The Wrong Trail Knife

by Jane Fletcher

jane.fletcher@virgin.net

Disclaimers: Please see chapter one

Chapter four — Old arguments

A bay-fronted inn stood at the corner of the road a short way along from the military command compound. Noisy groups of Landfallers crowded the front, but the rear of the tap-room was quiet and half empty, occupied mainly by inn guests taking an evening meal. Yellow lamplight brought out the warmth of the wood panelled walls. The low beamed ceiling made the large room feel snug. Chip and Katryn found an empty corner table and sat down with their drinks.

"I suppose the day hasn’t gone too badly." Chip conceded. "We’ve probably made more progress than they have up in Redridge."

"I think it was all worth it just to hear Clarinda Wright described as a reliable worker. I was so impressed at the way Drummond kept a straight face while she said it. I was waiting for her to add that little Nosheen is kind to children and old ladies." Katryn’s voice held amused disbelief.

"You don’t think it’s possible they’ve become reformed characters?" Chip was joking.

"Not unless the Goddess has paid a personal visit to Landfall this last year. Because I can’t see anything less than her physical intervention doing it."

"And it would be too ironic if they became victims of bandits immediately after they’ve joined the side of the righteous."

Katryn’s face became serious. "Drummond has to be involved in some way. Wright and Paulino have never done an honest day’s work in their lives. Even if it was part of an elaborate plan to defraud they couldn’t have kept it up for a year. Drummond has to know what they are like and is lying to protect them. I just can’t see why, since she’s the one who loses."

"That’s if she is." Chip’s voice was suddenly thoughtful.

"How?" Katryn asked when the silence dragged out.

Chip’s gaze was focused on the distance. "Something Drummond said has just registered on me."

"You’d trust her word?"

"Oh yes, because I don’t think she realised she’d given herself away — or that I’d understand the significance."

"What?"

"When she said Grosskopf in Fairfield was the one who insisted on the route via Redridge." Chip smiled at the incomprehension on Katryn’s face. "You obviously don’t come from a family of merchants. Usually a trader goes to where she can get the thing she wants, pays for it, and takes it away with her. But for some items — and custom made jewellery would be a good example, the trader has to go to a supplier, put in an order, and have the goods sent to her when they are ready. When she pays is subject to negotiation. A really reputable supplier will take cash on delivery, but I think we’re agreed that Drummond isn’t reputable."

"You think Grosskopf paid money up front?"

"That’s where Drummond made the slip. The buyer must have had some financial stake in the cargo to have a say in the route, else it would have been entirely down to Drummond how the jewellery got to Fairfield. My guess is Grosskopf paid half on ordering with the rest due when she got the goods."

"So Drummond would still have lost half the value of the cargo."

"Not if it never left Landfall. Consider whose word we’ve got that the bales contained hidden jewellery."

"Three women died…" Katryn started to protest, but then fell quiet.

"Drummond said the three were her employees, but didn’t say for how long. With Wright and Paulino in on the fraud, the others could have been expendable dupes, stabbed in the back when they weren’t expecting it." Chip paused and then asked, "Do you think Nosheen Paulino is up to murdering in cold blood?"

"Yes." Katryn said slowly. She looked troubled and her eyes were focused somewhere far beyond the tap-room. "So what do we do now?"

"Information about the robbery should be held at joint command. From it we can get names and addresses of the women who died. It would be interesting to find out if they were long-term employees, or casual hands Drummond picked up the week before; although it doesn’t mean she’d have put any value on them, even if they’d been with her for years." Chip frowned. "Basically we need to get enough evidence together to persuade a magistrate to give us a search warrant for Drummond’s place."

"We’ll need to get the Landfall militia behind us."

Chip sighed. "True. I think we’ll have to visit Woodside." She glanced across. Katryn’s face had fallen. "I know you’re not keen on it, but a report from the militia there about Wright and Paulino could be vital in building our case - and convince the militia here to take us seriously."

"Oh… I understand. It’s just that there are some people in Woodside who I’d rather avoid." Katryn shrugged. "I’ll survive it though."

"I can sympathise, because I’m not looking forward to the other thing we need to do."

"Which is?"

"We need proof that Drummond could make a profit out of faking the robbery. A copy of her contract with Grosskopf will be logged with the merchant’s guild. We need to see it."

"What’s the problem?"

"To view a contract without written consent from one of the parties we’ll need the personal authorisation of the guildmaster. Her name’s Prudence Tang." Chip grimaced. "She’s my sister, and we didn’t part happily." Chip fought back the painful memories but her mouth was suddenly dry. She picked up her tankard, only to discover that it was empty. Waving it towards Katryn she asked, "Do you want another drink?"

Katryn pulled a half smile and shook her head. "I’ve still got most of mine left."

"You’ll never get drunk like that."

"That’s my intention."

"I’ll just get myself another half." Chip slipped out from the table. She had barely reached the bar when a woman sidled over. Chip wasn’t surprised, she had already noted the woman smiling in their direction.

"Good evening Sergeant. Could I buy that drink for you?"

"No, but thank you… it’s… I’m okay." Chip tried to politely excuse herself.

