when there were still formal governments in the world. According to the briefing Rune had given them last night, parts of the city were so old that no one knew who had actually built them. He’d also assured her that there was so much trade and foreign business here that two more foreigners wouldn’t warrant a second glance. Siobhan saw now that he had spoken simple truth. At least a third of the pedestrians on the street were from other continents, and her ears picked up every possible dialect as she passed different groups of people.
The main street connecting to the gate had wall-to-wall people, but Rune didn’t stay on it for long. He quickly switched to a side street that had half the traffic, flashing her a smile over his shoulder as he walked. “Less crowded here.”
“And I’m thankful for it,” she responded with a breath of relief. “At least I can hear myself think now. Will this road take us the right direction?”
“Mostly.”
“It’s another street over,” Fei volunteered from behind her. “We scouted it out yesterday to make sure it was a good place to meet. It’s a small shop, like a miniature tavern, and sits on a corner. It gives us two ways out if we need them.”
Good to know.
Siobhan kept her eyes peeled, but really, the way that the streets crisscrossed each other at random quickly baffled her. Why did she have the feeling that this place was even more confusing than Quigg?
Rune navigated it with ease, taking them to a quaint little shop that seemed to have been there since the city’s founding. It had a fresh coat of paint on it, and someone kept it in good repair, but there was no disguising the age of the building. Siobhan liked the atmosphere of it, though.
They took a seat near the front table, which gave them good line of sight in all directions. Siobhan took a better look around, trying to see more of the place. Fei had described it fairly accurately—it looked exactly like a miniature tavern. It only had eight tables, and one long booth dominating a wall with every possible liquor known to man for sale. Not wanting anyone drunk while trying to meet with a dark guildsman, she ordered salted chips and apple brandy, one of the few non-alcoholic drinks to be had in Wynngaard. Taking their cue from her, everyone else did the same.
“Ya must be the guildmaster.”
Siobhan’s heart tried to leap into her throat. She had a hand on her sword, halfway out of her chair, on sheer instinct.
“Whoa there, didn’t mean ta startle ya.” A man with quite possibly the ugliest face she had ever seen came into view as he stepped more fully into the light. Half his right ear was missing, nose misshapen into a blob, with a lazy right eye. His clothes were in good condition, though. Or at least, she assumed they were. It was hard to tell under all the knives. He had a band of them around his waist, two on each arm, and four strapped to each leg. Even in this cool weather, he didn’t wear more than a leather vest and simple pants tucked into high boots.
Siobhan put her sword back into its sheath before spreading her hand carefully away from the weapon. “Quite alright. I’m Siobhan Maley, Guildmaster of Deepwoods. You are?”
“Knives, Karl of Silent Order.” He gave a brief inclination of the torso to her. “Pleasure. One of these I’ve met before…” he eyed Fei, then Wolf. “But who are ya?”
“He’s Wolf, a guildmember of Deepwoods,” Rune introduced.
“Oh, Bloodless. Almost didn’t recognize you with short hair.” The man smiled, or at least his mouth moved in the semblance of a smile, but there was no emotion reflected in his eyes.
It sent chills going up Siobhan’s spine. Rune had looked at her like that, the first day they’d met. He’d slowly thawed toward her over the past few days and now she could see genuine emotion from him. This man…Knives. He didn’t feel human at all.
Knives gave Wolf a cautious nod before he took a side-step, head slanting as he studied Rune’s shoulder more carefully. The former assassin hadn’t put on a shirt this morning either, content to wear his sleeveless vest. (Perhaps they were just that used to the cold?) Knives jerked a chin to indicate the bandage. “What, ya had the tattoo removed?”
Rune just stared back at him, not saying anything.