Betrayed: Ruby's Story (Destined Book 4) Page 4

The setting sun blazed a harsh, burnt orange through the sky, and from twenty stories up, the entire city of Asylia spread out before us. We could even see all the way to the Western edge of the city wall, and beyond it, the dry, lifeless expanse of the Badlands.

  “They think we river dwellers have it so rough. The city’s got all us commoners without property crammed into the River Quarter, building ever higher to make room rather than give us the land from the old warehouses.” He shifted, his expression growing dark, then relaxed back in his chair. “They don't realize I've got the best view in the city.”

  I thought of Mistress Reta serving me coffee in her tiny shack made of rusty, salvaged metal. “You probably do, sir.” But not everyone in the River Quarter was so fortunate.

  His eyes darted to mine. The shifting calculation that stole across his face made my skin prickle. He tapped his fingers on the table. “There’s only room for one at the top,” he said softly, as though he’d read my mind. “That’s just the way of things.” He smiled again, apparently unperturbed by my obvious discomfort. “Let’s begin, shall we?”

  My throat was dry. “Alright.” I tapped my pencil to the paper. “Tell me how you came to be a purveyor of aurae.”

  He folded his arms. “A purveyor, huh? I like that.” He nodded. “You ever tried it, Ruby?”

  “No.”

  His eyes were cold. “You want to?”

  I wrinkled my nose. “No, thank you.”

  “You will.” He smirked. “I don't touch the stuff myself. But you will.”

  His tone was smug. I gripped my bag with one hand and pressed it tight against my stomach. “Why do you say that, sir?”

  “I’ve got a sense for it. Some men know when the weather’s changing, or which price at the market is soon to rise.” He tapped his temple. “Me, I know who’s going to be an aurist.”

  “I …” I swallowed. Should I humor him and see where he would go? I hesitated for a moment, feeling torn, but it was easy enough to guess what Grandmother would want me to do. “Tell me, sir, how you can possibly know such a thing.”

  He watched me closely. “You’ve got that hunger, that touch of sadness that the aurists all have.”

  I shifted in the chair. “I’m not sad.” I just cry on the dormitory roof because I enjoy it.

  He leaned forward and met my gaze directly, like he knew I was lying. “You want to escape.” His tone was gentle and understanding. “You’re not alone, Ruby. As far as I can tell, most of the city feels the same way.”

  I was hyper-aware of my heart pounding in my chest. “My life is not perfect. That’s true.” I did want to escape, if I was honest. I desperately wanted to escape. “But that doesn’t mean I’ll seek escape in aurae. I know the danger it holds.”

  Dukas waved a hand and relaxed back with his arms resting on his chair’s armrests, looking for all the world like a king on his throne. “We’ll see, won’t we? You say you’re strong. I say you’re weak—a sad girl with a pencil, nothing more.” He nodded. “One day, we’ll know which one of us is right.”

  His confident tone made my stomach roil. It was time to take better control of this conversation. “Tell me, sir, if you don’t use aurae yourself, why do you share it with others?”

  He waved a hand at the finely-furnished suite. “Besides the obvious?”

  I nodded.

  “I like the way you think. Going deeper. Asking the question behind the question. It’s good.” He smiled approvingly. “The profit is excellent, but aurae itself is not an end on its own—it’s a means to a better city.”

  I frowned. “A better … what?”

  “Aurae separates us, divides the wheat from the chaff. You must understand that’s what we’ve always needed.”

  I swallowed. “What we’ve always needed?”

  He leaned forward, meeting my eyes steadily. “This city has been built up on a faulty foundation. The weakest men control the Procus families with nothing but the borrowed magic of mages, magic the Procus lords don’t even possess themselves. The mages, with all their magic, are themselves helpless against the Procus lords. And the so-called Crown Prince of Asylia can’t even control his own guards. The River Quarter guards know full well where I live, and it doesn’t even matter. A handful of marks or a breath of aurae and they lose interest quickly enough.” He frowned. “This city is lopsided, Ruby, dangerously so. The weak ruling the strong for so many generations. It’s unnatural. It always has been.”

