Chapter 37 #2
‘No,’ Kyor says bluntly. ‘They say the day that the sound of drums isn’t heard in Galreck is the day the city will fall.’
‘Once,’ Benny says with a grin, ‘some people from Rowell snuck in with one purpose in mind: to silence the drums.’
‘How?’ Caz asks, intrigued.
‘They slit the skins of every drum they found.’
‘Did they manage to silence them?’ I ask, invested.
Benny snorts. ‘Not even close. Every single household has a drum; most have two or even three. The Rowells damaged a few hundred though, which the residents didn’t love.
Turns out the different drums and beats mean all manner of things because they’re not music – they’re commands.
When the Rowell idiots silenced the drums, they made it entirely clear where they were within the city. ’
‘What happened to them?’ Caz asks.
Kyor grins suddenly. ‘I like this part of the story.’
Benny rolls his eyes. ‘Of course you’d like the gory part.’
‘Who doesn’t?’
‘Ignore him. What happened?’ I press.
Benny snickers. ‘The legend goes that they used some special drums, drums that created bone-deep vibrations. The frequency resonated differently with their non-Galreckian bones, and the sound of the drums made them pass out.’ He flashes a quick grin.
‘Total bullshit, of course, or the Galreckians would just take drums up to fight the Issen. But it makes for a good story. And the best part? Supposedly, when the Rowells were unconscious, they were skinned alive, and then their skins were used to fix the drums they’d destroyed. ’
‘Well,’ Caz says faintly, ‘that’s disgusting.’
‘Let’s try not to piss off any Galreckians while we’re here,’ I suggest. ‘And no one touch any drums.’
As we wait for Ruben to return, the talk turns to the most obvious point of conversation: where we’re planning on sleeping tonight.
The thought of a proper bed, after so many nights on the road, makes me grin.
Yesterday’s pallet bed did not count. At all.
‘We should have told Ruben to ask about inns,’ I say.
‘I’m sure he’ll think to ask himself,’ Benny replies. ‘Although you don’t need to worry about me. I’ve got a couple of friends here, so I’ll sort my own lodgings.’
My stomach lurches. Friends? Or rebels? I think of the whispered conversation between Ruben and Benny, talking of meeting the rebel leader, Arle.
If I’d thought of it earlier, when Benny and I were alone, I would have hissed instructions not to be so idiotic as to meet with him, but the moment is gone.
I try to keep my unhappiness off my face. The last thing I need is for Kyor to grow suspicious of Benny.
‘Friends?’ Kyor questions the Eastern Islander.
Benny shrugs. ‘Acquaintances. Should probably show my face, do a little hobnobbing while I’m here. You know what it’s like.’
Kyor’s gaze remains sceptical. ‘I never saw you do much of that in Wrohelm.’
‘I didn’t realise you were watching me. Should I be keeping an eye out for guards following me in the shadows?’
He says it as a joke, but I know he’s disguised a serious question with humour.
Kyor’s jaw clicks. ‘Do whatever you want. It’ll be easier to secure lodgings for a smaller group anyway, and we’ll save money on your room.’
‘Seriously? The silver-spooned prince is worried about coppers?’ Benny teases, but before Kyor can respond, Caz speaks.
‘Talking about not needing a room, I was thinking I’d head to the library tonight,’ she says.
‘Tonight?’ I question. ‘Surely you want some rest? A proper night’s sleep?’
‘I really don’t need that much sleep, and if I’m going to be looking up all sorts of things I shouldn’t, I’m really better off doing it in the evening when there are fewer prying eyes.
Besides, library chairs are comfortable enough for a few hours’ kip if I need it.
I’d rather have longer with the books and maps than waste time on sleep. ’
‘Are you sure?’ I ask dubiously. I like a book, but I like a hot bath and a comfy bed more.
‘Positive.’ She flashes me a smile, but before I can respond, another thought enters my head.
‘So if you two are going elsewhere, then it’s just me, Kyor and …’
‘Ruben,’ Kyor finishes for me, the edges of his mouth turned down.
Benny smirks and makes his damned triangle symbol again.
I shoot him my most withering glare, but it does not wither him at all.
Instead, his smirk widens, unperturbed. ‘Maybe I’ll stick around for a bit to see how this goes. Ah, look. Here’s the big guy now.’
‘Everything all right?’ I ask my friend as he approaches.
Ruben crinkles his nose. ‘No, not really. We’ve got problems.’
Problems – plural? Fantastic.
Ruben continues, ‘That place doesn’t have any horses we can have, and the stable hand said there’s a festival tomorrow night. Most inns are going to be heaving. We’re going to struggle to get a room.’
I look between the others. ‘Caz and Benny have already decided to make their own arrangements.’
‘They have?’ he questions.
‘Library,’ Caz explains.
‘Acquaintance,’ Benny adds.
Ruben’s lips tighten, and I’m sure he’s thinking the same thing I am: that Benny’s acquaintances aren’t standard members of the court. But thankfully, he knows better than to say that.
‘Well, the owner felt bad about not being able to help with the horses, so he’s going to see if he can speak to a few friends of his and see what he can do for us. And in the meantime, he offered me space to kip in the stables,’ he says.
That’s Ruben all over. His goodness shines through so that people can’t help but trip over themselves to help him, because you can instantly tell that he’s the type who’d do the same for you.
‘Okay,’ I say slowly, swallowing. Because if he kips in the stables, that means it’s just Kyor and me …
‘I guess I can sleep in the stables too,’ I say, but I really don’t want to. After a night in a slum lean-to, I’ve been daydreaming of a warm room and a bed. I look at Kyor. ‘You wanted to spend the nights away from the lords and court life. Can’t get much further away than that.’
‘The stables may be a step up for you,’ he says to Ruben, ‘but it’s several steps down for me, and I’m not keen to sleep with the equines.’
If he weren’t so damned injured, I’d hit him.
‘I came from the slums too,’ I snarl.
He blinks. ‘I didn’t mean … you weren’t … you were born and raised in the High Hold.’
‘Until you drop-kicked her out of there,’ Ruben fires back.
Kyor’s eyes narrow.
‘Enough!’ I snap. ‘Focus. We need a place to stay and to gather supplies.’
Kyor sighs but looks at Ruben. ‘These stable rooms, they got a door?’
Ruben frowns. ‘No. They’re just piles of straw, but away from the horses.’
‘Which means other people will be there? Coming and going, I’m guessing. Stable hands. Owners?’
‘I guess so.’
‘Exactly.’ He looks back at me. ‘There’s no way you’re staying somewhere like that. It’s a big enough risk having you in a city again. A private room with a locked door is the minimum requirement. We can’t have you accidentally spraying ice everywhere.’
I want to protest, but before I can, Caz interrupts with a sympathetic glance at me.
‘He’s right, you know. There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to when your magic flares up, and we haven’t had an incident in a couple of days. You might be due one.’
‘I don’t think it works that way; it’s not on a schedule.’
‘No, it seems tied to your emotions,’ Caz agrees. ‘But either way, you’re safest away from other people. There must be an inn somewhere that has a room for you two.’
A room – and definitely two beds, I think to myself.