Lora of Two Worlds

Cedric Salt had been half-joking about Odenheim owing him a favor when a voice behind him cut in: ”No need.”

It was Lyle, leading Felix and a squad of serjeants.

Zane Cole stepped forward, hand to his breast, and bowed: ”Lord Salt, a maid has run off from the Count of Odenheim’s house after stealing from her mistress. She was seen coming into your establishment. The Sheriff himself is here to arrest her. If you would step aside, search!”

He waved his hand, and a dozen serjeants ran into the The Gilded Lily. The tavern’s furnishings were fine but spare, they swept through it in short order. No sign of Aprille.

”I saw them bringing a woman down the stairs. Then they sent the Countess to distract my lady outside, I couldn’t follow. But the gown, that was Aprille.” Shawn had been fighting one against ten, pulled both ways till his head spun. Now he glared at Theodore Venn with pure hate.

”Zane, again!”

As the serjeants scrambled around once more, Theodore Venn was sneering to himself:

Idiots. If you could find her that easy, House Salt would have gone under years ago. The Sheriff of Lohenheim, all the girls swoon over him, and this is what passes for a mind.

This Odenheim girl, she didn’t look like she remembered anything. That servant must have been spinning lies, trying to con her way out with a little cash.

He thought it through, and his nerve came back. Strutting forward, he announced:

”Sheriff Fairfax, truly, a father to his people... Well, the night’s revels are done. Lord Salt, it’s late, and we should be on our way. Until we meet again.”

”Not so fast. Everyone, sit a while longer and have another drink. We’re finding this runaway tonight, not just in this quarter, but every ward that borders it.”

Roland spoke slowly, unhurried.

The patrons in the great hall burst into murmurs, all guessing what treasure House Odenheim could have lost, to warrant a spectacle on this scale.

This wasn’t about ordinary goods.

Theodore Venn’s stomach dropped. The Yorvik Liaison Office, wasn’t it in the adjoining ward? Not just Yorvik either, all three Transriver March Liaison Offices were there. He sneered:

”Captain Odenheim, Lohenheim isn’t some backwater. You can’t misuse the city garrison over one servant because of personal feelings. Does the Count know about tonight’s... activities?”

”Whether I’m breaking regulations is none of your concern. A matter this small, my father has no need to be troubled with. My Alvin is searching the adjoining ward even as we speak. Once they’ve finished with the Yorvik Liaison Office, you can go home and sleep easy.”

Roland didn’t rise to the bait. He had spent ten years living alone in Prince Jasper’s mansion in Augustburg. He had learned patience long ago. If they turned up weapons or black powder in the Yorvik office, the last laugh wouldn’t be Theodore Venn’s.

Alvin was leading men-at-arms to raid the Yorvik Liaison Office?

Lora’s mind leapt at the words:

So my brothers didn’t chase Aprille just because I did, they already had their eyes on the Yorvik office. Then... can I tell them about the Crown Granary fire?

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The problem was, the old chroniclers had been sparing with words. They never said which marcher troops, only that Lohenheim suffered terribly, the Crown’s losses were heavy, and the common folk were caught in it too.

The imperial troops had surrounded the marcher forces, and then stood there shaking. When the marchers finally broke out, the imperials opened a gap in their lines and watched them ride away.

When Lora had read that passage, it had made her blood boil. Two thousand imperial troops, afraid of five hundred marauders?

And now the ”shaking” imperial troops in the history books, those were her father and brothers’ own men.

Without thinking, she turned her head to find the youth in the wheelchair, but he was gone. He and his men had somehow slipped away.

Lora walked up to Roland and said, carefully:

”Roland, when we were following her, we saw that the maid had an accomplice. Her brother, I think, he came up from the countryside to find her. A moment ago, I saw that man run into the adjoining ward.”

Theodore Venn nearly coughed up his lungs. The words flew out before he could stop them:

”Bullshit! A dead man can’t run!”

”When I saw him, he was alive. Master Venn says he’s dead.” Lora turned to Felix. ”Sheriff, we never once said our runaway’s name. But the moment I mention her brother, Master Venn knows he’s dead...”

She looked at Theodore Venn, still smiling: ”That means Master Venn knows exactly who our runaway is. More likely he’s hiding the thief and claiming the man is dead to throw us off. Master Venn, I’ll ask you: do you dare let the sheriff search?”

If her brothers wanted a reason to hit the Yorvik Liaison Office, she would hand them one on a platter.

Even Cedric Salt was looking at her with new eyes. His brother had been right, this Lora Odenheim was fast.

Felix and the others had been ready to force their way in and search, on the pretense of chasing a fugitive. It had plenty of downsides. The worst case: they found nothing, and the Liaison Office would charge them with abuse of office.

Abuse of military authority was the one thing King Edmond IV wouldn’t tolerate. The risks tonight were enormous, the only reason they dared was Leon’s ”intelligence,” which had practically locked them onto Yorvik.

Theodore Venn wanted to slap himself across the face: You and your big mouth. That girl just dug a hole and you jumped right in.

Still, what harm could a search do?

He snorted: ”Why wouldn’t I dare? The Yorvik Liaison Office has always kept to the straight and narrow. If we’re hiding a thief, you’ll find out soon enough.”

Hearing him agree so readily, Roland frowned to himself:

Were the crates and weapons not theirs after all? I hope Leon’s turned something up on his end.

Zane Cole came out of the building with a charred scrap of cloth in his hand. He handed it to Felix: ”Found this in the kitchen hearth. Asked them why they were burning a woman’s dress, none of them had an answer.”

Lora took it and looked. It was a piece of Aprille’s gown.

”Take the kitchen drudge in for questioning!”

Left loose ends? Theodore Venn shot Cedric Salt a dark look.

Cedric was irritated, leave his men alone for three days and they botch the simplest job, but his face stayed calm. He gave Theodore a reassuring glance:

Easy. It’s a scrap of cloth. By morning they’ll have to release him.

Cedric offered no defense and made no move to block them. He bowed and saw Felix and his men out toward the quarter gate.

Alvin Odenheim had indeed brought his men-at-arms to the quarter. They had sealed the quarter entrance and surrounded the three Transriver March Liaison Offices, but they were still waiting for word from Roland and didn’t dare storm in without cause.

Theodore Venn saw this and cursed himself harder. He had already given his word, no taking it back now. On top of that, he was going to catch hell from his father.

In the deep of the night, apart from the pleasure quarter, the wards were long since still. The tramp of serjeants and men-at-arms set off dogs barking in courtyards all around.

On the roof of the Yorvik Liaison Office, three figures lay flat, making a quiet reconnaissance.

”Nothing suspicious above ground. Go tell them: check for undercrofts and hidden tunnels. I’m not going in, I’ll wait in the carriage.”

Leon finished speaking, bent low, and worked his way along the roof and over the wall.

The carriage pulled up at the quarter gate just as Roland was handing Lora up into hers. Roland climbed into Leon’s carriage, his brow knotted with worry.

”What’s wrong with your sister?”

Leon was curious, by what trick had they got Theodore Venn to personally escort them to search his own office? Though if Venn was willing to bring them, odds were they would find nothing.

”My sister says she had a dream last night.”

A dream?

”She said she dreamed the Crown Granary caught fire, then men came to loot it in the smoke, and nobody could stop them...”

Roland broke off, staring at Leon.

And both of them said it at once:

”It’s inside the Crown Granary!”