Brandt glanced through the notes Bayt had made. The man’s information was extensive.
He wasn’t surprised Kye had a history of military service. Most governors did. Military service proved an individual’s dedication to the empire and served as a proving ground for leadership skills. Kye had been appointed governor of the region after a series of particularly nasty border encounters with the Falari. Brandt had actually been at one of the battles described, near the beginning of his service. Those were memories he’d rather forget.
“There’s no mention of a stone affinity.”
“Keep reading.”
Brandt read down to the bottom of the page. There were a few quotes from fellow officers within. As he read, he understood Alena’s concern.
Kye had never done anything to attract much attention in regards to affinities. It was, instead, a series of small events at crucial moments. An enemy soldier losing his footing as he was about to strike. A stone rockslide giving away the position of an opponent. Nothing that by itself would raise an eyebrow.
But put together, the way Bayt had here, the conclusion was inescapable.
Kye possessed a strong stone affinity.
And he had hidden it.
Brandt passed the paper back. He had seen enough.
The evidence was there, but he still wasn’t sure that he believed. There was another question that didn’t have an answer. “Why go to all this trouble? He’s the governor, and the only one in this region who could order the wolfblades about.”
Alena shrugged. “I only know what Bayt wrote. But if I had to guess, Kye wanted the diamond for himself, not for the empire.”
They sat in silence.
“What do we do?” Alena asked softly.
Brandt didn’t know the answer to that. If her research was right, then what could he do? He couldn’t arrest the governor without better evidence than this.
He wasn’t even sure he could arrest the governor. The man was substantially stronger than him, both in terms of stature and martial ability.
Then another thought turned over in his head. Niles. Right now, he was meeting with Kye, reporting that Brandt was close to finding the bandit.
Kye knew they were coming.
Alena, missing nothing, noticed the change in his demeanor. “What?”
He didn’t want to worry her, but she would recognize a lie. “I think Kye will know he’s almost been discovered.”
“So if we’re going to act, it needs to be now.”
Brandt nodded, his decision made. “I will call him out, outside of the city. And I will kill him.”
“Even if it costs your life?” There was no concern in her tone, just a statement of fact.
“Yes. It will end the search for you, and I’ll be able to join my friends on the other side of the gate. They deserve as much.”
She shook her head. “I can’t believe you have faith in that foolishness.”
“It’s not foolishness. I’ve seen the gate. Death doesn’t frighten me anymore.”
Her glare was hard. Brandt couldn’t tell if she wanted to call him a fool or if she wanted to share in his belief. His tone gave her pause, though.
“It’s time for you to leave, Alena. This is my burden to carry from here.” He bowed deeply, his head nearing the table they sat at. “Thank you for helping me find who was responsible.”
Alena appeared torn for a few moments. No doubt, she had hoped for some different ending. He hoped she would find a new purpose to her life.
Finally, she stood, casting another uncertain look back at him. With a final shake of her head, she left the teahouse without another word.
Brandt watched her go, wishing her the best.
He would find some paper and send the governor a message.
It was time to end this.
22
She should be overjoyed.
In a single stroke, Brandt had volunteered to lift the burden from her shoulders. If he killed Kye, her problems would be over. Even Niles would end his search if the bandit was unmasked. The wolfblade had solved all her problems for her.
She couldn’t accept it, though. She had done nothing useful for him. Despite his kind words, all she had done was steal Bayt’s information and decipher it. It was hardly the sort of effort that deserved such a sacrifice.
She thought she understood Brandt. Those he cared about had been taken from him. He didn’t hold the attachment to life that bound so many. He probably saw this as a way to finish everything cleanly.
And he was right. He just had to kill Kye in the process.
The problem was, she couldn’t believe it would work.
She didn’t believe in any solution that she wasn’t involved in. It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Brandt, it was just that the only way to guarantee that a task got done the right way was to do it yourself. How many times had each of her parents hammered home that lesson? If she wasn’t involved, it would all go wrong.
At the very least, she could see everything through to the end, she supposed. Then she would know her living nightmare was over.
The simplest method forward would be to follow Brandt. The wolfblade paid attention to his surroundings, but not the same way she had been trained to. Brandt looked for threats, for problems on the horizon. He wouldn’t notice her.
After she passed out of sight of the teahouse, she quickly turned and ran, circling the block and coming at it from a different direction. She found a shadowed alcove where she could watch the entrance and she melted into it.
She didn’t have long to wait for Brandt. She followed at a respectable distance, trailing him into a nicer, more commercial area of town. He stepped into an inn, and Alena again found a quiet place to stand
