“Yeah, they’re going to hang us, Riki.”
“Don’t we get us a trial, Dhamon?” Her voice wavered with fear. “Knights are supposed to be fair and chivalrous and all.”
He gave her a curt laugh and watched the Legion Knights hammer away. “Would a trial help? We did steal from the Knights in the Khur hospital, after all.”
“You stole!” she said. “You’re the one who had to steal from the hospital, Dhamon Grimwulf. I didn’t steal from that hospital. I probably didn’t even get my fair share.”
“We fought our way out of town….”
“So a few Knights got hurt,” she said. “Hurt. We was defending ourselves.”
“A few might have been killed, Riki,” Dhamon admitted.
“Self-defense, I say.”
He shrugged. “We burned down most of the town.”
“An accident. Fetch started the fire when we was all tryin’ to escape.”
Dhamon gave another laugh. “Fetch is dead, so he can’t take responsibility for it, now, can he?
Besides, I doubt the Legion of Steel would believe a kobold.” He heard her shuffle away to settle on the edge of the cot.
“I’m too young to die, Dhamon Grimwulf,” she said in a hushed voice.
“Everybody dies, Riki.”
“Everybody lies,” she shot back. “You and Mal lied to me, damn you. Made me think Mal was my friend, was a man and not some… some blue-skinned monster.”
“An ogre.”
“Monster.” She let out a breath, the air whistling between her teeth, stirring the curls that fell across her forehead. “You lied to me, lettin’ me think you loved me.”
“Maybe that wasn’t a complete lie,” he said so softly she barely heard him.
“You left me all alone in Blöten, no intention of ever comin’ back for me. All of them ugly ogres everywhere. An’ that’s not the worst of it, Dhamon. Look at what happened to my Varek—an’ all’ cause he followed you into that cavern.”
She wiped the sweat away from Varek’s face and smooth the strands of hair away from his eyes.
“And now we’re all gonna hang. ’Cause of you.”
It was an hour or longer before Dhamon heard the front door to the jail open and heavy footsteps clomp toward the cells. The approaching Legion of Steel Knight was rumpled, dirt staining his tabard and streaking his face.
“Commander Lawlor has just returned to town,” the Knight announced. The Knights who carted Dhamon and the others to this jail had been surprised to find Lawlor and several of his men missing from Wheatland. They were out on patrol, someone had mentioned, trying to track down a lead on fleeing Silvanesti elves.
“He will pass sentence on the sorry lot of you soon,” the Knight added, pivoting on his dirt-caked leather heels and striding from the prison.
“We’re all going to hang,” Dhamon said.
* * * * *
It was nearly sunset before Lawlor visited the jail, after first inspecting the gallows, which seemed to be finished to his satisfaction. Dhamon watched him and his men from the window in the cell.
“Dhamon Grimwulf,” Commander Lawlor said, stroking his mustache and slowly studying Dhamon from head to toe. Lawlor was holding one of the wanted posters that bore Dhamon’s likeness.
Dhamon glowered at him.
“You must die,” the commander said calmly. “Before morning, for all your crimes against my Knighthood.”
“All of us?” This came quietly from the half-elf.
“I only have a notice on Mister Grimwulf,” the commander replied, not taking his eyes from Dhamon’s, “but I understand you are all his followers.” He waved Maldred’s poster in front of Dhamon. “Where is this man, your confederate?”
Dhamon shrugged. “I haven’t seen him for quite some time.”
Lawlor interrogated him about the hospital robbery and the burning of the Khur town, about a variety of thefts in which he had been—falsely—implicated. Lawlor asked repeatedly concerning the whereabouts of Maldred. Finally he tossed Dhamon the wanted posters and turned to Varek. The young man was sitting up on the cot, Rikali at his side, holding his hand. The half-elf was gazing intently at something on the floor, not raising her eyes to meet the Knight Commander’s.
“Varek.”
“Yes, sir.”
“I’m not sure how a respectable young man like you fell in with this pack of thieves.”
Varek made a move to answer, but Lawlor cut him off with a wave of his hand.
“I’m not sure that I want to know.” Lawlor moved closer to the cell door. “Varek, your father and I are good friends, and it would crush him to know about the company you’ve been keeping. Give me some additional information about this group, some evidence that I can use against Dhamon Grimwulf, some idea of where I can find this other man, and I’ll let you go. You need healing, young man, and if you cooperate I will gladly let you go.”
Varek shook his head.
“I don’t think you understand, son. Though I won’t see you hanged, I’ll see you languish in jail—just for consorting with this man. Give me some evidence.”
Varek’s lips formed a defiant line.
“Loyal, like your father.”
Varek remained silent for a moment, squeezing Riki’s hand.
“Everything will be all right,” he whispered to her. “We won’t be hung. We won’t even be kept in jail for very long—especially not with you being pregnant.”
“But I’m not so loyal,” she said gently, edging away from Varek and raising her face, shuffling forward, close to Commander Lawlor. “I’ve no reason to be loyal any longer to Dhamon Grimwulf. I’ll give you whatever evidence you want against him. Things nobody but me knows.”
“Riki, no!” Varek practically shouted. He tried to stand, but only toppled facedown onto the dirt-covered floor. “You don’t have to say anything on my behalf.” Varek squirmed over to the cot and began to pull himself up. “Please Riki. We’ll get out of this somehow. My father has influence.”
“I’ll tell you about every robbery Dhamon Grimwulf’s ever done, every man I’ve seen him kill. Every little dark secret in his hard dark heart. I’ll tell you all about Maldred, too, the man on that other poster you had.” Her fingers moved in the direction of the second parchment on the floor.
“See that blue-skinned monster over there? Believe it or not, that’s Maldred.”
“Riki…” Varek was still pleading.
“He’s an ogre mage, able to use magic to make himself look like a big handsome man. Probably likes bein’ a human better’n his ugly, monstrous self.”
Lawlor smiled grimly as Rikali prattled on, as Varek’s protests finally died, as Dhamon stared in disbelief.
“An’ that beastie,” she concluded, nodding her head toward Ragh, who was clearly unconscious.
“He’s the only one who ain’t done nothin’ wrong. Sure he’s a beastie, but he don’t deserve to be hanged. Not like Dhamon an’ Maldred.”
Lawlor glanced at the draconian. “If the creature comes to, we’ll question him. I cannot let him go, though. He’s a draconian. My men will make quick, merciful work of him.”
Riki returned to Varek’s side with a defiant expression. “Varek and me are married, Commander Lawlor, an’ we’re gonna have us a baby.” She smoothed the tunic over her stomach. “An’ I don’t want my baby born in no jail.”
“He won’t be,” Lawlor reassured her.
“And I don’t want my husband spending any more time in this awful, awful place.”