“She’s still Lisl, somewhere deep down,” I whispered, leaning closer to Rudolph. “See? She recognizes you. She knows you’re Rudolph. So don’t let Zoltan tell you otherwise.”
Rudolph was shaking, anger likely coursing through him like a forest fire. With a trembling hand, I touched his back, and he… stilled. All of a sudden, all the rage flowed out of him, and he relaxed visibly under Zoltan’s surprised yet watchful eye. I was taking a great risk by being so close to Rudolph, but I couldn’t let the Aeternae win.
“Deep breaths,” I said. “Deep breaths. We’ll find a way to help her and the others. I promise you.”
He looked up at me, a pleading look glimmering in his eyes. I could almost hear his words, echoing in my very soul. Please, help them… You have to help them.
As a ghoul, Rudolph was cut off from the other Reapers. But Herbert had been able to communicate telepathically with sentries like Harper and Caspian. Maybe Rudolph was trying to talk to me, in his ghoulish way, because those words I thought I’d just heard were not mine.
“Take it easy,” I murmured. “Don’t force yourself.”
Exhaustion from trying his various abilities could be detrimental to us. As much as I appreciated his attempt to telepathically talk to me, even though I wasn’t a sentry—which just made everything extra weird—it wasn’t necessary at this point, and it was bound to take its toll on him.
“Let’s stick together, Rudolph. Charm these suckers until they give you more freedom,” I said, scowling at Zoltan, who shut the door to Lisl’s cell and walked Rudolph over to the next one, showing him Bert. “Don’t let any of this get to you. Make them all like you. Get close enough, grab a scythe, and I’ll let Seeley loose. We’ll avenge you all, Rudolph. You have my word.”
I kept talking to him, encouraging him as Zoltan went ahead and showed Rudolph the rest of his teammates, each angrier and more out of control than the last. By the end of the tour, Rudolph had retained his calm composure, further impressing the chief councilor.
“Yes, I think I will enjoy working with you, Rudolph,” Zoltan said, then looked at the guards. He must’ve learned their names while forcing them to turn. “Take him to a bigger cell. He’s earned some extra legroom. And see if you’ve got some other dissident to feed our good boy, here. I reward obedience.”
The guards both nodded, approaching us.
“Keep it cool, Rudy,” I said, going for the shorter version of his name. “Take your time. We’ll be free soon enough. For now, however, let them think they have you.”
Rudolph growled a little, but he didn’t object when one of the guards took over his leash. I stayed by his side, while Zoltan went farther down the hall, doing whatever it was he did when he came down here.
We’d gotten over the first threshold. We’d gained a lick of confidence from Zoltan Shatal, and that allowed us to plan our next move. Once the guards got slightly more comfortable around Rudolph, he could pick a scythe off one of them. If he were to get friendly too fast, it would raise red flags. We needed patience for this operation, even though there wasn’t much time left for Seeley.
Once Rudolph was settled in his new, more spacious cell, I left him for a bit so I could update Seeley on everything that had happened. He, too, agreed.
“We’ll get out of this hellhole eventually,” he said.
I sat on the floor in front of him. There was a sense of peace coming off him. No matter what I’d been through since I’d died, I always found a sliver of comfort in his presence. Seeley was likely part of the reason why I’d retained my sanity until now. Maybe there was truth in his words.
Maybe we’d get out of here.
But then what? I wondered. Then what?
Tristan
“How many of you are there?” Valaine asked, relentless in her interrogation.
One of the Red Threads we’d captured back in the southern district of the city had finally come to. Like all the others, he’d been tied to the bed, and nurses made sure he was fed and properly hydrated. His wounds were treated with droplets of Aeternae blood, and he was looking a lot better than the day he’d first arrived in the prison.
Given the low crime rate, most of the cells in the building had been empty, allowing the nurses to bring in beds for the Rimians’ care. Much like the others who’d woken up before him, however, this guy wasn’t willing to talk much.
We’d been in his cell for the better part of an hour, trying to get some answers out of him. But he was determined to keep quiet, even though Valaine clearly terrified him. He jumped whenever she moved around his bed, as if she might poke him full of holes.
She repeated the question. “How many of you are there?”
I, for one, was in awe of Valaine. Usually timid and reserved, she’d unleashed the darker side of herself since the square incident. Even during the first attempt on her life she had not been as fierce as she was now. It probably had something to do with the Red Threads trying to hurt people she cared about, like Kalon, and maybe even Esme, whom I knew Valaine was genuinely fond of.
“I would sooner die than tell you anything, fanger,” the Red Thread replied, without so much as looking at her.
“Don’t say that twice. I might make it happen,” Valaine muttered.
“You will spend the rest of your life in prison, or worse,” I said to the Rimian. He seemed young enough to be worried about the prospect of growing old behind bars. Maybe that thought would persuade him to say something—it hadn’t worked on the others, though. What were the odds it would work on him? “You should do yourself a favor and cut a deal. I’m sure the Aeternae will consider leniency, perhaps a shorter sentence, if you cooperate.”
“Our mission is greater than whatever life I shall lead in prison,” the Rimian replied.
“Ah, what a poet this guy is,” I muttered, somewhat bored of the similar remarks I’d received so far from his colleagues. It was as if they’d all been trained according to the same manual, which included phrases to say in case of capture and interrogation. They were all reciting the same stuff, more or less. And I was losing my patience.
“He’s not going to talk.” Valaine sighed. “Let him meet the gallows, then. The empire does not take kindly to traitors who don’t cooperate.”
She walked out and made her way down the hallway. I followed her, while the guards locked the Rimian’s cell. Valaine was not just more assertive, she was also increasingly angry. At times, it seemed like she had trouble controlling her own reactions, especially where the Red Threads and the Darklings were concerned. I figured her patience was running thin, too, but I had a feeling that there was something else bothering her, somewhere beneath the surface.
“What can I do to help?” I asked as we walked toward the main exit. The double doors were open, held back with heavy brass stoppers. Officers of the law moved in and out, some carrying the occasional disorderly character—usually an Aeternae who’d gotten into a street fight somewhere in the city’s western slums.
The law was particularly harsh on the non-Aeternae, from what I’d learned so far. The Rimians and the Naloreans got longer sentences, even though their lifespans were significantly shorter. The wily Aeternae got slaps on the wrist, for the most part, or a couple of nights in jail. Granted, in some serious cases, they were also stripped of their lands and fortunes.
“I don’t know what more you could do.” Valaine sighed. “You’re already doing so much.”
“Tell me. I want to help.”
“I’m aware.”
She glided down the steps and hurried up the main street. Vision-drawn carriages clicked and clacked along, carrying the elites to their various destinations. The shops were beginning to close for the day, as the evening stretched in dark blue across the city. Shutters rattled as they were pulled shut.
“Valaine, hold on,” I said, catching her wrist. It forced her to stop. When she turned around to face me, I saw tears in her eyes. It tore me apart to see her like this, and I knew it had to do with the Darklings and the attempts on her life. “Talk to me.”
