“Ukh!” she gave a strangled cry as they lifted her from her feet. The stink of sweat and tang of bronze burned her nostrils. The grip tightened, cutting off her air.

“I’ve caught a rat in the kitchen,” a coarse voice blew its hot, sour breath into her ear. “That’s no good. Vermin has no business around the master’s food.”

Panic surged through her as she kicked the air and stabbed backward with her dagger.

Cring! Cring!

It clattered dully on her assailant’s armour, scraping across the lamellar’s plates. A rough hand caught her wrist in an expert grip of stone, squeezing and bending it back.

She yelped.

The knife fell uselessly to the earth.

“Make it easy for me,” he whispered. “Die quick.”

She screeched into his arm.

“What’s happening?” Kyembe’s muffled voice demanded.

Her head began to spin. Her lungs stung. Air refused to pass his hold. She bit into the meat of his forearm.

A groan of pain.

His hand let go of her wrist.

She reached down for-

Bang!

He drove his fist into her temple. Agony exploded from her skull and ripped through her whole body. Her bones felt like they were breaking apart and coming back together.

Bang!

A second blow.

She went limp.

“Little maggot,” he cursed, touching the bite. “You took a chunk out of my-” he paused, looking at her closely. Then he recoiled. “What!? What in all the hells are-”

Shhhhnk.

Wurhi slipped the curved dagger from his belt and drove it up and back.

It sank deep into his throat.

“Hugruk!” he choked as she twisted the knife. Hot liquid sprayed over her in the dark. Her nose filled with the iron tang of blood. His grip loosened.

She wriggled free, then drove the knife into him again.

Then again.

She rabidly stabbed him through the gaps in his armour until he finally crumpled to the earth with the gurgle of a drowning man. He twitched, then lay still.

Wurhi doubled over, desperately trying to regain her breath with her hands planted on her knees. Her vision swam and her chest hurt, but sweet, sweet air returned.

“Wurhi! Wurhi! What’s happening? Wurhi! Damn all demons, I’m coming in!”

“Wait!” she wheezed, dragging herself to the door.

No sooner had she lifted the bar did Kyembe quickly rush inside, snatch it from her and rebar it. He let out a sigh. “They had almost found me. What happened to y-By the stars!” his eyes widened at the sight of her covered in blood and the body sprawled on the floor.

“Keep it down! Down!” she hissed.

His jaw clamped shut, and when he spoke again it was much quieter. “By the stars, that was a big man. Are you hurt?”

She tried to shake away her dizziness. “He thumped me in the head.”

He hissed in alarm, then crouched beside her. “Head wounds are bad. I am going to touch you now, okay?”

“Wait, why?” she tried to pull back, but the ground lurched beneath her.

“I want to do something that will help you,” he looked at her anxiously. “It would be better to do it soon.”

“…fine.”

Carefully, he pressed his palms to the sides of her head and closed his eyes. A dim light seemed to glow from the corners of her vision, and a tingling from his delicate hands seeped into her skin. It spread out before sinking deeper into the flesh and bones, immediately settling the ringing in her skull. Her pain shrivelled until it disappeared, and even her built up fatigue was chased away as newfound energy filled her.

When he finally removed his hands, she blinked in surprise. “Thanks,” she murmured. “What did you do?”

“Guided some of the eldritch energies I command into your body. It healed your wounds and revitalized you,” he looked into her eyes carefully from different angles.

“And what about that barking outside?”

“An old illusionist’s trick. Capture a sound you have heard and then release its echo somewhere else. The trick does not work as well on the strong minded, especially if they have reason to believe it false. Even the most dull witted would likely have discovered the ruse, though, once they found no dog present to make the noise. It has its limits.”

She frowned. “Why didn’t you say you could do these things before? We could’ve planned for them.”

“Ah,” he smiled ruefully. “My apologies, I am more used to being alone. But in my defence,” he looked at her pointedly. “I doubt you have revealed all your secrets.”

Wurhi met his levelled gaze, swallowing a surge of nerves. Did he already know? Before she could pursue it, he’d returned his attention to the recumbent form below. “I will drag him into the pantry before we move on. Please watch the hall to see if it is clear.”

She looked to the body, gnawing her lip. “Alright, be quick! Quick!”

Kyembe grunted as he struggled to pull the massive man in armour toward the pantry while Wurhi peered into the darkened hall. To her relief and pleasant surprise, she found it unoccupied.

Something actually went right tonight.

For the most part, events had not been conspiring in her favour.

They were yet undiscovered, but had already put the outer guards on alert and left lingering scents behind for the dogs to find. Need drove them to an entrance they had little knowledge of, and Wurhi had nearly died here. Now, there was a body that anyone could discover.

Things were falling more out of her control and into the fickle hands of chance.

The mad demons and gods that ruled the world rarely rolled chance in her favour.

Yet, if she fled now, what would she do? The lenders of The Maw would not magically vanish. Neither would Kyembe the Spirit Killer. How would he react to the loss of his promised plunder? She did not know him, and more and more wondered just what madness had seized her to partner with the strange Sengezian. She’d heard he kept oaths, but also knew many folk of excellent reputation and absolutely vile morality. They usually kept their reputations excellent by ensuring no one lived to speak of their ill deeds.

Was this man like that?

In truth, her trust in him was vanishing. He’d helped her and was polite enough, but what other magics had he hidden safely behind that silver tongue? Would she find his sword in her belly if she suggested leaving empty handed? It’d happened to other thieves. He’d even admitted to gutting a man and laughed while he did.

And who was to say what he would do if they met success? Perhaps half a share would be suddenly too little, and she’d find herself as nothing more than ash and boiled meat floating in the River of Scales. Just like the crocodile.

If Kashta, her partner of over five years could betray her so easily, then why couldn’t he?

“It is done,” he said suddenly from very close.

She suppressed a yelp. How did he keep managing to sneak up on her like that?

“You look nervous,” he frowned. “Do not worry. Things still go in our favour, and if they do not, we will make our own luck.”

His words were too easy, voice too calm and smile just a little too wide. His teeth and eyes stood out in the dark, reminding her of some predator stalking from an alleyway.

She pulled away a little.

His smile lessened.

“Where do we go now?” he asked.

She tried to drag her thoughts away from considering knifing him before he could get her. “I’m not sure,” she admitted. “I paid my source to give us a route, but only from the servant’s entrance.” She gave a flinty look toward the unlit hall. “I have no idea where this leads.”

“Hrm,” unnervingly, he dropped his hand to the hilt of his sword. “Then I shall take on the lead for now. When you think you have found something that you know about, just speak. Okay?”

Wurhi nodded. “Mrm.”

Kyembe stepped into the hall and she quietly followed his back.

She wondered if she would have to drive a dagger into that back before long.