They were talking again. Haern took step after careful step along the roof, testing each one to make sure it would hold silently. Once he was near, he lay flat on his stomach and put an ear to the edge. If the men had been whispering, he wouldn’t have heard, but their discipline seemed to have vanished with their excitement.
“…abyss are those blasted Hawks?” said the one on the left.
“We’re still early,” said the one on the right.
“Ash ain’t here either,” said the middle, cleaning his fingernails with his dagger. “Wonder if those cowardly skirts will even come.”
“Thren got to James,” said left. “The Ash boys will show.”
“Wouldn’t bother me none if the Hawks stayed roosting overnight,” said right. “All of them fuckers would sooner kill you than rob you. They turned a little turf war into some goddamn bloodbath. No decency among them, none at all.”
“People get that from their leader,” said middle. “Kadish is to blame. Guy likes to eat flesh, people flesh. Everyone knows it.”
Haern scoffed. The three idiots below him certainly didn’t take after their guildleader. A part of him hoped Thren would show up while they still were talking, just to hear their chastisement. A much larger part hoped he’d never see his father again.
“Look, that way,” said right, pointing further down the street. A group of eight men in the dress of the Hawk Guild marched openly in the center of the street. Curved daggers flashed from their belts.
“They out of their mind?” asked left.
“We’ve declared war,” said middle. “Looks like Kadish wants everyone to see it.”
Haern turned his head so he could watch. Kadish led the way, smiling his red smile. The eyepatch hung loose over his face. The Hawks drew their daggers as they neared.
“Where’s the rest of ya?” asked middle, stepping closer. He pointed toward the mansion, of which they were in full view. “And did you think to use a bit of stealth? Any guards in there won’t think much to a couple of cloaks scouting the place, but you’re acting like you’re a damn army.”
“Who says we aren’t?” Kadish asked. “And my men are coming. The question is, where’s the Ash Guild? And what about the rest of the little crawly Spiders?”
A bolt struck the ground by their feet, its tip exploding into a puff of thick gray smoke. Both parties turned to see a single man approaching, his dress that of the Ash Guild.
“About time,” said Kadish. “Where’s your masters?”
The man reloaded his small crossbow but kept it pointed at the ground.
“Waiting for my signal,” the Ash scout explained. “Of course, I never expected so many to gather openly in front of the gates of our target.”
“Give your signal then,” said left. “The sun is almost to the wall. Whatever few guards are left inside have got to be ready for us.”
“I am not to signal until I see someone with authority from the Spider Guild.”
Kadish rolled his eye and swore.
“I’ve got authority, now call for them,” said middle, jamming his thumb against his chest.
“Real authority,” said the scout.
The Spider Guild members sighed.
“It’ll be a moment, then,” said middle. “They’re coming. Spiders crawl all over the place.”
Haern suddenly realized just how vulnerable he was. Stupid! he thought. If he had gotten the idea to spy on them from the rooftop, then surely others would as well. He slid away from the edge, started to roll, and then felt a hand clamp over his mouth. A dagger jammed into his side.
“Don’t scream,” a feminine voice whispered into his ear. Haern looked up to see Kayla smiling down at him.
“Kayla,” Haern said.
“What sheer amount of stupidity brought you here?” she asked. The two met in the center of the roof so that their whispers would not be noticed by the bickering men on the ground.
“I just…I need to do something,” he said. He felt his face blush. “I was going to stop them. I wanted to ruin Thren’s plans.”
Kayla bit her lip and stared. Even with his mask, Haern felt naked. He crossed his arms and looked away.
“I’m to lead this half against the Gemcrofts,” she said. “Senke moves against Connington. There’s hundreds of men on either side, Aaron. You can’t stop this.”
The boy shook his head.
“Not Aaron,” he said. “Not now, not ever again. Aaron’s dead. I’m Haern now, because of the Lion’s roar.”
Kayla shrugged at the cryptic comments.
“So be it, Haern. You want out of this life, then get out. You’re strong. You’re smart. Make a