34. Fenric
Fenric leaned against the wall of Bel’s room, still very uneasy about this decision. Of course, it made sense for Lirion to go in—he was the only one who could find his sister in that madness—but going in as the entertainment was the part Fenric rejected.
It wasn’t him being overprotective or feeling possessive of Lirion. It was just the idea of those disgusting scumbags putting hands on Lirion and Lirion having to smile and act like he liked it that made Fenric throw up in his mouth a little.
Maybe there was some possessiveness mixed in, but it was more worry.
Worry about what Lirion would have to do, to put up with, just to get his sister out.
And yes, Lirion had a spell that would allow them to send messages back and forth if he was in a tight spot, but Fenric would still have to get to him, which would take time, and it might be enough time for something to go catastrophically wrong.
So, no. He didn’t like this situation whatsoever.
Fenric lifted a hand. “Hold on. If we’re going to do this—”
“If?” Rain interrupted.
“I don’t like it. Okay? To be honest, I fucking hate the plan. But if you’re set on this, then we need to hedge bets.”
Lirion sidled in to sit closer to him, lips parted, eyes warm and soft, though there was still a lingering hint of seriousness and worry. “Thank you for worrying about me. It’s sweet.”
Fenric grunted, swallowing down another anxious snap about how this was a terrible plan.
He didn’t want to be labeled as “sweet.” Unfortunately, right then his head and chest were a mess of emotions he didn’t understand, yet this was no time to work through his feelings.
They had a succubus to save and an incubus to protect.
“Just, please, for my sanity, let’s pad this plan with some fail-safes. ”
Lirion kissed him on the cheek. “You’re the cutest thing.”
“Fucking stop, you’re making me cringe.”
“Fenric?” Maxie’s soft voice managed to cut through all the shivers and frustration, grabbing his full attention.
“Yeah, Puppy?”
“I find myself confused about something.”
Everyone’s eyes turned toward the young man, who was currently seated in the middle of the room with one leg crossed over the other. His posture was perfectly straight, and lines dug heavily into his brow.
“What ails you, Puppy?” Belstrom prodded.
“Since we started this journey, several people have made comments about how Count Pierres is known for his kidnapping and sex trafficking. However, according to Moorwood’s most ancient laws, the enslavement of any person and forcing them against their will to perform any acts of a sexual nature, regardless of sex, age, or race, is strictly forbidden.
It’s a capital offense and punishable by death.
” Maxie drew in a deep, shaky breath, but it did nothing to remove the tremor from his voice when he continued.
“Why is this permitted to happen? Why have the king and the courts done nothing about it? How—how has he not been punished? Is it because of The Box? Has The Box declared he may break every law in the kingdom? What good is a god if it won’t protect its people? ”
Fenric shoved off the wall and crossed to where Maxie sat.
He knelt and placed his hand on the young man’s slender shoulder.
Up close, he could see the tears glistening in his bright gold eyes and feel the trembling of his frame.
He didn’t know who this young man was, but it was clear that at one time, he’d truly believed in justice and the government protecting its people.
Fenric’s heart wept because he was watching some of the last of Maxie’s innocence shatter before his eyes.
“It’s okay, Puppy,” he said, squeezing his shoulder.
For the first time, Maxie jerked out of his grasp. “It’s not okay. This will never be okay.”
Fenric pulled back his hand, curling it into a ball as he scrambled for something to say.
“You are correct, Puppy. Vile actions are unacceptable.” Belstrom took over.
There was something soothing in his deep voice and slow cadence.
“To my knowledge, Count Pierres’s ability to act with impunity is not the result of a boon from The Box.
I have never heard of Mineas favoring Count Pierres.
In truth, a substantial part of his power is derived from the support he has won from a number of the heroes. ”
“Like Lance Carrington and Gale Reeve,” Lirion cut in, his words as sharp as a blade.
“They leverage their reputation, strength, riches, and even murder to silence any who might reveal the truth of the count’s activities to the high courts and even the king,” Belstrom continued.
He shifted so he was sitting on the edge of the bed, moving closer to Maxie while adjusting his glasses a bit higher on his nose.
