The Inquisitives [2] Night of Long Shadows (35 page)

Bren sighed. “She stole from him, Cutter. He has a lot riding on this deal.”

“I couldn’t care less about any deal!” snapped Cutter. “I want payback.”

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I respect you. I don’t want to go behind your back.”

“You’re asking for my permission.”

“No. I’m doing this with or without your permission. What I’m hoping for is a bit of understanding. If you want to hunt me down after the deed is done, that’s your prerogative. But make no mistake. I’m taking him down, Bren.”

Bren thought about it. It went against every professional ethic he had, but he really did feel for Cutter. He was owed some personal justice. Bren leaned forward.

“How about this?” he said. “I give you one chance. Just one. I’m heading to the Tain manor soon. Have to do something for him. He’ll be leaving for some club to get drunk and cause trouble. His skycoach is on the roof. You do what you need to do. But if you mess up—if you fail—that’s it.”

“Bren, the only way I fail is if I’m dead.”

Bren shook his head. “I can’t believe I’m doing this.”

“Why
are
you doing it?”

Bren thought about it. “Because I liked her. Liked what she did for someone like you. Guess I thought if you could find someone like that, maybe I could as well. She was a good woman.”

Cutter stood up and held out his hand. “If I survive past today, you let me buy you a drink?”

Bren shook his hand. “A drink? With what I’m letting you get away with, you should buy me a whole tavern.”

Cutter nodded.

“Watch your back, Cutter. He’s no pushover. He’s got a few tricks up his sleeve.”

“I will. See you round.”

Bren stared at the empty doorway after Cutter left. After a moment, he shook himself.

“Guess I’ll have that drink by myself.”

C
utter leaned over the low wall and tried to calm his beating heart. The moment was here. He would finally get his revenge on the bastard who took Rowen from him.

The gardens of the Golden Tear rolled gently into the distance and merged invisibly with Cloudpool Park. Lightning stabbed out of the black clouds. A warm wind, rich with the smell of the coming storm, blew against his face, made his eyes water. He blinked and focused on the ground.

Bren was walking along the pathway. He stopped at a carriage with two hippogriffs harnessed to the front. He spoke to the driver, then climbed inside. Where was it he said he was going? Tain Manor? Cutter wondered what he was going there for.

No matter. Bren had said that Tiel would be leaving about the same time he did. That meant the halfling was probably on his way up to the rooftop. Cutter had chosen this place carefully to stage his attack. It was one of the most secluded areas in the park. All the guards were stationed at ground level. Nobody
thought to place them up where the coaches were parked.

Col turned and rested his elbows against the wall. One of the trees that had been planted in a deep well of earth around the rooftop shielded him from the sight of anyone stepping out of the hotel. The rising wind soughed through the branches, rustling the leaves and causing the treetop to sway back and forth.

The door opened. Cutter tensed, ready to move, but it was a dwarf couple walking arm in arm. They climbed inside an expensive skycoach, then it rose gently into the air, turning gracefully and heading in the direction of Cloudpool Park.

Cutter forced himself to relax. Getting tense now would only tire him later, and he’d need all his energy for the fight ahead. He knew Tiel wouldn’t be a pushover. He’d seen what the halfling could do when he got worked up.

The door opened again. Cutter was half expecting more guests, so his mind stalled for a moment before registering that it was Tiel he was looking at.

The halfling walked toward a two-man skycoach parked close to the door.

Cutter pushed himself away from the wall and hurried across the roof, pulling out the Khutai blades. This was it. Rowen would finally get her rest.

He approached the skycoach. Tiel leaned over the side, rummaging around for something. Cutter took a deep breath, let it out slowly, then took another.

He stopped a few feet away.

“You going somewhere?” he asked.

Tiel froze, then looked over his shoulder. He frowned in annoyance. “Khyber’s ghost, don’t you ever
die?”

“Afraid not.”

Tiel rummaged around some more, then straightened up,
turning to face Cutter. He held two short swords in his hands, crossed before him. “Guess I’ll have to take care of you myself.”

