The Star of Morcyth_ Book Five of the Morcyth Saga - Brian S. Pratt [129]
Those on the outside start pounding on the door in an attempt to force it open.
The confidence Red felt at the outset is rapidly diminishing when his cohorts begin dropping like flies and the man he’s facing with the two knives counters every attack he throws at him.
As the last of the other thugs falls, James asks Jiron, “Need any help?”
Laughing, Jiron replies, “Not with this.” Having taken Red’s measure, he launches a series of attacks. Red tries to defend himself but winds up leaving himself open and one of Jiron’s knives thrusts between two ribs and pierces his heart.
Staggering backward, Red falls to the ground and the light fades from his eyes as Jiron puts his foot against his chest and removes his knife.
Wiping his blade clean on the dead man’s shirt, he turns to find James over by the strong box in the corner. “What are you doing?” he asks. “We’ve got to get out of here!”
Lifting the lid, James reaches in and removes a bulging sack. After a quick glance within it, he tosses it to Jiron. “I was willing to be content with simply retrieving our possessions,” he says. Removing another pouch, he puts it into his shirt and says, “But after this, I’m not.” Tuning to Jiron he adds, “Consider this recompense for ‘pain and suffering’.”
The pounding upon the door continues and Jiron moves to the door leading into the main section of the tavern and glances out. Slamming the door shut, he presses his shoulder against it just as someone slams into it from the other side. “Not this way,” he says. “What do you plan to do?”
Coming over to the door Jiron is holding, he lays his hand against it and applies a holding spell. When he’s sure it is set properly, he has Jiron move away and the door continues to hold against the incessant beating from the other side.
The lantern one of the thugs had upon entering the office lies on the floor tipped to one side. James moves over and grabs it. Glancing to the ceiling, he gets an idea.
Climbing up onto the desk he reaches up and is able to touch the ceiling. With his hand pressed against the ceiling, he casts a spell and then gets down from the desk quickly. “Move back,” he warns Jiron who joins him in moving to the other side of the room. After a couple seconds the section of the ceiling he had touched suddenly explodes outward leaving a jagged hole roughly two foot in diameter.
“That’s not big enough for us to get through,” observes Jiron.
“Don’t be dense,” says James as he returns to the desk. Brushing aside the debris from the explosion he clears a spot for him to again stand upon the desk. Reaching up to the hole he takes hold of one of the blasted boards and pulls. With a creak and then a crack, the board breaks off, widening the hole.
Glancing back to Jiron he gives him a grin as he repeats the process again. When the hole is wide enough, he motions for Jiron to precede him through.
Climbing onto the desk, Jiron jumps up and manages to wriggle through the opening into the crawlspace above. Reaching down his hand, he says, “Take my hand.”
“Just a moment,” James says as he gets down from the desk. He glances over from one door to the other and can see they’re not about to last much longer. The doors themselves are surviving the impacts well but the walls around them are beginning to show signs of cracking. Taking the lantern he smashes it into the floor, the oil within catches fire as the flame begins to burn the pool of oil. He then removes papers and some of the debris from the desk and piles them on top of the flame.
As he climbs back onto the desk, the fire begins to burn fiercely and is starting to spread. “Do you think that was a good idea?” asks Jiron as he starts to choke from the smoke moving through the hole in the ceiling. It’s acting like a chimney and is funneling all the smoke right past them.
“Maybe not,” admits James as he takes Jiron’s hand and makes his way up into the crawlspace.
The crawlspace