The Outskirts: The Rogue Knight (Jace x OC) BOOK 2

The Rogue Knight: 5

The next day, I took a hot shower before walking to Cole and Twitch's room. We were talking about mostly random stuff. A knock at the door startled me.
Twitch went to answer, "Who is it?"
"A friend," came the reply.
"Joe," Twitch muttered, opening the door.
Joe entered the room looking cleaner than I had ever seen him. His gray leather jacket and jeans had been replaced by dark trousers, a maroon shirt, and a gentleman's coat with a stylish cut. His face was shaved, his hair neat.
After peering out into the hall, Twitch closed the door.
"We were worried about you," Cole said. "We didn't know who you were going up against. Looks like you won the fight. Nice outfit."
Smirking, Joe glanced down at himself. "This new persona is part of my plan. When possible, I dress for my roles." He tossed a couple of packages onto the bed. "I got the three of you new getups as well."
"Did you catch up to the Enforcer?" I asked.
"It took some time. We were both on foot, but he moved well In the end, I put an arrow through his back. I tried to question him but he was already gone. I swiped a horse and made my way here as quickly as I could. I got in last night and spent the day running errands. At midday I met up with Jace by the fountain. He mentioned that you two ran into some trouble."
"Horrible luck," I said. "In West Carthage, we bumped into the slaver who brought our friends here and had us marked. We used our Jumping Swords to get away, but he swore he'd track us down."
"Name?" Joe asked.
"Ansel," Cole said.
Joe frowned. "Carries a sickle?"
I nodded. "How'd you know?"
Joe gave an impressed whistle. "You don't do it halfway when you pick your enemies. Ansel Pratt is one of the most ruthless slavers in the five kingdoms."
"You know him?" I asked.
"Only by reputation. He's a man to avoid unless you have a lot of money and you need his services. If clients default on an agreement, his retribution is swift and brutal. Other slavers have learned to stay out of his way. Only a few traders can compete with the volume of slaves he moves. He and his people are trouble."
"He promised to chop off our hands with the freemark and haul us back to the Sky Raiders," I said. "I bet he'll try."
"So do I," Joe said. "That settles it. You two have to come with Mira and me to the confidence lounge."
"Where?" I asked.
"Most of the cities in Elloweer have one. East Carthage has three. They serve as meeting places where information can be exchanged with a degree of anonymity. Everyone wha enters a confidence lounge has a seeming placed on them, so they don't look like themselves. Clients range from criminals to government leaders. I secured a reservation at the most exclusive lounge in town."
"To get information?" Cole asked.
"That's part of it. Connections happen at confidence lounges. Deals get struck. Most seemings fade after a short while. I want to find somebody who can put a lasting seeming on you two and Mira to render you unrecognizable today, if possible. Too many people are hunting you."
For the first time since Ansel spotted us, I realized there might be an alternative to hiding indoors for the rest of my life. "They can do that?"
"The right enchanter can," Joe assured him. "I belong to a resistance movement called the Unseen. The movement wasn't strong in the parts of Sambria we traveled together, but there seems to be a decent presence here. I'm not supposed to tell any new people about our group without permission from two other senior members, but I don't see any way around letting you kids in on our secret. Permission will have to come later. I can't imagine I'll take too much heat for it. After all, we're on the run with Princess Miracle."
"Have you met up with them yet?" Cole asked.
"We have secret ways of contacting one another," Joe said. "I've seen some subtle signs of activity in the area. Last night and this morning I left marks around town for any of the Unseen to visit the Shady Lane Confidence Lounge this afternoon. If some members respond, there's a chance we can get the aid we're looking for."
"When do we go?" Cole asked.
"I have a coach waiting," Joe said. "I had initially planned to just bring Mira, since her face was the one I most worried about, but I expect they can accommodate two extra guests. Admittance is three gold ringers per person."
"Three gold ringers!" Twitch exclaimed. "I could live for months off that much!"
"Good information doesn't come cheap," Joe said. "We should go."
"Do we need ringers?" Cole asked.
"I'll pay our entry fee," Joe said. "One of you may want to carry some extra ringers, just in case, but leave your main stash here. Get changed and meet me downstairs. Don't bring the swords."
"You take the ringers." I said to Cole and he nodded.
I changed in the bathroom while the boys changed in the bedroom. I had been given a maroon dress with a white long sleeve to wear under it, along with black boots. I walked out to find Cole and Twitch in button downs of different colors.
"Wish us luck," Cole said.
"Hopefully, the next time we see each other, I won't recognize you," Twitch replied.
I nodded, though the idea of looking like someone else was definitely weird. "See you later Twitch."
Downstairs, we found Mira and Joe waiting for him Joe carried a brown leather satchel. Mira wore a simple black dress with a red sash. I hadn't seen her so decked out and girlie before.
