Free The Queen's Blade by T. Southwell Page B

year later, and has held it ever since. He is also known as the Silent Slayer and the Invisible Assassin. The tally of his trade varies greatly, some say two hundred men, others tell me more than four hundred. Apparently he is credited with the assassination of Lord Rothwayer, paid for by his rival Lord Mordon, but no one knows for certain, other than that Lord Rothwayer was killed with a dagger in the distinctive fashion of the Invisible Assassin."
    "What fashion is that?" Minna asked.
    Mendal raised his left arm and gestured to his flank. "A dagger through the heart, under the arm."
    "Is he a good assassin, then?"
    "Good?" Mendal sniggered. "Few can claim more than a hundred kills, My Queen, and even fewer live to see thirty. The Invisible Assassin is said to be nine and twenty years of age."
    "I see. What else?"
    Mendal waved the paper. "Details, nothing more."
    "Tell me."
    "He came from a large family, two brothers and three sisters, all dead now. His father's name was Jarren, his mother Misha, and his aunt is called Perin. His village was utterly wiped out in the raid that killed them... um..." Mendal paused, clearly struggling to read his untidy scrawl.
    "Why is he called the Invisible Assassin?"
    He glanced up. "Well, because no one ever sees him, My Queen."
    "But all assassins sneak about. It is how they do their job."
    "But in his case, it is more than that." Mendal gestured with the paper. "Take the case of Lord Rothwayer, who was killed in his bedroom with a guard at every door and window. The lord, as usual, came home with a whore, and the girl left a time-glass or so later. No one entered the room after that, and all the guards swore to it, yet Lord Rothwayer was found dead in his bed the next morning."
    "Very strange. Anything else?"
    Mendal looked surprised. "Just gossip."
    "Indulge me, I am bored this morning."
    "Well, there is a story of one escapade in which he was hired by one large and powerful merchant family to kill the patriarch of another. He performed the task, but the seven brothers of the man he killed, knowing who their enemies were, took vengeance on the family that had hired him. They lay in wait for the assassin, and when he came to collect his payment, they beat him to within an inch of his life. In truth, he should have died, and they left him for dead on the street. Soon after this, he vanished, and reappeared several moons later, healthy again."
    "And no one knows who saved him, or why?"
    "No, My Queen."
    "What of his character? What sort of man is he?"
    Mendal chuckled. "Why, he is a killer. Cold-blooded, unfeeling and merciless."
    "This is your opinion?"
    "Of course, it stands to reason. Anyway, no one knows him well enough to speak of his personality, but his deeds say it for him, do they not?"
    "Yet he must have at least one friend, who saved him from death and nursed him back to health."
    Mendal inclined his head. "It would seem so, My Queen. Then again, perhaps whoever did it was seeking a reward, for assassins are often quite rich."
    "Perhaps," she allowed. "You have done well, Mendal, I am pleased. You may go."
    The advisor prostrated himself and left, and Chiana awaited orders. The Queen rose and went to stare out of the window at the sunny garden.
    "It seems that I have indeed chosen the right man for this task," she murmured.
    "Yes, My Queen."
    "Almost a moon phase has passed, and we have heard nothing. Why does he not send a message?"
    "Perhaps he cannot."
    "Yes, I suppose so. If he fails, I shall..." She sighed. "So much depends on his success. All my plans."
    "I am sure he will succeed, My Queen. If his reputation is as fearsome as Mendal describes, he must."
    "Yes, yes, I agree, provided the tales Mendal passed on to me were not exaggerations."
    "Even if they are, they must be based on some amazing facts."
     
    Kerrion watched the assassin cut dried meat into a pot to prepare a stew. The last three days had passed relatively peacefully, since he had stopped goading the