Beyond The Vale Read online

  Xavier leaned back heavily, his shoulders slumped, his expression fearful. Linx bowed low. “In the meantime, should I try to recapture Samuel?”

  “That won’t be necessary. In a few days, there won’t be anything Exodus can do. Feel free to take some time for yourself.”

  “Thank you, Your Highness.” She turned to Xavier. “My Lord.” Xavier did not so much as look up.

  Linx had to clasp her hands to keep them from shaking. She had done it. She had won. At least, to this point. There was still much to accomplish, and the danger would get worse from here on. But at least she wouldn’t have Xavier looking over her shoulder.

  The box of disks needed to be examined carefully. Xavier had been busy over the years. If she could use it as leverage over some of the nobles, it could make life much easier. And the holovid of the high mage? That certainly would come in handy.

  While she was here, she should make it her next stop. But first she needed some time to settle her nerves. And she had to know if Xavier’s plot to recapture Bane had succeeded. It was doubtful; he had stupidly used magistrate officers. Linx knew Xavier suspected that some of the royal guards were loyal to her. But as he was universally despised in the magistrate, learning his intentions would be simplicity in itself. Still, Linx wished she’d been able to send warning. A quick check of the tracking device would tell of his status. But as Xavier had not mentioned his recapture, it could wait until tomorrow.

  Once out of the palace, she settled into the back seat of the car that would take her to her apartment. The driver, Lawrence, was a quiet fellow. She liked that. The first one who’d been assigned to her had been too chatty. At the end of a day, the last thing she wanted was to hear inane babble on things she couldn’t care less about.

  Linx glanced out the window. “This isn’t the way.”

  “I was told to bring you to the magistrate’s office,” he replied. “Told by who?”

  “Velma Chase.”

  Linx stiffened. Why would the Chief Magistrate want to see her? More disturbingly, why not simply send a message? “Next time you’ll tell me.”

  “I apologize. But I was instructed to stay quiet about it. Orders are orders.”

  Linx had forgotten that the driver was not a member of the guard. He was detached from the magistrate’s office. One thing she knew without question was that if Velma Chase gave an order to one of her officers, they followed it to the letter.

  There was nothing to do now but see what she wanted. Linx retrieved her P37 from the rear console and shoved it into the holster at her side. She doubted it would be needed, but it was an intimidating sight. Of course, Velma Chase was not prone to intimidation.

  Upon reaching the office, Linx exited the vehicle and was escorted through by two officers to a small conference room. Chase was sitting at the end of a long table, flipping through a folder.

  She was not in uniform but in casual attire, and her hair was loosely tied in a braid. Placing the folder on the table, she looked up at Linx, frowning.

  “I seldom take a personal day,” she said. “So when I do, I do not want to be bothered for anything short of an emergency. And not just any emergency – it needs to be something urgent.”

  Linx took a seat at the opposite end. “Did you bring me here to tell me about your problems?”

  “No. You’re here so I can tell you about yours.”

  Linx sniffed. “Look. I know you have a reputation for being scary. But I have things to do.

  Please get to the point.”

  Chase regarded her for a long moment. “I suppose someone with the nerve to try to take down Xavier wouldn’t be afraid of me.”

  The hair on the back of Linx’s neck prickled. How could she know about that so damn fast? “Xavier was careless.”

  “Xavier was overconfident. He couldn’t imagine a young woman like you outmaneuvering him. Be that as it may, it begs the question: why did you do it? Normally, I wouldn’t involve myself in these matters. But when my people are used as pawns in your game, I feel I must.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “Don’t play the fool with me. Xavier used two dozen of my officers to stake out an Exodus location. Luckily, it ended in only a few minor injuries. Unless you count the two dead members of Exodus, of course. But they weren’t the target.”

  “Whatever Xavier did, it has nothing to do with me.” “Oh, I think it does.” She slid the folder across the table.

  Inside was a series of pictures of Linx talking to various royal guards and magistrate officers. Each was someone working with her to stop the king from going through with his plan. She closed the folder and shrugged, feigning ignorance.

  “So you took some pictures.”

  “Copied from a holovid. Young lady, I’ve been around for a long time. There’s not a camera in Troi I can’t access. I know what you’ve been up to. The only thing I need to know is why.”

  Linx felt the urge to run. She could certainly make it out. But what then? “I don’t know what you think I’m doing, but–”

  “If you know where the hellspawn are, you need to tell me.”

  Linx fell silent. She did know. But she didn’t know everything. “If I told you, what would you do?”

  “There’s not much I can do. At least nothing outside of Troi. But I can keep us safe until it’s over.”

  “If you know about the hellspawn, then you know that nothing can keep us safe. The king is insane.”

  “Without a doubt. But how do you plan to stop him? You can’t really think Exodus will succeed?”

  “What, then? Just let it happen? Let thousands of people be murdered?”

