Chapter 6

"How am I doing?" Gabin asked Varian as he followed the Companion's directions to groom him.

:Very good. Oooh, that's an itchy spot.:

Gabin obliged him with extra brushing near his withers. "So tomorrow we'll have to get started. I have a list of suspects from the guard. Do you want to go near their houses and see what we find?"

"Who are you talking to?" Tyber asked as he entered the small, two stall stable.

"Varian."

"What does he care if you go spy on suspects?" Tyber asked.

Varian winked at Gabin.

"He's a great conversationalist actually." Gabin said with a grin.

Tyber shook his head. He hung a bucket of water in Jelly's stall. "There is a well out back and feed in the tack room. Do you know how much to feed him?"

:I will help you with that.:

"I have a good idea of how much he needs." Gabin assured him.

"I'll be inside. Enjoy your conversation." Tyber said drily.

:If only he knew.: Varian chortled. :When and where are we most likely to find the street children if they are not being held captive?:

"Probably in the morning. They'd be trying to snitch food from the wagons bringing in produce."

:So in the morning we should search for children. In the afternoon we can spend a couple candle marks searching houses, not too much or you will over extend your gift. After that we can have some more riding lessons.:

"Sounds like a plan." Gabin agreed.

:You should talk to Tyber, since he is so interested in your plans he probably has a few opinions.:

"Undoubtedly. I'm curious as to why he's so interested. He's always been an enigma. He would vanish for months and sometimes would be bothered by something when he returned. He told me he used to be a mercenary but I suspect he's still taking jobs."

:Jobs that bother him after they're completed? I can ask Sayvil, she is the Companion of Captain Kerowyn. If he was a Skybolt she might know.:

Gabin considered the option. "No, he deserves his privacy."

:Well, you should head inside. I'm comfortable. Thank you for the grooming.:

"Least I could do. Thank you for your patience and for teaching me." Gabin said as he put away the brushes that had been in the saddle bags. Varian had walked him through cleaning the tack and grooming him.

Gabin stopped in the small garden and sniffed the air. The smell of the over grown flowers reminded him of the palace.

He remembered when he first woke up at the healers to find Fyn waiting for him he thought the smell of flowers had been her perfume. At first he had resented her and the other Heralds. They had just strolled in and took over. That had only lasted a day or so. It was Fyn who convinced him that while things were barreling ahead, he still had choices.

Gabin grinned as he recalled Fyn's face when she tracked him down just before she left. She had an expression of pure mischief and delight when she found him outside Safe Haven. She was not a stiff necked Herald by any stretch of the imagination.

The last thing she had said when she hurried out the door to answer the call of duty had been to not wait for her. He hoped she wouldn't mind if he did. She had a lively mind and a lovely body.

Heading inside he found himself in barely furnished house. Clearly Tyber was a bachelor.

"Good conversation?" Tyber asked.

"Horses are amazing conversationalists." Gabin said lightly. He wasn't certain how Tyber would react to discovering a Companion was in his stable.

Tyber gestured to the only other chair in the room. It was a muddy brown but comfortable looking chair that faced a cold hearth. "Have a seat."

Gabin settled in the chair and waited.

"Do you know where to even start?" Tyber asked. He propped his feet on the cold hearth.

Gabin pulled out a list he had gotten from the guard and handed it over. "This is every person whose name has been connected to a child brothel in the last three years. They are still going through the other records so the list will get longer. I have only managed to check the seven that are crossed off."

Tyber stared at the document and handed it back. "At least we have a starting place."

Gabin accepted the papers and tucked them back inside his tunic. "You can't read."

"What?"

"I've been teaching children to read for years, I know when someone is faking it." Gabin pointed out. "Your eyes scanned down the paper, not to side to side."

"No wonder half the people in Exile's Gate want you to vanish." Tyber said with a dark glare.

"I now know not to send you a note." Gabin pointed out. "In the morning I am going to head out to search for children. In the afternoon I am going to visit a few more on the list. I have no intention of confronting anyone unless it is dire circumstances."

"Somehow I doubt that is what you hope will happen."

Gabin shrugged. "I've learned a few things the last few weeks, one is it is better to let justice be dispensed by the crown. I'd prefer to alert the guard or Heralds to the situation and let them rescue the child. It will be safer for the child."

"What taught you that lesson? You are not exactly famous for turning those who harm your children over to the crown. They are more likely to end up missing or injured."

