Coins and Daggers (21 page)

Chuckling, she pressed a sift kiss to the
corner of his mouth and stepped out of his embrace. “Edwin must be
waiting for you, I suppose.”

“Of course.” Ulric frowned and watched her
as she moved towards the window. He could hardly tell what she was
thinking but something was obviously troubling her. “Audelia?”

“Yes?” She turned to look at him over her
shoulder.

“We shall speak when I return.” And before
she could muster up a reply, Ulric strode from the room.

Audelia inhaled a shaky breath, trying to
calm her nerves. In truth, she was terribly worried about Ulric.
Worried that he and Edwin might run into more trouble than they all
were anticipating. And it would all be at her expense. It would be
left to torment her conscience if anything were to happen to them.
Perhaps, it was high time she exercised trust and faith. If only
advice was more easily taken than said.

“Miss Rolfen.” Turning, she recognized
Gilgallon standing just inside the doorway, a tray of food in hand.
“Cook has prepared a rather...generous breakfast tray for you.” He
hinted the small tea pot on the tray and smiled. “Hot cocoa is well
known to help calm the nerves.”

“I...I don’t think I have much of an
appetite this morning, Gilgallon. But thank you.”

“We all have to eat,” he encouraged, the
smile on his rugged face odd and welcoming at the same time. “His
Lordship would not be pleased to hear that you are standing by that
window looking so depressed. And Cook does hate when her food goes
to waste.”

Shaking her head, Audelia looked at the man
and fought against smiling, the corners of her mouth twitching.
“Fine then. But I doubt I can eat all of that. You shall have to
help me.”

“Not a problem.” Gilgallon offered Audelia
his arm when she reached him, relieved when she took it. “Off to
the library we go. I hear it’s your favorite room in the house And
maybe there, you can continue my lesson on chess playing.”

Twenty-two

U
lric guided Gray
through the already thickening crowd of Thornea, lowering the brim
of his hat from the bright morning sun’s rays. Edwin was close
behind him as they trotted around the merchant stalls, keeping
along the road which would lead them straight out of the small
district.

“It’s like these people never rest,” Edwin
said, riding up to next to him.

“They come out early to catch passing
merchants. That, or they have fleas in their beds.”

Edwin chuckled. “Do you believe that Lady
Shentil may very well be Madame de Lucci?”

Ulric
frowned, hands tightening on the reigns as he maneuvered pass a
cart driver. “Do
you
?”

“Truthfully, I don’t know what to believe,”
his friend confessed. “All I know is that Lord Dextrem is connected
to Miss Rolfen, and her to the Madame. If we find Dextrem, it’s
possible we could get a lead on her as well.”

“I believe so too. In the meanwhile, let us
keep our eyes open. Either of them could be right beneath our
noses. We must move--”

“Your Lordship!”

“What is hell’s name...?” Ulric yanked on
the reigns as Gray bucked upwards, bursting out a sharp
teeth-rattling neigh.

“Move, man!” Edwin’s voice rang out
viciously. “Are you trying to get Lord Chastelle killed?”

Finally managing to settle Gray, Ulric
released a heavy breath and looked down at the balding innkeeper
named Hester. “Are you a fool? My horse could have thrown me and
then where would you be?”

“My apologies, sir,” Hester said, glancing
about him anxiously, passing a fuming Edwin a contrite glance. “I
believe that I have some news which would please you greatly.”

“Speak quickly then. We are in a hurry.’

Hester moved timidly closer to Ulric’s
snorting mount and swallowed. “A gent came into the inn just last
night, milord. Very late last night, in fact. He was asking about
that girl you’d mentioned the other day.”

Ulric sent a serious look Edwin’s direction.
“What did he ask?”

The man puffed out his chest as if suddenly
feeling important. “He said that she was his daughter who had been
taken many months ago by men out for a reward.”

“
Horseshit
!”
Edwin snorted. “What did you tell him?”

“N-nothing, milord. Only that I haven’t seen
her.”

Ulric raised a dubious brow at him, glanced
at Edwin and the back. “And what have I done to deserve
such....loyalty?”

“Well...” Hester rocked on his heels and
fidgeted. “I was thinking, Sir, that you might be a little
generous.”

