The Burning White (Lightbringer #5) - Brent Weeks Page 0,201

then shook his head and sighed. Teia could tell he was walking back to his mistress’s safe house to clean it up.

She didn’t follow. She’d hoped that he would take her directly back to his mistress’s estate, but it looked like she wasn’t that lucky. Whoever the noblewoman was, she was too lazy to clean her own safe house, but she wasn’t completely stupid. Her slave had his own hovel.

The Order really did do a good job enforcing all the disciplines of secrecy.

Quickly, Teia ransacked the slave’s belongings. There were several tunics, with old bloodstains on the backs from whippings. Last, there was an overjacket with a family insignia on it.

Teia had been unlucky that it had taken her so long to find a time when she could get Halfcock alone and isolated. She’d been unlucky that the noblewoman hadn’t been at her safe house, and that the slave had never said her name. She’d been unlucky that this slave was new and so Teia didn’t recognize him and therefore his owner right away.

But finally. Finally luck turned its golden face full upon her.

For the first time in weeks, Teia smiled. Wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles, it seemed Orholam had as black a sense of humor as any soldier: according to this livery, the slave Micael belonged to Aglaia Crassos. Teia’s very own former owner, that utter abomination, had joined the Order.

As Teia walked the streets home, she actually laughed aloud at a thought: Micael had prayed for vengeance on his owner. Teia was going to be an answer to prayer!

Aglaia was in the Order. Sooner or later, Teia was going to get to kill her.

Sooner, Teia thought. Definitely sooner. Just in case.

Chapter 57

Worried they were stepping into a trap—still—the Mighty didn’t let Kip climb the luxin ladder until second to last, but at that point it didn’t matter. He joined them atop the new wall.

The White King was no Gavin Guile. This wall was no Brightwater Wall; it wasn’t luxin but simple wood, more a frontier fortification than a work of art. It wasn’t high, either, less than three paces in most places. But it was vast, encompassing a half circle nearly a league across.

A nearly empty league, now.

“Huh! There’s no one here,” Ferkudi said.

The others looked at him. Big Leo cursed under his breath.

“Can I push him off the wall?” Winsen asked. “Please?”

“He’d probably survive,” Ben-hadad said.

“You’re right, that is a problem,” Winsen said.

“Not the first time he’s been dropped on his head, I’d wager,” Big Leo said.

“Question is,” Tisis said, “if he landed on his head, would that set him right, or make him more Ferkudi?”

Some scowled. Some shuddered.

“Yeah,” Winsen said, “best not to risk it.”

“Ah, come on, Ferk,” Cruxer said, hugging the hurt dope around one boulder-sized shoulder. “You know we love ya.”

It was a beautiful morning, sunny and clear. The forests were a green to make your eyes ache, rolling to the Cerulean Sea which was still and dark as wine from last night’s glass at this early hour.

“But they’re gone,” Ferkudi said, re-restating the obvious. “There’s no boats. Am I the only one surprised by this? Are you telling me we hurried for no reason?”

Ben-hadad was staring through a far-glass. “There are some people still here. Looks like they left most of the camp followers behind. At least, I hope that’s most of them. If Daimhin Web’s telling us the truth, though, that’s only those who haven’t already left.”

“But no army,” Winsen said.

“They’re already gone,” Kip said.

“What’s that mean?” Ferkudi asked.

“It means we have to race them,” Tisis said. “We didn’t make it in time to stop them. We—or our messengers—have to warn the Chromeria.” She glanced at Kip like, ‘Are you sure you want to do this?’

“All of us,” Kip said. “We’ll join the fight.”

Tisis sighed. “I know. Sorry.”

“It’ll be our last stand, won’t it?” Ferkudi asked. He looked at the grim faces around him, then bobbed his big round head. “All right.”

“Something occurred to me,” Cruxer said. “Your half brother.”

“Yeah?” Kip asked. He suspected where this was going.

“He’s a straight-up murderer. No boundaries at all. And he’s the Prism-elect. Prism fully in less than a week.”

“On Sun Day, yep,” Kip said.

“And he’s got the Lightguard, which have already committed atrocities for him.”

Kip nodded, as everyone looked harder at them both. He knew where this was going.

“We’ve got no evidence for what he did here,” Cruxer said. “But he’ll worry we do.”

“Uh-huh,” Kip said.

Tisis took his hand and squeezed. “I didn’t say