A Country Falls (Greatest Thief 3) - Chapter 18: Chapter 18

Just as Evrik had once guessed, most of the soldiers who had been left behind to guard East Draulin were Native Zians. The downside was that Deoran spies, when dressed up in armour, looked exactly like Native Zian soldiers.
Kassia had a group of them stashed around a corner of the hallway. She gave them instructions in brisk Deoran, and handed Castin off to one of them. Then she accepted a white cloth from one of them and wiped at Mayah's bloody nose.
"We're going to walk down to the port," she told us, her tone as light and friendly as if she was talking about a casual stroll. "If any of you try to call an alarm, I will kill you before they can kill me. So behave—" she shot me a look, "—Finagale. No tricks. Castin is going to be taken around another way, but we'll meet up again in the port. No need to make a fuss about him. Lady Mayah, you and I are going to walk arm in arm, because we're old friends." Kassia handed off the bloody cloth, ran her hands through her hair quickly, then linked her arm with Mayah's. "Finn, go ahead and trail behind us like a puppy. That's what you're best at."
The jab wasn't very effective, given everything she had just been spouting about how smart and underestimated I was. But my head was still pounding and I knew better than to test her again. She was ready, and I had no doubt that a knife would appear in Mayah's stomach before I could make a single move to escape. I had to bide my time and hope Kassia slipped up later.
A pair of Deorans took Castin in one direction. Kassia led Mayah in another, talking brightly, like nothing was wrong. One of the disguised Deorans walked behind them, looking every bit the attentive Zian soldier on guard duty. The other Deoran kept pace beside me.
Nobody tried to stop us. Mayah was a good actress, even under threat. Whenever an actual guard seemed suspicious, Mayah easily made up some story about her new Navirian friend. It didn't help that none of these guards really knew her. If Tannix had been forced to try this trick on any of his knights, it wouldn't have worked. I found myself trying to come up with some way to subtly warn the guards that something was wrong, but Kassia's warning repeated itself in my head time and time again.
It was even easier once we left the castle. Kassia chose shadowy side streets and deserted courtyards, taking us on a route through the city she had already mapped out. If East Draulin had been back to normal, it might not have been possible. But everywhere we went, there were still ruins and boarded up buildings whose owners had either been killed, or hadn't returned.
At least the fake friendship between the ladies was over. Mayah walked a step behind Kassia, and they were speaking in that fake, icily polite way nobles did when they weren't bothering to hide their anger. I followed, as slowly the pounded in my head faded away and I could start to think clearly.
When Kassia abruptly stopped walking and dragged Mayah into the shadows between two buildings, my mind still wasn't working at full speed. It took me a moment to realize we had reached the port. In front of us, a small ship was crawling with soldiers. Voices carried through the night air. Voices speaking Teltish.
One of the soldiers shoved me into the gap with the ladies and pinned me against the wall. Kassia and her men whispered back and forth in Deoran. After some time, Castin and the two other Deorans appeared in the shadows beside us. Castin was thrown to the ground at my feet. He rolled onto his stomach and pushed himself up onto his knees. It was hard to get a good look at him in the dark, but I thought he seemed all right. All things considered.
"Kassia," I knew speaking up was a risk, but I couldn't help myself. "They've discovered your ship."
"Astute observation, Finagale," she replied. "Are you offering to help? Actually, I have an idea. You're going to steal me a ship."
I almost laughed, but she said it so firmly I knew she wasn't joking. "What?"
"You stole a ship for Tandrix. I know that's how you got him and his men out of Deorun."
"Yes, but last time—"
"No," she interrupted. "No excuses. You're going to find us a ship, and if you don't, I'm going to rip open Castin's scar."
My gaze flickered over him briefly. In Kassia's eyes, he was the most expendable of the three of us. I knew it, Castin knew it, Mayah probably knew it. Still, Castin was staring at Kassia, no hint of fear in his eyes. Seeing that helped me focus, and I finally got my thoughts under control. Fear wasn't useful, so I did my best to ignore it.
"It wasn't an excuse," I said. "Last time I had the knights. I can't steal a ship on my own."
Kassia said something in Deoran, then waved at one of her men. "Sarnio will go with you. If you need more help than that, you'll have to figure something out."
"If I could just take Cast—"
"Absolutely not," Kassia said, and she added something in Deoran.
Sarnio was one of Kassia's slimmer spies, but he was still bigger than me. He grabbed my arm and dragged me out of the alley, only letting go once we were properly in the port. It had taken me a few days to come up with our plan in Deorun, and it wasn't even a complicated one. Kassia couldn't expect me to give her a ship so quickly.
To buy time, I started walking. Sarnio kept close to my heels. The port actually wasn't very busy. Most of the fleet was off delivering supplies or messages to our army, or blocking Deorun's trade with their island. Only a handful of big ships had stayed behind. Everything else was smaller ships and boats, such as fishing boats and privately owned merchants. It would be easier to take one of those.
