Daughter of Treason Ch. 05

Kei was having difficulty keeping calm. "What," she asked, shaking, "gave you the authority to do this?"

He winced. "It started out official. We'd arrest debtors, and they'd work back to their freedom. But..."

"But?"

He sighed. "It started with the best intentions. We arrested a man and shipped him out, as ordered, but his sons marched on us, demanding his release. When we told them we didn't have their Da, things became... violent." He hung his head. "Only one of them survived, and as soon as he could walk, he came back with an axe." He locked eyes with her for the first time since her outburst. "An entire family, destroyed. Father gone, sons dead, mother destitute. Totally destroyed. How could we let that happen?

"So we began arresting entire families, the debtor for their crimes and the families for their own protection. It stayed like that... until someone messed up, and a mother was sold by accident. The client refused to give her back, but offered to buy her children, so they could stay with their mother. We refused, of course, but then we had to take care of the kids. Do you have any idea how expensive that is? The petty cash jar lasted us about a week, so we had to raise funds however we could."

"By taking and selling slaves." Kei couldn't keep the disgust from her voice, and he caught it, too.

"No! Not," he added reluctantly, "at first."

She sighed. "And you, personally. Why didn't you get out of this when things started becoming like... this?"

He stared at the ground sullenly and mumbled, "I needed the money."

"For what?" When he didn't respond, she gave a disgusted sigh and changed subjects. "Who gives you the debtor's addresses?"

"Various merchants or their guilds, through the Captain."

"Does the Captain know of these practices?"

"I don't know; Greye does, I can tell you that, but we almost never see the Captain."

A course of action began to form in her mind. "Where in the building is his office?"

He frowned. "Why?"

"Because," he said, happy with the plan forming, "Blood is going to be spilled, and it can be his or yours."

"You're... you're going to kill him?" She twirled a dagger in response and, to her surprise, a look of hope crept onto his face, and he said with conviction, "Corner office, south corner, overlooking the street."

"Describe the windows."

"Uh... square, glass, and barred?"

"How large? What kind of bars?"

"Big. Iron bars."

"How many entrances?"

"Just the door, and it has a strong lock. The office next to it, though, doesn't even lock, and we've been meaning to replace the bars for a while."

He was trying so hard to be useful, and was barely even nervous. She had to ask, "Why are you suddenly helping me?"

He paused for a long while before answering, "One of those children we were raising... she's grown now. I was going to marry her, but Greye..." He clenched his jaw. "he said that she was just like any other girl we captured; a slave to be sold. He said I had to buy her." He looked Kei in the eye again. "But if you kill him, nobody will be able to tell her she can't leave." He laughed. "All the money I've been saving to buy her could even get us passage off this damn island instead!"

She sated at this man, no longer young, but still with a life ahead of him, and realized that, whatever his sins, he had sold his soul for love. He had done terrible things for personal gain, but Kei thought it would be hypocritical for her to condemn him for seeking love. She felt that, while perhaps he should be dealt with, and the world would be better off for it, she was not the one who could make that judgment.

She was silent for a few moments more before saying, "Here's what's going to happen: I am going to capture this Lieutenant Greye. I will question him, and I will find out just how far up this atrocity goes. And you..." she said, fixing him with a steady gaze, "are going to help me."

He sat, eyes downcast, thinking. She could practically see the gears turning in his head, and could guess at his thoughts. He would be reflecting on his situation, asking himself if he could go through with this. After all, she had all but admitted to intending to kill, and she could very well ask him to do the same; was he ready for that? And, for all he knew, she might kill him when she was done, just to keep him quiet. But she would surely kill him if he refused, and besides- she saw his expression grow tender- if he helped her, Lieutenant Greye would be gone and he would be free to court his lady.

So the question became, then, would he follow Kei and risk his morals for love, or would he rather have an honorable death? Kei didn't know the answer, but as she waited, his features resolved into an expression of determination. She began to worry that she had misjudged him when he held her gaze, eyes steely, she began to panic, worrying that she'd have to dispose of him, her mind racing right up until the moment he said, "What do you need me to do?"

*

Author's Note:

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