  Chase stood and crossed to a cabinet in the corner. “There comes a time when you must look to your own survival.” She took out a bottle and a pair of glasses, and the room filled with the scent of brandy. After placing a glass in front of Linx, she sat back down. “You have no idea of the powers set to oppose you. You think to bring down the king with a few rogue guards and a handful of idealists?”

  Linx pushed away the glass. “If you don’t want to help, why am I here?”

  “I didn’t say I didn’t want to help.” Chase took a small sip. “But help can come in many forms. For example, I can help you survive what’s coming.”

  Linx stood. “Thanks. But I don’t need your help with that.” “Aren’t you worried I’ll turn you in if you leave?”

  “If you wanted, you could have done that already.”

  Chase smiled. “True. But if you’ll calm down for a minute and listen to what I have to say, you might be glad you did.” When Linx didn’t comply, she added: “You’re not rid of Xavier. Not yet. He’s wounded, not beaten. I can see to it that whatever you decide to do, he’ll be out of your way – permanently.”

  Linx thought for a moment. She was on the verge of fleeing Troi altogether. But that would mean Bane and Exodus would fail. She had to stay in the city until it was time to act. “Fine. Talk.”

  Chase drained her glass. “Now, then. Here’s what I need from you.”

  Linx took the brandy and emptied it in one gulp. She had a bad feeling that by the end of this conversation, life would become much more difficult.

  Chapter Fourteen

  Bane scratched absently at the tracking device. The woman, Clara, was asleep, having been up for almost three straight days. They would arrive shortly, assuming the directions were accurate. Apparently, Exodus discovered the assault by chance, and had been unable to warn their comrades inside the building. On seeing Bane they decided to collect his father and hope he made it out. Exodus had not left Bane any message at all. Zara had thought him dead. So that could only mean they knew where Exodus was and had posed as one of them to lure him in. But then, that would mean his escape was known, wouldn’t it?

  More than anything, he hated being ignorant. Wheels were always turning, pieces moving into position, without him having the slightest notion of where and why. People could say what they want
ed about being a hawker, at least you had command over your life. He wondered whether that was why his father loved machines. When he worked on them, he was in charge. He determined what went where and why. Bane had always imagined that he’d taken more after his mother, given that he could never see that he had anything in common with his father, but perhaps they had more in common than he’d thought.

  Clara stirred and rubbed her eyes. “Where are we?” “We’re about an hour away.”

  She stretched and twisted, yawning. “I can’t believe it’s already nighttime. You should have woken me.”

  Bane shrugged. “No need. I know where you want me to go. If you were up for as long as you said, I figured you needed the rest.”

  “Thanks. But I’m used to it.” She reached into a small bag she had brought and removed a bottle of water. “So, you know where they’re all located.”

  Bane nodded. “But we’re almost out of time. I hope your people are prepared.”

  “We already know about two of them. So all we’ll need to do is send teams to the other

  two.”

  “Good. Then we should be fine.”

  Clara gave him a curious look. “You don’t remember me, do you?” “Should I?”

  “I suppose not. There were a lot of people at the college.” “You’re a mage?”

  Clara laughed. “No. I was one of the groundskeepers. I just thought you might remember seeing me. You said hello to me almost every day when you passed by on your way to teach class.”

  Bane regarded her closely. “I…maybe.” “I was usually covered in dirt.”

  Drake searched his memory. Clara had straight black hair that fell just below her shoulders, dark skin, and hazel eyes. Pretty. Not in the striking way Lenora was, but she had a sweet quality that appealed to him.

  “You wore a hat, right?”

  She rolled her eyes. “We all wore hats.”

  “I know. But yours was different.” He tried to picture it, but the image was elusive. “It was…I don’t know.”

  “It was blue,” she said. “I was a supervisor.”

  “I do remember you. You were let go just before I was expelled.”

  “Let go is a kind way to put it. Forced out is more like it.” “What happened?”

  “I found that not being related to the Head Master was detrimental to my career.” Her faced twisted into a scowl. “The position was given to his nephew…or maybe his cousin. Not sure who.”

  “I’m sorry. I imagine it was tough.”

  “Life in Vale is always tough. But I’d hoped I could at least work long enough so I didn’t end up like my parents in the outer provinces, waiting to die.”

  “Are they still there?”

  She turned to look out the window and nodded. “I wanted to bring them with me. But none of us can have family around. It’s too risky.”

  “Let’s hope that’s about to change.” “You really think it will?”

  “Why else are we doing this?”

  Clara touched the glass with her fingertip, running it along the path of the mana streams. “What else is there to do? We die if we do nothing. We die if we do something. Either way, we die. At least with Exodus, we can die fighting instead of starving.”

  “So you don’t think we can win?”

  “I want to believe there’s hope. But tell me the truth. What’s going to happen? If we manage to destroy the hellspawn, they’ll find another way to kill us off. Even if we somehow kill King Salazar, whoever takes his place will be just as bad.”

  “That’s not true.”

