The Well of Ascension

Page 19

  "Wassing the where of not," Spook said, smiling and slipping back into his Eastern street slang.

  Breeze snorted. "You still make more sense than Hammond, half the time," he mumbled, turning to Elend. "So, isnt anyone going to send for a carriage to drive me back to the palace? Ive been Soothing you ungrateful lot for the better part of five minutes—looking as tired and pathetic as I can—and not one of you has had the good graces to pity me!"

  "You must be losing your touch," Vin said with a smile. Breeze was a Soother—an Allomancer who could burn brass to calm another persons emotions. A very skilled Soother—and Vin knew of none more skilled than Breeze—could dampen all of a persons emotions but a single one, effectively making them feel exactly as he wanted.

  "Actually," Elend said, turning and looking back up at the wall, "I was hoping we could go back up on the wall and study the armies some more. If you spent time with Lord Cetts force, then you could probably tell us a lot about it. "

  "I can; I will; I am not going to climb those steps. Cant you see how tired I am, man?"

  Ham snorted, clapping Breeze on the shoulder—and throwing up a puff of dust. "How can you be tired? Your poor horse did all the running. "

  "It was emotionally exhausting, Hammond," Breeze said, rapping the larger mans hand with his cane. "My departure was somewhat disagreeable. "

  "What happened, anyway?" Vin asked. "Did Cett find out you were a spy?"

  Breeze looked embarrassed. "Lets just say that Lord Cett and I had a. . . falling-out. "

  "Caught you in bed with his daughter, eh?" Ham said, earning a chuckle from the group. Breeze was anything but a ladies man. Despite his ability to play with emotions, he had expressed no interest in romance for as long as Vin had known him. Dockson had once noted that Breeze was just too focused on himself to consider such things.

  Breeze simply rolled his eyes at Hams comment. "Honestly, Hammond. I think your jokes are getting worse as you age. One too many hits on the head while sparring, I suspect. "

  Ham smiled, and Elend sent for a couple of carriages. While they waited, Breeze launched into a narrative of his travels. Vin glanced down at OreSeur. She still hadnt found a good opportunity to tell the rest of the crew about the body change. Perhaps now that Breeze was back, Elend would hold a conference with his inner circle. That would be a good time. She had to be quiet about it, since she wanted the palace staff to think that shed sent OreSeur away.

  Breeze continued his story, and Vin looked back at him, smiling. Not only was Breeze a natural orator, but he had a very subtle touch with Allomancy. She could barely feel his fingers on her emotions. Once, she had found his intrusions offensive, but she was growing to understand that touching peoples emotions was simply part of who Breeze was. Just as a beautiful woman demanded attention by virtue of her face and figure, Breeze drew it by near unconscious use of his powers.

  Of course, that didnt make him any less a scoundrel. Getting others to do as he wished was one of Breezes main occupations. Vin just no longer resented him for using Allomancy to do it.

  The carriage finally approached, and Breeze sighed in relief. As the vehicle pulled up, he eyed Vin, then nodded toward OreSeur. "Whats that?"

  "A dog," Vin said.

  "Ah, blunt as ever, I see," Breeze said. "And, why is it that you now have a dog?"

  "I gave it to her," Elend said. "She wanted one, so I bought it for her. "

  "And you chose a wolfhound?" Ham asked, amused.

  "Youve fought with her before, Ham," Elend said, laughing. "What would you have given her? A poodle?"

  Ham chuckled. "No, I guess not. It fits, actually. "

  "Though its almost as big as she is," Clubs added, regarding her with a squinty-eyed look.

  Vin reached down, resting her hand on OreSeurs head. Clubs did have a point; shed chosen a big animal, even for a wolfhound. He stood over three feet tall at the shoulder—and Vin knew from experience how heavy that body was.

  "Remarkably well-behaved for a wolfhound," Ham said, nodding. "You chose well, El. "

  "Regardless," Breeze said. "Can we please return to the palace? Armies and wolfhounds are all well and good, but I believe supper is more pressing at this point. "

  "So, why didnt we tell them about OreSeur?" Elend asked, as their carriage bumped its way back toward Keep Venture. The three of them had taken a carriage of their own, leaving the other four to follow in the other vehicle.

  Vin shrugged. OreSeur sat on the seat across from her and Elend, quietly watching the conversation. "Ill tell them eventually," Vin said. "A busy city square didnt seem the right place for the revelation. "

  Elend smiled. "Keeping secrets is a hard habit to break, eh?"

  Vin flushed. "Im not keeping him secret, Im just. . . " She trailed off, looking down.

  "Dont feel bad, Vin," Elend said. "You lived a long time on your own, without anyone to trust. Nobody expects you to change overnight. "

  "It hasnt been one night, Elend," she said. "Its been two years. "

  Elend laid a hand on her knee. "Youre getting better. The others talk about how much youve changed. "

  Vin nodded. Another man would be afraid that Im keeping secrets from him, too. Elend just tries to make me feel less guilty. He was a better man than she deserved.