  It took concerted effort to keep meeting his gaze. “What does that have to do with aurae?”

  “Aurae is fixing our city, one citizen at a time. Correcting our bad foundation.”

  I shook my head and frowned. “What—”

  “I have aurists in every corner of the city now. Amazing, isn’t it? I bet you thought I confined my activities to this sad little pocket of the River Quarter, but it couldn’t be further from the truth. My men have Procus lords and their mages as customers. Merchants and their laborers. Old men and youths, mothers and fathers.”

  I felt the color drain from my face. “So many people?”

  “And they all have one thing in common.” He tapped the table, drawing out the silence. “What do you think it is?”

  I watched him without answering as my pulse thudded in my throat.

  “They’re weak.” His voice was suddenly hard as stone. “Weak as babies. Desperate for a few moments of escape, no matter the cost, because they don’t have the strength to take hold of life and subdue it on their own terms.”

  “Mm,” I managed. I rubbed my bare arms, suddenly cold.

  My noncommittal response didn’t fool him. “You’re doing the right thing, telling my story. It’s the story every Asylian dreams of calling their own. I was a nobody most of my life, a faceless river dweller selling stolen spirits to other nobodies. And then I lifted a crate with a false bottom, and my fortunes changed. Within a fortnight I was going through huge crates of imported liquor, just tossing the spirits aside for the crystal vials hidden beneath them. And the rest of the story…” He waved a hand toward the stunning view of the city skyline and setting sun. “You’re looking at it.”

  My notebook sat loosely in my hands, the page I’d turned to covered with shaky, half-finished notes. “It takes more than a view to make a king, though, doesn’t it?”

  His smile was oddly pitying. “How many guards does Prince Estevan employ?”

  “A thousand, perhaps?”

  “And how many of them are aurists?”

  I shifted. “I don’t know.”

  His eyes were cold. “Well, I do. Prince Estevan may rule the city in name, but it’s a hollow name indeed when his men come to me one by one and turn over their will for a breath of escape.” He gazed out the window again. “This city belongs to the strong, Ruby. The ones who aren’t afraid of pain, who see no need to escape. Mark my words, this city belongs to men like me.”

  I gripped my notebook tighter. I had just one more question—the same one I’d asked every aurae dealer I’d ever interviewed, though never with a satisfying answer. “Who’s your source, Master Dukas?”

  Dukas’s eyes flicked away. “Anonymous,” he said tersely. “They do everything from the shadows.”

  That was what they all said. “Just thought I’d ask.”

  ~

  Attached please find a copy of the story I plan to submit. As you can see, Mstr Dukas claims to have the quarter guards in his pocket. He was so certain of his safety that he let me go from his apartment without the slightest hassle. If it’s true that he’s safe from the local guards, this sounds like a job for your Sentinels—

  “Ruby! Have you got a moment?”

  I sighed and set my pencil on the half-written note to Prince Estevan. “Hello, Sebastian. I’m actually just in the middle of—”

  “Just wondering about that dinner invitation. Are you free tonight?” Sebastian leaned against my office door frame, his hands in his pockets.

  “Right.” I chewed my low
er lip. “I’m still working on that article on Hal Dukas. Grandmother wants it on her desk as soon as possible. Sorry.”

  He wrinkled his forehead. “Next week, then?”

  My frozen smile was making my cheeks ache. “Well, I—”

  “Ruby!” Grandmother appeared in my door, her brow furrowed. “My office. Now. We have a new lead.”

  Sebastian coughed awkwardly.

  Grandmother shot him a troubled look. “You, too. But no one else.”

  “What is it?” It wasn’t like Grandmother to look worried about anything, much less a new lead.

  She wouldn’t look me in the eye. “You’ll see soon enough.” Had that been guilt on her face?

  I exhaled. If she was the one feeling guilty, then for once, I wasn’t the one in trouble.

  I got up and brushed my fingers across my desk, sliding a few papers over my unfinished note to Prince Estevan. We had a standing agreement—I would notify him before publishing whenever I found evidence of corruption in his government. That way, he could move on the information before the Herald’s article tipped off the guilty parties and inspired them to cover their tracks.

