Dead God's Due by Matthew P. Gilbert

Author:Matthew P. Gilbert [Gilbert, Matthew P.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Aethon Books
Published: 2019-06-24T22:00:00+00:00

Marissa waited until Kariana’s eyes were dilated and her jaw slack then reached in her pocket again. “Kariana, will you do me a favor?”

“Of course!” Kariana mumbled. “Anything.”

Marissa lowered her head in a practiced pose of shame and reticence. She threw in a bit of fidgeting to boot. “Maybe it’s not such a good idea.”

“Don’t be silly. If you want it, I want it. What?”

Marissa pulled at her shirt and allowed her face to crease into a grimace. “Some of the guards….” She trailed off and let out a tiny sob.

“What?” Kariana’s eyes were large and concerned. “What did they do?”

Marissa lowered her voice to a whisper. “Last time, they made me do some things while I was waiting for you. They hurt me.”

Kariana’s face twisted in stupefied, drug-addled rage. Good! That’s just what I need! “Mei! Who? Who did it! I’ll have them put to death!”

Marissa smiled inwardly. “I spoke to my elder about it. She wrote a death warrant, but you would have to sign it. But I don’t know, now.”

Kariana’s eyes blazed with righteous anger, even dulled with drugs. “I’ll sign it twice! Do you have it with you?”

Marissa produced a document from her pocket, silently congratulating herself at her play. Now she thinks it is her idea. Kariana snatched the paper from Marissa, struggled to her feet, and staggered across to her desk. She flailed about briefly for a pen, then smiled gratefully when Marissa pulled one from her pocket and presented it to her.

“Bastards!” Kariana hissed as she scratched her name on the document. “Scum! Elgar take them!”

Marissa took the signed death warrant and placed it back in her pocket, then gently guided Kariana back to her bed.

“You should rest now, Kariana.” Marissa stroked Kariana’s hair again as the Empress slowly settled back against her pillows. Before long, Kariana’s breathing grew steady and deep. Shortly thereafter, she began to snore.

Marissa pulled a blanket over Kariana, then went back to the desk and rifled through the papers there, but found little that she did not already know about. The Empress was poor at keeping secrets. It was fortunate for Nihlos that not every House was too self-absorbed to monitor what this incompetent was up to. Without us, the fool would have already run the city into the ground.

Marissa took the death warrant from her pocket and examined it. The signature was a scrawl, but verifiable. The three names marked for death were unimportant. They weren’t even real people, as far as Marissa knew. They would be replaced in short order with the real ones: eighty-some-odd guardsmen who knew too much for their own good.

With a self-satisfied smile, Marissa slipped the death warrant back into her pocket and blew out the candles. She would receive a commendation for this, she was certain. House Prosin always took care of their own.

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