop. Natalie gripped his arm tightly, grinding her teeth. He couldn't pass out, not right now.

"What else?" she urged, frantic. "Come on. Stay awake. Tell me when, what's she putting in the water."

"Tonight," Jake the soldier muttered. "During the feast, dunno when..." his words were growing more slurred, and the beer mug he'd been holding slipped from his loose fingers and clattered to the ground. The sound echoed down the hall and Natalie winced. The hallway was empty but it echoed with noise, both from the kitchen and the great hall. People were bound to come by any second now.

Jake the soldier was slouching now, nearly knocking Natalie over as she tried to hold him up. "Gonna...take out the last free city," he mumbled. "That'll show 'em."

"Oh my god." Natalie gritted it out through her teeth, still struggling to hold him up. "Holy shit. They're going to kill everyone."