Walk by the Shadows

XI. Loud and Clear

Goldenglow Estate was built on top of three islands connected by wooden bridges and situated in the middle of Lake Honrich. A stone bridge ending at a locked gate provided the only access. As a sprawling two-story manor, the entire place was heavily barricaded and patrolled by mercenaries.

From where Macayla stood under a tree studying the place, she could just see the thatched roofs of six apiaries. She planned to wait for nightfall before swimming over and locating the entrance to the sewers. With about an hour left of light, she watched for patterns. Fortunately, where Vex had said the sewer hatch was didn't have a mercenary guarding close by. Their mistake.

Torches began to be lit as the evening slowly blended into the night. Macayla pushed off of the tree to walk to the water's edge. With the night air still warm, Macayla wouldn't freeze when she emerged soaked from the lake.

She took a steadying breath before stepping into the lake and waded deeper. She had expected the water to be cold, but when it lapped at her waist, she barely registered the frigidness. Odd that she couldn't really feel it, but convenient for her.

She submerged up to her chest when the lakebed dropped off underfoot. Now she pushed off of her last footing and swam as quietly as she could toward Goldenglow's lights. Macayla kept her head above water so she could see the approach of a mercenary and duck under before he saw her, if need be. But she never had to dive as she swam to the northwestern side of the island.

Her foot dragged across land as the lakebed rose from the beaching island. Macayla walked out of the water but crouched down under the cover of a small ledge to steady her breathing. Her clothes had that mustiness of lake water; she couldn't do anything to mask it, though. Once she recovered her breath, she stayed hunched over in case a mercenary happened to look her way as she walked, searching for the sewer hatch.

She found it close to a built barricade but in its shadow, so it had been overlooked. After listening for any footsteps nearby, Macayla lifted the top. Just like the Ratway, the sourness of the sewers hit her. Now accustomed to the odor, she stepped down onto the first ladder rung without waiting long. She pulled the top shut above her as she descended.

Reaching the bottom, she pulled out her bow in preparation of skeevers. The tunnels were surprisingly well lit. She came upon many skeevers, groups of them where she had to thin them out in intervals as she hid so they wouldn't overwhelm her. It didn't take her long to find the ladder leading up to the exit.

She lifted the top just enough to look around. Seeing no mercenaries close by, she climbed out. Macayla emerged on the east side of the island and near a door of the manor. She went to the door and set to unlocking it. Now combined with the dankness of the lake was the stench of the sewer. Her sneaking ability wouldn't give her away, but her smell might.

She got inside and quietly shut the door behind her. If Aringoth had paid for mercenaries to protect his property, it only made sense they would be inside, too. So, Macayla tiptoed around as she searched for a hatch or steps that looked to lead to a basement and to listen for voices or sounds of movement.

Hearing the masculine rumblings of men talking ahead slowed Macayla's creeping through the estate. She cautiously approached where she heard them talking. Behind a bookshelf were two men sitting at a table. An open doorway to the dining room sat a few feet to her left.

One man sniffed. "Do you smell that? It stinks!"

"Are you sure you're not smelling yourself?" the other joked.

"Shut up!"

As they argued, Macayla snuck toward the dining room. There wasn't anyone watching it, so she hurriedly passed through it to another open doorway. She checked the hallway it opened on: stairs leading up to the second floor were on her left and to her right was an iron gate and another hallway leading back to the two mercenaries. She got as close as she dared not to be seen by the men still arguing to see steps leading down out of sight.