Chapter Three
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AS LITTLE AS DIMRI liked Berith’s plan, he and Roque were stuck together. That meant they needed to plan their next move.
Which was why Roque was currently in Dimri’s office, sitting in front of him on the other side of the desk. He was looking around as if he expected the place to still be a mess after what he’d walked in on a few days ago, but Dimri had taken care of everything.
Including the mole in his network.
It hadn’t been that hard to pinpoint who it was after he’d found out about it.
He knew the people he worked with. He knew all the ways they were vulnerable.
As much as he hated all of this because he’d trusted her, she was now sitting in a cell under the palace while Berith decided what to do with her.
“I thought we were supposed to work together,” Roque grumbled.
“You’re here. Isn’t that enough for you?”
“You found your mole without me.”
“What did you want me to do? Not to do anything because you wanted to be there? The last time I didn’t act fast enough, you got in my face.”
“I didn’t say you shouldn’t have told Berith about the mole, just that I should’ve been there, too, since we’re working together.”
“Well, you’re here now, and if it’s not enough, you can tell Berith that.”
Roque crossed his arms over his chest and glared. Dimri suspected there would be a lot of glaring in the next few days, and he wasn’t looking forward to it. Unfortunately, they were stuck together.
“I’m sure you’ve already looked into who the spy in the palace might be,” Roque said.
“Haven’t you?”
“I tried, but my main job is still to protect Berith and his family, and I don’t have a network of spies like you do.”
He wasn’t wrong. It was the only reason Dimri didn’t push.
“I have several names,” he said. “And places. We know it’s someone close to Berith since they managed to get Ramiel’s people into the family wing of the palace.
That means our list isn’t as long as it could be, but it’s still too long.
I’ve assigned people I trust to all our suspects. ”
“What are we going to do, though?”
“I kept the most likely suspect for us. He likes to frequent a tavern, and we both know that alcohol loosens the tongue. I’ve been planning how we can use that to our advantage.
We’ll have to find a way to get into the tavern, which won’t be easy since it’s owned by someone who loudly opposes Berith.
We can work around that, though. There are always ways to get answers. ”
“Why don’t we just go out there and talk to these people?” Roque offered.
Dimri blinked. “You can’t be serious.”
“Why not? It sounds easier than whatever you’re planning. I bet we were going to sneak into the tavern from the roof or something.”
There had been rope involved in Dimri’s plan, but he didn’t want to give Roque the satisfaction. “What are you talking about?”
“We go there, talk to the owner, and see what they have to say, and decide where to go from there. Even if the owner doesn’t like Berith, they might still tell us something we can use.”
“You do realize that going out there and asking questions will expose us, right? The spy will know we’re after them.”
“So? I’m sure they already know that. Anyone with a bit of sense and intelligence would know that.”
“We can still surprise the spy.”
“Or we could make this easier on us and just ask questions.”
“These people aren’t going to answer our questions, Roque,” Dimri snapped. He already had enough of this man, and they hadn’t even started working together yet. How could Roque not see that Dimri was right? How could he not understand?
“People often reveal things they don’t mean to reveal in casual conversations.”
“This wouldn’t be a casual conversation. As soon as the tavern owner realizes who you are, she’ll shut down and kick us out. We can’t afford for her to know that we’re there. We need to confirm who the spy is and arrest them.”
“We can do that by talking to people. Again, I’m not saying they’re going to tell me everything that’s on their mind, but even the way they’ll react to my questions will tell me a lot.”
Dimri threw his hands in the air. “Yeah? And what does the way I react to you tell you?”
“That you’re annoyed and can’t accept that someone might do some things better than you can.”
“That isn’t what this is about. I don’t care if you want to talk to half the palace. We can’t afford to send the spy running, though. We need them to tell us what they know about Ramiel and the kind of spy network he has. We have to be covert and careful.”
“So far, being covert and careful hasn’t helped you. We’re supposed to work together. That doesn’t mean you give the orders while I follow them.”
“I can’t even get you to think about my suggestion, how am I supposed to force you to obey my orders?”
“You can try.”
Dimri wanted to. He also wanted to call Berith to tell him this wasn’t working, but he couldn’t afford to do that. Berith had given his orders. He expected Dimri and Roque to follow them. He expected them to put aside their bickering and do what was right. Dimri was willing to try.
