Page 88 of Take No Prisoners
"Where the fuck is Martiz?" Coryn's low alto echoed inside the barracks. The sound took Niall back to the gallows, the night his parents hanged.
The general herself charged out the back door. Limp brown hair hugged her face like a helmet. Her shimmering gray cloak smoldered along the bottom edge from dragging through the hot ash and coals inside. The lining of her cloak was black, as were the rest of her clothes and her boots, giving her the appearance of a storm cloud.
"You." Her voice rumbled like thunder. She grabbed the rope from Brigham and pulled on it hard enough to bring Niall crashing to his knees. Klaus tripped over him and lunged forward, only to be caught by the throat.
Coryn lifted him to his feet with a gloved hand. "Where is Vadim?"
"I don't know! He didn't tell me because he knew you would come."
She released him, and Klaus fell on his knees beside Niall. He raised his bound hands to his chest in supplication. "Please. I didn't know he was a traitor. I thought we were sailing to Stony Eel Island. I swear it. Once we were captured, I told them where to find the trap, just like you wanted."
Niall's attention snapped to Klaus. "What did you say?"
"Seekers can't see spectral traps, not even a grand seeker like me." Klaus stared at the grass beneath them. "I lied, and Vadim believed me."
The revelation startled Niall to silence, and Coryn laughed. "You had this one fooled, at least. Introduce me to your friend."
"We've met," Niall said through his clenched jaw. "I'm Niall Minas."
"The potter's apprentice." Coryn curtsied to him with a little flounce of her cloak. "So wonderful to meet you, Niall. I am sorry for your parents' poor choices. They would still be alive if they would have rejoined my navy."
Niall didn't believe that for an instant, but he hid his distaste.
A runner approached from the west. "Starlight Specterpulled anchor and is sailing away."
"Let her go. We've got everything we need right here. If I'm not mistaken, this is the weaver who broke my trap." She stepped behind Niall as she removed her glove. He felt a slight tug on his cuffs, and then she returned to face him, tugging her glove back onto her hand. "Yes. You'll do nicely. You might be able to pull the artifact from the ground by yourself."
After what Vadim had said about the artifact she was digging up on Stony Eel Island, he doubted he would survive.
Chapter 22
Efren
Efren sat close enough he could hear every syllable of Vadim's gravelly baritone as he recited his name, occupation, and where he'd been for the last five years. The people beside and behind him in the audience shifted uncomfortably and asked their neighbors what he said. Tired of the ruckus, Beatrice finally weaved a bit of air to amplify his voice for the crowd.
"We all know who you are and what you do," she said. "Repeat where you've been."
"Since I leftStarlight Specter, I've been head of the emperor's security detail in Hearthstone. Six months ago, General Coryn sent me on a mission to recruit new weavers, mainly earth, for a secret initiative on Stony Eel Island."
"What does she want there?" Beatrice asked.
"It's irrelevant," Martiz countered. "General Coryn isn't here to answer for her crimes. Vadim has serious charges against him. We need to address those, instead."
"As you say." Beatrice bowed her head with a gracious smile and motioned for him to continue.
"I thought you of all people would want to know what happened to Willamina." Martiz looked smug as the audience around Efren erupted.
"I know what happened to my daughter." Her words silenced them again. "She stopped running and faced Coryn the same way I would if she dared to face me. But do go on and ask Vadim about his role."
Vadim didn't wait for Martiz's next question. "I gave Willamina the option to run, and she refused."
From Martiz's sour look, he knew he'd lost the crowd's support.
"I would have told Coryn they'd slipped past me," Vadim continued, "but Willamina recognized the danger for all of us. Coryn wanted a spectral weaver. I made her promise she would hang Willamina and her entire crew before she interrogated them."
"How?" Martiz asked.
"I told her Willamina had killed my brother in a sea battle, and I demanded revenge."
