Epilogue #2
“What about that recent job with the Vantoric traders?” he said, letting admiration leak into his voice. “That was you, too, right?”
When in doubt, stroking Kelsith’s ego seemed a surefire way to keep him talking. Judging by the way Kelsith’s eyes narrowed, however, Cal feared he might’ve overplayed his hand.
“What do you know about that?”
Cal shrugged. “Only what I’ve heard. Word is it was pulled off without a hitch, and with no one the wiser. Is that the same kind of thing that’ll happen with this info?”
Kelsith shrugged, turning away. “Sure. Why not? Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a play to catch.”
He strode toward the door, reaching for the handle.
The Void with this!
Out of ideas, Cal lunged forward and rammed an elbow into Kelsith’s back.
The thief cried out in pained surprise as he toppled forward, smashing against the closed door.
Cal tried to grab the knife from Kelsith’s waist, but Kelsith twisted, raising his arm with the coiled rope.
The animated rope sprang at Cal, attempting to strangle him.
Cal barely got his fingers up in time to protect his neck. Ducking down, he managed to wrench the rope off him and toss it aside before it could get a solid grip. The instant it landed, it began to slither back toward him.
Cal’s eyes flicked from it to Kelsith picking himself up off the door. The furious thief glared daggers at Cal. “You really shouldn’t have done that, friend,” he said, drawing his blade.
Cal crouched, his mind working frantically as Kelsith and the animated rope pinned him in from either side. He hadn’t wanted to risk Kelsith searching him and getting suspicious when he found a weapon, but he was really regretting not bringing one with him now.
He took a deep, steadying breath. Guess that means I’ll just have to make my own.
As he’d expected, Kelsith waited for the rope to strike first, intending to take advantage of the distraction. As the rope lashed at Cal’s leg like a snapping serpent, Cal flared his duskflame to alter his appearance.
The magic didn’t allow him to veer too far from his general height and build, so there was only so much he could do. Still, it was enough for him to thin his leg so that instead of tightening around muscle, the lashing rope was left a loose coil.
As Kelsith moved to follow up, Cal swung the leg with the rope around.
As he’d hoped, the loose rope couldn’t maintain its hold on him.
Gravity did the rest, yanking the rope free and hurling it into Kelsith’s chest. It tangled with his arms, and he shouted in surprise, the precise strike with his dagger turning into a flailing fumble.
Cal used the momentum from his kick to spin forward and around until he’d swung behind Kelsith. Then, he tackled the off-balance thief to the ground, pinning the animated rope beneath him.
Kelsith struggled and flailed, trying to overpower him and rip free. Once, he would’ve managed it. But Cal hadn’t been idle this past year, and he’d picked up a few new tricks working alongside Griff.
More duskflame coated his body as he altered his appearance yet again. This time, he bulked up with as much muscle mass and extra weight as he could manage. Kelsith groaned beneath him as Cal drove him into the stone floor.
Careful to keep the thief pinned, Cal tapped his left thief’s mark tattoo and extracted Griff’s pacifier cuffs. He fastened the master cuff to his own wrist, then slapped the other onto Kelsith’s.
“It’s over, Kelsith.”
Kelsith twisted his head to the side, and Cal took in his stunned expression. “Faces! Is that you?”
“What, surprised to see me? You’re not the only one who can watch from the shadows, friend.”
Before Kelsith could reply, the door to the room slammed open. Griff barreled inside, his revolver out and held at the ready. A squad of protectors poured in behind him.
“About time,” Cal said with a grin.
“Sorry, sorry,” Griff groaned. “We got lost on the way. Are you…” He trailed off as he took in Cal holding down Kelsith. His lips quirked. “Well. Looks like you’ve got this handled.”
Cal eased off of Kelsith, rising. But when he tried to haul Kelsith up after him, Kelsith tore free from his grip and rolled to the side. His animated rope that had been coiled beneath him sprang up at Cal, lashing at his chest.
Griff helped him tear the rope free and toss it aside as Kelsith made a mad dash across the room. He made it only a handful of paces, however, before he abruptly jerked to a halt as if he’d slammed into a wall. He spun toward Cal, his face contorted with fury beneath his mask.
“What the Void did you do to me?”
Grinning, Cal held up his wrist, jingling the pacifier cuff there. “Where do you think you’re going?”
At a gesture from Griff, the squad of protectors approached the cornered thief. Kelsith struggled in vain to break free as the protectors quickly restrained him and his lashing rope.
“Well played, Faces.” Kelsith fixed Cal with a toothy smile that didn’t reach his eyes as the protectors dragged him past. “But if you think this changes who you really are, you’re mistaken. You’re gutter trash. You always have been, and you always will be. Without me, you’re nothing.”
Griff narrowed his eyes on Kelsith, training his revolver on the struggling thief. “Should I shoot him?” he asked quietly.
Cal bit back a surprised snort. Perhaps he’d been a bit of a bad influence on the inspector these past few months. Never taking his eyes off Kelsith, he shook his head. “Nah. Don’t bother.”
Griff rested a supportive hand on his back. But while Cal appreciated the gesture, he didn’t need it. His former mentor had no power over him—not anymore.
Cal flashed Kelsith a broad grin. “Enjoy your new cell. And hey, who knows? Maybe you’ll defy the odds and earn parole before you die of old age.”
Kelsith’s smile faded to a hateful glare as the protectors hauled him through the door.
“So, how does it feel?” Griff asked once the protectors and Kelsith were gone, leaving only him and Cal alone in the room.
Cal was grateful for the concern in Griff’s voice. Releasing his duskflame disguise, he leaned against Griff’s side and squeezed his hand. “I’m glad to finally be able to put that part of my life behind me.”
“No regrets, then?”
Cal knew Griff well enough by now to catch the slight hitch in his voice. Chuckling, he pressed a soft kiss to Griff’s lips. “These past few months living and working with you have been the best of my life, Griff. I have no regrets being with the man I love.”
Griff beamed at him like Cal had given him Allaria on a silver platter instead of telling him something he said every day. “I love you, too.” He glanced toward the open doorway. “Now, come on, partner. If we hurry, we might still be able to make most of the show.”
Duskflame shimmered over Cal as he resumed his Lord Heneford disguise. “Lead the way, my boy!”
As the two of them departed arm in arm, Cal taking advantage of his older man persona for an excuse to lean on Griff for support, he pondered how what he’d told Griff was true.
Because now that he had Griff and honest work for his skills, he’d finally accepted that it was okay to put his heart in someone else’s hands and let them leave a mark on his heart… even as he left his own.