He wasn’t sure that Roque was.
* * * *
DIMRI WAS INFURIATING. It was the only word Roque could think of to describe the other demon.
Why was he making this more complicated than it should be?
Roque always had good results when he dealt with things head-on.
He didn’t see a good reason not to do the same in this situation.
The spy had to know they were coming after them, so they’d be careful, but that didn’t mean that the people around them would be.
They might reveal something that could be useful.
Dimri pinched the bridge of his nose. “Look, bickering isn’t going to help. Berith told us to work together, and that’s what we’ll do.”
“I’m fine with that, but you don’t seem to be. You dismissed my idea right off the bat.”
“Because it’s a stupid idea. You can’t go to the tavern and expect people to talk to you. I just told you that it’s owned by someone who’s been vocal against Berith.”
“Did you expect me to tell them who I am? Because that’s not what I was planning to do.” Roque wasn’t that stupid, no matter what Dimri thought.
“People know you, though.”
Roque blinked. “What are you talking about?”
“Do you really think that people don’t know you’re the prince’s bodyguard?”
“I don’t see why they should. It doesn’t make me famous.”
Dimri snorted. “Please. Most people already knew about you before, but since your friend has started dating Lucifer, it’s become worse. People know who both you and Yakim are, so you can’t just go in there and ask questions.”
That wasn’t something Roque had thought of. He hadn’t expected people to know who he was. He was just a bodyguard. Yes, he was important in his own way, but that was only because he protected Berith. That didn’t mean he was interesting or that people would recognize him.
“Fine,” he bit out. “I won’t go there to talk to the owner. I also don’t want to waste too much time planning this, though. I’m sure that if it was up to you, we’d still be here in a week, trying to come up with plans B and C.”
“Being prepared is always a good thing.”
Dimri sounded offended. Roque didn’t care. They couldn’t afford for Dimri to waste time. “Your plan doesn’t have to be perfect. We can improvise.”
“Improvising causes death.”
“That’s an exaggeration.”
“Is it?”
They stared at each other for a moment. Roque wanted to scream as much as he wanted to grab Dimri and drag him into his arms. He was pretty sure that Dimri would punch him if he tried, but he still seriously thought about it for a minute.
“Fine,” Dimri said. “What did you have in mind?”
“I want to see this place.” Roque got to his feet. “Are you coming?”
Dimri looked confused, but Roque didn’t linger. He strode to the door, hoping the spymaster would follow him. If he didn’t, well, he hoped he wouldn’t have to explain that to Berith.
“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” Dimri asked after following Roque out the door.
“I just want to see what we’re talking about. We can’t plan for anything if we don’t know the layout of the place.”
“We don’t need to go there to know the layout of the place. We have maps and blueprints.”
“Not good enough.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Seeing the place with our own two eyes will help us plan better. I can guarantee you that.”
“It’s like you have no idea what you’re doing.”
“Maybe I don’t, maybe I do. The only thing I know for sure is that I’m a good bodyguard, so maybe you should give me a chance.” Roque wasn’t sure that Dimri was willing to do that, but the spymaster didn’t argue when they left the palace.
Seeing the city with burned buildings and closed shops was painful.
People were cleaning up, but there hadn’t been any time to rebuild yet.
Everyone hoped there would be, but that would depend on how the fight with Ramiel went.
Keeping Berith safe meant keeping his territory safe, and that was what Roque was planning on doing.
“The tavern is owned by Medea,” Dimri said as he kept up with Roque. “She’s always been vocal that she doesn’t like Berith.”
“What’s there not to like? He keeps his people safe and ensures that everyone has food and a roof over their head.”
“She believes it’s overreach. People should take care of themselves and their family, not the prince.”
“Why does she care? It’s not like he’s asking her to pay for this stuff.”
“I’m just telling you what I know. I never said I agree with her stance or that I understand it.”
Roque was annoyed. He didn’t care if people didn’t like Berith, but it didn’t make sense.
Maybe it wasn’t supposed to. Some people had a way to twist their thoughts until they could justify the worst things, and demons could be especially cruel. Whatever Medea had against Berith, Roque didn’t care. He needed answers, and he’d get them, one way or another.