Shonn's expression scrunched into a snarl, his grip tightening on Selene's upper arm. "Listen here, Guard—"
In the blink of an eye, Draven grasped Shonn's wrist and yanked his hand off of Selene. He peered down at Shonn, thankful for his height. "I told you to unhand her."
Shonn tore away from him, his face turning purple. "You dare touch me? To manhandle me? I am heir of House Channing, you fool."
"And I am Lady Selene's guard, tasked with keeping her safe. You'd do well to remember that."
Shonn jabbed his finger at Draven's chest. "I refuse to tolerate such insolence, especially from an inferior. My mother and stepfather will be told of your behavior." He stormed past Draven before disappearing into the solar, like a juvenile throwing a tantrum.
A small part of Draven was concerned. After all, his mission was dependent upon his ability to hold his position here as Selene's guard. That meant he would have to make himself indispensable by doing what the other guards couldn't: keeping Selene in her room at night.
"Perhaps that wasn't your best choice of conduct, given they hired you today," Lady Selene said. But the glint in her eyes suggested that she was at least a little impressed.
"They hired me to guard you," he said evenly, "and I intend to do so." But, even outside his duty, there was something that made him feel... protective. Perhaps because he knew what it felt like to be unwanted in one's own family. In many ways, she was like he'd been as a younger man.
And then there was the vulnerability he sensed in her, like an abused flower keeping its bruised petals furled protectively around itself. He had a weakness for trying to aid distressed maidens—which had gotten him in trouble with Evelyn.
She met his eyes. "Have my parents told you about the other guards?"
"They have."
"And you still wanted this position? Why?"
To capture the Scorpio spy and save Alaric's and Evelyn's lives. "The pay."
"Other positions pay more." When he didn't reply, she continued, "I just thought I should warn you that your fate will be the same as the other guards'. Perhaps you should resign before Shonn can persuade them to fire you."
A slight grin tugged at his lips. She might be plain, but she was filled with fire. "Encouragement isn't your strong suit, is it?"
Her own lips turned upward in a smile before she smoothed them back into a straight line. Unfortunate. A smile made her appearance verge on lovely. "You could say that. And I don't mean to be rude. I just wanted to warn you."
"Why?"
"Because if you fail to do your job, your reputation will be damaged. If you resign—"
"No, I meant 'why do you care?'"
Selene glanced at the door to her parents' solar, and for the first time, Draven heard muffled shouts and exclamations behind it. "I appreciate what you did for me. Just now."
Draven clenched his jaw until pain shot up his cheeks. "Did the other guards not do the same?"
"I don't blame them." Her smile was a twisted reflection of the one he'd seen earlier. "Their position was at stake, after all."
"So they placed the security of their position above their duty." Her former guards had better hope and pray that they would never cross paths with Draven; he would teach them a lesson they wouldn't easily forget.
More thoughts flickered behind her eyes, and for a moment, he hoped that she would continue to engage him. Instead she said, "It doesn't matter now. Good day, Guard Raban."
She turned and marched up the stairs. Draven followed closely behind until she entered her room and shut the door.
#
When Selene awoke, it was evening again. It seemed like she hardly saw the sun anymore. Assassins truly were creatures of the night.
After taming her hair, she slid her door open. And nearly startled when she saw her new guard standing there. His hair was a dark brown, so dull that she could find no shine among his locks. His eyes blazed green against his deeply tanned skin. What was his name? She couldn't quite remember. "Guard Rabar, wasn't it?"
"Raban."
"Right. Have any notes been left for me?"
"Yes."
Selene extended her hand, and he placed a slip of white paper into her palm. Suspicion lined his forehead. Her heart beat a bit faster. Could he have read the note? Did he suspect something? Selene forced a smile and told herself that was ridiculous. Even if he had, the note was coded.
"Is everything all right, Guard Raban?"
"Of course, Lady Selene." The suspicion cleared from his expression.
Selene fingered the edges of the note, running her thumb along the paper. "Would you like to know a secret?"
"If you're so inclined to share one."
"My parents often wonder where I go at night. Where do you think I go?" She let her smile slop at the edges, turning it into a goofy grin. "You'll never guess."
"As your ladyship has said, I'd never guess, so what's the point in trying?"
His words startled a genuine laugh from her, but she quickly recovered. "I've fallen deeply in love, so deeply that I never have any hopes of recovering. I suspect that I may love him forever."
"Is that so?" His expression remained carefully neutral. She couldn't tell if he was merely being polite or suspected that her story was fabricated.
"Yes. He's terribly handsome."
"What does he look like?"
Clever. Another question that could either be a polite enquiry or searching for more information. Selene ran images of men through her head. The noblemen she knew were out of the question. Given that her family was among the lowliest of nobles, none would dare become her lover lest it led to marriage.
