Silent Knife (2012) by Unknown

Author:Unknown
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
Publisher: Onyx Path Publishing
Published: 2012-11-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty

Ariadne leapt at Bourne, fangs bared, claws extended.

He was ready. With speed belying his bulk, he seized her arms in mid-charge and redirected her momentum, slamming her into the wall with such force that the plaster dented and flaked.

“You’re losing your edge, kiddo.”

Ariadne shook her head, white paint chips spraying from her hair. Instinctively, she reached to the guitar case that should have been on her back, only to feel her splayed fingers grasp air. Of course, she had left her sword back at the sanctuary. It had seemed so easy at the time, like discarding clothes that no longer fit. Now, she felt as if she were missing a limb.

Bourne moved to the far edge of the room, drew a pistol.

Ariadne crouched on the bed, teeth glistening in the dim light. “You know I could kill you seven different ways before you could pull the trigger.”

“Oh, I’m sure.” Bourne’s tone was maddeningly jovial. “The Silent Knife may have gone a little soft and bendy since she decided to spend her time Cleavering, thinking she can play nice little family games with mortals, but I’m sure she’s still too much for fat old Bourne to handle. Still, you do that, and you never find out where I’ve stashed your favorite toy.”

Ariadne tried to keep her face expressionless, and suspected she was failing. So violence wouldn’t solve this situation. Fine. Andrei had been teaching her all sorts of other tactics. She had to think of one, and quickly.

“Fat old Bourne,” she said, “is now threatening Liliane’s Hand. During a time of war. Clear treason, punishable by destruction. Even Silas won’t be able to countermand me.”

“Treason’s kind of like a tree in the forest,” said Bourne. “If no one’s around to see it, is it really there? I may or may not be holding a gun on you. Without a witness, who’s to say?”

“Liliane will believe my word over yours.”

“Probably. Your voice is a lot sexier than mine. But, it happens that I have at my disposal some cold, hard evidence of your treason, love. Our commander in chief, during wartime, spending half her nights banging some mortal Lick-stick. And look what happens! We lose Archibald. Now, I’m a pretty slow guy, but I figure that rates a little higher on the treason scale than aiming a gun at the person who failed to do her job.

“As for Liliane, well, we both know she’s shown herself quite capable of turning on treasonous Seneschals. Two for two turn traitor? You ask me, she should just eliminate the position altogether.”

Ariadne stared at him with directionless hatred.

“For Christ’s sake, Ariadne, just sit in the goddamn chair, okay? We’re going to be here a while. You’re tall enough as is, and I don’t feel like straining my neck.”

Ariadne backed her way to the chair, never taking her eyes off Bourne, and sat. In silence, she sliced Bourne into a million pieces with mental swords.

“Whew. Glad to get those preliminaries over. Right. Now, it’s time to play a little game.

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