  The city government had been nearly bankrupt since the plague entered our gates thirteen years ago. Prince Estevan couldn’t afford to maintain an investigative guard force, but he had the Herald at his back. It was better than nothing. Grandmother didn’t always play along, but I did what I could to help him, especially if I could do it without attracting her notice.

  Grandmother’s office was twice the size of mine, so it was probably equivalent to a linen closet on the Falconus compound. She sat behind her desk and gestured for Sebastian to close the door. “Sit. Both of you. We don’t have much time to act on this one.”

  The narrow chair’s uneven legs rocked as I sat beside Sebastian.

  Grandmother rested her elbows on her desk and pressed her fingers to her temples. She looked at me again then abruptly dropped her hands and straightened her spine. “A courier just delivered this.” She lifted a folded slip of paper and absently tapped the folded edge on the table. “He says he needs someone tonight. Tonight!” She shook her head and glanced from me to Sebastian.

  “Who needs someone? And for what purpose?” I tried to stay calm, but disquiet made my voice waver. Had I ever seen Grandmother so flustered?

  Sebastian held out one hand and Grandmother placed the note in his palm without speaking. I narrowed my eyes. Since when had he—

  “Here.” Sebastian’s normally energetic voice was hollow and quiet.

  I took the note from him. The scrawl was masculine and rough. The note held just a few lines, like each word had fought to earn its way onto the paper.

  I am a Wolf of Draicia.

  My clan must answer for what they’ve done to your city and mine.

  Send me your best reporter. We leave tonight. North gate.

  Chapter 5

  The unsigned note slipped from my hand and fluttered silently to the desk. “It’s a prank.” My voice crept up. “Or … or a trap.”

  Sebastian grabbed the note and read it again. “But what if it’s real? A true Wolf clan member, one of the most powerful citizens in Draicia, coming to us to expose his own people? We can’t ignore this.”

  “But—”

  “He’s right. We can’t ignore it.” Grandmother pursed her lips. “The Wolf must be referring to aurae. What else could it be? I’ve suspected a link between the Wolf clan and the aurae smugglers for years but never found a shred of evidence. This could be our first real chance to do that.” She grabbed a pencil from a jar on her desk and rolled it between her fingers, her gaze growing distant. “Tonight. North gate, he says.” She tapped the pencil on the palm of one hand. “He must mean to bring someone with him to Draicia. He’s journeyed across the Badlands just to contact the Herald. He’s serious. And he’s doing it in secret.” She shook her head again. “Betraying his own clan? We can’t ignore this. We can’t.”

  I swallowed. “So … we’re sending a reporter to journey across the Badlands to Draicia with an anonymous Wolf? Tonight?”

  Grandmother’s distant expression didn’t even flicker at my skeptical tone. “We have to. A lead like this …” She trailed off and was silent for a long moment. “I never dreamed we’d get an opportunity this good.” Finally, she met my eyes. Now I knew why she had looked so guilty. “Ruby …”

  I dropped my gaze to my hands in my lap. A thick lump in my throat prevented me from speaking.

  Draicia, of all places? Did she value me so little that she would throw my life away on the fuzziest possible lead?

  The wild, broken city to our north was a cesspit of violence and lawlessness. Clan skirmishes in the streets killed innocents every day. The city was full of brutality, its people living in abject poverty, with no civil government to speak of. The clans controlled the city with crime and corruption, and the Wolf clan was the worst of the lot. Yet she would send me to the Wolf clan because of a single, unsigned note?

  I forced myself to inhale, then exhale.

  “…will take over the Dukas story from you… stipend and an outfitter for the journey … forward your correspondence …” Grandmother’s tone was calm and placating, but I could barely register her words. My thoughts whirled. I’d never survive alone in Draicia, if I even managed to survive the journey through the Badlands! Then I would have to travel back. By myself?

  And what would I do about Lord Falconus and his offer? What would he think if I simply disappeared and let them all down?

  “Ruby’s never been to Draicia.” Sebastian’s voice crept up, intruding on my chaotic thoughts with sharp, furious tones. “You have no way of knowing that Draicians will respond to her the way our people do.”

