One Fell Sweep (Innkeeper Chronicles #3)(43)

“Okay.”

“I’ll go get my armor. I want to test the crest anyway.”

She took off, marching toward Arland’s rooms. A moment later I heard her voice. “Lord Marshal? Would you care for an excursion?”

Yes, he would. In fact, I had a feeling he would be thrilled.

*

Ten minutes later, I watched Maud and Arland step through the doorway at the end of the hall into the bright sunshine of the galactic market place. The door sealed shut behind them. Beast whined softly by my feet.

“I know. They will be okay.”

I sighed and took a mental tally of my guests. Helen was in the garage with Wing, the Hiru was in his quarters, the first member of the Archivarius was in his tank, Sean and Caldenia were on the back porch, and Orro, predictably, lingered in the kitchen. Everyone’s accounted for.

What would Caldenia and Sean be talking about? I headed toward the back porch. Beast dashed ahead of me.

Sean sat at the table, an array of parts spread before him on a green tarp. No doubt the parts fit together into some sort of deadly weapon. Caldenia sipped Mello Yello in a rocking chair. Beast wagged her tail at me from her spot on a chair next to Sean.

I turned my back to the trees in case someone decided to read my lips.

“We have the second retrieval,” I said. “At Baha-char. Maud and Arland left to get it.”

“How much time do they have?” Sean asked.

“It’s arriving already in a tank, so plenty of time.”

Sean nodded and went back to tinkering.

“It’s such a lovely day,” Caldenia said. “You should take your niece and your adorable dog for a walk along the force field boundary.”

I looked at her.

“You should also wear some equipment so we can hear any conversations you may have.” Her Grace sipped her drink.

Oh. “Would Kiran Mrak want to talk?”

“He knows nothing about you. You’re a mystery. Trust me, my dear. If he’s any good at what he does, he’ll want to talk. He won’t pass up the opportunity to gather information and take your measure.”

Sean reached into the bag by his feet and pulled out a small plastic box with a clear top and a layer of complex electronics embedded in the white bottom. A flesh-colored patch the size of a penny was inside. I took the box. I could’ve just had my voice resonate at any point from the inn, but he went through the trouble of finding a gadget for me and I would wear it. I pried the box open and swiped the patch with my finger. It immediately mimicked my skin tone, blending so completely, I couldn’t find it by looking alone.

“Where should I put this?”

“By your ear works best,” he said.

I touched the patch to the spot just under my right ear. It stuck. Pale green light pulsed through the box.

“Give him as little information as possible,” Caldenia said. “Don’t be obvious in your questions or he’ll stop talking. But do push him, dear. If you feel any splashes of emotion from him, use it and test it to see if you can get a reaction.”

“Come on, Beast!” I said in stereo, one sound coming from my mouth and the other from the box.

The Shih-Tzu jumped off the chair and she and I started toward the edge of the void field.

I strolled along the boundary. Beast trailed me, stopping to sniff at random clumps of grass and fascinating sticks.

I picked one up and threw it for her. She dashed after it, a black and white blur. I looked up and saw Kiran Mrak. He stood less than a foot away, wrapped in a cloak that perfectly mimicked the shrubs around him. The void field interrupted projectiles, but it permitted sound and light. I didn’t hear him. If I had been off my land, he would’ve killed me and I would’ve died never knowing what happened.

He stared at me, his turquoise eyes exquisitely beautiful. I took a step. He took one with me, perfectly mirroring my movements, as if he were a magic reflection, except he moved with the kind of grace I could never accomplish. I still couldn’t hear him.

We walked along the boundary of the void force field.

There was a beauty about the Draziri, an elegance and otherworldly air. When you looked at one, it was like meeting a mystic creature from some legend.

Beast brought the stick back, saw the Draziri, but she couldn’t smell him and I didn’t seem alarmed. I threw the stick again and she bounced off.

“Shi-Tzu-Chi,” Kiran said in his low melodious voice. “Adorable and created to kill.”

“Sometimes things are not as they appear.”

“So I’ve come to realize.” He drew back his hood and tossed his cloak over his shoulder. Underneath he wore a soft gray tunic, bordered with black. A sword rested on his waist. His long white hair spilled down in a perfectly straight waterfall. The lines of his caste shone with silver on his forehead.

“A small woman in an old house on a backwater planet possessing power beyond imagination. It has an almost legendary air. A holy quest from prehistory.”

“Except holy quests usually have a worthy goal and a hero. You’re trying to kill a being that caused you no harm.”

“He’s an abomination,” Kiran said. “He must die.”

“Explain something to me,” I said. “You kill for money.”

“Yes.”

“You also kill for pride and for the challenge of it.”