Son of Khyber_ Thorn of Breland - Keith Baker [20]
Do you intend to kill Sorghan d’Deneith?
She rubbed her thumb along the hilt. She was still considering her options, and none of them were especially promising.
The Twelve are the motive force behind this mission, and they will not look kindly on the murder of one of their own.
It was the wrong thing to say. She bit back an angry response. The rat was peering up from her pouch, and this was not the time to debate the politics of the Citadel.
“I wish I knew more about this Sorghan,” Thorn muttered at last, as if talking to herself. “I hate killing a stranger.”
A fair question, Steel said, though his voice was cold. Let me consider it.
It was times like this that Thorn wished she knew more about Steel. She’d received the dagger after Far Passage. Steel had admitted that he’d been assigned to watch her, to make sure she was fully recovered from the incident. She knew that Steel was over a hundred years old, that he’d worked with Dark Lanterns well before the Last War, back when the Citadel served the united kingdom of Galifar. But had he ever been human? Or was he some sort of construct or a bound spirit? In moments such as this, was he drawing on personal knowledge or somehow tapping into the library of the Citadel itself?
Sorghan d’Deneith was born in Karrnath and trained at the Sentinel Tower in Karrlakton, Steel said at last, but he has spent the last five years in Breland. According to the rankings of the house, he’s the most dangerous marshal in residence. However, he has a poor recovery ratio. He prefers to kill rather than take his quarry alive. As a result, he’s usually assigned to pursue criminals already condemned to death.
So even if he was killing aberrants, it was possible he was simply executing convicted criminals. Or Fileon might be telling the truth. Sorghan could be killing innocents between his legitimate contracts, using his reputation to cover his actions.
Thorn reached down and scratched the rat’s head. It looked up, staring at her with beady eyes. “What do you think, little one?”
Your course of action is clear, Steel said. You can’t murder a Sentinel Marshal. There are only three Tarkanans in residence in the manor, and two of them likely know the location of the Son of Khyber. Eliminate two of them, and force the third to reveal his location. A swift assassination completes the assignment.
Thorn’s temper rose. She’d already considered this and dismissed it. The mission was to evaluate the threat posed by the Son of Khyber and to kill him if it became necessary. So far, there was no proof that he was a threat. The Tarkanans were involved in organized crime, but in Sharn, the same could be said of nine out of ten members of the city watch.
She tapped Steel’s pommel. Twice.
You are losing perspective, Lantern. You have a mission. Don’t forget where your loyalties lie.
Thorn raised her thumb to tap the hilt—
And stopped. There was an ember of anger glowing within her—anger at the dragonmarked houses. She pictured the ambassadors of the Twelve giving orders to the Citadel. She saw the fear in the people around her, the change in their expressions when they saw the mark around her eye. She thought of Fileon, a man who’d sworn his life to Breland only to be sent to his death. And she made up her mind. Perhaps she could still find a way to spare the life of this murderous marshal. If not, it was the Twelve who had set this wheel in motion. Let them bear the price. She reached into her belt pouch and stroked the rat’s head.
“Very well, my friend. Let’s see what destiny has in store for us.”
Steel’s thoughts pierced her mind. Do you intend to kill Sorghan d’Deneith?
Thorn slid the dagger all the way into its sheath and continued down the street.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Dragon Towers
Lharvion 20, 999 YK
Black Blade ale,” Thorn said, licking