Slung over Tonio's shoulder like a burlap bag, Kael craned his neck toward the doorway.
Slowly, Els pulled the edge of the sheet aside, revealing blood trickling from dozens of dog corpses down the grooves of the pavement. The stench of rot and death clogged his nose, but his eyes were on the last of Silma's men.
The man strode over pieces of torn limbs, vanishing through the broken door of the tannery. Commands erupted from the windows, broken by screams of rage and pain.
No one left on the street. Roofs were empty, too.
"Now."
The moment Kael pushed Tonio's back, the rat-man stormed out. Each stomp rammed Tonio's shoulder against his stomach. Bile scratched his throat. Watching Joss dangle under Tonio's armpit made the nausea worse. He muffled a gag with both hands, refusing to groan, to let even a single sound out.
Els hurried close behind, blankets and machetes pressed against her chest, basket knocking against her side. She didn't groan either, and he couldn't tell whether she grimaced from pain or the terror of being discovered.
He shared both. And a nasty headache added to the weakness in his limbs. But he shook his head as if to drive the pain away.
For thirty steps, he scowled at the roofs as if an archer would emerge, bow drawn, arrow aimed at their backs. But no whistle disturbed the clangs of metal from the tannery, even as Tonio leapt over the junk fence Kael had built at the entrance of the alley.
Els squeezed behind them, made it to the middle of the alley, then folded. She gripped her knees. Sweat trickled down her forehead, pattering onto sludge and piss.
"A-are we f-far enough?" Her ragged breath broke her question.
"Should be." Kael eyed the blankets covering the fence. Someone would steal them soon enough. They didn't have to retrieve them. Sighing, he slapped Tonio's arm. "Drop Joss against the wall. You know what to do."
With a nod, Tonio flung Joss against cracked bricks. The corpse slid on its rear. Tonio didn't let it fall to the side. He kept it seated, ripped the blanket bandaging the wounds, and gripped the arrow embedded in its throat. With a pull, he forced it out of its mouth. Freed from the obstruction, blood poured around Joss from the wound, suggesting he had died where he sat.
Tonio passed the arrow to Els, who wiped and stowed it with the other twelve between the blankets. Then, he clawed at Joss' stiff neck.
"Do it on the opposite side. You know? Like a bite. Don't forget his side and the rest." Kael pointed at Joss' arms and legs. A few more scratches couldn't hurt.
Soon, Tonio's nails left trenches in Joss' skin. The clean wound became an irregular mess that a dog's fangs and claws might have left, at least to Kael.
Only after Els threw the broken teeth to the ground did he nod. Proofs were somewhat dealt with. Now, they had to leave the beggar streets.
"Tonio, go."
Unburdened by the corpse, Tonio shifted Kael's weight on his shoulder and spread his hand in front of Els.
She glanced at him for a second before she approached. "Thank you, Tonio."
Tonio wrapped his arm beneath her legs and cradled her against his chest. "Now, leave."
While Tonio rushed forward, Kael glanced one last time at Joss. If not for this bastard...
Fuck you and Morvana.
Joss' corpse disappeared when Tonio rounded the corner to the second street. He barely touched the ground before freezing.
Kael scowled forward, his breath catching in his throat.
Garrick's recruits, the same men who had surrounded the tannery at nightfall, patrolled the street. At least, the unwounded ones did. More barred the brothel's front door, the alleys, and the entrance to the first street, while five archers glared from the roofs.
"Back." Els choked on air, and Tonio lurched into the alley.
Behind the wall, Els' hand trembled on her forehead. "How do we get out with so many men combing the street?"
"Kill Garrick's men?" Tonio pursed his lips.
Els let out a long shuddering breath. "The roofs... Five archers. Tonio's fast enough to kill them before they can scream. We have a bow, too."
Kael pressed his head between his hands. "Sure, if you want them to hunt us down. Or must I really remind you why we erased our tracks?"
He pinched the bridge of his nose, his headache throbbing harder. No one would divert these men's attention from him this time.
Around fifteen in total. Likely more on the first street.
They all had their hands on their weapons, tense for whatever reason. No, they had a reason. The pack of stray dogs must have passed them. They were on guard. Maybe he could use that against them.
Not enough.
He scrutinised the cracked walls of dilapidated houses ahead. People shivered inside, some praying for Kraghor's mercy, others squeezing to watch the recruits' movements, to see the moment they would leave.