The woman looked disappointed, but continued. "I’m a trader, visiting Landfall. A drink would be the least I could do to show my appreciation of the women who keep our roads safe for commerce." Her voice was low, her tone implied other ways of showing her appreciation were also on offer.

"No… really."

"Maybe another time?"

"Maybe."

"I’ll be here tomorrow night as well." The woman would not give up.

"I’ll keep that in mind."

Chip got her drink and headed back. On the way she risked another quick glance at the trader. The woman was pretty in a mature way, with a well shaped body. There had been a pleasant lilt to her voice. A ranger could do far worse for a night’s entertainment, however Chip was not tempted — not with Katryn sitting at the table waiting for her.

**********

The clerk at the merchants’ guildhall did a double-take when Chip gave her name, but her expression immediately settled. No doubt she was mentally marking it down as a coincidence. She listened to the request for a meeting with the guildmaster, muttered, "I will see what can be arranged." in tones which implied the middle of the next week was the time-scale the rangers should expect, and trotted out of the door.

The clerk’s face when she returned looked as if she was trying to perform compound interest calculations in her head. She beckoned the two rangers to follow her. "The guildmaster can see you now." The words were devoid of emphasis, but you could see the sums whirling past behind her eyes.

Chip and Katryn were lead along a wide tiled hall. The décor was plain, but unmistakably expensive, intended to whisper, rather than shout, quality. There were no hanging drapes to deaden the sharp clack of footsteps; even sound was used to bolster the impression of purposeful progress. The door the clerk stopped outside was carved from solid wood. The panels were without ornamentation, but the proportions were perfect.

"Guildmaster Tang’s office." The clerk pushed open the door. "Sergeant Coppelli and Private Nagata of the rangers to see you ma’am." She backtracked out, allowing Chip and Katryn to enter.

Prudence Tang sat behind a huge desk. Even allowing for the excess weight, and an extra dozen or more years, there was little family resemblance to Chip, except maybe in their noses. Her frozen expression also did not help, she looked as if she was rooted in her chair. It was some seconds after the door had been closed that she found her voice. "By the Goddess… Piety! It is you, isn’t it?"

Chip ignored the unorthodox greeting. "Thank-you ma’am for seeing us so promptly. I’ll try not to take too much of your time. We’re investigating a robbery and multiple murder, and need information concerning one of your members."

Prudence Tang’s jaw sagged. She shook her head sharply and pinched the bridge of her nose. "You… you just reappear after…. And now you… what?" She sounded dazed.

"I said, ma’am, we’re investigating a robbery and multiple murder, and need information concerning one of your members." Chip’s voice was less steady than at first.

"And that’s all?" Prudence’s composure had solidified in disbelief. "No ‘hello sis, how are you doing?’ No word about where you’ve been the last ten years?"

Chip’s gaze dropped briefly to at the floor. "I assumed, if you’d wanted to know that, you’ve have tried to find out for yourself — you do have the resources."

"You just walked out on the family and…"

Chip cut her off. "I was thrown out. Remember? You were there."

"Mama Izzy was angry..."

"Oh, surely not!" Chip said in savage irony.

"I couldn’t have done anything to help you."

"So you didn’t bother trying."

"I thought… we all thought, that you’d go back to the sanctum."

"That I’d just knuckle under like the rest of you, and do what our mothers wanted?"

Prudence slumped in her chair. "No. I knew you’d find a way out. I just wish you’d… come to me. At least let me know where you were."

"You really had no idea?"

"Some years back, Sandy finally told me you’d called to see mama Izzy a few days after the row. And that you’d been wearing the black uniform. I checked with the militia. I was told you’d transferred to the rangers."

"Then you knew where I was."

"That was years later." Prudence’s voice intensified. "But back, when we first learned you’d abandoned the temple. Mercy, Constance and I were distraught — we all were. You could have been lying dead in a gutter for all we knew."

"Then you should have searched the gutters on the night I was thrown out." Chip was implacable.

"So you’ve come here dig up old arguments?" Prudence spoke with a flash of anger.

"No. As far as I’m concerned it’s over and finished. I’ve come here to get information on one of your members who we think might be involved in robbery and murder."

Prudence took a deep breath, reining in both her confusion and irritation. "All right, we’ll play it that way. Who is the merchant you want to know about?"

"Mistress Drummond of Upper Street."

"Really?" Prudence retreated behind a mask of businesslike authority. "It’s awful to say, but I’m not totally surprised to hear you name her. She doesn’t have a good reputation. Her accounts balance, however they don’t tie in with her visible expenditure. There have been rumours, but no proof. I’m afraid there’s nothing definite I can tell you, unless you have a specific question."

"What I’m interested in is sight of a recent contract between her and a trader called Grosskopf, from Fairfield. It concerns jewellery which was supposedly stolen in transit. I suspect it never left Landfall, but I need to be able to show Drummond could have made a profit from faking the robbery. Since I don’t want to ask Drummond’s permission to see the contract I’ve come to get your authorisation."

Prudence nodded crisply. "I understand. I’ll get someone to check the archives. A certified copy of the contract will be ready for you to pick up here tomorrow afternoon."