“No, see, that’s not how it works. How it works is, I break your legs. Then I make you bleed.”

“Then what?” sneered Tiel. “You make me say sorry for killing your woman?”

“No. Then I watch you die.”

“Fascinating. But that doesn’t work for me. I have things to do.”

“Then you’ll have to cancel your appointments. You’re not going anywhere.”

Tiel sighed. “Much as I enjoy all this manly posturing—and don’t get me wrong, you’re very good at it—can we just skip to the end?”

“Which end is that?”

“The one where I slit your throat the same way I slit Rowen’s.”

Tiel charged, his blades a whirling circle of steel. Cutter moved backward, surprised at the speed of his attack. The points of Tiel’s swords flicked in and out, darting at Cutter like striking snakes. He moved his knives into defensive angles, blocking with the edges along his forearms. But he was pushed back by the sheer ferocity of Tiel’s attack.

It seemed he had underestimated the halfling. His swordplay was as fast as any Cutter had seen.

They moved across the rooftop, Tiel on the attack, Cutter on the defensive. He needed to turn this around. This wasn’t how it was meant to play out.

He let Tiel get closer, then jammed one of his blades down at an angle between the halfling’s arms. It caught the two swords for only an instant, just long enough for him to lean in and hit Tiel in the cheek with the hilt of the other knife. He wanted to
use the blade, but couldn’t turn it around in time.

It did the job, though. It broke Tiel’s attack and sent him staggering to one side. The halfling threw his arm out behind him, pointing it at Cutter to keep him at bay. Cutter kicked it aside and stabbed down with his blade. He was too far back to cause a severe wound, but the point dug into Tiel’s upper arm and opened a deep gash. Tiel turned to face Cutter again, but Cutter was already pressing the attack, using the technique he preferred—coming in low with one hand and high with the other. It left him open to a strike in the stomach, but he considered himself quick enough that the low blade could double as defense.

It also had the advantage of drawing an opponent’s attack to what was considered a vulnerable spot.

Which was exactly what Tiel did. He saw the opening and aimed a thrust at Cutter’s midsection. Cutter let him come, then sliced upward with the low knife. He expected to take Tiel’s hand off, or at the very least slice open his wrist, but he’d played into the halfling’s plan. As he moved the blade upward, Tiel brought his other sword around in a sideways swing that caught Cutter in the thigh. His leather trousers absorbed the brunt of the attack. Even so, the sword sliced through and cut deep into his leg.

Cutter staggered back. Tiel had been onto him the whole time. He’d seen what Cutter planned and had been thinking two steps ahead.

Tiel grinned at him. “You didn’t think I was much of a swordsman, did you? Just because you’ve never seen me wield one doesn’t mean I’m no good.”

The halfling lunged forward and released a flurry of swings. Cutter blocked them all, the clash of metal on metal loud in his ears. He acted on instinct now. He couldn’t even see all the moves Tiel was making.

“See,” said Tiel, stepping back. “You’ve made the mistake many people make when they meet me. They think I’m bad-tempered, rash, quick to anger. And that’s all true. But I also know when to bide my time. I mean, do you have any idea how long it took for Rowen to die? And she
still
didn’t tell me where the shard was.”

Cutter screamed in anger and ran forward. Tiel’s face showed an instant of surprise, then short sword slammed against knife, raining sparks around them with the ferocity of the impacts. They shuffled around the rooftop, sometimes defending, sometimes attacking. Each had scores of cuts and slashes over their arms and chest, but neither could press the attack long enough to land a fatal blow.

Sweat poured into Cutter’s eyes, into his wounds. The pain screamed at him, slicing his mind with the sting, trying to distract him from the fight. The only consolation was that Tiel seemed to be suffering just as much. Sweat poured down the halfling’s face, and blood from a wound above his eyebrow trickled around his eye. Cutter kept a close watch on it, hoping the blood would drip into Tiel’s eye and give the instant of advantage the human so desperately needed.

