At the break of dawn, the next day, Irina woke, easing out of bed to start her chores. In a resting state, she cleaned her lonely house, then went outside to feed and water the horses. Each chore was mundane; the same reiterative task every day, but for her own sake, she lost herself in her mind and done them without complaint.
Once the chores were done, she returned to her house and retrieved the set of lock picks her brother gave to her, then ventured out into the desolate muddy streets of the village, making her way northeast to the Maiden of War statue. From there Irina went southeast towards the house with the red chimney and cut through the backstreets, waving at locals and evading goat shit on the road as she went on.
She, at last, made it to Luthier's house and eased close to the door in case anyone was to see, taking a lock pick from the leather case she tossed into the pocket of her overcoat. Maneuvering the tool around in the lock, she heard a low click and grinned in triumph as the door creaked open when she pushed on it.
So far this was too easy.
Irina stepped into the dark and cold house, looking around. It was apparent to her that no one had been living there for some time. The house reeked of trash; food rotted in pots on the stove, infested with squirming maggots and fuzzy mold. She covered her nose in repulse and searched through the kitchen for anything of interest, but there was nothing that immediately caught her attention, except for a child's drawing of Happy Birthday on the wall.
Her heart sank. Shame they went missing. Irina didn't personally know them, but they were residence of the village. This is why stealing from them had struck a nerve. She didn't want to, but the Duke had a point; you can't steal from the dead.
She glanced over the hand-drawn picture a moment later, then noticed a date. It read 270917. She ignored it and continued searching the house.
Inside the workshop, adjacent to the living area, hollow wooden violin bodies hung from the ceiling and rested against the naked wall. Irina spotted a cabinet on the far side of the room and walked over to it; a combination lock hid its contents from her.
She frowned. How was she to open it? The combination could be any grouping of six numbers.
Suddenly she remembered. Racing back into the kitchen, Irina looked at the picture and recited the numbers over and over in her head so as not to forget them and returned to the cabinet to put them in.
As she hoped, the rusted fastener snapped open. She set it aside and opened the cabinet. Inside was a steel Hraesvelgr statue – a giant in Norse mythology Irina read about, said to take the form of an eagle – and a discolored briefcase. Was the briefcase the treasure the Duke spoke of? Or the eagle statue? He never mentioned there would be two.
Irina took them both, hiding them in a straw sack she found in the kitchen. Once she had them secure, she exited the house, locked the front door, and made her way back towards the altar area where the Duke was with any luck still waiting.
And he was.
Upon her entrance, he sat down his thick novel and greeted her.
"Welcome, Irina."
She gave him a nod. "I brought the treasure you asked for."
"Marvelous! I knew you would pull through."
Taking the statue from the sack, Irina gave it to him. The Duke examined it and put it away inside his carriage with a grin. He took out his purse and gave to her some coins. Irina counted them in glee.
14,ooo Lei. Her eyes widened.
"I promised I'd compensate you, didn't I?"
Irina smiled. "And you kept your word. This is more than enough to keep me comfortable for a while."
She remembered the briefcase and took it out, handing it to him.
"Oh! What is this?"
Irina pocketed her coins. "I found it with the statue. I'm not sure what's inside, but you might have more use of it than me."
"Let us see," he stated.
Resting the briefcase on his lap, the Duke cleaned the dust from the top and opened it. He grinned upon seeing its contents and showed it to Irina.
She puckered a brow. "A gun part?"
"Not just any gun part, my dear, a magazine for an F2 Rifle. I happen to have one in my possession. This will make a lovely accessory."
He put the case away and took out his purse, adding, "Allow me to compensate you for it."
Irina brought up her hand, stopping him. "Consider it a trade for the meal."
"Of course," he said with a grin.
Remembering why she came, Irina brought it up. "About the treasure the land holds, you promised to tell me about them."
"Should you come back, yes. And here you are."
He took out a cigar from his breast pocket and lit it, taking a puff.
"There are hidden treasures spread across the land, some in dangerous hands. Before I tell you, know that you could be hurt or worse," he explained.
"But should I retrieve them, I will be a rich woman."
The Duke laughed. "Rich enough to leave this mundane place behind."
She loved the sound of this. Imagine the places she could go. Her life would never be the same; every day would be something new.
"Please tell me," Irina begged.
The Duke reached back and retrieved a map from his carriage and stretched it open, marking something on the inside of it. He handed it to her shortly after.
Irina recognized the land some of the marks were on. Her stomach churned in dread.
"These territories belong to the four Lords," she mentioned.
The Duke agreed. "Yes … as I said, the treasure will be hard to retrieve. However, even one treasure from their land will make you lots of money."
She realized this, but she never thought she'd have to venture into their territory to retrieve them. Irina knew little about the Lords besides what they looked like – via a picture of them in the church. Were they dangerous? What happened to the villagers moved to their lands?
She shook her head, clearing her thoughts. The coin is all she cared for.
"Where should I start?"
Again, the Duke laughed. "You are an interesting one … and daring."
He took a puff of his cigar, humming. "Lady Dimitrescu is a woman you should avoid. Her castle is large, but she has three daughters who live with her; with too many eyes to avoid. And Lord Moreau hides away in a reservoir near the drowned houses. You may never recover his treasure if it's at the bottom of the lake."
Irina frowned. This was proving to be too hard.
"And of the other two?"
