I couldn’t give a toss about what the Goddess wanted.
I sighed inwardly, wishing I could rest like he wanted me to. But this, all these Storad outside our walls, Jake trapped out there on her own, people huddling in their homes wondering if tomorrow would come and if it did whether they’d be alive to see it… everything came down to me. One little action of mine had brought us to this, and I was getting us out of it too, if I could. “Not a chance in hell.”
“So what are you going to do?” Pasha asked. “Not magic. If you do —”
“Ever heard the saying, ‘When confronted by a tiger, throw shit at it. Because there will be shit’? I’m going to make sure there’s shit to throw.”
Chapter Fifteen
The Stench smelled even worse the second time around. I tried holding my breath but by the time I got even a quarter of the way in I was near fainting. In the end I settled for breathing through my mouth and the shirtsleeve that covered it, and trying not to gag. At least this time I knew where to find the Stenchers.
I looked over the vats and felt bizarrely pleased they were full. The scum on top looked even worse today, with a livid green tint to it that screamed “plague waiting to happen”, or at least “highly contagious form of the galloping trots”. Either one would work nicely, especially if it was fast-acting.
I found a knot of Stenchers just off the corridor where I’d discovered Halina flying and throwing men around. They huddled in a loose circle with the rattle of bones between them. When I got closer, I realised what they were betting on – how many days till the Storad reached Top of the World, with side bets of whether they’d let any Mahalians Under live. No one seemed to be betting yes on that last one.
A gangly face looked my way. He grunted something to his pals, and then they were all looking at me. It wasn’t that I didn’t like being the centre of attention, but the calculation there sent the hairs on the back of my neck quivering.
One of them stood up, his frown almost hidden underneath the ground-in dirt. Well, probably dirt.
“What do you want?”
I didn’t get the chance to reply before one of the others growled out, “Here, that was the one that took our Halina away. She all right? What did you do with her? She’s going to be one of them mages, right?”
A low mumble around the circle, from which I gathered that while they didn’t really approve of mages as such, anyone who managed to get out of the Stench was on to a good thing.
“Yes and no,” I said before I could even think about it. Possibly not the best move, because the circle stood up and it was as tall as me and a lot stronger. I held on to my pulse pistol, and wondered how many people it could take at once, if I had to. Thing was, if I did, there went my chance of getting them to help. And I needed their help, even if I wasn’t going to say how much.
“What you mean?” The guy who seemed in charge moved my way and I did my best not to lean back away from the smell. Small breaths through the mouth, that was the trick. Even so, my eyes were watering.
“She came to be a mage, that’s true.” The urge to lie was almost overwhelming. I’ve lied my whole damned life, and it’s a hard habit to break, especially when the truth might be very painful to my person.
“And? She all right? Why are you down here?”
“You know what’s happening up there, don’t you? The Storad, the gates.”
“Course we know. We stink, we aren’t stupid. Be amazed what ends up down here for us to read. That’s why Halina went. Couple of us tried to volunteer but they told us to fuck off. Stupid, I thought. We were willing, and that’s what counts. But they wouldn’t give us no guns, no nothing, and I said in that case the fancy boys from Over can die. Let them wear the Storad down, and when they lose – and they will – less of them for us to worry about. We’d have fought if they’d let us.”
“How about if I ask nicely now?”
One of the others started to say something, but this guy glared at him and he shut up. “Oh, you want us now, right? We’ve got something you want, I’m thinking. I’m also thinking you haven’t said what happened to Halina.”
“She came to be a mage, and she’s good, damned good. She’s fine, considering.”
Something white appeared in the brown crust of the lead guy’s face, and I realised his lip was curled against what he’d just heard. “I know a liar when I see one. She’s dead then. Sent her off like they would have done us, no weapons, nothing but a cheery wave I expect. Right?”