The Hunter

Chapter 7 - The Gates of Paradise

Tina scrutinized the Ghourdian in front of her, taking in both the peasant travel worn clothes and the unconfident body language that screamed at her.

Top is testing me. That has to be it. Either that or he is angry with me.

The look she gave Jonas must have betrayed her thoughts for the man straightened. “I am no nugget.”

“Sure you aren’t,” she said with a defeated sigh. “Ben has a spare coat and I have an extra sa’dka you can use. As for a com, we will have to wait for the mage.”

“Sa’dka?” Surprisingly, she thought she heard recognition in his voice.

“I don’t have time to train you in it so keep it sheathed.”

“I know how to work one, sir,” the farm boy said defensively.

“Really?” Tina mused.

“T, we are on.” Jack said from just within Lola’s apartment door.

A hesitant Chad strode forward from the richly decorated apartment dressed in threads that were usually worn by High Lord Victor. Behind him, a very defiant slave pushed passed him. Tina prepared herself mentally as the woman stormed up to her, going nose to nose.

“I will not have this!” the Lady cried. “I demand that you give me my clothes back! This is humiliating!”

When Tina’s eyes glanced over Lola’s shoulder, she saw a nervous looking Kyle closing the door.

Turning her gaze back to the Lady, Tina coldly said, “If Top says you dress up like a slave, you dress up like a slave. If he says you prance around naked, you bloody well will prance around naked. Now make like a bloody slave and keep your trap shut or by the Gods I will shut it for you. We clear?”

Taken aback by her collective threats and shocked beyond belief, Lola slowly nodded.

“And you,” she said, turning to Chad. The man went pole-axed.

“You will act a noble whether you want to or not. Her life depends on your performance,” Tina said, pointing to Lola.

Chad’s eyes followed her finger to Lola. Immediately he averted his eyes from the Lady. When he realized what he had done, he forcibly raised his eyes to the slave’s forehead.

“Sorry, my Lady,” The large man whispered.

The Lady, who had been rightfully cowed into silence, merely sniffed.

“Very Top-like of you.” Jack whispered to her through the com.

She turned to see the man leaning up against the wall like the cat who had caught the canary.

Gods I hate that man.

When he caught her glaring at him, Jack flashed her one of his boyish grins.

“Let’s get this over with,” Tina breathed.

Looking at Chad expectantly the man leapt forward, taking the lead.

The two slaves they passed in the hall didn’t look twice at Lola or Chad. Like most of Top’s insane plans, it appeared to be working. Even after working two other ‘headpiece’ jobs before, it still amazed her at how blind people were.

When they turned the corner and passed through the atrium, Tina felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand on ends and her stomach involuntarily tightened. Looking up, she saw Mike’s shadowy figure walking a parallel route with them along the rooftop. Jack would be relaying their every move to him--and more than likely talk about her.

As the small company entered the safety of the next hallway, her thoughts wondered back to the assignment. Even though she knew people were blind, Tina remembered her own ignorance before she met Top. Like a bad song, the old argument played back in her head.

Should I leave him? He’d understand…Or would he? That damned Willie. What if Top sees me as another him?

The thought of him hurting her hadn’t crossed her mind once, but the idea of another Willie out there made her start questioning that long held belief. The cutthroat had been a thorn in Top’s side ever since they had parted ways. Tina knew what she’d do if she were in Top’s shoes, which only added to growing list of excuses.

The House of Nora’s stable, a large one by Kalian standards, spanned the entire east side of the mansion. Upon entering the straw covered structure, Kyle whistled for one of the stable boys. When a boy and a girl appeared hesitantly out from one of the stables, straw covered and slightly flushed, Tina suppressed a grin. The blushing boy motioned to the girl and she darted off though a door, yelling for aide with the horses.

As six other boys and girls appeared, Tina couldn’t help feel amazed at everyone’s ignorance. They had all probably seen Chad a hundred times before and not a one of them looked at ‘Lord Talizar’ once. Even more surprising was the fact that the boys who did look at Lola in the eye didn’t recognize her and even shot her subtle leers.

