A week later, I had a small two-bedroom house tucked away in an alley opposite the Alienage. A breath-taking view of the ocean from the windows of the bedrooms was the second biggest reason for choosing that one, since I loved to see water, just not be in danger of being in the water. The first, of course, being the whole "tucked away" thing. Out of sight. Which was definitely necessary, seeing as how Rhatigan, the leader of the Kirkwall Carta, and I were meeting on an almost daily basis now. Most of the time at my new home, only resorting to his office when he wanted to show off the people he had under him for one reason or another.
After only four days, I soon had treaties with the other crime syndicates, as well. Luckily, Rhatigan had heard from the Bigger Carta Bosses about the new terms with the Antivan Crows. And, most importantly, about me, the Leader of Said Crows. So, no one had really put up much of a fight. No one put up any fight, actually. It was all pretty civil, all things considered. A bunch of crime lords meeting under one roof, and no one had died. Sure, there'd been threats over every little thing, but never directed toward me. Me, they treated with an almost reverence. I think it was the whole Archdemon thing, but I wasn't sure.
I wasn't going to complain, though. Since it made the transitions smoother between our groups.
I say transitions, because the smaller outfits became branches of the Crows, while the bigger ones were allowed to keep their autonomy, so long as they didn't interfere with anything we had plans for. And to tell us of their own plans before doing anything drastic.
Anders had set up that clinic he'd been talking about, too, during that time. A surprise to me, since I hadn't seen him for that entire time, his actions and whereabouts unknown to me.
All in all, not bad for a week.
"So, this is it, huh?" I did a slow circle, smiling to myself. It looked really good, the people of Lowtown coming together to help the mage, since he was a Fereldener and a spirit healer. "It looks pretty good. Safe."
Relief shone on his face, coming out in a sigh. "Oh, good. I was worried it looked like a dank, back-alley torture room."
"Give it a few weeks, when you've got bloodied patients coming in. Then, it'll look more like it."
We shared a grin.
"I can have some people stick around here, keep an eye on the place. Make sure no one causes trouble. Or if they do, kick them out."
"Could you? That might make people feel better, too."
"Consider it done." I nodded, making a mental note to ask for volunteers first and foremost. If no one stepped up, then we'd resort to forced-volunteer. But that could wait until a little later.
One by one, patients trickled in and out of the small clinic, ailments of all sorts bringing them in. A cough. A cold. A broken arm. A torn leg muscle. A nosebleed.
After he had closed for the day, because he was worn out from expending so much energy, he turned to me and spoke softly. "How've you been? Any more stomach trouble?"
"I've been fine." A brilliant smile. "No attacks as of late. I still haven't figured out what caused it, either."
"You should go home and get some rest."
"Says the guy looking like he's about to pass out." I gave him a pointed look. Pot, kettle, Anders. Pot, kettle.
"Yeah, yeah. Maybe that's just my excuse to shoo you out."
"I'm hurt." I clutched my chest, gasping loudly. "You'd just throw a ten year old girl out, on to the streets?"
He rolled his eyes, waving his hands at me. "Dramatic, dramatic. Go home, drama queen."
Sticking out my tongue before I darted out the door, I made my way back up to Lowtown.
A note had been slipped under my door, some nonsense riddle about a noble in Hightown who went out late at night to his lover's. A signal that it was time to pay his abode a visit and leave some evidence for his wife to find. It would ruin him, because she had made him sign a pre-nup (who knew those existed in Thedas?) which clearly stated that if he stepped out of the marriage and found comfort with another person, she would have the divorce and the rights to everything in his and her own name. He would be penniless and without his little empire he'd created off her back anyway. I was more than happy to do it.
And do it, I did. The next day, after having carefully placed a pair of the lover's unmentionables that he'd kept in the false bottom of a drawer on the wife's side of the bed, along with several love letters from the smitten couple, the new spread like wildfire; he had been booted from his own home in the middle of the night, his clothes and things all in suitcases and sitting on the front lawn. Much kinder than what some of the onlookers had gossiped, several saying they would have burned them or simply thrown everything from the window and watched the wind carry it all away.
Vicious.
I liked it.
That night, I was thumbing through some books I'd gotten hold of through connections, wondering if I should send for Alistair to send me some of the private ones he'd given me permission for. Before remembering that that hadn't happened yet, and it might catch him off-guard if he got a letter out of the blue with the request, his seal and all on the glorified permission slip. Not that it would take long for him to accept it and give me a yay or nay.
And then Anders happened.
He'd just walked in, coming straight from Kirkwall's version of the post office, delivering another letter to Karl, and there was something raw about him.
"Anders." I murmured, my heart racing. His eyes were that strange glowing blue again, like all the other times Justice had wanted to greet me himself, but… This was different. It wasn't the Warden or Justice in my home. He was more like a wild animal, trapped and injured. Lashing out.
Before I had the chance to gauge the situation, he flung out his arms, sending books flying around the room. And I had some heavy books. One of them smacked me between my shoulder-blades while I was still in shock at his outburst, and I knew it would bruise later. He was going to pay for that.
"Enough!" I shouted, my voice echoing from every corner. Magically amplified. Raising a hand, I envisioned a bubble surrounding him, cutting him off from the rest of the world. Instantly, my things rained to the floor. "What the hell is wrong with you?"
He raged inside the barrier, but nothing he did slipped through, much to his frustration. Finally, finally, he came back to himself, his eyes returning to their normal honey color.
"Maker…" Falling to his knees, he grasped the sides of his head and let out a howl.
Taking a step back, startled again, I wasn't quite sure what to do. What to make of the situation.
"Karl doesn't think there's much time left." His voice broke, and so did my heart. Karl's letters had been serene up until this point. All saying he was okay and what had happened during the previous day. This one must've been different, for sure, to elicit such a reaction. "Please. Isn't there something, anything, you can do?" He raised his head, meeting my eye. Desperation washed over everything, flowing from him like a fountain. "Tell me you've seen something… Please."
"I've tried." Frustration, his or my own I wasn't sure, filled me, making me ball my hands in to fists. "I've been working on forcing visions but, when it comes to The Gallows... I don't know. I think it's the massive force of magic muters."
"Don't give me that!" On his feet again, he slashed his hand through the air, anger rising up to meet mine. Or causing it. "They don't affect you!"
"Well, something about that damn place stops me, like a wall. I've tried, Anders. I think there's something-"
"-we're missing, yeah you've said that before." A growl, cutting me off. "We can't wait much longer! They're going to kill him!"
"I haven't seen that!" I stomped my foot. Seeing the blue flare again, I lost it. "Get out!" And then I gave him an invisible, rough shove backward, toward the door. "Get. OUT!"
The last thing I saw was the stunned expression on his face as the door opened behind him, he was shoved through the doorway, and then the heavy wood slammed. Shutting him out. He knew I didn't like using magic, not so blatantly. Especially in Kirkwall, of all places. Ugh!