Torrent of Tears (Scourge Survivor Series Book 3)(23)
Standing with my hands on my hips I took stock of our surroundings. I recognized the fountain from the night before and strode closer to the bronze statue of the Fates. Last night was a blur, but I distinctly remembered stumbling past that fountain on the way to the royal carriage. I oriented myself, glancing from the dock where Estes had met us with the launch and tracing my path back along the row of neo-classical townhouses on my left.
For the briefest moment, I wondered which one Rowan had taken me to. Was it his? No. He’d said that it was one of the Queen’s townhouses, he just had a key.
“Terran? Why does the Queen have townhouses? The palace is big enough to house half the city. Who uses them?”
Terran’s gaze roamed down the long line of crisp architecture set against the blue sky. “Military Commanders, breeders, some of the sons of the noble houses—citizens who are important to the Queen—”
“Whoa,” I raised my hand and Terran stopped mid-sentence. “Breeders? Did my father live in one of these? Do you know where Balor lived?”
“Not which one, exactly, but the breeder’s homes are farther down. The Queen saves the view of the fountain and waterway for her more important guests. Breeders are across from the market shops.”
At my insistence, Terran led me further down the row and around the bend. He was right, the farther we walked from the fountain, the dirtier and more crowded the streets became. This retail sector certainly wasn’t like the market square where Freya had taken me shopping, and it was a far cry from the scenic view of the waterway and the fountain back in the courtyard.
“If I had to guess, I’d say Breeder Balor lived in that house there.”
I followed Terran’s pointed finger to a postage-stamp yard and the plain row house beyond. The front door was open and four duty soldiers slugged large totes out of the gated yard. One by one, they carried their loads out into the street and loaded them on a hovering wagon. When they set the trunks on the platform, the cart adjusted to the load and leveled out.
“She’s seizing his belongings.”
Terran scrubbed his palm over his mouth and nodded. “It would seem so.”
I closed the short distance as quickly as I could. If they took everything, I might never know who my birth father was. Could the Fates be so vicious as to let me find him just to strip every ounce of hope away from me? Yes. Yes, they could.
“Get it all. Got it?” a familiar voice barked from inside, “Every trace of the traitor is to be wiped from the city.”
Joy, twice in one day. Lucky me.
Constable Tasso darkened the doorway. Something about the way he stared at me made my skin crawl. “We meet again. Princess. Grace, wasn’t it?”
The way he smiled at me, I’d lay money that he had a voodoo doll of me tucked away somewhere with pins sticking out of my eyes and a tuft of stuffing bursting from the slice across my throat.
“Why are you doing here?” I wanted to sound tight when I spoke, but emotion leaked out and my voice shook with fury. If they had their way, I’d have no chance to look through my father’s things. “Master Constable Estes ordered you—”
“Estes does not outrank the Queen,” he snapped. “Official palace business, this.”
“Packing the things of a dead man. Super impressive.”
Tasso’s eyes narrowed. “The Queen herself called upon me to—”
I raised my hand and watched another soldier pass with a full armload. “The Queen, herself, eh? Well, good for you. You can climb up my mother’s asshole if you wish but I have no interest in following you.”
Constable Tasso lunged across the little yard and was in my face before I blinked. The rank stench of stale garlic washed warm over my face and my fingers inched the fabric of my skirt up my calf. He obviously thought his size was of benefit to him, but with my agility, I could palm and plunge my knife faster than this asshole could cry for help.
Come on douchebag. Make your move.
As far up in my grille as Tasso was, I heard the gentle vibration as something in his breast pocket buzzed. With a glare at me, he retrieved a small electronic tablet, flipped up the cover and stared at the little screen. His face softened, displaying the smug look of a spoiled child with a secret. Tasso clicked his communicator shut and signaled for the men to finish up.
“Off to lick my mother’s boots?”
“Actually, I am called to serve the Queen. This errand is not an obligation of duty, though. This I will do simply for the personal satisfaction of watching the aftermath.” Tasso’s lips twisted in a smile as his gaze danced over me. Before I could figure out what he was up to, his men finished loading the last of my father’s belongings and off they strode, my father’s life boxed and forgotten.
“That guy is bad news, Terran. I’ve known a lot of evil in my life and that man is dangerously unbalanced.” I drew a deep breath and tried to calm my Spidey-senses.
“I’m not sure what his wreckage is,” Terran said, watching the back of the wagon disappear around the bend.
I had to laugh. “Damage, Terran. You don’t know what his damage is.”
Terran recaptured a wisp of blond bangs that had escaped his queue in our run and resumed the order of his military look. It didn’t suit him nearly as much as the floppy bangs. When he gestured to the door, I followed him up the walk toward the now empty townhouse. “I don’t know what you expect to find now. Duty soldiers are trained to be thorough.”