Bodil was shattered by the news but she remained stoic as I handed over the items I’d found at Enyo’s murder site.
“That’s all I could bring, all I could find of hers.” I said.
“What about her body? Is it salvageable? Can we bring her back here and have a proper burial?” Bodil’s eyes looked tortured.
I shook my head. “The Tonrar ripped her body to shreds.”
Bodil held the few remembrances of her friend reverently in her hands and took deep, shaky breaths.
I finally said, “I’m sorry.”
Bodil looked at me in confusion. “Why? It’s not your fault. She took a risk going out after dark. We are all taking a risk for our part in the revolt.”
I simply nodded, left her residence and headed to my own a few doors down. Akiko followed me. Bodil would need some time to come to terms with her friend’s death.
Akiko was uncharacteristically quiet as she prepared for bed. We both lay down on our respective cots and I glanced at my roommate to decipher her state of mind. Akiko had worked with Enyo every day for the last few weeks and I wondered how this news was affecting her.
With her eyes studying the cracked ceiling, Akiko finally said, “I’ll be okay, Viveka. I’ve faced the death of friends before. Continuing the work on my own is doable. I won’t fail.”
“I know. We are both trained warriors. We don’t crack easily.”
Although exhaustion pulled at me, I could not sleep. Toward morning, as light began to cast a sallow glow through the dingy window, I finally dozed off.
Loud banging on the door woke me and I sprang up off my cot as though poked with a red, hot iron, my hand reaching for the throwing knives I always kept tucked beneath my cot. Akiko also jumped to her feet, a weapon in her grasp as she stared at the entrance. I stood there for a moment, feeling disoriented. Sleep clouded my mind and, as I cautiously stepped toward the door, reality started to invade.
Whispering through the thin partition, I asked, “Who is it?”
“It’s Bodil.”
I undid the numerous locks and let her in.
Bodil looked from me to Akiko and back again. “The hour is late and it’s past the time to be allowed into the dump site. We all overslept.”
I didn’t know what to say.
“Wash up and join me for the morning meal. We need to talk.”
I nodded and she left.
A few minutes later, the three of us were gathered in her room and sitting around her table. Our meal was meager and hardly made a dent in my rumbling hunger.
Bodil leaned forward and said, “I’ve decided to join the offensive as a Casimer employee. During the night I went to see Kibou.”
“You went out by yourself at night? After Enyo was so brutally murdered?” asked Akiko.
“Why would you take such a risk?” I asked.
Her face twisted in suffering and she said, “I care very little about my life. I have lost everyone I ever had affection for. Last night I actually longed to be accosted by the Tonrar. I would have welcomed it.”
“But we need you.”
“No you don’t. There are others. And besides that, you two know how to survive here now. Enyo and I taught you well.”
Confused, I asked, “Don’t you have a nephew, your sister’s son? He tried to steal from me the first day I and Akiko arrived. You intervened that day and stopped us from killing him.”
“Just because I have a nephew does not mean that I care for him. My sister died when the boy was a young teen. He has become a troublemaker and a rapscallion. He has reported on many and caused unnecessary deaths.”
I nodded and asked, “Why did you go see Kibou?”
“I wanted to speak with him and ask for information of how I would do this, go into Casimer’s employ.”
“But you’re a woman,” Akiko said. “Casimer does not employ women.”
“Not unless I go disguised as a man.”
Akiko and I were rendered speechless and stared at her stupidly.
Bodil continued. “I’ve never been a very fragile, delicate female. My wide shoulders and square jaw give me a strong, male look. I remember you mentioning the woman, Magic. I asked Kibou about her and he gave me directions to her living quarters. I will go see her today. I’m sure she can help me look the part of a man and Kibou has agreed he will arrange things for me.”
“What employ do you plan on engaging in?”
“I need access to Casimer. I will take any employment as long as it is on the Royal Grounds. Plus, perhaps I can keep an eye on Rage. From what you told me, the young man needs some guidance and perhaps some harnessing.”
“Can I persuade you to change your mind?”
“No. My decision is final. It may take some time before I can actually leave but leave I will.”
Bodil stood, gathered her cloak, slung a bag over her shoulder and said, “I’ll see you later. I’m going to see Magic.”
Akiko and I stared at the closed door, both lost in our own thoughts. Akiko eventually stood and gathered up the latest trinkets that Bodil had fashioned and stuffed them into her bag.
She said, “You can join me. It will give you something to do.”