Cutter felt something bump against his back and realized Tiel had maneuvered him against one of the trees along the wall. The trunk pressed into his spine, limiting his swing.

Tiel suddenly switched tactics, flipping both swords in his grip and swinging them around in a sideways arc. Cutter ducked as the blades cut into the trunk. He lunged forward and slammed into Tiel. They both tumbled over, Tiel’s blades left quivering in the tree.

Cutter landed on top of Tiel, his arms trapped under the halfling’s body. Tiel punched furiously at Cutter’s face. Cutter jerked a hand out from under the halfling and raised his arm to
ward off the blows. They kept coming, Tiel trying his hardest to incapacitate him. Cutter dropped his guard so he could land his own blows. He felt his fist connect with Tiel’s nose, heard the crack of bone breaking. He thought he was gaining the advantage, then Tiel landed a fist straight into his throat. Cutter arched up, his hands instinctively moving up to prevent another punch, and Tiel smacked him in the stomach. Cutter’s breath burst from his lungs and Tiel shoved him away.

Cutter landed on his back, but rolled immediately to the side. Tiel’s heel slammed into the spot where his head had been. Cutter kept rolling, trying to keep out of Tiel’s way while he fought to get his breath back.

Tiel gave him no respite. He ran after him, kicking out as Cutter tried to stay out of his way. Cutter couldn’t move fast enough and the halfling connected with his ribs.

Cutter decided to try the trick he’d used on Jana. He grabbed hold of Tiel’s foot as it came flying at his head and wrenched it to the side. To his surprise, Tiel didn’t react as Jana had. He heard the ankle pop and Tiel screamed in pain. Cutter kept hold of the ankle as he tried to get to his feet, but Tiel was hopping backward, trying to pull his foot away. Cutter knew he wouldn’t be able to hold onto it, so he yanked upward with all his might, watching as Tiel flew through the air and landed on the ground, groaning at the pain.

Cutter staggered to his feet and stumbled over to pick up his blades. He took a deep breath and turned around—

To find Tiel standing up, pulling off his gloves. He threw them aside and raised his hands in the air.

Cutter initially thought he was going to beg for his life.

Then he noticed that Tiel’s hands had started to glow. A faint orange haze surrounded them. As he watched, tiny flames flickered over his skin.

The halfling advanced on Cutter, his hands held out before him. Cutter backed up until he bumped into another tree. He was about to dart around it when Tiel lurched forward and grabbed hold of Cutter’s wrists.

Cutter screamed in pain as heat surged through his arms. He tried to pull away, but Tiel held his wrists in a tight grip. Cutter’s skin blistered, smoke curling upward and attacking his nostrils with the smell of charred flesh. He could see Tiel’s veins through his skin. They looked like tiny rivers of glowing lava.

He dropped the Khutai blades, sagging to his knees as the pain increased, his entire arms feeling like he had thrust them into red-hot coals. Still, the halfling didn’t let go. Tiel grinned. “Didn’t know I could do that, did you? I could say something about having a fiery temper, but that would be too obvious, and I do so hate being obvious.”

He released Cutter’s wrists and made a grab for his throat. Cutter saw him coming and dodged to the side. Tiel lunged and grabbed hold of the tree by mistake. His hands were glowing white hot. The tree trunk burst into flame, the fire crackling up to the lower branches.

Cutter pushed himself to his feet and staggered away. The halfling stared up at the tree, keeping his hands on the trunk as the foliage caught fire. The humid breeze fanned the flames. They rose higher and spread to another tree.

“See that? That’s what I’m going to do to you.” Tiel turned to look for him, saw him trying to get away. “Where are you going?” asked the halfling, releasing the tree and limping after him.

There was nowhere for Cutter to go. He stopped and faced Tiel. His skin was raw and bleeding, thin layers of flesh hanging from his wrists. He could see bone through the blackened skin. He couldn’t move his fingers. The pain was excruciating,
a pulsing, throbbing bloom of torment. He staggered, almost passing out. He managed to keep himself awake, but fell to his knees. Tiel grinned as he approached.