Chapter 3
“Reuben’s asking for you.”
Already? Only an hour had passed since I’d returned to the Old Keep. Wet strands of silver hair clung to my forehead, still damp from my fleeting visit to the bathing pool before dinner. Usually, I was granted at least an evening to myself before receiving my next orders, but not tonight.
My half-eaten stew remained pleasantly warm, the rich meatiness of the broth making up for the lack of vegetables, or anything else of substance. I’d intended to savour the only meal I hadn’t had to hunt myself all week. Evidently, that was no longer a possibility.
“Sorry, but he said it was urgent.”
Pushing aside my growing irritation, I nodded at Selwyn. He was a young scout, freshly returned from his first mission, his wide eyes watching me warily as if I was a feral animal likely to bite. I was tempted to, with my brief taste of comfort so rudely interrupted, but the scout leader wouldn’t summon me so hastily without good reason.
I had a complicated relationship with Reuben, but he’d always been straightforward with me. When he’d first recruited me nearly a century ago, I’d been a wild thing, lashing out indiscriminately without considering the consequences. He’d shown me a different path, one of patience and restraint, earning my begrudging respect over the years. However, I didn’t need to like him to follow his orders, and Reuben enjoyed testing me. I never knew which side of him I was getting, the wise mentor supporting me in every endeavour, or the unrelenting leader who pushed me to my limits.
I wolfed down the rest of my meal, not wanting the limited rations to go to waste, huddling under my green cloak in search of a sliver of warmth. Even though the dining hall was crowded at this time of day, with little else passing for entertainment in the evenings, it was uncomfortably cold. Three long wooden tables divided the room, each flanked by a wonky bench on either side. Despite the best efforts of the Earth-Blessed steward who’d used his elemental magic to craft them, they were misshapen and sagged in the middle. Those who arrived late to mealtimes were often rewarded with the worst seat, struggling to reach the table from their low position. Luckily, I’d been spared from that fate.
No one looked my way as I exited the room, heading towards the east wing. The crumbling castle that served as headquarters for the Night Ravens, a secret order dedicated to the protection of Idrix, was just about suitable for habitation. Many rooms were exposed to the elements with large portions of the roof missing, others were so damp and rotten that spending any measure of time in them left you unable to breathe properly. The conditions improved every year. Even so, I dreaded returning. The cold, barren halls weren’t the warmest welcome.
I hopped over a heap of rubble blocking the east stairwell, pressing my back against the wall to avoid the most damaged of the stairs. The early years were the worst. Now we had more than one dormitory, no longer required to sleep two to a bed without a scrap of personal space.
The downside of living in a secret fortress was that concealment was prized over comfort. And the Old Keep was all we had, its ancient protections keeping us hidden and safe for generations. There was deep magic in the old stones, at least if you listened to Sal once she’d had too much mead to drink.
I ventured to the upper level, avoiding the cracks in the stone without looking. For decades, I’d walked the path to Reuben’s office for my orders, hoping that it would finally be the day where they meant something.
At first, I was blinded by na?ve optimism, convinced that I would change the world. But the hundreds of scouting missions I’d undertaken since then had given me a strong dose of reality.
There had been the year I’d spent tailing the Lady of Hightower’s suspicious handmaiden, though she was arrested for skimming profits from the crown forge before anyone could act on my intelligence. Then there was the time I’d broken into an academy in the Amber City to retrieve a dusty old book, and who could forget when I’d worked as a serving girl in one of Eirel’s dingy taverns, listening to whispered conversations for confirmation that rumours of the lord’s passing were indeed accurate.
It was far from the life I’d envisioned for myself, but choice was the luxury of the privileged. The rest of us made the best out of the hand we’d been dealt. And things could be far, far worse. With scouting, I had found something that I excelled at, kept a roof over my head and afforded me valuable protection.
I reached the heavy wooden door, one of the few remaining that hadn’t fallen off its rusty hinges, knocking twice.
“Enter,” Reuben said, his voice muffled by the door. It creaked shut behind me as I entered the office.
What remained of the castle’s east wing had been turned into the heart of our scouting operations. Information that needed to be kept on hand was carefully filed away in the maze of interconnected chambers. Reuben’s office itself was a trove of knowledge, the shelves crammed full of scrolls that could only be read with his permission. Flaming torches provided only a dim light, shadows flickering across the room.
Reuben’s long, blond hair was neatly tied up, exposing the thin scar that marred it and the missing tip of his right ear, an eternal reminder of the foolishness of his youth, according to him. He never elaborated on how it had happened and I’d thought better of indulging my curiosity.
His icy gaze was unnerving in the way it assessed me as I approached. He hadn’t visibly aged in the time I’d known him, but the dark creases under his eyes had deepened. Reuben rifled through a pile of parchment on his desk, dust scattering into the air. “Do you remember what I told you the day we met?”
