Eckart demonstrated a certain amount of iron as he calmed himself. He plucked a handkerchief from his vest and dabbed hastily at the bloody handprint over his mouth. 'No, sir,' he said emphatically. 'I should not desire that.'
'I know some men from the Stag who'll take care of the bodies for a few coins,' offered Chaney.
'Yes,' said Tal, 'but how much for their silence? And for how long?'
'True,' agreed Chaney. 'Once they realized who you were, there'd be no satisfying them.'
'Cale would know what to do.'
'What Cale knows, your father knows.'
'Sometimes I'm not so sure of that,' said Tal. 'But eventually my father must know. I can't afford a cure with my own money. Even if I could, there isn't a priest in Selgaunt who wouldn't tell father later.'
'I thought a cure worked only before you actually… you know. Changed.'
'That I don't know,' sighed Tal. 'I don't know anything about being a werewolf.' He'd washed himself soon after Eckart had left to find Chaney, but he still felt unclean. 'Maybe I should just turn myself in.'
'Don't be a fool!' said Chaney. 'If nothing else, think of the harm it would cause your family.'
'I've just killed two men!' countered Tal. 'The third one's still locked in my closet. How much more harm can I cause?'
The lone survivor of the night's massacre had been eager to tell his story, though it was hard to make out the details through his terrified babbling. He was a lockpick who prided himself on working for only the wealthiest employers.
Alale Soargyl offered him and his hulking companion two hundred fivestars each to beat Tal into submission, then hold him as Alale threw a few punches of his own.
They'd broken into the tallhouse and found their way to Tal's bedroom, where they had planned to lie in wait. Instead, they'd found a monster.
'What if it's not your fault?'
'How can that be?'
'What if someone did this to you on purpose?' said Chaney.
Tal considered that suggestion. 'That's too fantastic,' he said at last. 'Even if the attack on our party was planned, how could they know who would survive?'
'Maybe they didn't care which of us it was,' suggested Chaney. 'Or maybe we were all supposed to die.'
'The old woman knew I'd been attacked by a werewolf,' said Tal. 'But was she part of the plot? Or was she just trying to help?'
'She had to be in on it,' said Chaney. 'It's too big a coincidence that she'd find you out there in the woods.'
Tal nodded. It was all too convenient.
'The important thing is that we put you someplace safe tonight. Too bad the closet's already occupied.'
'That wouldn't be enough, anyway,' said Tal. 'I need a strong cell. And in case I get out…'
'It takes an enchanted sword to slay a werewolf,' said Chaney. 'You'd be safe as long as you didn't run into a wizard or someone with a magical weapon.'
'There's that big, solid cage at the theater,' said Tal.
'And you can trust Quickly to keep things quiet.' Chaney was brightening, even if Tal was full of despair.
'There's the sword, in case I get out.'
'You won't get out,' said Chaney. 'I mean, it won't get out. You said yourself you don't remember anything from last night. That proves it's not you. It's… you know. The thing. The wolf. It.'
'But if it does get out,' said Tal, 'I need someone I can trust to take care of it. I need you there with the sword.'
'Listen,' said Chaney, 'Eckart and I can take care of things here. You go talk to Quickly.'
'I'm serious, Chaney. I need you there tonight, and I need your promise that you'll kill it if it gets out of the cage.'
Chaney sighed. 'I'll be there.'
'Promise.'
'I promise.'
'You're a what?'
'A were-'
'No, no, I heard you the first time,' said Quickly. She bit the tip of her thumb and turned away to pace beside the big steel cage. 'Do you suppose we could work it into a play? Of course, we'd be limited to a few shows each month, and-'
'Quickly!' exclaimed Tal. 'This is a serious problem, not an opportunity to…' He saw from the sly look on Quickly's face that she'd been putting him on. 'Can I count on you to keep this quiet?'
'You know you can, lad. I'll cancel today's shows and put out word that half the cast is down with river fever. That should keep the other half from snooping about tonight.' She gave Tal a comrade's hug. 'We'll see this thing through, just you and me.'
'And Lommy!' cried a voice from the dark rafters. Tal looked up to see two pairs of yellow eyes peering down. 'And Otter!'
'Eavesdroppers!' scolded Quickly.
Tal hesitated a moment. 'Chaney, too,' added Tal. 'He'll be here before nightfall. We'll need him in case the cage doesn't hold.'
'What do you expect he can do about it?'
'We need the sword, Quickly.'
Even the false cheer at last drained from her cheeks. 'You can't mean it, Tal. There must be another way.'
He shook his head. 'I'd rather die than kill again. Even Alale didn't deserve what he got. Imagine if I woke up at Stormweather tomorrow morning.'
'The cage will hold,' affirmed Quickly, grabbing one of its bars and pulling. It didn't budge.
'Let's hope so.'
Chaney arrived an hour before moonrise with assurances that he'd taken care of the problems back at the tallhouse. He'd also done something he assured Tal would keep Eckart quiet for a while, but he wouldn't reveal what it was.
'In you go,' said Quickly. Lommy and Otter had lowered the cage to the ground, and Tal stepped inside. Quickly locked the door and set the key on a prop table, well away from the bars.
'You want us to turn our heads or anything?' asked Chaney.
'Would you if I said 'yes'?' asked Tal.
'Well, no,' admitted Chaney. Quickly laughed, but Tal could see the tension on both their faces. He thought of the tasloi peering down from above.
'No matter what happens,' he called up to the darkness, 'you two stay up there.'
Lommy and Otter squeaked their assent.
'Well,' said Chaney, 'I don't plan to stand the whole time.' He found a couple of chairs for himself and Quickly, then eased himself comfortably into the better one.
'The sword!' said Tal suddenly. 'Don't forget the sword.'
'Right, right,' said Chaney in a tone that convinced Tal that he hadn't forgotten it.
'You'll never find it on your own,' said Quickly. 'I'll show you where it is.' She led him down the narrow stairs to the small prop room under the stage.
Tal found himself wishing one of them had stayed. He looked up toward the ceiling, but there was no sign of Lommy or Otter. He stopped himself from calling out to them. They were probably more frightened than he was and had run off to avoid witnessing his horrid transformation.
A muffled thump came from the prop room.
