Night Shade

Ending of things

As I near the end of the parchment I realize that I should have condensed more. It is now that I must put an end to the suspense that I have been building. Vic and I went back to the constables station, at some point Vic had cancelled his judgments for the day and it felt funny that I had not noticed him doing it. The captain of the constables kept telling the High Magestrate to let him put him in a safe house where no assassin could possibly get to him but he refused every time. Which I thought was very funny and had to keep myself from laughing about it.

As we left the station I noticed that none of them were following us. Our constant companions were no longer with us. We got into the carriage and I kept a closer watch on the outside but they did not reappear.

“Your Honor?” I asked nicely. He only turned his head a little in response. “Did you have the guards withdrawn from you for the day?”

For a couple of seconds he did not answer, then he said in a quiet voice. “I suggested to the captain that they be removed. It is too costly for their budget when they could be doing something more productive. Plus if I were to be killed it would reflect badly on them and they would feel all the guilt. Besides that, I have you to protect me from anything that gets too close, right?” He did not wait for an answer but kept talking. “They were more of a deterrent than actual protection. I have an item for that. They will keep an assassin guessing if he now doesn’t see them around when he knows that they are normally with me all the time, don’t you think?”

The questions were rhetorical but I would not have been able to answer it anyway. I was still stuck on the statement that he had an item that he implied protected him. If it was a personal protection device than I was up against with enough magic in it to keep me from wanting to harm the magistrate than it was not any failing of mine. I was flooded with relief at this thought. All I had to do now was take advantage of this knowledge and exploit it to my benefit.

For lack of anything better to say I asked him a question. “Did you find out who put the contract out for your life?” The High magistrate looked at me as if I had asked the last question he had ever expected to hear.

“You remember that?” He asked, clearly surprised.

I saw no reason to lie. “I do, I don’t remember anything that was said or who we met but I know you talked to someone at the Roost.”

He went a little wide eyed at my statement and clearly he was thinking quickly. After a few moments he nodded to himself that it was okay that I could recall the meeting. The nod then turned into a shake of his head as he said. “I did not find out exactly but I have a good idea and I found out that an old friend of mine vowed to avenge me if they succeed.”

‘Aw shit!’ I thought to myself. I felt myself pale as it occurred to me who he might mean. I really hoped that it meant the person who took out the contract and not the killer herself because that would put a really bad spin on this job. Once again I needed a little time to think. Never have I had a job that made me rethink my plans so many times before, it was beginning to bother me.

It became obvious to me that we were no longer on a main road but on a back street that is usually not traveled by carriage. I looked out but could not mark our location. We stopped and Vic motioned for me to exit. I gave him a look that should have screamed concern, if I did it right, but got out anyway. The high magistrate followed me.

Merrick and his partner the Half-Elf met us inside the backdoor of whatever building we entered. “Still have your bodyguard I smell.” The chief Investigator said breathing deeply in exaggeration in my direction. The tone was light and there was a small curl in his lips that I felt one beginning on mine as well. But there was something in the look of the Half-Elf that made me weary.