"Is that why you invited me here? So I don't beat you to it? And I have only killed on rare occasions."

"Rare enough to be counted on one hand?"

"Almost." Gabin hedged.

"Well, the last thing I need is an amateur running loose." Tyber informed him. "Don't go searching for children without me."

"And why should I let you take the lead?"

"I have more experience with these types of situations." Tyber informed him.

"Oh? Such as?"

"It was my job."

"How so."

"During the war with Ancar my job was to find prisoners and get them free before they were killed." Tyber explained, his voice betrayed his irritation with Gabin's pressing for answers.

Gabin nodded thoughtfully. "That was about a decade ago. Aren't you worried about being out of practice? I know you were retired when you started coming to the Safe House five years ago."

"It's more accurate to say I'm mostly retired."

"Oh?" Gabin waited. He wanted to know more about what his ally was able to do. "I've noticed you vanish from time to time. I figured you were a thief."

Tyber's eyebrow quirked. "I haven't had to steal since I joined the Skybolts. I retired rather than accept a position as the lieutenant in charge of the irregulars. The polite term for slightly reformed thieves and scoundrels."

"I remember reading about them. They were responsible for sabotage, kidnapping, and heroic rescues."

"You read about us? Where?"

"There are dozens of books about that war around. There were two at the library."

Tyber shook his head in disbelief. "Let me guess, you read them both?"

"Of course." Gabin grinned. "So if I agree not to rush off and get in your way, you will do your best to rescue my children without having to wait for the guard or Heralds?"

"And if you give me every scrap of information you have."

"There is also a killer we need to find."

"Oh? One of the children was killed?"

"Probably, but we haven't found them yet. One of the perverts stole Rosa, then his partner killed him."

"Rosa?"

"A toddler. I think you've met her. Anyways, she's safe now."

"Why are you so concerned with the man who killed the pervert?"

"He tried to kill me. He failed, obviously, but I am not about to let that bastard walk."

Tyber eyed Gabin with an inscrutable expression. "He can't have done much damage."

Gabin hauled up his shirt to show the red scar that marked where the knife had entered his body. It was almost four inches long and looked like it was several months old. "It was a near thing. I collapsed at the palace gate and if a Healer hadn't been close I would be dead."

"Huh." Tyber stood. "Care for a drink?"

"No thanks. Drink makes me ill." Gabin said with a grimace.

Tyber collected a bottle off the mantle where several other bottles waited. "I collect wine from everywhere. You've got that Herald gift, your Sight, right?"

"Right."

"If I recall correctly, most Herald Gifts don't appear completely alone. Normally there are other gifts that crop up alongside. Like mindspeech or the like. One Herald I knew back during the war told me when he drank, his control faltered. He'd start Hearing thoughts and start gabbing people's secrets. I wonder if it's your gift making you ill." Gabin poured himself some wine in a fine, glass goblet. "I can't imagine not being able to drink my wine."

Gabin eyed the even dozen bottles on the mantle. They each had labels, most of which he couldn't read. "Are they from your home country?"

"A couple. That one is from the center of the empire." Tyber pointed to one bottle. "It's weak as dog piss. It tastes good though. And that one is from the White Gryphon. I have yet to try it."

"How do you get them?"

"Some I bought from merchants. Others I bought when I was off on a job." Tyber settled back in his chair. "I still do the odd job for the Captain."

"And that is why you vanish from time to time?"

"Usually." Tyber confirmed. "So, can I count on you to stay out of my way?"

"You can count on me to work with you. I have others to call on if I need help."

Tyber sipped his wine. "Like who?"

"Herald Kris and Herald Lyra have taken a very personal interest in finding the children."

Tyber frowned. "I'm not familiar with them."

"The Prince and Princess." Gabin was grinning now. He was not about to let Tyber take the lead on this. "And the Guard commanders have given orders that no matter how late the hour, if I come in asking for aid they are to provide it if they are able. And I know there are several Skybolts involved too."

"But none of them are here now. None are as good as I am at rescuing someone without leaving a trail of blood. You're only going to be effective so long as no one suspects you are involved." Tyber pointed out.

"So we agree? Neither is in charge? We agree on any path we take?"

"I don't work that way."

"I don't normally either." Gabin pointed out. "But this seems to be the best way to protect my children."

"Very well." Tyber said after another sip of wine. "Except when there is danger, I have more experience with bad situations."