I passed by a few navy piers and docks, and made my way towards the public ones. "I'm going to need some time," I said, hoping Sarnio would understand me. "I need to watch people and think."
He crossed his arms and shrugged.
Maybe he understood. I watched him warily for a moment, before leaning against the wall of a small shack and turning my attention to the closest set of public docks. There were a few small rowboats and sailboats tied up, none of which caught my interest. The ship I thought Kassia would like was moored at the very end of the dock. It was comparable in size to the one she had arrived in, sitting low in the water with two masts. The twins probably could have told me what exactly it was.
"Finn, that you, mate?"
I flinched, and immediately tried to not act like I was doing anything suspicious. It was usually harder to startle me.
It was the Crelan I had spent time with on the WDN Draulin Guardian. I flashed Sarnio a look and wondered if this might be a chance to get a message out. Sarnio's glare convinced me otherwise.
Kovin misinterpreted whatever he saw on my face. "Oh, it's... ah, Kovin." He gestured at himself.
"I know," I said, trying to sound light. "I just wasn't expecting to see anyone I know. Sorry." I cast Sarnio another look. "What are you doing in East Draulin? Shouldn't you be with the Guardian?"
"Aye, I was." Kovin shrugged, and I noticed for the first time that his right forearm was bound in relatively clean cloth. "Did some damage t' my arm outside o' Hoask. Cap'n Roland sent me back on a messenger ship. Still workin', 'course, but got a lesser load for the time bein'."
"Doesn't look too badly hurt." It took me a moment to get used to the way he spoke again. It wasn't just his accent, but the way he reorganized words in the sentence or skipped them entirely.
"No," he agreed with a nod. "Reckon next time 'm out there, the Cap'n'll take me back 'board the Guardian." He waved his right hand back and forth. "See? Nothin' wrong. Least, nothin' serious."
"Was it serious?"
"Hmm... aye. Reckon so."
Behind me, Sarnio cleared his throat.
"But if it's the worst that happens t' me in this war, can't complain, right?" Kovin continued.
"Right," I agreed distractedly, trying to come up with some way to get rid of him without upsetting Sarnio. "So, do you have somewhere to be?"
"No, mate, 'm on leave," Kovin said. "What're you up to, then? Heard that you've been with Lady East Draulin. Well, not you, specifically. Heard that a Native had been assigned t' her, guess I reckoned it was you. Didn't seem like Lord West Draulin would've wanted you with the army."
"I'm just out for a walk. Lady Mayah is—"
I knew saying her name was a mistake the moment it left my mouth. Sarnio couldn't understand us, but he clearly recognized her name. He stepped forward, a knife already in his hand, and grabbed the front of Kovin's tunic. Caught entirely off guard, Kovin just blinked at the blade.
"Wait!" I yelped. "Nothing happened, it's fine. Sarnio, wait, he's going to help." I didn't think about what I was saying, or whether Sarnio would care. I just couldn't let him kill Kovin. The only thing he had done wrong was walk over and talk to me.
Sarnio hesitated and looked at me. His pause gave me time to collect my panicked words into something that might actually help. "He's a Crelan," I pointed out, hoping Sarnio would be familiar with Crelans and their importance in Zianna's navies. "He's going to help. Help..." Deoran and Navirian were similar languages, and I knew the word for thief in Navirian. So I tried it out. "Help fenn... the ship." I pointed towards the ship I had been considering.
Sarnio grumbled under his breath, but he must have understood, because he let Kovin go.
Kovin didn't move, just kept staring at Sarnio with wide eyes. "Finn... mate. What's happening?" he asked slowly.
"You're going to help me clear some sailors off of a ship, then you can go." I took his arm and tugged him a step back, like the added distance could protect him from Sarnio's knife. "Please, just go along with it."
"Right."
"Come on." I pulled him down the dock. I still didn't have an actual idea, but I wasn't sure how much longer I could stall Sarnio. I sent a quick prayer to Lukk, asking that he help me think of the right words. Then, I stepped onto the gangway of the little ship.
Kovin froze, forcing me to stop as well. Before I could urge him to keep walking, he called out, "Ahoy, Jaunty! Might we come aboard?"
Above us, a sailor peered over the ship's railing. "Aye, granted!" he called, with a wave.
Kovin stepped past me. "Go chargin' onto ships without permission, people are goin' t' know somethin's wrong, mate," he muttered. I risked a glance back at Sarnio before following Kovin up the gangway.
Kovin hopped onto the deck. "Evenin' mate," he said to the man who had waved us up. I stood next to him, unable to think of anything to say. This Crelan sailor culture wasn't something I was familiar with.
"Evenin'," the man replied. "What d'you need, lad?"