Reaching into his cloak’s pocket, Ulric
dumped a few coins to the man. “Is he still in the inn then?”

“Y-yes, sir. Having an early breakfast, I
believe. Room 9 to be exact.”

Ulric jumped
off his horse and shoved the reigns into the innkeeper’s hands.
“Watch these horses. Edwin? I believe we have to pay our
dear
friend
in Room 9 a visit.”

“I would not mind at all.”

Ulric shove pass Hester as he and Edwin
bounded up the short steps which lead inside the inn. The hall was
empty and they found the wooden staircase quite quickly. He was on
the third step when Edwin’s hand clamped on to his shoulder.

“The gent could very well be Dextrem,” he
whispered. “What if he is not alone?”

“
I’ll take my chances. But if it
is
Dextrem, then he just saved us one hell of a
journey.”

Edwin reached into the side of his boot for
a knife and nodded. “After you.”

The steps creaked softly as they made their
way up and towards to the landing. “It’s right down this hall,”
Ulric said. “Stay alert.”

“You know what whiskey does to me,” Edwin
snickered softly. “Drank a hefty amount just before I left. I’ll
not rest for a couple days.”

Smiling, Ulric moved down the empty hall and
stopped just outside the door of Room 9. Inside they could hear the
faintest of shuffling, a female’s giggle...and then a deep moan.
Both men exchanged glances and Ulric shook his head. “He has rather
varied tastes in breakfast, don’t you think?”

Edwin nudged him lightly in the back. “I say
we interrupt the course and give him something else to feast
on.”

“Great minds think very much alike, Edwin.”
And with that, Ulric took a deep breath and slowly spun the door
knob.

Inside he could make out what seemed to be
Dextrem’s head, between two slender thighs, the panting female
clutching onto the brute’s head as if her life depended on it.
Edwin kicked over the small table by the door and the man jumped up
fast, his female companion letting out a frightened shriek.

“
Chastelle
?”
Dextrem wiped his mouth on his shirt sleeve and cocked his head.
“What in devil’s name are you doing here? Ah...and with your
sidekick too.”

The woman took that moment to flee the room,
taking the cover sheets with her as she went scrambling.

“You’re a long way from Camden, aren’t you
Dextrem?” Ulric maintained his stance, glaring at the man. “How
does your wife feel about you dallying with whores?”

“That’s hardly any of your business. What do
you want?”

“How about your testicles first and then we
can negotiate on your life.”

Dextrem’s glance flickered between both men
and then towards the closed door behind them. “Whatever this is
about, I am sure we can discuss it like gentlemen.”

“You pretend to be ignorant then?”

“I say we just go straight to cutting,”
Edwin interjected, fingers tightening around the handle of his
knife.

“What is heaven’s name, is this all about,
Chastelle?” Dextrem swallowed tightly as he eased slowly towards
the bed. “The last I’ve seen either of you was over a year ago. And
we’ve never had any form of disagreement.”

“Do not move another inch.” Ulric marched up
to the man and shove him against the wall. “We have a major
disagreement, you bastard, and you better admit to it before I gut
you like a goddamn fish!”

“I...I do not know what you are talking
about. I am a respectable man,” he stuttered. “I do not take part
in...barbaric activities.”

“Blasted moron!” Edwin spat and spun the
lock on the door. “Give him a sound fist to the jaw for good
measure.”

Ulric grabbed Dextrem by the collar and
slammed him against the wall. “You...hurt her. You raped her and
thought you’d get away with it?”

Dextrem’s eyes widened at that point, his
mouth opening and closing like a gaping fish. “I...raped no
one.”

Ulric gripped the man by the neck and
delivered a fist to his gut. Dextrem wheezed and faltered. “She
looked to you for support and you took advantage of her, you ugly
piece of shit!”

“She was a damn temptress who got what she
deserved!” Dextrem yelled, which earned him a solid punch to the
jaw, sending him sliding to the floor.

“Hold him up, Edwin!” Ulric paced quickly,
running his hands over his face. His friend came up abruptly,
forcing the man up and clamping Dextrem’s arms painfully behind
him. The man yowled in agony, trying to free himself from the
hold.