They wanted to survive this gang war, to live tomorrow as they had lived yesterday. But they didn't matter to him. Only Tonio and Els did. If he could open a path by walking on their corpses, he wouldn't hesitate.
His blue eyes narrowed. "Tonio, drop us." The moment Tonio helped him sit against the wall, he stretched his arms to Els. "Tie the blankets around me and give me the rest."
Scowling, Els tied the blankets around Kael's arms and waist. He grabbed her basket and shoved the machetes into his pants. When she offered the bow, he shook his head. "Take it, Tonio. Give him two arrows. Keep the rest. Now gather debris. As much as you can carry."
"No kill, or kill?" Tonio tilted his head.
"I'm as confused as he is." Els spread her palms. "What are you trying to do?"
"Use their fear against them. Open a window to escape. It'll be short. Ten seconds. Maybe less. Get the debris. You'll understand." Kael clenched his jaw as Els let out a shuddering breath.
She glanced at him for a second, then piled debris against her stomach.
Chances were low. But had they ever been high? The slums, the world above, the gods—they all ensured I'll die in this pit. I'll prove them wrong.
He hissed through his teeth as Els returned. That would do. The alley across from them. Not good. The one beside it. A metallic gutter. Far... Could Tonio do it? They would manage.
"Shoot the gutter, or a pipe, or anything that'll make noise. Els will hand you the debris. Control the speed. It has to be irregular, like dogs swarming that one alley. Do you understand?"
Els' eyes widened, her mouth opening and closing. Eventually, she shook her head. "Has Tonio ever held a bow? You're not asking him to shoot at point-blank range but to a gutter at least fifty steps away. Even if he hits it, stones and noise will never be enough—"
"It will." Kael interrupted her. "It doesn't need to be real. Just to sound like dogs. Fear will make the rest."
Tonio groaned before Kael could continue. "Understand. Now?"
"One last thing. Smear blood on the walls. Make it look like the dogs came through here."
With a stern nod, Els dropped the debris beside him and unbundled the bloodied blanket. "We'd better not die."
She passed it across the walls, extracting the blood that hadn't dried out. The alley looked more like a fight scene with the new marks.
Kael let out a hollow chuckle. "Not planning on visiting any of the eight bastard divine realms yet."
"The gods will throw you straight into hell with how much you curse them." Els pressed her lips into a tight line.
With a shrug, Kael patted Tonio's leg. "Shoot."
Tonio knocked the first arrow and drew the bowstring to his cheek. He bent his knees, lowering his posture. Back straight against the wall, eyes on his target, breath held in. The bow didn't even twitch, and somehow Kael saw an archer. Not the recruits from Garrick's gang, but someone who trained archery for decades before... forgetting it all.
The string twanged, releasing a silvery blur. Kael failed to track it, and Els' hand tensed on his shoulder, sharing a single question, a single hope: would it hit?
CLANG
A shrill sound echoed, the cry of metal torn apart.
Els' fingers dug into Kael's shoulder. But he didn't celebrate. While he let out the breath he had been holding, he tossed a rock at Tonio. "Pass him the debris."
Wide-eyed, Els picked up the stones. Tonio shifted the bow to his back, catching the stone in the same motion. He stomped forward, his sleeve snapping, the rock whistling before the recruits could react to the first noise.
It crossed to the alley almost as fast as the arrow, exploding against the wall. Shrapnel blasted against the pavement, knocking trash and pipes. The sound blasted outwards, barely a second after that of torn metal.
Instantly, Els shoved another rock into Tonio's palm, and he flung it. Five more crashed in the alley in under two breaths.
"Dogs are coming!" A recruit roared.
"To the alley! Don't let them disturb Lady Silma!"
The sound of boots on pavement overwhelmed every other sound. Els handed another stone to Tonio, but Kael slapped her hand.
"Carry us, Tonio!"
Tonio slung him and Els on his shoulders. Men rushed past their alleys, blades and spears drawn. Rotten thatch fluttered down as the archers leapt over them, likely positioning themselves in front of the noisy alley.
Through cracked walls, people shifted. They muffled screams, pressing doorways and windows shut. Adding visual distractions to the noise.
"Knock. Hold!" A command from above tore across the street.
The signal Kael had been waiting for.
He slammed Tonio's back. "Run!"
Wind whipped against his face as Tonio exploded forward, and the street dissolved into a blur.
A couple of seconds—all they had to cross the street. They had to do it. No, they would. Fast, always fast. That was Tonio, and it was time to prove it again.