Top, you smart son of a bitch, she mused to herself as the stable hands opened a carriage door for the Lord, mumbling their respects under bowed heads and averted eyes.

Tina mounted the chestnut mere that a wide-eyed blonde headed girl handed to her. She knew that her green eyes and red hair were a dead giveaway to her heritage. Being in a Kalian High Lord’s manor and in the company of soldiers only made it all the more obvious that something was about. Having Jonas with them didn’t help either. Rumors would start to fly and it would only be a matter of time before the whole city knew it… And it would all probably start from the girl who was sprinting away from her to help another white robed girl.

Motioning for Kyle to take the lead, they rode out. Halfway down the driveway, Trent and six other men from the tryouts that morning took up their positions to either side of the carriage.

“Captain,” Trent said with a salute.

“Trent.” There wasn’t much else to say. She had already spoken with them about their route. While it would have been wise not to tell them that they were escorting their Lady, Tina had told them anyway. Trust was one thing that she needed with the men that surrounded her and her paycheck.

Now that it was light out, Tina got a good view of the mansion as they passed the outer gates. Large and imposing, it took up a good portion of the large grassy lot it was built on. Like many of the other structures that surrounded it, it was built with bleached white stucco walls and supported red clay shingles that glistened in the mid spring sun. The mansion was impressive to look at, even from a half a league away. Not that she would be able to see it half a league away. The weeping willows that dotted the grounds, along with everywhere else she looked, prevented her from looking a hundred spans in any direction.

Passing the main gates of the Royal Court, they entered the Merchant’s Quarters. The afternoon traffic was bearable but it didn’t stop the nervous men around her from yelling at the crowd to move. Only five years of training stopped her from feeling the nerves. Scanning the crowds as they rode past the first intersection, she caught sight of Mike. He was riding at a slow walk, matching their pace, and was keeping his eyes intently on anyone around them.

If anyone was following them, he would know. She had long since placed her faith in the man who had once defeated the legendary Fai in a shot for shot match. Or so he claimed. At least Top believed him and he could sniff a lie a league away.

Sensing her eyes on him, he turned to her and smiled. He was the best with the bow, it was a fact. Courting women… Not so much.

When she didn’t look away, he turned back to the crowds about them but Tina heard him whisper over the com, “Do you think Top was joking about Slayers?”

He had told her what had happened back in the atrium.

“Top doesn’t know the word humor.”

She caught a ghost of a smile when he replied, “Oh, right. I forgot who I’m talking to.”

It was a tease they whispered amongst themselves, she knew. Tina was the ‘blindly loyal’ dog to Top. She told her self she wasn’t his dog, that she merely trusted his judgment.

Tina winced at the clear denial.

What am I thinking? Mike and Ben… and even Jack would ask how high if Top told them to jump. I’m just the only one woman enough to admit it behind his back.

Mike turned back to her when she didn’t reply but she turned away from him the second before his brown eyes fell on her. She caught him frown in the corner of her eye.

You missed your mark archer.

They crossed another intersection filled with merchants and visiting awestruck peasants before the caravan veered off down a minor street, leading away from the main crowds. After passing two jewelry shops they came to a large iron fence wall. Tina read the woodened sign that hung from the top of a large iron archway. The odd word ‘Sev3n’ was scripted in red ink. A gate the size of a large cart had been swung wide open and, beyond it, Tina saw a large courtyard.

Tina had never known why someone would want to name their tavern chain after the evil number. And then to have the purest number inside of it in such a way left her clueless. She had already made up her mind on Marcus Crown’s mental health. The wealthiest man in the kingdom, and perhaps the world, had yet to show his face to the public--which gave her all the more reason to think him ‘eccentric’, as her mother would say.

Thinking of her family immediately pulled her thoughts back to the mission at hand. It was one subject she had vowed herself not to think about while on the job. Only a bottle--or three--of wine would make it the right time to ponder over the mistakes in her life.