  “She’s still the best we have. Ruby’s been speaking with common criminals and their victims since she was old enough to come along with me to meet sources. This is nothing but more of the same. She can do this. And I can’t risk wasting our first chance …”

  For an endless moment of panic, the roaring in my ears drowned out their argument. Then I looked up, startled, when I realized they had gone silent.

  Grandmother watched me warily. “Sebastian wants to go to Draicia in your place.” Her words were slow and probing. “Is … is that what you want, Ruby?”

  Yes! He should go. From the corner of my eye, I could see Sebastian’s white-knuckled grip on the arms of his chair. He wanted the assignment so much, but this was my chance to earn my freedom.

  As long as aurae was a problem, Grandmother would never let me go work for the Falconus studio full time. I’d never be free. I bit my lip. Aurae is poisoning our city. I loved this city. In my own way, I truly did. I wanted aurae to end just as much as Grandmother did. I wanted men like Hal Dukas to pay for the way they’d profited off the city’s most vulnerable citizens.

  “I’ll go.” The words were thick and barely audible. I cleared my throat. “I’ll go with the Wolf. Tonight. I’ll do it.”

  “Insanity,” Sebastian muttered under his breath. “You’ve got to be joking.” I didn’t have to look at him. I could feel the furious scowl he sent my way.

  “I said I’ll go.” This time, my words were loud and certain, my will strengthening as I spoke. This was the right decision. If I could finally put an end to aurae, I could walk away from the Herald and know I’d earned my freedom and paid whatever unspoken debt I owed Asylia because my people had sent them the plague.

  Sebastian fixed his narrowed gaze on Grandmother. “You can’t seriously be sending her there alone.”

  Grandmother ignored Sebastian and beamed at me. “That’s my Ruby. You were never one to back down from a challenge, were you, dear?”

  The vague hope that she might send Sebastian with me died with her agreement. Grandmother would never agree to send her top two reporters out of the city at the same time.

  I squeezed my hands in my lap, wishing I could squeeze my fear down the same way. Think of sweet, kind Mage Fortis. Sunli
ght in a studio space that smells like goldblossom perfume. The best coffee in the city, and finally escaping.

  I stood abruptly. “A challenge. Indeed.” I sent Sebastian a silent apology. For him, it would have been an opportunity of a lifetime. For me, it was the means I needed to change my life completely.

  That didn’t mean I wasn’t terrified, however.

  “If you’ll excuse me, I have a few things to wrap up before tonight, and it’s already mid—” My voice cracked. “Midday.” I inhaled.

  Grandmother nodded. “Of course, of course. You do whatever you need to do, dear. Sebastian and I will handle the logistical details.”

  How accommodating.

  I thanked her and shut the door on my way out of her office. I had three letters to finish.

  One for Prince Estevan.

  One for Lord Falconus.

  And one to be sent by Sebastian when the Rat King’s reign came to an end. I might not be brave enough to oppose Asylia’s criminals face-to-face, but I always had the last word.

  ~

  “I look a bit odd.” I frowned into the smudged mirror in the back of the outfitter’s shop. “Are you certain these are appropriate?”

  The shop’s proprietor, an older man with white hair and weathered skin, nodded sagely. “Pantaloons are a must when venturing outside the walls, miss. In parts of the Badlands, the brush is quite thick. Not even your sturdiest work dress will be able to protect your legs.”

  “They’re so …” Revealing? Puffy? Uncomfortable? I bit my lip and fingered the thick, sturdy fabric that puffed out at my thighs, then tapered and tucked into the knee-high, lace-up boots he’d insisted I wear with them.

  “You’re just not used to them.” Grandmother sounded like she was trying to convince herself. For the first time since we’d received the Wolf’s note, she looked uncertain about this wild plan. “It won’t be so bad, Ruby, so stop looking like you’re heading to your execution. Draicia used to be called the City of Light, remember?” Her smile looked forced. “It was a place of culture and education. The home of the only Western-style university in the continent of Theros. It can’t be completely given over to clan warfare.”