Amber and Iron - Margaret Weis [53]
Mina was almost level with Caele when she saw his hand twitch beneath his sleeve.
He has a knife there. He’s going to use that, not his magic. Of course, he takes pleasure in killing with his hands …
She tensed, ready to strike, then the Tower shook from bottom to top, knocking her off-balance, so that she lurched into Caele and they both went down onto the floor in a heap.
The compact dwarf was less easy to topple. The shaking of the floor and walls and ceiling sent him staggering, but he maintained his balance.
“What the—” Basalt gasped.
“Nuitari!” A voice yelled, as yet another blow smote the Tower. “Come out of there, do you hear me? Come out and face me!”
“Chemosh!” cried Caele, floundering underneath Mina, who had fallen on top of him.
“No, that’s a woman’s voice!” Basalt said, his face pale and his eyes wide. “Zeboim! She’s found the Tower.” He groaned. “What a time for the Master to be gone!”
“You have to talk to her!” Caele gasped, adding with a snarl and a shove, “Get off me, you clumsy bitch!”
Though Mina was slender, she outweighed the scrawny half-elf, and she was impeding his attempts to try to stand. Her legs tangled with his; her feet tripped him. She jabbed him with an elbow and stuck her knee in his gut.
He was just about to throttle her when another blow smote the Tower and this time even the dwarf went down. They could hear the sound of breaking glass. Wooden beams groaned beneath the strain.
Caele realized somewhat belatedly this would be an ideal time to slay Mina, and he reached up his sleeve for his knife.
It wasn’t there.
He thought at first he’d dropped it, then, looking up, Caele found it.
Mina stood over him, his knife in her hand.
Leaning down, she pressed the point of the blade against his throat.
“If your lips so much as twitch, I’ll slit you from ear to ear,” she said. “The same goes for you, dwarf. If you utter a single word of magic, your partner dies.”
Seeing by Basalt’s irresolute expression that perhaps he might be willing to risk such a tragic loss, Mina called out, “My Lord Chemosh, I pray you, look after these two while I go about your business.”
Two stone sarcophagi appeared in the room. On one sarcophagus was a carved figure of Basalt, his eyes closed, his hands folded across his chest. The other sarcophagus bore a similar representation of Caele.
“Get in,” said Mina, speaking to Basalt.
He looked at the sarcophagus and shook his hooded head.
Caele twitched just then, and she dug the knifepoint in a little deeper. A sliver of red slid down the half-elf’s neck. He held still after that.
“I said, get in,” said Mina.
Seeing the dwarf was not moving, she raised her voice, “My lord—”
Basalt hurriedly climbed inside the sarcophagus. A slab of stone dropped down over the coffin, sealing the dwarf inside.
“You next,” she said to Caele. She shifted the blade from his throat to his ribs and walked him over to the other sarcophagus. When he hesitated, she sliced open enough flesh to persuade him to obey.
He hastily climbed inside, and a stone slab dropped down on him.
“Are they dead, my lord?” Mina asked.
“No,” Chemosh replied, his voice sounding above the roar of the Sea Goddess’s rage. “Not yet. They have air enough to breathe for a short time, if they don’t panic and use up all their air screaming.”
The muffled howls that had been emanating from the half-elf’s coffin ceased abruptly.
“Now, be on your way,” he told her.
“What about Zeboim?”
“She won’t bother you. Strangely enough, she’s here to rescue you.”
Another quake rocked the Tower, causing Mina to stagger.
“Nuitari?”
“Family issues are going to occupy a considerable amount of time for the Moon-Faced One. He’s trying to work things out with his cousins. On his return, he will find that he has considerable explaining to do to his sister. For now, the Tower of the Blood Sea is all yours, Mina. You are alone in it.”
“Except for the guardian. I need a weapon, my lord.”
“No, you won’t, Mina,” returned Chemosh.