“There is also the matter of familial relations.”
“Huh?” Rain grunted from where he was sprawled across the bed behind Belstrom.
“Count Pierres is a distant relation of either the king or queen,” Fenric grumbled.
“I don’t remember which anymore. It’s not a strong tie, but Count Pierres can claim royal blood.
As such, those people tend to get a much higher benefit of the doubt than regular folks.
” Fenric’s lips twisted into an ugly smirk as he met Maxie’s gaze.
“Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if the king knew nothing of the matter.
Count Pierres probably has people he’s paid to run interference in the royal court to make sure the king never hears the truth.
And if he did, King Wymond would probably scoff at the matter as nonsense and demand proof. ”
“Proof the informant wouldn’t live long enough to provide,” Malfas added. When Maxie lifted his gaze to where the warlock was standing close by, Malfas drew his club across his throat and stuck out his tongue, mimicking death.
Maxie sat silent for a couple of seconds, his hands balled into tight, vibrating fists on his knees. Just as Fenric was about to touch his shoulder, admonishing the young man to calm down and breathe, Maxie exploded again. “We have to do something!”
“Whoa! Whoa!” The cry went up from nearly every member of E.V.I.L. at the same time.
“Puppy, it’s not that we agree with what they’re doing, because we don’t. Not at all. Those are despicable, horrible, disgusting, scum-sucking…um…um…”
It was literally the first time Fenric had ever seen Malfas struggle for words. Naturally, the pirate was able to pick up the cursing.
“Fucking limp-dicked, pus-covered cowardly fucks who don’t deserve the right to breathe!”
“Every villain has a line they won’t cross,” Hapi added, his lip curling in disgust. “The kidnapping and selling of people into sexual slavery—particularly any who might be of a young age—is frowned upon among our kind. There are plenty of villains who will happily destroy another villain for pursuing that line of business.”
Maxie suddenly snagged Fenric’s arm with both hands and gripped it to the point of almost bruising. “Villains like you, right?”
Fenric didn’t know how it was possible, but he swore Maxie’s eyes doubled in size with a single blink. He wasn’t implementing everything Lirion had taught him, but the little shit was trying. It also didn’t hurt that he was already so desperate and heartbroken.
“Puppy, come on,” Fenric whined. “It’s not that we don’t want to do something.
There’s only seven of us, and this place packs some incredible firepower.
The security is almost as bad as sneaking into the royal palace.
It would be far easier and safer to just sneak one or two people in to get Lirion’s sister. ”
“But Aria isn’t the only kidnapped person in there. What about the others who have no one to save them? Can we do something for them? Please, Fen. Just a little something. I swear I won’t ask for anything else ever again.”
Fenric finally jerked his eyes away from Maxie’s and looked at his fellow villains, only to find not one of those bastards willing to meet his gaze. At least when he looked over his shoulder, Lirion had the good grace to appear somewhat guilty.
Well, that was their one shot to shut down the youngest’s plea. It was on their heads now.
“So…I had this other idea,” Fenric started, but he didn’t get any further because Maxie squealed and crashed into him, throwing his arms around his neck and squeezing until Fenric couldn’t breathe.
Hapi chuckled darkly, but even that sound was cut off under the sharp look Fenric shot him.
When he finally got Maxie detached from around his throat and he could breathe, Fenric said, “The first option is sneaking in and sneaking out with Aria. Done. Dusted. We leave and everyone lives. However, sneaking is rife with ways for things to go wrong. If things go wrong, my thinking is, since we made the trip, we might as well make a big mess, steal some slaves from Count Pierre—which will seriously raise our villain rating—and naturally, set them free afterward because that’s just a hassle we don’t need. ”
“I believe I comprehend what you are envisioning,” Belstrom said slowly, a smile growing on his lips. “Diversion and distraction to foment chaos among the masses is its own form of protection.”
“Exactly. But I stress that this is the backup plan. For said backup plan, let’s really give them lots of things to be distracted by. Puppy, how about you brew up some death coffee?”
Maxie’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Oh yes, let’s kill all the guards and the empty sacks!” he crowed, throwing in a bit of thieves’ cant.