  "Kandra," Elend said, "Vin says you do well at keeping up with her. "

  "Yes, Your Majesty," OreSeur said. "These bones, though distasteful, are well equipped for tracking and quick movement. "

  "And if she gets hurt?" Elend said. "Will you be able to pull her to safety?"

  "Not with any speed, Your Majesty. I will, however, be able to go for aid. These bones have many limitations, but I will do my best to fulfill the Contract. "

  Elend must have caught Vins raised eyebrow, for he chuckled. "Hell do as he says, Vin. "

  "The Contract is everything, Mistress," OreSeur said. "It demands more than simple service. It requires diligence and devotion. It is the kandra. By serving it, we serve our people. "

  Vin shrugged. The group fell silent, Elend pulling a book from his pocket, Vin leaning against him. OreSeur lay down, filling the entire seat opposite the humans. Eventually, the carriage rolled into the Venture courtyard, and Vin found herself looking forward to a warm bath. As they were climbing from the carriage, however, a guard rushed up to Elend. Tin allowed Vin to hear what the man said, even though he spoke before she could close the distance.

  "Your Majesty," the guard whispered, "our messenger reached you, then?"

  "No," Elend said with a frown as Vin walked over. The soldier gave her a look, but continued speaking; the soldiers all knew that Vin was Elends primary bodyguard and confidant. Still, the man looked oddly concerned when he saw her.

  "We. . . ah, dont want to be intrusive," the soldier said. "Thats why weve kept this quiet. We were just wondering if. . . everything is all right. " He looked at Vin as he spoke.

  "What is this about?" Elend asked.

  The guard turned back toward the king. "The corpse in Lady Vins room. "

  The "corpse" was actually a skeleton. One completely picked clean, without a hint of blood—or even tissue—marring its shiny white surfaces. A good number of the bones were broken, however.

  "Im sorry, Mistress," OreSeur said, speaking low enough that only she could hear. "I assumed that you were going to dispose of these. "

  Vin nodded. The skeleton was, of course, the one OreSeur had been using before she gave him the animal body. Finding the door unlocked—Vins usual sign that she wanted a room cleaned—the maids had entered. Vin had stashed the bones in a basket, intending to deal with them later. Apparently, the maids had decided to check and see what was in the basket, and been somewhat surprised.

  "Its all right, Captain," Elend said to the young guard—Captain Demoux, second-in-command of the palace guard. Despite the fact that
Ham shunned uniforms, this man seemed to take great pride in keeping his own uniform very neat and smart.

  "You did well by keeping this quiet," Elend said. "We knew about these bones already. They arent a reason for concern. "

  Demoux nodded. "We figured it was something intentional. " He didnt look at Vin as he spoke.

  Intentional, Vin thought. Great. I wonder what this man thinks I did. Few skaa knew what kandra were, and Demoux wouldnt know what to make of remains like these.

  "Could you dispose of these quietly for me, Captain?" Elend asked, nodding to the bones.

  "Of course, Your Majesty," the guard said.

  He probably assumes I ate the person or something, Vin thought with a sigh. Sucked the flesh right off his bones.

  Which, actually, wasnt that far from the truth.

  "Your Majesty," Demoux said. "Would you like us to dispose of the other body as well?"

  Vin froze.

  "Other one?" Elend asked slowly.

  The guard nodded. "When we found this skeleton, we brought in some dogs to sniff about. The dogs didnt turn up any killers, but they did find another body. Just like this one—a set of bones, completely cleaned of flesh. "

  Vin and Elend shared a look. "Show us," Elend said.

  Demoux nodded, and led them out of the room, giving a few whispered orders to one of his men. The four of them—three humans and one kandra—traveled a short distance down the palace hallway, toward a less used section of visitors chambers. Demoux dismissed a soldier standing at a particular door, then led them inside.

  "This body wasnt in a basket, Your Majesty," Demoux said. "It was stuffed in a back closet. Wed probably never have found it without the dogs—they picked up the scent pretty easily, though I cant see how. These corpses are completely clean of flesh. "

  And there it was. Another skeleton, like the first, sitting piled beside a bureau. Elend glanced at Vin, then turned to Demoux. "Would you excuse us, Captain?"

  The young guard nodded, walking from the room and closing the door.

  "Well?" Elend said, turning to OreSeur.

  "I do not know where this came from," the kandra said.

  "But it is another kandra-eaten corpse," Vin said.

  "Undoubtedly, Mistress," OreSeur said. "The dogs found it because of the particular scent our digestive juices leave on recently excreted bones. "

  Elend and Vin shared a look.

  "However," OreSeur said, "it is probably not what you think. This man was probably killed far from here. "

  "What do you mean?"

  "They are discarded bones, Your Majesty," OreSeur said. "The bones a kandra leaves behind. . . "

  "After he finds a new body," Vin finished.

  "Yes, Mistress," OreSeur said.

  Vin looked at Elend, who frowned. "How long ago?" he asked. "Maybe the bones were left a year before, by my fathers kandra. "

  "Perhaps, Your Majesty," OreSeur said. But he sounded hesitant. He padded over, sniffing at the bones. Vin picked one up herself, holding it to her nose. With tin, she easily picked out a sharp scent that reminded her of bile.