How could I forget? It had felt like a pivotal moment back then.
I didn’t hesitate with my answer, the words still clear after all this time. “You have two choices ahead of you. You can let this world beat you down and yield to it, or you can fight back.”
He gave me the barest hint of a smile in acknowledgement, and I hated the surge of pride it provoked in my chest.
“Precisely. I’m afraid that choice will only grow more difficult.” He examined me. “Anything to report from the Amber City?”
That’s what he’d summoned me for? My confusion at his routine question was only brief before my training kicked in. “The rumours were just that, a merchant looking for easy pickings, nothing more. There was no evidence of the artefacts ever containing magic.”
“As suspected, but we had to do our due diligence.”
“There’s something else.” I hesitated. Admitting weakness in front of him felt like putting my shame on display, but there was no one else who could ease my conscience. No one else who could know the private details of my mission. “I had a run in with a recruit from the thieves’ guild.”
He straightened, scrutinising me with an unreadable look. “I’m assuming by the fact you didn’t lead with that, you emerged unscathed?”
I deposited the pouch on the desk, still full of coins. “It’s one silver lighter, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“What did you do?” Reuben let out an exasperated sigh.
“You should have seen him. He was just a child.”
“How many times have I told you? Do not draw unnecessary attention to yourself. We can’t save everyone.” His voice softened. “It wasn’t your fault.”
My lip quivered before I set my mouth in a firm line. “This isn’t about that.”
“Then don’t let it cloud your judgement.” He pulled a sheet from his stack of parchment, thrusting it at me. I took it wordlessly, scanning it for my next orders.
“We’ve known each other for many years now. I know you’ve grown frustrated with your missions of late.” I opened my mouth to interject, but he held up a finger to silence me.
“Don’t waste time attempting to deny it. That isn’t why I asked for you tonight.” He stood, circling the desk with slow, deliberate movements, keeping his head fixed in my direction. “Valuable information has come to light, and I need someone like you on it. Someone who can think on their feet. This won’t be straightforward. In truth, I don’t know what you’ll face. But this is what you’ve been waiting for. An opportunity to prove yourself.”
I tried to keep the excitement out of my voice. “What do you need me to do?”
“An old friend from across the Blossom Sea contacted me with concerning news. She was brief with the details, but it sounded like it could be a new danger, perhaps related to the curse. I need you to meet the informant and investigate.”
I studied him carefully. Everything Reuben did was calculated, every word precisely chosen. The magical curse was the biggest threat to our survival, the reason the Night Ravens had been formed. I had my own reasons for wanting it broken for good. Reuben was luring me in with something irresistible. The question was, why?
“When do I leave?”
“At first light. You’ll find the informant, a widow, running a bookshop in the village of Valtarra.”
Valtarra. I retrieved my worn map from my pack, studying it. The edges were torn and fragile with frequent use and the ink faded, but it was still readable. I found Valtarra nestled in a group of villages south of the capital.
“I’m trusting you with this. There’s no room for failure.”
I swallowed my unease, grounding myself with a deep breath. “I understand.”
“Report back to me as soon as you return, no detours. I don’t care what I’m doing. This takes priority.” Reuben resumed his position behind the desk. “That’s all. I suggest you have an early night. You’ll need it.”
“That was my plan.”
When I showed no signs of leaving, he looked up from his paperwork. “Speak your mind.”
“You could have assigned this to Norwyn or Calliste.” The experienced scouts were unmatched in their ability to uncover even the most secretive information. “Why me?”
Reuben leant back in his chair, observing me in silent thought, his face bathed in shadow.
“Calliste is on a long-term assignment, and Norwyn failed to return last week.”
“He’s missing?” He’d be the third scout this year who hadn’t returned. While most of our orders bordered on mundane, there was always a risk that a mission could be your final one, but never so many.
“It wouldn’t be the first time Norwyn has deviated from the plan for valid reasons. But I admit, I’m becoming concerned.” Reuben noticed my discomfort. “Do you know why I recruited you?”
“I…” I found myself unable to answer. Back then, I’d assumed he’d pitied me, but I knew better now. Why had he made his offer?
“When I glimpsed you, I thought I was too late. You were sprawled in the long grass, bruised and broken, another victim of this world. But you hadn’t given up. You were close, to be sure, and who could blame you? But you struggled to your feet and faced me, despite how much it pained you. Your persistence has always been an asset. I’m counting on it for this.”
There was a lump in my throat, and I turned away from him to compose myself. “I won’t let you down.”
Not wanting to loiter, I walked towards the door.
“And Willow?”
I halted, the use of my name drawing my full attention. Reuben had resumed flicking through the stack of parchment. “Yes?” I said.
“Remember, no distractions. Come straight back with whatever you find out.”
“Of course.”
With a yawn, I left the office, but there was one last thing I needed to do before I could finally rest for the evening. I had to see a man about some boots.