Kovin hooked his thumbs into his beltloops, and took a slow moment to glance around the ship. "Pretty little lass you've got here. Cap'n 'round?"
"Talkin' t' him."
"Oh." Kovin gave the man a casual salute. "Apologies. 'm here on behalf o' the lady o' the city." Doubt flashed in the older man's eyes, but Kovin carried on as confidently as before. "This here's my mate, Finn. He's that Native thief everyone's talkin' 'bout. Says the lady's lookin' for a subtle little lass t' take her out t' West Draulin, right? Got some business t'attend to, I reckon. Doesn't want the Deorans knowin' she's out o' the city, though. Your Jaunty here looks good."
The captain crossed his arms, gaze shifting from Kovin to me and back to Kovin. "There some sort o' payment for this?"
"'m just 'posed t' find a likely ship," Kovin replied. "Finn? Reckon the Lady said somethin' 'bout payment?"
"Right, yes." I said, not nearly as smoothly as I should have. Kovin's easy lie had surprised me. I wasn't used to being the person asked to chime in and corroborate a lie, usually I was the one making everything up in the first place. "Of course, there's a reward. There is a bit of a catch, though. Since she doesn't want anyone to know that she's gone, she'd like to just bring her own men."
"Most o' my lads are on leave, anyway," the captain said.
"Isn't that perfect, then?" Kovin picked up the story again. "Your lads'll get a few extra days o' leave, makin' you a right hero in their eyes, aye? Then, a tidy little sum from the lady herself for use o' your ship for a few days. A good deal, that."
"Hmm... it is a good deal. Too good," the captain said. "Why'd she send a servant and a Crelan boy t' set this up?"
"Subtlety, mate," Kovin said.
I could feel the captain's interest waning, so I interrupted. "That's an understandable question, sir. Lady East Draulin sent me to find possible ships, and I asked Kovin for help, seeing as I don't know much about ships. If you're interested in the arrangement, we'll go back to her right now and let her know. Then you can make final arrangements with her."
The captain's bushy eyebrows shot up. "With Lady East Draulin herself?"
"Yes," I said firmly.
"Well. All right," the captain said. "Let her know the Jaunty's all hers."
I heard Kovin thank the captain, but I was already on my way down the gangway. Sarnio fixed me with a stare and kept quiet as I led the way back through the port to where we had left Kassia and the others. Equally quiet, Kovin kept pace with me. Part of me wanted to urge him to run—he could disappear into a crowd of Crelans and I doubted Sarnio would be able to find him. But that depended on Kovin managing to disappear before he was caught, and I wasn't confident that he could.
They were exactly where we had left them. Mayah was standing, her arms crossed, glaring daggers at Kassia. Castin was still on his knees with his wrists bound. Relief flashed across both of their faces as I rounded the corner, followed immediately by confusion when Kovin appeared behind me.
"Wait." I moved in front of Kovin and held up my hands, just as Kassia yanked a knife from her belt. "He's helping. He spoke to a captain and arranged for us to borrow his ship. Mayah just needs to talk to the captain, and we'll have the ship entirely to ourselves. Without hurting anybody or causing any alarms."
Kassia translated for her men, then said in sharp Teltish. "Fine. Lead the way."
Mayah's appearance alone was enough to convince the captain to let her borrow his ship. She smiled and promised him payment upon her return, all while Kassia stood back with one of her knives pressed against the small of my back. The captain cheerfully gave the rest of his crew leave, gathered up some things, and strolled off towards the city.
As soon as he had stepped off of the dock, the act was over. Kassia barked orders at her men, and gestured at Kovin with her knife. "You're going to help."
"I told him he could leave once he helped," I said.
Kassia shrugged carelessly. "I don't care. You'll be easier to manage if I have more people you care about. Sarnio—" she continued in Deoran, and gestured towards me. She cast a quick look over her men, making sure they were all busy, then stepped up to Kovin and whispered something too quiet for me to hear. He nodded, eyes briefly darting towards me. Kassia patted his cheek, then grabbed Mayah's arm and pulled her down the staircase.
Sarnio ambled over to me and Castin. He grabbed my neck in one hand, and Castin's in the other, and dragged us up to one of the masts. With absolutely no regard to our comfort, he pushed us down so we were sitting, and used rough rope to tie our wrists to the mast, stretched above our heads. He kicked me in the side before walking off to help the others, chuckling to himself.
I stifled a groan and drew my legs in to curl up as much as possible. Beside me, Castin crossed his legs and somehow managed to look at ease. At least, his body language looked at ease. His face gave away his real feelings.
"I'm sorry." I muttered into my knees. The pain in my head was getting bad again, and now my hip ached, too.
Castin didn't acknowledge my apology. "Say something encouraging. Tell me you have a plan."
I hesitated too long for my next words to sound sincere. "I'll figure something out."