As they all filed into the courtyard, ten stable hands immerged from her right. As the last of her men entered, Tina noticed that they each had a man to take their horses. Having been only her second time in such an establishment, she was impressed by the show. Of course, the last time she had been at a Sev3n was in the wee hours of the morning, with an arrow sticking out of her back. Oddly enough, it was one of her better memories. It had been when she had met Top.

By the time she had dismounted, almost twice as many slaves appeared from the stable to take their things. Tina gave the white clad men and women around her an untrusting frown as they took her saddlebags.

“Do not fear for your belonging’s safety,” a woman’s voice of honey said from a doorway off to her left.

When Tina turned to the voice, she saw a young half Ghourdian half Kalian woman. The mixing of countrymen wasn’t as rare as it had been thirty years ago, but it was still uncommon enough to peak her interest. The long black hair and blue eyes were framed with the soft southern bone structure. It was a striking mix of blood.

Bowing her head slightly, she said, “I am Christi, the Mistress of this establishment. We have been expecting you.”

Tina immediately surveyed the courtyard suspiciously. No one had known they were coming.

Sensing her tension, Christi said, “The man you call Top informed me of your arrival and of the situation. Please.”

The Mistress motioned behind her invitingly.

Tina looked back at Chad who was just getting out of the carriage. To her annoyance, Lola was all but pushing him out.

“All is safe?” Jack asked, trying to hold both of them back in.

Ignoring him, Tina whispered over the com, “Fletch. How is it looking up there?”

She had caught Mike scaling the wall of the first jewelry store. To her amusement, Mike’s response was laced with surprise. “Ahh. Yes. Tight as an unbroken Lady. Not even a rain catcher or a skylight up here. Roof is secure. I’m heading back if you don’t need me.”

“You should stop hanging out with Jack,” she replied irritably.

“And stop winning against him?” Mike mused. “Com me if you need me.”

“Aye.” To Jack she said, “Green. You have theater. I’m going to talk to the locals.”

Jack, the smartass, said aloud, “Aye boss!”

Christi, who had been waiting patiently by the door during Tina’s silent conversations, frowned at Jack. To Tina’s surprise, the Kalian let out an involuntary whimper.

“You will keep that tongue still and your hands even stiller while you are under my roof. I do this out of respect to him so remember that,” Christi said pointedly to Jack.

The gambler, of all things, averted his eyes before mumbling, “Yes, Mistress.”

Christi continued to glare at him as if judging his sincerity before she gave him a curt nod.

What the hell did I miss? Tina asked herself in wonder.



The flagship of the Sev3ns was definitely a lot bigger than the one Tina had been in years ago. The lobby alone was a reminder that she wasn’t in the backwoods of the Kalian kingdom.

There were three levels to the lobby, each only a step high. The top most one, the one she was standing on and the one the main doorway was built on, housed some sort of massive clerk desk were four women dressed in elegant robes stood at attentively. Down a step and off to the right, the room spiraled into a landing that a winding stairwell hung. Following the suspended metal grated staircase up, Tina saw three other levels above her.

The ceiling was receded all the way up to the fourth floor’s ceiling. Each ‘wall’ of the receded ceiling showed three rail guarded walkways that wounded around the lobby. At the very top was an enormous candle-less crystal chandler that mysteriously illuminated the entire lobby. Faint music brought Tina’s star struck gaze to the lowest level of the lobby.

The largest bar she had ever seen spanned the length of the back wall where stools dotted the dark cherry wood at precise intervals. There were also a good fifty tables laid out in front of the bar were various Lords, Ladies, and wealthy merchants sat in small groups talking quietly. Just atop of the bar was an alcove carved into the wall, boasting a full orchestra of musicians that were playing the soft melody she had heard.

I can’t wait until I’m rich.

One of the tables in particular caught Tina’s eye. A mage she had met in passing, Sikes, had just risen to his feet but it was his companion that had drawn her eye. Anna.

Tina waited with Christi as the rest of her party filed into the building. Lola, who must have been cowed into submission, had her head bowed down low. By the time every soldier, phony slave and associated phony Lord were inside, Anna and Sikes had made their way to her.

“Tina, you are looking well,” the mage said in greeting.

“As do you, old man,” Tina replied with a small grin.

