“What if I tell you to stop looking?”
Jen laughed.
“That’s what I figured. Try to keep the breakage to a minimum. We’ll clean up here and notify the surviving family.”
She stopped halfway down the stairs. “There are more of them?”
“A daughter. She married into another merchant house. I can’t recall which.”
“Sounds like a good suspect. I assume she stands to inherit all this.”
“Probably. You want to come along when I talk to her?”
Jen frowned. She needed to track down Master Shen and have him look at those gauntlets. Much as she wanted to hear what the daughter had to say, the sorcerer came first. “I’ll leave her to you. What do you say we meet up tomorrow morning and compare notes?”
“My office?”
“Fine. Do you still not get started until midday?”
“Funny. See you tomorrow.”
They left the watch to deal with the villa and headed north to catch up with Talon. They found him leaning against the wall of a general store, the gauntlets tucked under his arm. “What took you so long?” Talon asked.
“We went to talk to Mrs. Santen and found her head, but no body. Tosh is going to talk to the daughter. We need to get to The Mermaid and find out what in the world is going on with Master Shen.”
“What about Mikhail?” Talon asked.
Jen grimaced. They’d left the imposter with Tosh. She doubted they’d drag anything more out of him. “He was a dupe. A disposable tool the girl probably meant to have die in the attack along with the rest of them. The real one’s still in the wind along with his father.”
“What?” Talon stared at each of them in turn.
“I’ll explain on the way.”
They walked out of the alley and headed toward The Mermaid. When they left the Lord’s District behind the streets grew crowded. People hurried along the sidewalks, running errands. All of them made way for Jen and her squad, many throwing sidelong glances at their weapons.
The shouts of vendors filled the air. It seemed like the city came alive around them. It gave Jen a moment’s pause, being surrounded by so much life only minutes after leaving a house full of bodies. Life went on and a house full of dead merchants and thugs wouldn’t slow it down.
The Mermaid lay in the Shipping District abutting the docks. The tang of salt grew stronger the closer they got to the water. The acrid hint of smoke mixed with the normal ocean smells. Jen looked up. Black smoke billowed in the distance. “You’ve got to be kidding.”
“What?” Edward asked.
“I think The Mermaid’s on fire.”
Chapter 14
It took less than a minute to reach The Mermaid at warlord speed. Black smoke billowed out of the roof and flames shot from broken windows on the third floor. All around the burning building locals were gathering. People came running up the street with buckets. They’d have a bucket brigade going soon. The fire hadn’t spread too far yet. They might save some of the building. More likely they’d just try to keep it from spreading to the neighboring businesses.
Jen took a moment to orient herself. Unless she was badly mistaken the flames came from the capital suite. What were the odds of someone attacking the secret crown listening post and Jen’s squad on the same morning?
“Talon, Rhys, fan out and look for the servant girl. Alec and Edward, with me.” She accelerated to the burning inn, her subordinates right behind her.
They rushed past the gaping crowds so fast she doubted they even registered their presence. A quick glance showed the common room was empty, all patrons having sense enough to flee. Jen heightened her hearing, but the only sounds were shouting outside and the crackle of flame above them.
She pointed toward the kitchen and Alec raced to check it out. She and Edward sprinted up the steps. At the second-floor landing she pointed again, leaving Edward to clear the floor. Jen continued up to the third floor and down the hall to the crown suite.
Smoke filled the hall and the heat resembled an over-fired oven. She strengthened her lungs and ran on.
The door to the suite was smashed. Judging by the damage someone had broken it in. Flames filled the doorway.
Jen crouched down, trying to see into the suite. Even with enhanced vision the smoke and flames obscured too much. She needed to make sure.
She drew power and slammed her palms together. The blast of wind blew the flames back from the doorway for an instant and she ducked through the gap.
Flames seared her skin, forcing her to put more power into her defenses or get roasted. Even strengthened by soul force she needed to hurry. The common room held nothing valuable, just burning furniture. The first bedroom was empty and she began to fear she’d wasted her time.
Jen kicked down the door to the last bedroom. A woman lay on the floor, her skin blistered and her clothes reduced to charred scraps.
She scooped the woman up and fled the burning room as fast as her soul-force-enhanced legs would carry her. She reached the second floor a moment later. Away from the flames, Jen sent healing energy to soothe her seared skin. Edward joined her a moment later. He took one look and left again.
He returned a second later with a pink fur-lined robe which he slung around her shoulders. Apparently her clothes hadn’t stood up to the flames as well as her skin. “Thanks. Take her.”
Jen passed the unconscious woman to Edward and adjusted the robe so it covered her better. Pity he couldn’t have found anything a little less garish.
“She’s alive,” Edward said.
“Let’s collect the others and get out of here.”
Ten minutes later found them in Jen’s room at their inn. They’d collected a fair share of stares when they rushed through the common room. Despite the guys’ best efforts you could only do so much to hide one burned woman and another in a pink robe. Rhys
