Her dark eyes, set at an attractive angle beneath slim, gently arched brows, were the jewels of her face, but everything else on it came a very close second. She had a cute little button nose, high, prominent cheekbones, and a rosebud of a mouth with full, dark lips that I could imagine, very vividly, wrapping themselves around my rock-hard—
“I’m glad to see you’re safe!”
I turned and looked at Elyse and saw her subtly examining Rami with a look that was an equal blend of curiosity and jealousy.
“I’m grateful for your help,” the Yengishwoman said. “I’m Rami, by the way.”
“Elyse. Pleased to meet you, even under such circumstances.”
The two of them shook hands, and I watched, amused, as looks of icy cattiness flashed across each of their faces.
“Vance,” said Elyse, immediately vying for my attention, “I think you should come over here.”
What was this? Was she already trying to get me away from Rami? Was this jealousy I was observing? Either way, it was quite fun to see the two of them duke it out over me.
“Why?”
“I kept one soldier alive for us to question.”
I craned my neck to look past Elyse and saw that one of her ethereal ropes was still trailing behind her. It led to the man she’d been throttling, and he still had the end of the rope coiled around his throat. He was lying on the ground, breathing raggedly, his face purple and his swollen tongue sticking out of his mouth. It seemed that Elyse really had taken him to the brink of death before letting him take a step back for just a moment.
“Good thinking,” I said. “Let’s see what this asshole has to say.”
I walked over to the soldier, with Elyse and Rami following closely behind me. I squatted down next to him and pulled his dagger out of its sheath on his hip. I held it in my left hand while gripping Grave Oath in my right. The man, still choking and coughing and drooling from the throttling he’d received from Elyse’s ethereal rope, looked up at me with eyes bulging with fear.
“You’re Soultaker, aren’t you?” he managed to rasp.
“Indeed, I am,” I said. “And if you’ve heard of me, I’m pretty sure you’ve heard of this.” I dangled Grave Oath over his face.
He nodded slowly, his terrified eyes locked on the blade.
“Good,” I said, smiling coldly. “So, I don’t need to explain what this blade will do to you if I stick it in you.”
He shook his head and swallowed slowly. His eyes never left the blade.
“You’re going to die,” I said calmly. “Here, in this vineyard, in a minute or two. The only question is this: will it be a quick, painless death from this weapon?” I held the man’s own dagger in front of his face. “Or will I decide to put you through hell before I send you there, with this?” I dangled Grave Oath in front of his eyes. “The answer to that question depends on how truthfully you answer what I’m about to ask you. Do you understand?”
The soldier gulped and nodded vigorously.
“Excellent. Well, where to start? Ah, yes. Where can we find Bishop Nabu?”
“He’s usually in his chambers in the cathedral in the town of Erst.”
“I suspected that would be the case. Does he venture out of his chambers much?”
“No. Especially not in recent times. He fears for his life, suspects a plot against him. He stays safe in the cathedral. Many soldiers and guards are protecting him. Hundreds of them.”
“See, that’s the thing about stealing power rather than earning it,” I said, shrugging my shoulders. “Sure, you get the good stuff quick and easy, but then, you’re always on edge, always paranoid about someone else doing to you what you did to your victim. Humph, well, it serves that fat, wine-swilling piece of shit right. He doesn’t deserve a moment of peace. Okay, next question: why have you and your asshole friends enslaved these people?”
“Bishop Nabu ordered it. He said it was a great way to increase profits. No need to pay laborers, and force them to work twice as hard. Double production at half the cost. It just made economic sense, Nabu said.”
I laughed mirthlessly and shook my head. “Wow. Just wow. He’s a real swell guy, Bishop Nabu, isn’t he? Slavery. Why not? It’s good for profits! I can’t wait to sink my blade into his flabby neck. I can’t fuckin’ wait. Now, third question: surely even a thick-headed moron like you knows that slavery is wrong and that what Nabu is doing here is fucked up. So, why did you and your goon buddies go along with it? And don’t give me that ‘I was just following orders’ crap. You look me in the eye and tell me why the fuck you, yes, you personally, thought it was okay.”
“I didn’t ask questions like those; I just did what I was told,” rasped the man. Then, his mouth curled into an evil smile. “You wanted the truth from me, right?”
“That’s what I asked for, yes.”
“Well, I didn’t oppose Nabu because the girls on this farmlands are pretty, and when they’re slaves, we can just kill them if they fight back.”
I chuckled dryly. “I’ve heard enough. Say goodbye, asshole.”
I tossed the man’s dagger aside and gripped Grave Oath in both hands, and his eyes bulged with sudden terror.
“No! You said you wouldn’t use it if I—please!”
“I know what I said,” I hissed, “but sometimes, rarely, a lie is justified. When the call
