Shadows Linger

A man lay before me. He had sunk as low as any I’d ever known. Then he had fought his way back, and back, and had become worthy. A man far better than I, for he had located his moral polestar and set his course by it, though it had cost his life. Maybe, just a little, he had repaid his debt.

He did another thing by getting himself killed in a fight I did not consider his. He became a sort of patron saint of mine, an example for days to come. He set a high standard in his last few days.

He opened his eyes before the end. He smiled. “Did we do it?” he asked.

“We did it, Shed. Thanks to you and Bullock.”

“Good.” Still smiling, he closed his eyes.

Hagop hollered, “Hey, Croaker. What you want to do about this Asa creep?”

Asa was still in the blackberries, yelling for help. The dogs had the patch surrounded.

“Put a couple javelins in him,” One-Eye muttered.

“No,” Shed said in a tiny whisper. “Let him be. He was my friend. He tried to get back, but they caught him. Let him go.”

“AH right, Shed. Hagop! Dig him out and turn him loose.”

“What?”

“You heard me.” I looked back at Shed. “Okay, Shed?”

He didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. But he was smiling.

I got up and said, “At least somebody died the way he wanted. Otto. Get a damned shovel.”

“Aw, Croaker...”

“Get a goddamned shovel and get to work. Silent, One-Eye, Goblin, inside. We got plans to make.”

The light was nearly gone. By the Lieutenant’s estimate it would be but hours before the Lady reached Meadenvil.

Chapter Forty-Nine

On the move

“We need rest,” One-Eye protested.

“There won’t be any rest till we’re dead,” I countered. “We’re on the other side now, One-Eye. We did what the Rebel couldn’t. We’ve done in the Limper, the last of the original Taken. She’ll be after us hard as soon as she’s cleaned up these black castle leavings. She has to. If she doesn’t get us fast, every Rebel in five thousand miles will get worked up to try something. There are only two Taken left, and only Whisper worth much.”

“Yeah. I know. Wishful thinking. Can’t stop a man wishing, Croaker.”

I stared at the necklace Shed had worn. I had to leave it for the Lady, yet the silver in it might become a lifesaver down the long road we had to travel. I screwed up my courage and began digging out the eyes.

“What the hell you doing?”

“Going to leave these with the Limper. Going to feed them to him. I figure they’ll hatch.”

“Ha!” Goblin said. “Ironic. Fitting.”

“I thought it an interesting turn of justice. Give him back to the Dominator.”

“And the Lady will have to destroy him. I like it.”

Grudgingly, One-Eye agreed.

“Thought you guys would. Go see if they’ve got everybody buried.”

“Only been ten minutes since they got back with the bodies.”

“All right. Go help.” I levered myself up and went to check on the men I had patched up. I don’t know if everyone Hagop and Otto brought back from the ambush site was dead when they got there. They certainly were now. Kingpin had been dead for a long time, though they had brought him to me to examine.

My patients were doing fine. One was aware enough to be frightened. I patted his arm and limped outside.

They had King in the ground now, beside Shed and Bullock and the Limper’s boy they had buried earlier. Only two corpses remained unburied. Asa was making the dirt fly. Everyone else stood and watched. Till they saw me glowering.

“What’s the take?” I asked the fat man. I’d had him strip the dead of valuables.

“Not a lot.” He showed me a hat filled with odds and ends.

“Take what you need to cover the damages.” “You guys will need it more than me.” “You’re out a wagon and a team, not to mention the dogs. Take what you need. I can always rob somebody I don’t like.” No one knew that I had filched Shed’s purse. Its weight had surprised me. It would be my secret reserve. “Take a couple horses, too.”

He shook his head. “I’m not getting caught with somebody else’s animals after the dust settles and the Prince starts looking for scapegoats.” He selected a few silver coins. “I got what I wanted.”

“Okay. You’d better hide in the woods for a while. The Lady will come here. She’s nastier than the Limper.” “Will do.”

“Hagop. If you’re not going to dig, go get the horses ready. Move!” I beckoned Silent. He and I dragged the Limper to a shade tree out front. Silent tossed a rope over a limb. I forced the eyes of the serpents down the Taken’s throat. We hoisted him up. He turned slowly in the chill moonlight. I rubbed my hands together and considered him. “Took a while, guy, but somebody finally got you.” For ten years I had wanted to see him go down. He had been the most inhuman of the Taken.

Asa came to me. “All buried, Croaker.”

“Good. Thanks for the help.” I started toward the barn.

“Can I go with you guys?”

I laughed.

“Please, Croaker? Don’t leave me here where...”

“I don’t give a damn, Asa. But don’t expect me to look out for you. And don’t try any slick tricks. I’d as soon kill you as look at you.”

“Thanks, Croaker.” He raced ahead, hastily saddled another horse. One-Eye looked at me and shook his head.

“Mount up, men. Let’s go find Raven.”

Though we pushed hard, we were not twenty miles south of the i

cloud materialized, radiating anger. “You have exhausted my patience, physician.”

“You exhausted mine a long time ago.”

“You’ll rue this murder.”

“I’ll exult in it. It’s the first decent thing I’ve done this side of the Sea of Torments. Go find your castle eggs. Leave me alone. We’re even.”

“Oh, no. You will hear from me again. As soon as I close the last door on my husband.”

“Don’t press your luck, old witch. I’m ready to get out of the game. Push and I’ll learn TelleKurre.”

That caught her from the blind side. “Ask Whisper what she lost in the Forest of Cloud and hoped to recover in Meadenvil. Then reflect upon what an angry Croaker  could do with it if he knew where to find it.”

There was a vertiginous moment as she withdrew.

I found my companions looking at me weirdly. “Just saying good-bye to my girl,” I told them.  We lost Asa in Shaker. We took a day off there, to prepare for the next leg, and when it came time to leave, Asa was not to be seen. Nobody bothered looking for him. On Shed’s behalf I left him with a wish for luck. Judging from his past, he probably had it, and all bad. My farewell to the Lady did not take. Three months to the day after the Limper’s fall, as we were resting prior to hazarding the last range of hills between us and Chimney, the golden cloud visited me again. This time the Lady was less belligerent. In fact, she seemed mildly amused.

“Greetings, physician. I thought you might want to know, for the sake of your A

I could think of nothing to say. It was no less than I had expected, and had hoped she would accomplish, for she was the lesser evil, and, I suspect, remained possessed of a spark that had not committed itself to the darkness. She had shown restraint on several occasions when she could have indulged her cruelty. Maybe if she felt unchallenged, she would drift toward the light rather than farther toward the shadow.

“I interviewed Whisper. With the Eye. Stand clear, Croaker.”

Never before had she called me by name. I sat up and took notice. There was no amusement in her now.

“Stand clear?”