Gurice swiped a stray lock of brown hair from her light green eyes. “Ximen reported it all to Jayden.”
Who was the last person Shyla wished to speak to. “Humor me.”
She shrugged. “We entered the city the same as we left it, in pairs. Mojag and I were first in and we got to the black market before it closed for darkness. I bought the air bladders and then we met up with the others on level thirty-two. Then Rendor led us down to this creepy tunnel that had big pipes crossing through it. The noise of the water rushing inside them was deafening and we had to use hand gestures to communicate. We found a rusted valve and Rendor, Elek, and Ximen had to all grab it.” Gurice grinned. “Lots of bulging muscles on display.” She fanned herself with a hand.
“Focus.”
Gurice laughed. “That valve opened with such a screech I thought it would bring every guard down on us. But nothing happened. We filled the bladders without a hitch and climbed back to the surface. That was the hardest part. Water is heavy!” She shook the empty bucket. “Not as heavy as sand, but I don’t have to lug sand up ninety-nine levels.”
“Did you see the prince’s…special cells?” Shyla swallowed the bile that immediately rose when she thought of those rooms. The image of the naked dead woman hanging upside down had been seared into her mind.
“No. And we didn’t see any guards. Rendor seemed to know exactly where they’d be. Even during the sun jump we had to wait before leaving, we encountered no one as we stayed in various forgotten spots and took turns sleeping.”
Good news and another reason they needed Rendor. See, she wasn’t being selfish. “Did one of the guys say anything…nasty to Rendor?”
Gurice’s expression softened. “Before the mission there was lots of unkind and spiteful grumbling, but no one said anything to him—nobody’s that stupid. And during the mission, everyone was quite impressed. I’m sorry, Shyla. I know you two were…”
Were. As in the past. “Did he say anything about…that?”
“Just what he told Ximen. He seemed pretty grim at the time, but he’s not exactly the happiest person.”
True. But she treasured those moments she’d made him laugh. “Do you know how to find those pipes again?”
“Both Ximen and Elek know how to get back to the pipes, but truthfully, I’d feel better if Rendor was with us.”
“Did he mention what he was going to do? Where he might go?” Shyla remembered he’d planned to become a monk before she invited him to join the Invisible Sword. If she couldn’t find him in the city, she’d check with Hanif.
“No. He said he’d keep out of our way and not to worry about him.”
That wasn’t going to happen. “Thanks, Gurice.”
At the end of the sun jump, Jayden and Mojag headed to the city. Shyla joined them, ignoring Jayden’s protests, which turned him sullen. He refused to discuss the mission with her.
Instead, she filled Mojag in on the new mission. “I need you to find out how much platinum has been sold recently, and if the deacons bullied a family to give up their baby.”
“What are you going to do?” Mojag asked.
“I’m going to see if the vagrant network knows where Aphra or Banqui are.” And Rendor.
Glancing at Jayden, Mojag said, “We could do that for you.”
“I know, but if they know where they are, then I need to talk to them both.” And talk to him…well, after she slugged the big brute.
The rest of the trip was quiet—unusual for Mojag, but the boy must have sensed Jayden’s foul mood and had enough self-preservation instincts to tone down his normally chatty personality. They joined the flow of people heading back into the city after tending to the velbloud flocks and gamelu herds.
Jayden led them to Orla’s commune on level thirty-nine. She had planned to scan all the people they passed, searching for Rendor, but, due to Jayden’s knowledge of the city’s twists and turns, they only encountered a few citizens. Frustrating and impressive. It was obvious the Invisible Sword needed Jayden. Was she risking alienating him by chasing after Rendor? No. She needed them both.
Orla welcomed them. The older woman fussed over Mojag, sending him to get something decent to eat—a kind and cutting gesture at the same time. Though maybe Shyla was just feeling guilty for not providing fresh food for her members.
“Oh my goodness, no,” Orla said when they asked her about a missing baby. “I haven’t heard anything about that. The deacons have done some questionable and downright horrific things over the circuits, but that’s a new low.” She paused. “I’d hate to think this of my fellow Zirdains, but there is a possibility that the babe was…donated by either a devout mother or a desperate one. We get many young mothers here who can no longer afford to pay taxes and tithes for two.”
In that case, the mother would be harder to find and probably wouldn’t want the baby returned to her. And that was another sad state of affairs that needed to be rectified. Children under the age of two circuits should be exempt from paying taxes and tithes. More guilt pressed on her shoulders as she wondered whether she was wasting time chasing after Rendor.
“Have you heard anything about large shipments of platinum?” Jayden asked.
Orla’s gray eyes gleamed. “We’ve heard rumors from Petula. She said a single platinum ring sold for fifteen osees.”
“Petula lives in my commune,” Jayden said. “I’ll go talk to her.”
Shyla noted that he still considered the commune on level sixty-two as his. Was that due to a lack of community within the Invisible Sword?
“What about Aphra or Banqui? Any word?” she asked Orla.
“Talk to Adair, he thought he spotted the woman.”
Ugh. Shyla would rather not. Adair had pushed her into an air shaft without warning her that there was a net twelve levels below to catch her. She glanced at Jayden. Did he remember helping to extract her from that net?
“We caught you fair and square.” He grinned. “You protested that you weren’t ours, and look what happened. You’re ours now.”
His statement caused a strange combination of emotions to tumble inside her. The Invisible Sword had become her family, yet she hadn’t gotten that reciprocal sense from them…well, not all of them. Perhaps if she’d put in more effort.
Shyla returned his smile. “Surprised?”
He laughed. “Aren’t you?”
“Very much.”
Before Jayden left to visit the commune on level sixty-two, Shyla gave him a handful of osees. “Please purchase some fresh food for the group.”
“You sure? Jerky is cheaper.”
“I’m sure.”
He hesitated but then nodded and called to Mojag, who was wrestling on the ground with a pack of small squealing children. The kids complained with one disappointed awww when Mojag trotted over to join Jayden.
Shyla searched the commune for Adair. As she walked through the various common areas and gathering places, she grappled with her emotions. Adair hadn’t tried to kill her, he’d just been spiteful. Too bad that logic failed to change her opinion of the man. She spotted him talking with a group of young men. He still had his short black beard that matched the color of his tight curly hair. Thick eyebrows arched over dark brown eyes.