"You look clean," Mira said. "Our clothes have taken a beating since Cloudvale."
"This will be a new adventure." I said.
"We'll talk in the coach," Joe said, leading the way to the door. They exited onto a small side street. "This way."
Joe led them around a corner and down a couple of blocks. They reached a street bustling with people, and Joe turned again.
"Keep your head up," Mira murmured. "Don't act like you're hiding."
I hadn't deliberately bowed my head, but I realized she was right. I felt exposed. It would be just my luck to bump into a member of Ansel's slave caravan.
Joe ushered them up marble steps to the pillared entrance of a grand hotel. The lobby floor was a checkerboard of gold and platinum. Bright rainbows crisscrossed the cavernous space overhead. A sapphire-blue waterfall dominated one corner, the vivid water tumbling in slow motion. I realized that much of what we saw must be illusion.
They crossed the lobby and exited through doors on the far side. A uniformed attendant held the door open. Joe flipped him a copper ringer. "I'm Dale Winters," Joe said. "I ordered a coach."
"Right this way," the doorman said, leading them to one of the horse-drawn coaches parked at the curb. The attendant opened the door to the coach, and Joe gave the man another copper ringer as he climbed inside. I got settled beside Mira, across from Joe and Cole. The door closed, and the coach started rolling.
Joe's preparation impressed me. Having a coach waiting at a different hotel from where they were staying felt like the sort of clever precaution a secret agent would take.
"The driver knows where we're going?" Cole asked.
"He does," Joe said. "Just as he knows we would prefer him not to observe us. He kept his eyes forward as we approached and boarded the coach." Opening his satchel, Joe revealed four party masks. He gave the glittery silver one to me, a purple one to Mira, the blue one to Cole, and claimed the black one for himself. "Put them on."
Lifting the mask to my face, I pulled the slender silver chain around my head and slid one of the links into a hook on the other side. Looking out through the eyeholes limited my visibility a little. The mask covered all of my face besides my mouth and chin.
"Let's talk strategy," Joe said. "In a confidence lounge, information is currency. We all need to play the game, or we'll stand out. Fortunately, we're from out of town and have juicy rumors that should be of interest. We don't want to mention anything about who we are, and we should avoid topics surrounding the High King or his daughters."
"What about Honor?" Mira asked.
"Leave it to me to ask after Honor," Joe said. "I'll also ask can manage long lasting seemings."
"Can we ask about our friends?" Cole wondered.
Joe paused. "I know finding them is important to you."
"It's important to me too," Mira said.
Joe gave a reluctant nod. "Keep it general. If the right opportunity comes up, mention that you heard the High King was sending new slaves with shaping talent abroad."
"What rumors can we share?" Cole asked.
"Present nothing as personal knowledge," Joe stressed. "Mention that you heard it from a reliable source, that sort of thing. You can talk about Carnag having fallen, and four hundred legionnaires visiting Skyport. You might vaguely mention shapecrafters. I'm interested to see if anyone knows about them. If somebody seems useful, share that Declan was flushed out from behind the Eastern Cloudwall. The information is good enough to work as currency, and it won't hurt Declan—the High King already knows he was there. Besides, it might help our cause to remind people that the Grand Shapers are still around."
"Should we spread the word that the High King imprisoned his daughters?" Cole asked. "We could tell everyone he faked their deaths. Won't people be outraged?"
"Most will ignore it as a dusty old theory," Joe said. "If our real enemies hear the rumor, they will move swiftly to crush it. The timing is wrong to reveal Mira's true predicament."
"What else should we ask about?" Mira inquired.
"Keep it hazy," Joe said. "Check for news. Claim to be from elsewhere. It will ring true because most of your info from Sambria. Try to get a sense for what is going on in Elloweer."
"Do you think Honor's power is running wild?" Mira asked. "Does Elloweer have a Carnag?"
"I imagine Honor's shaping ability is taking form much as yours did," Joe said. "Quima certainly hinted that would be the case. This is the place to find out about anomalies in the kingdom. Keep your ears open and your comments guarded.
You will be among expert gossipmongers. They will read into everything you share. Try not to lie. These are difficult people to deceive."
Before long, the coach turned down a bare alleyway and slowed to a stop. Joe barely had room to open the door and step down. I followed along with Cole and Mira.
They had halted beside an unmarked door set in an otherwise blank wall. Joe knocked, and the door swung inward to reveal a hulking brute with a bad haircut. "Do you have an invitation?" the bouncer asked.
Joe produced a card and handed it over along with a platinum ringer. "I had to add another two guests at the last minute. I hope that's all right."
Furrowing his brow, the goliath studied the invitation and the ringer. "One moment." The door closed.
"We can stay with the coach if it's a problem," Cole said.
