Black Blood

-B2- Chapter 6

The taste does not leave much to be desired either. As messy as it all may look here, the spices they use are of good quality.

I smile and empty my plate in silence. Novak and I see each other so much that we regularly run out of things to say. That is not a bad thing in moments of silence. The silence has become a place where we can both put our thoughts in order. The journeys we make are long and often cause overstimulation. Those moments of silence are more than welcome. That silence also gives me the peace to think about what we have to do tonight, the killing of Liam Dumburt.

The man has a varied life. A wife called Kira Dumburt, two children aged eight and ten, and a well-paid job as a teacher of spells. However, he also has several mistresses, illegal trade in rum and whisky, and has a killing to his name.
If I have learned anything in the past few months, it is that a perfect exterior does not mean a perfect interior. One keeps many secrets that make perfection quickly disappear. Does that make my actions justified? Certainly not. Is it something to keep in mind? It certainly does.

Dumburt is currently in Runcast to visit one of his many mistresses in the brothel. This means that tonight I am expected in a brothel, a place I prefer to avoid.

Although my relationship with sex has improved many times, a brothel is still a place I like to stay away from. I don't like the idea that a woman's body is for sale. I know how it feels to be sold and I don't wish that on anyone.

Reluctant to leave, I take the last bite of my food and push the plate to the middle of the table. As soon as Novak has finished his food and beer, we get up, pack our things and make our way to the sleeping quarters.

Here too, we have found our routine after all these months. Most deaths occur at night and that requires appropriate clothing. I could walk around in a red dress, but that still stands out more than a black one.

As soon as we enter the old, dusty, and not very clean room, Novak starts stripping off his outerwear. He exchanges his red blouse for a black one and covers it all up with a long black coat. The only thing I change about my appearance is a black coat. The long black fabric and hood reveal little to the eye.

When we first started, we thought about covering our faces, but we quickly concluded that this would only lead to more prying eyes. Walking into a tavern or brothel wearing a mask gets more attention than a normal black dress. I am being sought after anyway, there is not much to hide in that respect.

'The brothel I suspect is three streets away,' Novak says while spreading the knives over his body. I nod, grab my last things and walk towards the door.

'Let's pay Dumburt a visit then,' I say with a small grin. Novak walks in my direction with the same grin and presses a quick kiss on my lips.

'After you, madam.' With those words, I walk out of the room with a smile, down the corridor, through the tavern, and out the front door.

As soon as my face touches the cool air outside again, the stench hits me again. The crowds have not diminished with the fall of the sun, on the contrary. There are dozens of drunk people walking through the narrow street. There is shouting, and laughing and there are people who have drunk so much that they are now soiling the street with their stomach contents.

I sigh and pull the hood over my head and start pushing myself through the drunken people. The amount of drunk people is one I have not seen before. Nobody here seems to care about the possible effects of alcohol. I begin to understand what Novak meant by the city of the party. On every street corner, people stand in groups, pouring bottles of liquor as if they were water. Here and there, fire baskets are burning in the middle of the street. As soon as night falls, people live life to the full, that much is clear.

'This is it,' Novak pulls me out of my observation. I stop a few metres in front of a door. We are in a new narrow street. This street seems to be a little less crowded and inhabited. There are only a few oil lamps lighting the way.

A few metres in front of us a door is open. In front of the door stands a woman who does not seem to see the need to cover herself properly. Her breasts are practically hanging out of her dress and the high slit in her skirt does not leave much to the imagination either. The men walking by look at the woman with astonishment. The woman doesn't seem to care, on the contrary, she beckons them to her and lures them through the door.

I look at Novak somewhat uncomfortably and gather the courage to step inside.'Have you been to a brothel before?' I ask softly. Novak nods. That wasn't the answer I was hoping to get, but it doesn't surprise me either.

'Don't think too much about it. It's not too bad,' he says with a small smile and then starts walking towards the woman. Sometimes we can have a difference of opinion, this is one of those moments.

Sighing, I start walking behind him. The woman's eye soon falls on Novak and a smile plays on her lipstick-covered lips.

'Good evening my lord,' she greets him and extends her hand to him. I watch with open eyebrows as Novak takes her hand and places a kiss on it.

'Good evening. I don't think it's a problem for me and my fair lady to have a look inside,' he says, looking from the woman to me. I give a made smile at the woman as I try to hide my discomfort.

'Certainly not, please, go in,' the woman says pointing with her hand. Novak nods his head, lets go of her hand, and puts his hand in my direction.

With mixed feelings, I take his hand and let myself be led into the brothel. The sounds that fly around my ears as soon as I step inside are a totally new experience. I had expected to hear a lot of moaning, but the laughter and chatter take full force.

We end up in an open space full of benches, tables, and chairs. Candles are burning in abundance, on every bench or chair there seems to be a brightly coloured rug and the burning fireplaces make it even warmer than it already is. All the women walking around here are wearing the same non-covering dress as the woman at the door.

Nobody pays any attention to our visit, except for one woman. A slightly older woman than most of the people walking around here comes towards us. The dress she is wearing also covers more than the average dress in this room.

'Good evening, how can I be of service to you?'

'Good evening madam, we are looking for Elenor,' Novak answers. Elenor, Dumburt's steady mistress.

'Fantastic. Elenor is busy at the moment. Until she is ready you can take a seat and the other ladies will certainly keep you company,' she says with a smile.

'We are informed. A good friend we would like to surprise is currently a guest.' The woman immediately seems to understand what Novak means and gets a wide grin on her lips.

'Aah. Of course, that changes things. You can find the room on the third floor on the right,' the woman replies while pointing with her hand in the direction of a staircase.

'Thank you,' Novak says, nodding his head and slowly pulling me along towards the stairs. I try to keep my gaze on the floor as much as possible. The half-naked women and the lusty men make me extremely uncomfortable. Fortunately, Novak is the one who pulls me up the creaking wooden stairs.

The further we climb the stairs, the more the noise from below fades into the background. The first corridor we walk through is filled with three doors and a kissing couple undressing each other. I am glad that the most intimate part happens behind closed doors but that joy does not last long.

As soon as we reach the second floor, a man and a woman are standing against the wall doing things I would rather not have seen. I walk past them at a fast pace and am glad when we reach the third floor.