Read Online The Eyes of a Doll (The World of Shijuren Book 2) by Rob Howell - Free Book Online

course, it may just be that he’s been too busy.”
    “The whole family is in an uproar,” agreed Kapric. “Pal led us for so many years. He had been so stable. The idea that he had someone killed to consolidate power still shocks many of us.”
    I shrugged and looked into my beer. Kapric and I had butted heads throughout the last month while I had figured out Pal’s treachery, and I had never seen him anything less than a veritable block of lombardic granite. I preferred him snapping at me rather than opening up.
    Fortunately, at this point they rose and he growled in his normal curt tone. “Time for us to go, Sevener.”
    I nodded. They turned to leave, but Kapric paused and glanced back.
    “I’ll pass the word that we’ve worked with Ludmilja and already know everything she could tell us.”
    “Thanks. I’ll keep Sebastijan watching them, but hopefully they’ll leave Honker’s whole family alone.”
    He tipped his head and they left.

Chapter 9
Late Evening, 1 Blommemoanne, 1712 MG
     
    No scop entertained the Faerie that evening. A group of teamsters from the far south decided to fill the lack with surprisingly good voices, though no one understood a single word they sang. Still, even if every song insulted everyone else sitting there, their pleasant voices relaxed us all.
    Well after the summer sun set, Piri finally arrived. Despite the hour and what I knew had been a long day, she looked satisfied as she settled at my table with a mug.
    “You’re late.”
    “Things to do.”
    “Training Maja or Arkady?”
    She laughed. “Arkady, tonight. Some of the lads and lasses are pushing Arkady, and I let him beat some sense into those fools. Still, I had to keep an eye on things to make sure he didn’t go too far.”
    “That’s probably got to happen.”
    “Nothing every new decarch doesn’t face.”
    “And Maja.”
    “Well, that’s a different proposition. I’ve some ideas, but that’s my business right now.”
    I shrugged as she shifted topics.
    “Tell me everything about this murder.”
    I explained the happenings of the last two days to her, concluding with Ludmilja’s recognition of the Lezhan accent.
    “Has Vukasin warned you or any of the other company leaders to watch for Lezhans in particular?”
    Piri shook her head.
    “Then either this murder has nothing to do with the Dassaretae or Vukasin hasn’t warned you.”
    “Sloppy thinking, Sevener, you missed a possibility.”
    I cocked a questioning eye at her.
    “He could have been taken by surprise.”
    I chuckled and looked at her, this time with a confident smirk on my face. She chuckled back.
    “I’ll admit it’s unlikely, but you need to at least account for the possibility.”
    “You’re right, but, as you said, it is unlikely.”
    “I agree. Still, it’s unwise to completely ignore the possibility.”
    I heard in Piri’s wisdom the echo of Bedarth’s, my former tutor. “Look and look again, boy. If you’re not looking, you can’t see anything no matter how bright sun’s light might shine on something.”
    I sighed in defeat. “In that case, let’s break down each possibility, starting with that one.”
    “The possibility that Vukasin is surprised?”
    I nodded.
    “Given that I agree that Vukasin is rarely caught at a loss, if he was surprised then whoever is behind the murder is devious and cunning.”
    “And subtle. We do not want to deal with such a person.”
    I paused.
    “Do we have any hint that this is the likeliest possibility?”
    Piri shook her head. “In fact, there is no evidence at all to support the possibility logically. Vukasin is devious, cunning, and subtle himself. We definitely do not want the killer of the man in the copse to be more skilled than he.”
    “But you are also right. We need to remember it could happen.”
    Piri nodded and continued, “Let’s examine the possibility that Vukasin knows but didn’t tell us.”
    “That seems even less likely to me.”
    “Me as well, unless my