"No," Joe said. "I want to get you inside and permanently disguised. If it requires a bigger bribe, we can afford it."
The door opened. "Request granted," the big guy
announced, stepping aside. "Welcome to Shady Lane."
Me, Joe, Mira, and Cole entered. Behind me, I heard our coach continue down the alleyway. The door closed, They stood in a small, stone room with an iron door on the far side. Two of the walls had rows of dark slits in them.
I thought the narrow gaps looked sinister. People might spy through them, or shoot arrows, or leak poison gas. How had we ended up in a place like this? It seemed like a mission for a trained spy.
An efficient-looking man, neatly groomed and well-dressed, patted down Joe, then Cole, then me, and finally Mira. He backed away and murmured into a small grate beside the iron door.
The door opened, and the man motioned for them to pass through. The next room was also made of solid stone, but it was larger and softened by carpets, draperies, and cushioned furniture. The walls had so many doors that I wondered if the room was surrounded by closets.
A bespectacled gentleman, who was probably in his sixties, greeted us. Though not very tall, he had a gangy build with large hands and feet. I found his strong cologne distracting.
"Welcome, esteemed guests," he simpered, rubbing his hands together. "You have visited us before?" Joe shook his head.
The gangly man perked up at this news.
"Newcomers! How marvelous. At Shady Lane, we pride ourselves on unparalleled discretion. We have four chief lounges. Your appearance will change each time you pass to a new room. To begin, you'll each enter your own changing room, remove your mask, place it in a trunk, lock it, take the key, and face the mirror. Once satisfied with your disguise, exit through the other door and follow the hall to the blue door. Any questions?"
Joe shook his head again. I wasn't sure I could picture exactly what the man meant, but I didn't want to be the only one to ask for clarification.
"This way," the gangly man said, walking over to one of the doors on the right side of the room. "Young lady may enter the trident door." A subtle trident symbol was embossed above a doorknob. The man opened the door, and I entered. The door closed.
Though I listened intently, I heard no further conversation from beyond the door. The changing room was soundproof, or close to it. Another door waited on the far side of the room. A full-length mirror hung on one of the walls. A row of medium-size trunks hid the base of the posite wall. Keys protruded from most of the locks. There were two empty keyholes.
I opened the leftmost trunk. I unhooked my mask, placed it inside, then shut the trunk, locked it, and removed the key. A trident and a swirly symbol decorated the key. The lock had a matching swirl.
I stood before the mirror. I looked exactly like myself, so I figured that whatever was going to happen hadn't started yet. Glancing around the room, I wondered if I was being watched. Somebody had to create the illusion. I didn't notice any peepholes. Maybe somebody was spying through the mirror, like in an interrogation room. Or maybe the illusion happened automatically. Could the mirror be magical?
As I gazed into the looking glass, my hair turned short and it was changed to a light brown color. I grew a few inches taller, and more around my middle. My eyes turned green, and I had prominent freckles. Before I knew it, I was staring at a women, maybe twenty or so, who bore no resemblance to me. The reflection moved when I moved, blinked when I blinked. If a disguise like this could become permanent,
Ansel would never find me.
Looking down at myself, I found that I did not match the reflection. I appeared the same as when I had entered the room. But the figure in the mirror wore dapper clothes and had a very different build. Held in front of my face, my hands looked normal, but in the mirror they were obviously older. Evidently the illusion only tricked my eyes in the mirror.
I went out the door and into the hall. Thick fur coated the walls, ceiling, and floor. When I closed the door, the fur completely hid it. Feeling around through the fur, I could find no doorknob. The sensation of the fur against my hands didn't feel quite right; like brushing through spider-webs. I pressed a palm against the fur. My hand sank until I felt the cool flatness of a stone wall. Swiping my other hand through the fur, I found it gave no resistance. The hairy walls were an illusion.
I picked a direction and walked down the hall until he reached a dead end. Doubling back, I followed the hall when it elbowed left, then reached a blue door, the only interruption of a furry expanse.
From the other end of the hall came a pale woman with silver hair and a jewel on her forehead. Somewhat taller than me, I supposed it could be her. Or Joe for that matter. A pudge hold man walked out a second later and I guessed it was Cole. I waved at them.
She waved back. "Is that you?" asked an unfamiliar female voice.
I realized the woman could be anyone. I didn't want a spy to trick me. How could I confirm her identity without revealing myself? "What does my name start with?" I asked.
"K." the woman asked.
"You're M?" I checked.
The old man walked over.
"C?" I asked him.
"K? M?" He asked.
She gave a nod. "You two were Sky Raiders?"
"You once rode in a flying coffin?" I said.
The woman giggled. "You sound so different."
"You too," I said.
"I sound the same to myself." Cole added.
"Me too," Mira said. "Should we go through?"
"After you."
Mira opened the door.