  “Oh, that’s right. Princess Lenora is your cousin. No offence intended. But what will she do differently?”

  “For one thing, she’ll stop the high mages from poisoning the land.” She cast him a sideways look. “You think so?”

  “I know so.”

  “I think they’ll kill her before that happens.” “They can try.”

  Clara smiled. “There he is – the defiant rogue I remember. You know I had quite a crush on you when I worked at the college.”

  Bane cocked his head. “You did? Why didn’t you say something?”

  “I’m sure I was attractive, all covered in dirt and sweat. Besides, you were a professor. You could have done better.”

  “I like dirt and sweat.”

  This drew an amused grin. “You’re a terrible liar.” “I’m serious. You should have said something.”

  “Maybe. Doesn’t matter now. No time for romance these days.” “If there’s no time for romance, what’s the point?”

  “None,” she replied, sadly. “None at all.”

  “Do me a favor. When this is over, give me a chance to make it up to you.” “Make what up?”

  “Not noticing you noticing me.”

  “All things considered, you are excused.”

  Bane had seen others at the college lose their position, though at the time he’d never given thought to the ramifications. As a mage and a professor, he had been preoccupied with his own life. What happened with the staff was none of his affair. But she had been wrong that he would

  have balked at a relationship with someone society deemed beneath his status. Still, he could understand why she would have thought so. Most mages held such attitudes. Their goal was to climb up the social ladder, if possible. It seemed like no one was happy with where they were. Understandable in the provinces. But at the college or in Troi it had never made sense. Of course Bane had the perspective of being the son of a mechanic, whereas most mages came from the relative comfort of Troi.

  They pulled onto a narrow dirt road that climbed a low rise. On the other side was a metal building with a single vehicle parked in front. Bane pulled up beside it and turned off the engine.

  “Tell Zara I need her to come out,” said Bane. Clara looked at him questioningly. “Why?”

  “I can’t risk endangering anyone,” he explained. “If I’m being tracked, best to be on the

  move.”

  “Why would you think you’re being tracked?” “Better to be safe, that’s all.”

  Clara hurried inside, emerging with Zara a few seconds later. “You and the others head to the next location,” she ordered.

  Clara nodded sharply, giving Bane an almost imperceptible smile before reentering the building. Bane pulled out the second Zara was inside and tore back down the road.

  “Before we get very far, you’d better explain how you’re alive,” said Zara.

  Bane recounted the events leading to his escape in as much detail as he could. Once finished, he fished the paper from his pocket and handed it over. “These are the locations.”

  Zara read them carefully. “And you still have the tracker in you?”

  Bane nodded. “I can get it out, but the way I figure it, it’s worth the risk.”

  “How do you know she’s not just using you to get to us?”

  “I don’t,” he admitted. “That’s why I’m not coming with you. I’ll drop you somewhere and then meet you at one of the locations.”

  She thought for a moment, her eyes fixed on the floorboard. “I don’t like it. Not one bit.

  But we seem to have no choice but to hope she’s being truthful.” “My thoughts exactly.”

  Zara told him to drop her about ten miles east of where they were. “Have you heard from Drake or Lenora?” he asked.

  “No. There’s no way to know when they’ll return.”

  “Let’s hope it’s soon,” said Bane. “If this works, Salazar is going to send everything he has to stop us.”

  “I know. I wish we could wait. But every minute brings the hellspawn closer to being released.”

  “Yes. But without Lenora, it will be hard to rally support in Troi.” “None of it will matter if we wait too long.”

  She was right. The end game was the removal of the king, and without Lenora, it was unlikely the nobility would stand against him. But if the hellspawn were released, they would annihilate the provinces. The people in Troi would
look to the king for protection.

  He pulled up to the fueling station where Zara had told him to drop her off. “Be at the first facility on the list in two days,” she said.

  “I’ll be there. And tell my father I’ll be back to get him as soon as I can.” “I will.”

  As Bane pulled away, he grinned at the thought of his father complaining about being taken from his beloved garage. His thoughts turned to Clara and what she had said about family being forbidden. Bane was a mage, and a powerful one at that. As it had at the college, his status earned him special privileges. Would it be better once Lenora was Queen? His heart told him yes. Unlike her brother, she was kind and loving. She genuinely cared about the welfare of the people. But his mind said that she would be forced to accept certain realities. Only the high mages understood how to run the power station. The mana streams flowing overhead were a constant reminder of Vale’s dependency. How much change would they allow? No. Lenora was strong. She could do what her father could not; what no ruler in the history of Vale could do. He had to believe this. Without it, there was no hope, no reason to fight. Only despair – delivered throughout the land on rays of multicolored lights.

  Chapter Fifteen

  Drake looked at himself in the mirror. The new shirt and pants Hanna had given him were her late husband’s. The fit was a touch loose, but they were clean and not nearly as threadbare as his old attire. The cloth was of a finer weave and didn’t itch as badly. He needed a shave and a haircut, but as he was already late, decided to put it off until that evening.