She'd once met a patron at a brothel Arzil owned. He could work in a pinch.
"He has a thick beard of velvety black hair and eyes the color of dirt."
"Dirt?"
Thankfully, she was better with a dagger than she was with words. "I mean wood. No, chocolate. Yes, rich, sweet chocolate. And naturally, since he's not a noble, my parents wouldn't approve of the relationship. Which is why it's necessary to sneak out."
"And why bother telling me? I'm your guard, not your confidant."
"Well, perhaps you can be both. Now if you'll excuse me, I have a note to read." She waved it in front of his face before retreating back into her room.
She was simultaneously proud of herself and dismayed. Proud because she played a rather convincing lovestruck girl. Dismayed because she would have to maintain that persona until the guard was fired.
Selene broke the seal, unfolded the paper, and smoothed it against her desk.
Dearest Selene,
I do hope you'll wear the maroon dress again; it looks quite lovely on you. I hope to see you soon because I find myself missing you more with each passing hour. But please be careful. An unexpected storm is coming, and I wouldn't want you to be caught in it.
Your Love
Selene reviewed the code words in her head, piecing together the true message.
I do hope you'll wear the maroon dress again: meet at the Maroon Maidens.
I hope to see you soon: she was to come as quickly as possible.
An unexpected storm is coming: there was a new, unforeseen threat.
An unforeseen threat? Could someone have discovered their plans to kill the King? Had one of the assassins been captured?
After ensuring her door was locked, Selene pulled the rope out from under her mattress and tied it to the bedframe. She tossed the remaining length out the window after looping it around her like a harness. By the time her guard thought to check on her, she'd be long gone.
#
Draven waited until the room was completely silent before pulling out his lockpick and tension rod. He tucked the edge of the tension rod in, twisting the lock slightly to the side. He dug around in the keyway with his pick, pushing each pin into place with a nearly inaudible click. It took a surprising amount of time, which made him wonder what kind of locks Lady Selene had installed in her door... and why.
To be fair, since she was a lady, she likely wanted to protect any jewelry within. Perhaps he was being too suspicious. But she didn't seem like the jewelry-wearing type.
He pulled on the tension rod and the keyway turned smoothly. He opened the door.
Selene was gone—of course.
A rope was tied to her bedframe and tossed over the windowsill. She was highly motivated to see this lover of hers, if that was indeed her motive.
A quick search of her desk and bed revealed that she'd taken the note with her. Draven scanned all the nearby streets—just in time to see her dash into an alleyway. He wrapped his hands around the rope, tempted to slide down, but if it burned his hands, it would make climbing difficult later. He wrapped his legs around the rope and climbed down, hand by hand.
When he reached the bottom, he sprinted into the alley she'd disappeared into. Mud between the cobblestones revealed some of her footprints. Either she was arrogant or unaware.
Draven followed the alley until it poured out into a main street. This would make things more difficult.
He began to approach a street vendor to ask if he'd seen a lady of Selene's description when he spotted her dark hair as she wove through the crowd. He could run her to ground and drag her back home. Or he could see where she was going.
Draven quickly decided on the latter option and pulled his hood over his head as he trailed her.
#
After changing into a commoner dress in her shed, Selene walked the rest of the way to the Maroon Maidens. A translucent red curtain clothed the doorway. Pushing it aside revealed a room cluttered with tables below and red lanterns overhead. The lack of doors was highly impractical in the chilly month of Cedembre.
Arzil wouldn't want her to enter through the main entrance, so she walked past it and around the corner to a little door practically indistinguishable from the wall. One might not know it was a door except for the rusted handle protruding from the wood.
A prickling sensation clambered up her arms, and Selene scanned the alleyway. She couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching. Surely her guard hadn't managed to follow her.
Selene performed her routine second scan of the area, just as Arzil had taught her. She searched for potential escape routes and weapons, in case a situation arose in which she might need them. She could climb the rooftops, but that would take a while. Her best bet was to dart down one of the many alleyways filled with broken shards of pottery and bottles that could be used as weapons.
When a few more moments passed without disturbance, she rapped against the door.
A little wooden panel slid aside and a blue eye peeped through. "Sel—I mean Raven?"
If Corsicanna was using Selene's codename, that likely meant that there were others in the room with her. She was thankful her friend had avoided using her true name. "I hope you'll let me in sooner than later. The alley is quite eerie at this time of night."
The door swung open, revealing Cori. Most people would have been so distracted by her beauty—her frosty blond locks flowing over her shoulders, her maroon dress cupping her curves—that they wouldn't have noticed the weariness aging her eyes. She wore a matching ribbon as a choker necklace. The golden chain of a second necklace disappeared beneath her collar.
Selene entered before closing and locking the door behind her. "Are you all right, Cori?"
