Silver Silence

Rumor Has it this Knife Cuts Bone

Siles plucked four people from Amery's rebellion when he returned to the town. The first two were Sonia and Gillian, of course, since Sonia had appeared to lead the group while Gillian had stood by her side. The others' roles were more ambiguous, but both of them had stood in stark, serious contrast with the other giddy spectators at Sonia's attempted interrogation.

Gillian sat before him, her wrists tied with ropes much like his had been only two days before. She looked disappointed, just like her mother had when she had seen the supposed bookbinder take her daughter away. Siles had already made a mental promise to himself not to let anything happen to her. She was much nicer than most rebels he had met, as was her mother. She would see the light of day again.

He couldn't say the same for the other three. Sonia was one of the rudest people he had ever met, as was the girl with soot on her face. The third was a man who he had already recognized as the former servant Brackson, though he didn't mention this aloud. People would talk if they knew that he paid attention to the castle servants. None of the magicians had noticed Brackson's disappearance, after all.

"Gillian is your name, correct?" Siles asked the girl.

She panicked, opening and shutting her mouth like a fish gasping at the air. She didn't manage to produce any sound.

Siles sighed. "Knowing your name won't help me hurt you or your little group, I would just like to know that I've got it right."

She finally shut her mouth completely and squinted at him, but nodded.

"Right. So Gillian, here's the deal. If you answer my questions honestly, you have a good chance of getting out of here alive and without any broken limbs. Do you understand?"

She nodded.

"Good. Now, how did your group find out about my..." Siles didn't know how to phrase his question without revealing that he truly did sympathize with the peasants' plight. He cleared his throat. "What led you to decide that I was the weak point in the current administration?"

It was really the only question he had. The moment Siles had arrested Brackson in Amery, he had realized exactly how Sonia had snuck through the castle to meet him. As a former servant, Brackson had to know the castle's every nook and cranny. He had probably told Sonia everything he knew.

Gillian stared at the floor, finding her voice for the first time. "I can't... I won't answer that. I'm sorry."

Siles looked back at the torture implements on the wall behind him. Most of them were unfamiliar to him, though he was sure the castle's actual torture specialist knew each of them intimately. Siles just couldn't risk allowing anyone else to hear what the rebels might know.

He wasn't going to torture Gillian; he had only started with her because he had hoped that she would give in from fear alone. He called out to the guard in the hall, "Replace this one with the brown-haired one."

"The wavy brown hair one or the straight brown hair one?" the guard asked as he led Gillian from the room.

"Wavy brown hair."

Sonia didn't look disappointed like her companion had; she looked pissed. Siles smiled as he plucked a knife from one of the shelves. He wouldn't mind this at all. "Miss Sonia. Your friend wouldn't talk, so I'm already in the mood for some bloodshed. I'll give you one chance to answer my question, and if you don't answer I'm going to cut off one of your fingers. Got it?"

Sonia glared back at him.

"Wonderful." Siles twirled the blade. "Here's your question. Of all of the magicians in the royal city, how did your little group decide to ask me for help?"