in illustration.
His face became rigid with a fake smile. “Ya called it earlier, when ya said I was sent on a suicide mission. If by some miracle, I succeeded, they would have forgiven me and kept me in the guild. But I didn’t, so I’m outcast from them. Since they were the ones cutting ties, they won’t care what I do.”
She glanced at Wolf, who knew the inner workings of a dark guild better than she, silently asking if that were truly the case. Wolf held a bleak expression and he nodded ever so slightly in confirmation.
Why? Questions swirled around in her head without answer and she turned her eyes back to Rune, unsure if she could give voice to any of them.
Rune took a step closer to her, closing the gap, which put Tran and Wolf distinctly on edge. Only then did she realize he was exactly her height, as their eyes were on the same level. “Ya want ta know,” he said quietly, voice unusually gravelly. “If I knew it was suicide, why go? Yer big wolf here doesn’t ask, cause he knows. Ya don’t switch guilds in a city. No dark guild will trust ya if ya leave one ta go ta another, and the other guilds will just as soon throw ya in a cell as look at ya. I couldn’t leave here—I didn’t have the supplies ta travel. I’d be dead if I took ta the road. Odds were, I’d die tryi’n ta kill the old man, too, but at least the odds were better taki’n the job.” That humorless smile darted over his face again. “So ya see, I had nothi’n to bargain with. Ya got rooked, Guildmaster.”
She met that smile without flinching. “I bargained for an expert on Sateren. Did you lie to me about that?”
His brows compressed briefly in a small frown. “No.”
“Then I’m satisfied.” Judging from the way his mouth soundlessly moved, he had no idea what to think about that, much less how to respond. Taking pity on him, she clapped a hand to his shoulder. It felt like she grasped a warm wooden post. Was he nothing but bone and muscle? “We’ll talk about how to contact someone from your old guild in a bit. First, introductions. This is Markl, Conli, Denney, Sylvie, Wolf, Tran, Beirly and Fei. The dogs are Pyper and Pete. Everyone, this is Rune. He’ll be with us until we return through Island Pass.”
There were some nods and greetings around the group, all of them said warily. Rune greeted them back cheerfully, enjoying their awkwardness.
Siobhan let out a sigh and hoped the mood would pass as everyone got used to him. “Rune, ground rules are these—treat everyone with respect, the women especially. If we ask you for an escort, do so. If something’s broken, go to Beirly. If there’s danger, Wolf, Tran or Fei needs to be told first. They’re my enforcers. If it’s trade-related, talk to Sylvie. If it’s medical, talk to Conli. Got all that?”
Rune had that odd look on his face again, as if he couldn’t understand what she was doing or why she was doing it. But he responded, “Yes, Guildmaster.”
“If it doesn’t fit any of the above, you’re always welcome to talk to me,” she assured him, hoping he would do so. She needed him to trust her, otherwise this dangerous situation would get a lot worse. “For now, Conli, take a look at him. I’ll get some food while you do that.”
“Sure thing.” Conli replied. His eyes were already scanning Rune and he frowned as he noted the same problems Siobhan had spotted earlier. “This might take more than a few minutes. Rune, those manacles roughed up your skin quite a bit. It looks like more than bruising to me.” Silently urging the boy back inside, she could hear him asking questions as they went to where his impromptu medical center had been set up. “Are you hurt anywhere else? Hmmm? Oh, no, I probably won’t need you to swallow anything.”
Siobhan tuned it out and went to the next thing. “Sylvie, can you buy some food for us, enough to last us another two weeks or so? Lirah said it would take at least that long for people to be recovered enough to move.”
Sylvie gave her a silent salute before moving off the porch.
Almost belatedly, she told Markl, “Help her. I’m sure it’ll be too much for one to carry.”
“Of course.” He readily fell into Sylvie’s wake.
That started, she