“What do you mean; to kill me?” he said,
spitting blood from his mouth. “The girl’s nothing to you.”

“That’s where you are wrong,” Ulric growled,
ramming his knee into Dextrem’s gut. “She means a great deal to me
and as long you’re around, she will never be at peace.”

Letting out a
pained chuckle, Dextrem threw his head back and laughed. “She
belongs to me, Chastelle. She’ll never be yours.
I
am her benefactor. I bought the little whore fair and
square.”

This time it was Edwin who delivered the
blow, his elbow connecting sharply with the side of Dextrem’s
head.

“
Fuck
!” The man
crawled towards the bed, gasping. “You bloody bastards.”

“Last I checked,” Edwin snarled. “You’re the
one covered in blood. Where is Madame de Lucci?”

“What makes you..”--coughs--“What makes
you...think that I know?”

“We know she is somewhere nearby,” Ulric
gritted out, grabbing him by the hair. “And we know that she’s the
one who gave Audelia to you. Where the hell is she?”

“I don’t know.”

Ulric rammed his knuckles into Dextrem’s
lower back. “You better start talking before I lose my
patience.”

“Madame de Lucci runs a shady establishment
that she claims is to help young women with finding supportive
guardians,” Edwin began. “She sold Miss Rolfen to you, didn’t
she?”

Dextrem heaved sharply, his hand grasping
Ulric’s hand where he gripped painfully on his hair. “Okay, fine.
L-let me up and I shall tell you...what you want to know.”

Ulric glanced at Edwin and then back at
Dextrem before shoving the man down. Standing, he rammed his boot
into the brute’s side. “Get up!”

Dextrem struggled to his feet, wiping his
bloody mouth against his shoulder and slumped against a nearby
table. “Madame de Lucci came to me with a business proposition. She
said she’d heard of my wife’s situation and--”

“What situation?” Ulric stepped closer.

“Lady Dextrem is a barren woman, Chastelle,”
he spat bitterly. “We’ve been married fifteen years and still she
cannot provide me with an heir. The Madame brought me our salvation
in the form of a promising wench.”

Bile rose up
into Ulric’s throat as he listened to the man. “Are you trying to
tell me that you meant to impregnate Audelia?” He spat at the man’s
feet. “And your wife had agreed to this...this
madness
?”

The man
snorted and Edwin made after him with the knife but Ulric stayed
his friend’s movements. His own mind was swirling with disgust and
rage that he could not even fathom what the hell was going on. “Of
course not. My wife is so bloody righteous, she wouldn’t even end
this damn search for the little wretch.” Dextrem ran his hand over
his head and clutched his side. “I paid very pretty coins to Madame
de Lucci for that girl and I will
not
stand the
loss.”

“Listen to me, you piece of shit!” Ulric
grabbed him by the collar and growled in his face. “You are going
to stand that loss and you are going to do it gladly, you hear
me?”

“
Or
what
?”

Ulric dropped his hands, took two steps back
and glanced to his right. “Edwin?”

“
My pleasure.” Edwin shove his blade against Dextrem’s neck,
the sharp edge a hair’s breadth from the skin of his throat.
“
Or
else
, I am going to wipe my
blade against your pretty little throat. Your wife being righteous
and all, I’m sure she would not like to be forced to bury a
headless body.” Dextrem gulped visibly, his gaze focused on the
blade at his throat. “Do we have an agreement?”

The man glanced upwards and breathed through
clenched teeth. “Yes.”

“
Tsk
. I don’t
think we heard that clearly, Dextrem,” Edwin said in a taunting
voice. “Did you hear that, Ulric?”

“Not a sound.” Ulric crossed his arms.
“Perhaps you should press the blade a little closer and see.”

“
I said, yes, goddamn it!
Yes
!” Dextrem
snapped, his gaze as wild as a deer’s during hunting
season.

“Weakling,” Edwin chuckled and stepped
back.

Ulric shook his head. “Now, I’m only going
to ask one more time. Where is Madame de Lucci?”

Dextrem rubbed a hand along his throat and
huffed. “The harlot must be somewhere in Chastelle or
thereabout.”