"Lord Heisenberg and Lady Beneviento? Yes … one or the other. Each is extremely dangerous but lives in isolation. The puppeteer? Or the inventor? Which one will you choose?"
She thought it over.
"Dolls creep me out, so the factory area is where I will start."
The Duke nodded his head. "Best of luck to you, Irina. I will be here waiting."
If she came back.
Irina returned to her house and prepared a bag; food and an extra set of clothing. Before she returned to the altar area, she turned and said her farewells to her home. For some reason, she felt like she needed to because once she stood in front of the gate with the iron steed emblem, opening it with a struggle, it was far too late to turn back.
She bore her guilt and ventured on, passing stone giants and crossing an extended bridge into the valley at the outskirts of the village. The factory sat isolated; barb-wired fence wide open, welcoming Irina to explore its iron belly. She marveled at the scrap sitting around, rusting under the elements.
Was Heisenberg a hoarder? Surely, he had no use for all this junk. But perhaps there was a method to his madness; Irina wasn't certain.
She traveled along the pathway leading up to the workshop and squeezed between a narrow opening leading into the factory. Heisenberg forgot to close the front door; how convenient for Irina.
The smell of grease and something foul made her crinkle her nose in disgust as she took a look around. Nothing but junk inside too. Irina wondered if there was a map hanging somewhere on the wall; it was far too dark to see some areas of the room due to the range of the ceiling light in the left corner. She stumbled towards it, bumping her knee along the way, and saw a door. Opening it, she walked down a set of steps and followed a narrow winding, dimly lit hallway to the end – her heart pounded with every step.
A door to the back led her into another spacious room, crowded with metal shelves and dust-covered boxes. Was the Duke sure there was something of worth here in the factory? Irina couldn't even see a door leading to the next room.
There was only a table with a worn cloth hanging above it and more unusable scrap. She sighed in annoyance. Perhaps searching Lady Beneviento's house would have been easier for her.
She stood in the center of the room and looked around. Shame she couldn't find a map.
Maybe there was another door somewhere back in the first room she missed. Irina turned but froze with a horrified gasp once she noticed someone behind her.
His well-known appearance made her stomach churn in dread. How long had he been standing there?
"Lord Heis––
"Now this is a surprise," he interrupted.
Sauntering past her, Heisenberg eased up the cloth over the desk and peeked beneath it. He turned and looked her over. Irina was too terrified to move. She thought fleeing was not in her best interest.
"Who're you?"
She went to say her name, but he interrupted her again, raising his gloved hand.
"No, no … let me guess." He began to pace.
Stopping, he tossed his hand, pointing to somewhere behind him Irina could not see.
"You one of hers? Did she send you here to snoop for her?"
Irina was confused. "Who?"
"You know damn well who," he barked.
A metal chair slid across the room and slammed against the wall; Irina jumped in shock. How did that happen?
"Lady fucking Dimitrescu."
She'd send someone to snoop on him?
"I came here on my own, for my reasons."
Heisenberg grinned and shook his head. "Are you serious? And what reason is that?"
"For the tr––
She cut herself off. The truth might anger him further.
Heisenberg leaned forward. "Gonna have to speak up darling."
"I can't … please I––
"I said speak up," he ordered.
Heisenberg stormed forward and seized her hand, yanking her close; so close that she could see the faint scars across his face; smell the smoke on his warm breath.
Her face heated up.
"I came for the treasure," she uttered as she looked away from his curious eyes.
Was it normal for a person to have yellow eyes?
"Treasure?"
She clarified with a nod.
He searched her scared but determined expression then laughed.
"You're serious … fuck."
Looking over his shoulder, Heisenberg hummed. He turned with a grin and brought up his finger.
"Stay here. Be right back."
Where was she to go?
Irina watched him dig around inside a desk drawer and yank out something rusted and linked. Whistling as he held them into the dim light above him, Heisenberg tested their strength.
Her eyes grew wide in shock; she realized they were shackles.
Yanking open a door on the floor, he sauntered back to her and slapped the shackles on Irina's wrists, then yanked her over towards the square door; the rusted metal dug against her skin.
"How about a game," he suggested.
Irina didn't know what to say. Fear devoured her.
"I'm gonna put you in this hole and your gonna attempt to run and hide from me," he made clear.
Shrugging, he added, "Hell … if you manage to elude me or escape, I'll let you leave here alive. The entire factory is yours to explore. And spoiler, you will die when I catch you."
She stared down into the dark hole and shook her head, pressing her shaking body closer to him. Heisenberg was a monster. Did no one know this? Irina wasn't sure the Duke knew the extent of his madness. Why else would he let her come here?
Heisenberg squeezed her upper arm. "Get into the hole."
"I don't want to die," she uttered.
He grinned. "Win the game. Now get in the damn hole."
Irina sank onto her knees, afraid that he'd push her, and eased her lower body into the hole, using the edge as a support to keep herself from falling. She couldn't feel the bottom with her toes, but she trusted there was one. Heisenberg seemed too into the game to trick her into falling to her immediate death.
Staring up at him a moment, she let go and plummeted into the darkness below, smacking the dusty floor with a thump. The air left her lungs and she coughed.
"Be grateful the pets are locked up," she heard Heisenberg say.
Pets? What did he mean? What was down here with her?
Irina sat up and looked around. There was nothing but a spacious room filled with junk.
Heisenberg laughed. "You have an hour. Run and hide, darling."
And she did.