‘We continue,’ I said.
Callimar nodded, but it took a moment until the others would follow.
‘Where do you think he’ll be?’ Callimar snapped.
‘He could be anywhere,’ I replied. ‘The temple, a room of contemplation, a war room – he might not even be here at all.’
‘He will be,’ Callimar said. ‘Someone like Licintius won’t be on the front line – he’ll be skulking here, biding his time. He’s probably too shocked to do anything.’
The residence was practically empty. What should have been a bustling place of servants, administrators, clerics, priests and traders seemed eerily silent. Voices echoed down the corridor and we would instantly look for an alcove to hide in. No lanterns had been lit and so Optryx remained in utter darkness.
We checked the various bedrooms and then those meeting rooms where I had conversed with Licintius. There was a small amount of activity in the kitchens, but when I noted several crates being carried down the corridor it occurred to me.
‘He’s planning to flee,’ I whispered.
‘Coward,’ Leana replied.
‘We’ll stop him,’ Callimar said. ‘Don’t forget, the rivers are blockaded out to sea, so he won’t get that far.’
We continued with even more urgency, working our way deeper into the heart of the royal residence.
A cluster of soldiers spotted us in the corridor: we tried to get out of sight but they sprinted after us, their armour clamouring down the passage.
‘We’ll keep them back,’ Callimar said. ‘You go on. We’ll catch up.’
I didn’t need telling twice. Callimar and his men formed a line, each taking a fighting stance, waiting for the king’s soldiers. Upon hearing their weapons starting to clash, Leana and I dashed through familiar halls that lined the way to the Temple of Trymus.
We paused as we saw the temple doors open.
Licintius.
He froze, just for a brief heartbeat, as he saw us. He dashed towards nearby doors. Two soldiers followed him out of the temple and remained to confront us; Leana slammed them both to one side, before she cut one of them across his throat, and sliced the back of the other’s knee where there was no armour.
Sprinting across the dark, ornate hall, I called for Licintius to stop, but he continued to open the opposite doors and went through them.
Leana then caught up with me before running ahead through the doors and into the adjacent corridor, in pursuit of the king.
I turned the corner in time to see her whip her blade low through the air, clipping Licintius’ heels.
The king collapsed face forward to the ground. Leana stood back for me to descend upon him. I arrived at his sprawling form, pressed my fingers into his throat and looked fiercely into his eyes while heaving deep breaths. Sweat poured down my face. From the look in his eye, both of us knew all I had to do was squeeze on his throat and that would be the end of it. I wanted to – for all he had done.
But no. A violent resolution might have felt satisfactory for a fleeting moment, but I represented the Sun Chamber, and followed Vispasian laws, those of a dignified culture, and I would not regress to the ways of some northern savage.
‘Get him out of the way, in there.’ Leana pointed to the nearest door. ‘It is out of sight. I will check the other guards quickly before they recover and bring attention.’
I opened the door to a side room, which turned out to be an office of some description, then threw the king across the floor, gently closed the door, and watched over him, in an angry silence, waiting for Leana to return.
A Time for Answers
Eventually Leana came in and closed the door behind her. ‘Both now dead. I hid the bodies in the temple.’
She lit one of three candles on the desk, while I regarded Licintius once again. In his boots and a dark green outfit that seemed more suited for travelling than the business of state, he looked like a man who had other plans tonight. I reached down to grab his hair, pulled him up onto his feet and shoved him back into one of the fine leather chairs.
The tip of my sword touched his throat. ‘We have your sister, Lacanta, alive and outside the city walls.’
‘Oh spare me any lectures.’ Blood trickled down his grazed cheek from where he had fallen. ‘I heard from your messengers, and I cannot exactly miss the army that is currently trying to gain access to my city.’
‘It’s only a matter of time before they get in. The gates will be opened one way or another and, very soon, they’ll march Lacanta back along the roads chanting that she’s alive and that you, Licintius, deceived the people of Tryum. Your subjects will soon learn to despise you.’
‘So she’s alive,’ he said, showing more calm and control. ‘That should be a time for rejoicing, surely?’
Smiling at his audacity, I said, ‘She’s admitted everything, Licintius, so there really is no point pretending otherwise. You’ll just make yourself look even more foolish.’
He grunted a laugh.
‘You really had me running about this city, didn’t you.’
‘I would have had you killed right at the start if I’d known how annoying you would become. The Sun Legion have come to my door anyway, so what does it matter now?’
‘Every move I made while still alive contributed to your deception, didn’t it?’
Licintius shrugged, seemingly oblivious to his situation.
‘A man who sleeps with his own sister. The gods would be appalled.’
He glared at me. Once I would have been nervous at such a stare, but not now. ‘When you spoke with Lacanta, did she mention a certain Drakenfeld senior?’
‘She did. I’ve already brought up the matter with my superiors. If the subject is aired, then so be it. It is better to have such things out in the open than burning into my guilty conscience for the rest of my life.’
‘What a sanctimonious bastard you are. How noble of you. How moral,’ Licintius spat. ‘What now?’
‘We wait it out,’ I replied. ‘The gates will open soon. The soldiers from the Sun Legion will do their business. My superiors will take over the reins. I can finally get some sleep.’
‘What about me? What will happen to me?’
‘You’ll be put before the men and women of the Senate, where the evidence will be presented. It will be up to your senators to show mercy or not.’
I explained what was known and the process of how his crimes had been exposed. In the end it couldn’t be helped: I had to ask about Titiana.
‘Who?’ he asked.
I described her in more detail, every word of it almost sticking in my throat. ‘I know that she was working for you.’
‘Titiana…’ Licintius said. ‘Oh I bet you thought she loved you? How sweet of you. Yes, I wanted someone who knew you, ideally someone who could get close to you, but to find someone like her, skilled in the arts of subterfuge – that was fortunate. Senator Veron talks so much it was easy enough to find a place to arrange a chance encounter. Your history together was perfect. She loathed you at first, but then tolerated you, so I understand. The moment she told me all I needed to know… Well, one must eliminate all trails. I suppose it is only fair to let you know she never actually loved you, Drakenfeld. A man needs to know such things.’
I said nothing, simply staring at him, analysing every minute alteration in his expression to see if he might have been lying.
‘What a sentimental young fool you really are.’
Leana placed her hand on my shoulder while I saw Titiana’s hanging body in my mind once again. I considered striking Licintius down, or at least smacking the hilt of my sword across his forehead.