Cori swung her arm to gesture to the pallets full of sick girls. "What do you think?"
Dusky red wallpaper, peeling away at the edges, revealed yellow-painted wood. Dust had wormed into the cracks between the wooden floorboards. A chandelier dangled from above, its crystal so dirty that it appeared opaque. A large bed was the only piece of furniture in the room, pressed flush against the wall. A faded red quilt, patched with different colors of cloth, covered the bed and the several girls occupying it. The air was saturated with the sour, musty smell of vomit and sweat.
One girl covered her mouth and her body trembled as she coughed.
Cori rushed to her side and poured her a cup of water. "Some of the girls aren't doing very well. I'm not able to tend to them all the time, since Arzil still requires me to work. And when I do work, I'm not able to get any clients."
"What?" Selene knelt by her. "How could you not get any clients? You're lovely."
Cori righted the cup. "There's been this cloaked patron who just watches me, and it scares the other clients away. I've told Arzil about him, but he won't do anything. I don't see how you can stand to work for a monster like him, Raven."
Cold flashed over Selene's skin as she searched the room for Arzil—or anyone who might report to him. "Don't speak like that, Cori. And you know I hardly have a choice." Until she earned enough money for the bounty hunter to smuggle her out of the country. But she couldn't tell Cori that. "This is my way of life now, and you can't just quit..." being an assassin. She didn't dare say so with so many around, but Cori would understand.
"I think you're just not looking hard enough." Cori helped the girl drink before setting the cup down with a clank, water sloshing over the brim.
"I didn't come here to argue with you. Where's Arzil? I need to speak with him."
"Of course you do," she muttered. Before Selene could reply, Cori rose and glided out of the room, slamming the door shut behind her.
Selene pulled the door open and followed her down the dark hallway, only lit by small Lux stones. Though Cori was shorter, Selene had to lengthen her stride to catch up to her.
Cori stopped before the door to Arzil's office and gestured with a flourish. "Your master awaits." She promptly turned and marched back to the sickroom.
Selene fisted her hands, resisting the urge to chase her down. When Selene was younger, before her first kill, she and Cori had been close friends. Her mother would take her to the Maroon Maidens to speak to Arzil, and while they were talking, she and Cori would play together.
Selene remembered her confusion when she'd realized that Cori couldn't always play. Sometimes she disappeared into the bedrooms with strange men and didn't emerge until hours later.
But no matter what had happened, she'd always greeted Selene with a smile—even if it was a little strained at times.
Selene knocked on Arzil's door. "Master Arzil?"
When the door swung open, Arzil stood in the doorway. His frail bone-white hair fell straight, all the way down to his chest. As usual, he kept the top half tied back.
"Selene. You arrived rather quickly."
She managed a short bow. "You've trained me well, Master."
"That I have. Come in. I have some rather unfortunate news."
She entered and Arzil closed the door behind her. Paraphernalia crowded shelves and tables. Her gaze landed on a single infant-sized shoe, nearly worn through at the heel, placed on top of a sheaf of documents. Perhaps it was a personal item once belonging to a debtor.
Occassionally, Arzil accepted personal items from debtors as payment. His one requirement was that the item had to be the object they most valued; somehow, he had a way of telling if it wasn't.
"What's happened? Is the King still coming to Taijeng? Has someone been caught?"
"Yes and no. Are you familiar with the former Duke Draven?"
Selene stiffened. The man who had killed her mother, leaving her with only an emotionally abusive father? "Of course."
Arzil had ranted about him many times, especially when she was younger. Master Sephtis and Apprentice Draven were the ones who'd betrayed the Scorpio to King Alaric, leading to Arzil's master's capture. They were the reason the Scorpio had to flee and live in abandoned tunnels, concealing themselves in the cracks and crevices of the city. Though Selene hadn't lived in the base by Octavya, many of the Scorpio had before it'd been stormed by King Alaric's knights.
"He's not only in the country of Taijeng—he's in this very city, in the Taijese palace," Arzil said.
Tuteno. He'd been in the Taijese palace all along? That was only a half-hour's walk outside the upper-class district, where her family resided. "He's here?" She gripped her mother's dagger tightly through the hidden pocket in her dress. It would be so fitting if she could slay him with the dagger of the woman he'd murdered.
"Yes. And apparently, trying to find the remaining Scorpio."
"What are we going to do? Do you think he'll find us and expose us to King Alaric as he did last time?"
She saw the slap coming and did nothing to block it. Her cheek tingled with pain, and she resisted the urge to rub it. Arzil usually wasn't violent without cause; news of Draven's presence must have really upset him.
"I didn't teach you to be so fearful, Selene. Remember, an assassin feels no fear."
"Apologies, Master."
"We are Scorpio. We are assassins. We arehunters. We will find him before he finds us. And when we do, he'll rue the dayhe was born."