Chapter 37

That evening, Sho-riah unlocked her door and stepped inside. It had been a difficult day. Her employer, Adamus Phillida, had been killed while she was running errands in town. An event like that didn't look good on the record of a professional bodyguard.

She poured herself a glass of ale. She was almost positive the Dark Brotherhood was behind the murder. There was no sign of a struggle. Just the body with a wound to neck. And a missing finger.

Her days with the Dark Brotherhood were long over, but her experience had made her a valuable source for Phillida. She knew she was part of the reason his obsession had continued, but it had been worth the gold he'd paid her. Now she had to find a new client.

Sho-riah took a long drink of the ale, then frowned at the cup. The ale tasted off. She had just opened the bottle the day before, so it shouldn't be sour already. She took another sip to be sure.

When the cup slipped from her fingers, she knew something was wrong. Her hands felt numb. When she tried to stand up, she fell to the floor. The numbness continued to take over her body.

A foot stepped into her line of sight. She tried to turn her head, but she couldn't move. "Don't waste your energy," a girl's voice said. "It's Glory of Night."

Sho-riah's eyes widened. Glory of Night, a mixture of nightshade and morning glory, was one of Mraaj-Dar's favorite poisons. The morning glory would keep her body paralyzed, while the nightshade would kill her.

She felt herself being dragged into a chair. "Oh, don't worry. It won't kill you yet. I only put in enough to do what I needed to. You should still be able to speak a little."

Sho-riah stared at the girl in front of her. She looked like the perfect picture of innocence, with her blond hair and green eyes, but Sho-riah recognized her manner. She was Dark Brotherhood. "Why?" She whispered.

"Because I want some answers. And you're the only one who can give them. Phillida sent you to the Brotherhood, didn't he?"

"Yes."

The girl studied her for a moment. "Did you ever truly love him?"

Sho-riah hesitated, but there was no sense in lying now. "I cared for Mraaj-Dar, but no, I never loved him. I simply needed him."

"You were just using him to get what you needed."

It wasn't a question, but Sho-riah answered anyway. "Yes."

"Then I don't feel sorry for you." The girl pulled a bottle out of her pocket. "You broke his heart. If it were up to me, I'd cut yours out and give it to him. Right after cutting off your tail and yanking out your claws one by one." She picked up the cup and poured the contents of the bottle into it. "But I'm not doing this for me. I'm doing this for Mraaj-Dar. Out of respect for him, I'll make your death relatively painless."

The girl tilted Sho-riah's head back and poured the liquid into her mouth. Sho-riah tasted more of the poison she'd used earlier, but she couldn't fight back. She would die without being able to utter a word.

Aria left through a window in the back of the house. She left Sho-riah sitting in the front room. It wouldn't take long for the poison to do it's work. Her first instinct had been to leave the Khajit in a pool of her own blood, but she decided it would be more satisfying to kill her using one of Mraaj-Dar's poisons.

Her confessions didn't surprise her. When Vicente had told her about Sho-riah's betrayal, Aria had figured that she had merely been using Mraaj-Dar. It just added insult to injury that she hadn't returned his feelings.

Although Aria felt like Sho-riah hadn't suffered enough to atone for the damage she'd done, justice had been dealt. It was time to move on and continue her contract. She quickly packed up her belongings, retrieved her horse from the stables, and started the long ride to the Imperial City.