I nodded and left the room with her as we headed out to the open-air market. Once we arrived, we situated ourselves on the outer edge, our backs against the buildings lining the street, and Akiko removed the trinkets from the bag and attached them to a rough display board.
The market was located in a broad street that was framed by the typical three story buildings housing the residences that were located everywhere. Booths were set up in three rows and held approximately ten stations per row.
“Why do you attach the trinkets like that?” I asked.
“If I notice trouble brewing, I can take this board, shove it into my bag and pretend I am a shopper at the market. Having the trinkets all attached to the board makes clean up efficient.”
I searched the market area for any sign of trouble. After an hour of standing guard beside Akiko, I grew bored and wandered off.
Akiko called after me, “I’ll stay till mid-afternoon and head back home.”
Not bothering to answer, I kept walking. There were a few booths selling produce but the items being sold were minimal and most of the vegetables were in different stages of rot. And yet a few people still fingered them longingly and even fewer bought them. The owners kept a keen eye on everyone who passed their booths, determined to catch anyone intent on stealing. They wore their weapons openly in scabbards hung on belts at their waists, a warning to anyone considering thievery. One booth was selling dried meat but the quality was debatable and not nearly the standard of fare I had on my home farrin. There I hunted and dried my own meat.
A few rows over and down the aisle, I noticed someone’s eye on me. I immediately felt for the hilt of my short double-edged sword at my waist. The man was as beggarly looking as the rest of the population roaming the market and I didn’t recognize him. Not looking at him directly, I wandered from booth to booth but kept a peripheral eye on his whereabouts. He was stealthily staying in my vision, following my movements. My muscles felt taught and ready to spring into action if necessary. If he was stupid enough to approach me, he would be dead before he knew what hit him.
He began to close the gap and my ire and suspicion increased. I removed my short sword and I held it close to my body against my side. I moved my position so I would have the advantage should he choose to attack.
I stood before a booth that was filled with intricate jewelry, much finer than anything Bodil could make with her trash finds but also much more expensive. Fingering one finely made necklace, the owner, an elegant woman with long blond hair, began to gush about what a fine piece of artwork the item was and how it would enhance my beauty. Not once did I allow myself to get distracted, I knew exactly where the man was and how he was gradually closing the distance between us.
Finally, I shook my head, indicating I would not purchase her wares, turned and walked directly to meet the man slinking toward me.
He noticed my move and stopped in his tracks. I lifted my weapon as I walked toward him and suddenly halted short at his words.
“I am a runner with the cause.”
Staring at him in surprise, I finally said, “Come with me.”
I led the way to a spot I’d noticed earlier, behind a large booth with a full back to it, a good place to hide and talk without drawing attention.
“What is your name?” I asked.
“I go by the name Tupac. And I know you.”
His name sounded familiar and I was sure it was one of the names of those selected to be runners.
He said, “I’ve been sent to submit a request. Suma appeared to me and told me to run with a message to all the main leaders. You are the first. If you agree to this assignment, I will deliver the message to the rest.”
“And what is the assignment she requests we participate in?”
“She wants a group of you to meet and discuss strategy. There is a safe place for that to happen. About a two hour walk from here, there is a warehouse with a deep and dark underground cellar. The Tonrar will not enter any space below the surface and so this place will be perfect for you all to meet.”
“When?”
“You set the day and time and I will make sure the rest will be there.”
I looked down, studied the rough cobblestone street below my feet and thought through what the rest of the week would hold for me. I knew I needed to get back to the dump and search for more treasures to make trinkets to sell. Akiko and I still needed to eat. I’d already lost this day of work.
Turning back to Tupac, I said, “How long will it take you to get the message to everyone?”
“Three days, maybe four.”
“They will then need to schedule their days accordingly and orchestrate their time away.”
“Yes. Many of them have duties and will have to make allowances so that they are not missed.”
“All right. Tell them we will meet on full moon, in ten days time. We must assemble early enough so that everyone has time to get back home before dark. Inform them that we will gather early afternoon.”
He nodded. “That should be doable. If anything changes, I will be back to let you know. I will make sure the meeting location is safe and guarded before everyone arrives.” Looking around to make sure no one was looking, he took a piece of parchment from the folds of his tunic and handed it over to me.
“A map?”
“Yes. This will help you navigate to the right location.”
I nodded, stuffed it into my pocket and he turned and left. I watched his retreating back and soon he disappeared between the booths and was gone.
I headed over to join Akiko, my mind full of the meeting ahead and I wondered how many leaders were gathering a following, how many were joining the revolution and what my immediate future would hold.