Sikes half grimaced, half smiled. “Old man? I see John has been talking again. I’ll have to fix that.”

Anna nodded her head in greeting before saying. “So you have met Christi already? She will take excellent care of you.”

Christi beamed at Anna before curtsying deeply.

There was something odd in the way Christi acted around Anna but Tina couldn’t put her finger on it. Sikes, having read her thoughts somehow, said aloud, “I present to you High Merchant Anna Crown, Roof Mistress to High Merchant Marcus Crown. Marcus has agreed to help Lord Talizar.”

He obviously meant Lola when he motioned to Chad but at the moment, it was at the very back of her mind. Tina blinked dumbly at the woman she had pinned as a slave.

Marcus Crown’s Roof Mistress? Surely he couldn’t be serious.

When neither Sikes nor Anna laughed, Tina blinked again.

“You honor us,” Chad finally spoke into the deafening silence.

Marcus has a Roof Mistress? Why haven’t I heard of this?

Tina was still searching for something to say--anything at all--when the very attractive woman smiled.

“Please,” Anna said as she held up her hand in a small gesture of fending off the compliment. “My husband and I believe strongly in the cause. If you are ready, we have your rooms ready.”

Christi took the hint and led them toward the suspended staircase. Instead of going up it, though, she lead them back behind the staircase were a well hidden hallway stretched out and away from the lobby.

Looking over her shoulder, she caught Sikes pulling Jonas away before they crossed the threshold of the hall.

As they walked down the three man wide passage, Christi said, “This is Marcus Crown’s own personal apartments, when he is here of course. Inside you will find his six slaves at your disposal, two master bedrooms, four guest rooms and your own kitchen--completely staffed at all hours.

“This hallway is the only way in and out. In the event of an attack, there is a failsafe switch that, when triggered, will close off this corridor from the main lobby by a ten span steel wall that drops from the ceiling.”

Tina forcibly kept her eyes straight as she passed under the metal ceiling.

“Only from the inside can you reopen the wall. You also have your own dedicated well and a stash of food to last you a moon, but I pray that will never come. This particular Sev3n houses over a hundred guards, not including the Backer guards. All of which were hand picked by High Merchant Marcus Crown. He strongly believes in his client’s safety.

“Only High Merchant Marcus Crown, his Roof Mistress, Mage Sikes and myself know of your true intentions here. If you have any visitors, you should advise them to ask for Lord Talizar.”

Pointing down the hallway where it was about to end, the Mistress said, “At the very end of this passage is a guardhouse and off to the side of that is another guardhouse were the switch is located.”

Tina was overwhelmed by everything and, even more importantly, couldn’t believe Top could pull the strings to get such an arrangement. Everything she had heard thus far hinted that Top knew Marcus Crown personally--something Tina was itching to investigate.

“By the Gods…” Jack whispered to her. They had all been silenced by the Mistress’s speech. Turning the corner, Jack swore again, “Sweet Mother! ”

Christi had opened the large double doors to the Gates of Paradise.

The first thing Tina saw was an elegantly carved round table that supported a gigantic black marble vase. Inside the vase glistened gold crowns… Filled. To. The. Brim.

Sweet Mother…

Slowly, she recognized four beings. When they came into focus, Tina felt her forehead give away to her eyebrows. Two heart-stopping slave women stood to either side of the table, holding trays of fruit among other sweets. It was as if each nation had picked their most beautiful women to be the slaves to Marcus Crown.

What are they wearing?! Tina thought as she took in the black velvet strips of cloth. The ‘clothes’ were twisted around their bodies in such a way that left almost no imagination to what they looked like nude.

Two dark red marble pillars spanned up to either side of the sandy colored archway that were roughly four men high. Beyond it was an enormous room. Everywhere Tina looked, colors of red, black and tan met her eyes. Black velvet dipped down from the ceilings like the club Poison but in much larger sheets. Carpet that spanned out as far as the eye could see appeared to be four inches high, depicting slow relaxing patterns of tan squares.

It being the colors of the Ce’l Empire only raised more questions as her investigative skills took hold of her.

A statue here and there sported both Gods and Goddesses of Paradise--even the ones of Sin. Her eyes kept exploring and the more she looked, the more she wanted to explore.

“First Squad. Guardhouses,” Kyle whispered when no one moved.

Tearing her eyes from the most impressive display of both engineering and wealth she had ever seen, Tina said, “Second Squad, room check.”

As Jack and three other men slowly walked forward, hands pulling out daggers and their eyes wide in awe, Chad made as if to help them. Kyle stopped him when he said, “My Lord. Please let my men clear the room first.”

Even though Christi knew the truth, the slaves didn’t and only the Gods knew what else could be classified as ‘unexpected’.

Damn Top to hell for making me so paranoid. And damn him for all this.

Chad nodded slowly in understanding before whispering, “Mistress Christi, I will not need the slaves.” He coughed and found his voice. “I’m afraid my wife will have my head if I said otherwise.”

“A true Imperialist?” Christi said, playing along. “You are quiet rare, my Lord.”

Clapping her hands, all four women around the table strode out of the apartments, their heads down and their asses swaying. It made Tina want to puke.

Trent closed the doors behind them as he took three other men with him to the guardhouses outside. He didn’t close it fast enough, however, to hide his interests in the four goddesses.

For the love of Sin.

“I can vouch for their silence,” Christi said, pulling Tina’s eyes from the closed doors.

“You have got to see this T!” Jack exasperated over the com. He didn’t even bother whispering it. Almost immediately Top’s voice followed.

“Report.”

“We are in the bloody High Merchant’s Marcus Crown’s apartments! How in the Seven Sins did you pull this one off, Boss?” Jack immediately responded.

Tina grimaced.

“Tina. Smack him for me.” Top said followed by a feeling of annoyance.

She felt both Ben and Mike’s amusement through the com, but there was also a touch of curiosity.

Anna, who had tagged along in silence, motioned for Tina to follow her. With her curiosity almost at an unbearable level, Tina gave Chad a ‘hold until clear’ look before following after the Roof Mistress.

She was led down one of the three major hallways that branched out from the enormous waiting room. Taking an immediate right, they walked past one of the soldiers who had just cleared the rooms ahead of them. Behind him was a man dressed in a white robe, head bowed. Upon seeing them, the two stepped aside as they passed.

Anna opened the door at the very end and Tina followed, closing the door behind them. It was one of the master bedrooms.

Aside from the overly gigantic bed and chairs, she was disappointed to see that there wasn’t anything ‘extravagant’ about it.

“I’ve arranged to have some of Sev3n’s uniforms accidentally find their way here. I’d appreciate it if you left them here when this is over,” Anna said coolly as she surveyed the room absently.

“Th-Thank you,” Tina said, trying to find her voice. “May I ask why?”

“Why?” Anna mused.

“A wise man once told me that humans are self interested,” she said slowly.

The Roof Mistress smiled and nodded slowly. “He rants on about those rules to you as well?”

When Tina nodded uncertainly, she said, “It is not my place to say.”

Without thinking, Tina blurted, “Why have you been to Top’s place almost every night?”

Anna suppressed a smile as she turned toward one of the trays of fruit that was laid out on a small table. Picking up a grape, she popped it into her mouth and chewed slowly…Obviously taking her time at answering the question.

“You wonder if I am having romantic relations with your master…?”

Tina grimaced at the word ‘master’ but nodded.

“I have known John a long time, even longer than Marcus.” The corner of her mouth turned almost into a sneer before she said, “But no. We are merely old friends from childhood. He has helped my husband secure many of our inns before he became what he is today. This is the least we can do in payment.”

Then her eyes crinkled in silent laughter. “John is a blind and foolish man who doesn’t value money like most people--if you haven’t noticed already.”

While Tina didn’t have the inhuman power of reading people like Top did, he had still taught her enough things to realize Anna was holding something back…and at the same time had said something important.

Smiling too, Tina said, “Aye. He even takes a smaller cut than the rest of us when we complete a job.”

Shaking her head, but still smiling, Anna sighed, “Oh John.”

Childhoods friends my ass.