"Then I won’t take any more of your time. Thank you for your assistance." Chip backed towards the door.

"Wait… please." Prudence’s aloofness had slipped again. The two sister locked eyes once more then Prudence scrambled out from behind her desk. Standing face to face with Chip, it could be seen that the guildmaster was a good ten centimetres shorter. She put her hands on Chip’s upper arms and examined her face. She spoke softly, almost whispering, "Just tell me everything is okay. That you’re happy now. And that you’ll forgive me for not standing up to our mothers — you know I was never very good at it."

Chip flushed softly. For the first time since entering the room a trace of her usual grin returned. "I know, and it’s okay. I’m happy. Give my love to anyone you think deserves it."

**********

During the course of the interview with the guildmaster Katryn had been a confused onlooker, now she trailed after Chip down the street. The ranger sergeant set a energetic pace, but after a hundred metres halted abruptly and rubbed her face with her hands. She gave Katryn a shame-faced grimace. "I’m sorry to have dragged you through that."

Katryn shrugged. "It’s okay. I don’t get on very well with my sister either."

"Oh, Prudence is all right, she just…" Chip sighed and stopped. "I… er… I need to take a break and get my head back in order."

"Fine."

Chip started walking again, this time a aimless stroll. Nothing was said until they reached a small empty square overlooking the river Liffey. The flagstones had been washed clean by the overnight rain; damp patches remained in the shade of tall buildings. There was a waist-high wall on the embankment, and steps leading down to a mooring jetty. Chip rested her forearms on the wall and stared out over the water, watching the river barges and wading birds. Katryn took a place beside her.

Chip felt the need to talk. "It was odd seeing Prudence again. She was always my favourite sister, which was what made it so hard when she wouldn’t stand up for me. I never expected much from the other six."

"You’ve got seven sisters?" Katryn was surprised.

"Oh yes." Chip grinned. "It was all part of my parents’ plans for world domination."

"I was thinking of the imprinting fees."

"Remember we’re talking Tangs."

"Of course, they’re rich."

"Forget rich. Did you hear of the golden chapel extension on the temple, fifty years back? The Tangs paid for it as proof of their devotion. In gratitude the Sisterhood waved all their imprinting fees for three generations."

Katryn weighted it up. "Who got the better deal?"

"Financially?" Chip wrinkled her nose. "The Sisterhood. I doubt the Tangs took advantage of the exemption. They’re landowners; half of Landfall pays them rent. They don’t think in terms of money, they just sit there and rake it in. But the Coppellis…" Chip smiled wryly. "They’re merchants. Waving the word ‘free’ in front of one of them is like waving a bone in front of a starving dog. It went without saying my birth-mother made full use of the exemption once she had a Tang as a partner. I’m only surprised they stopped at eight. Maybe they’d run out of suitable careers."

"Pardon?" The last sentence had lost Katryn.

"My mothers’ alliance marked the union of boundless ambition with money. My birth-mother, Isabel Coppelli, was the one with schemes for the future. My gene-mother just let her get on with it — and of course provided the funds. Mama Izzy had this idea of a large family of sisters, each of them taking a key role in the city. Of course, we didn’t get a say in it, our future was decided for us. Prudence was marked down as guildmaster before she was born. My oldest sister Constance has had a bit more of a struggle, but she should achieve her destiny and become mayor in another few years."

"What were you supposed to be? Or is the rangers…?"

"Hardly." Chip paused, then said bleakly, "I was headed for the Sisterhood. I don’t know if my mothers thought they could bribe my way to Chief Consultant, but it was their chance to see how far money could push a woman up the temple hierarchy. Except I was completely unsuited to the role. The only flaw in the plan. All my sisters were taught suitable subjects at home by tutors; I was enrolled in the temple school when I was four. One of my parents’ bodyguards, either Sandy or Jez would escort me across town. The Sisters would spend the day trying to drum theology into my head, and then I’d be taken home again. I hated it, the lessons were so boring, and when I realised my mothers expected me to become a Sister and spend my whole life in the temple…" Chip fell silent at the memory.

"But the Sisterhood is a calling, you have to make your vows freely before Celaeno."

Chip gave a cynical grunt. "I don’t think it ever occurred to my birth-mother that her daughters could have minds of their own. Certainly my sisters never gave her reason to consider the idea. When I finally told her I didn’t want to enter the Sisterhood I think she was genuinely astounded."

"What did she say?"

"I was told not to be silly. So I tried to get myself expelled from the school — all I got was a few good hidings; my mothers kept bribing the Sisterhood to let me stay. I felt trapped. I was actually pushed as far as becoming an initiate when I turned sixteen. I entered the outer sanctum at the temple; white robe and all." Chip’s eyes were no longer focused on the river before her. "I’d been there five months, but I hadn’t taken full vows, so I was allowed home for my gene-mother’s birthday; and I knew I couldn’t go back. All hell let loose when they realised I meant it; threats, screaming. Mama Izzy tried to box my ears. I pushed her away; I didn’t hit her, but she fell over. So she called Sandy and Jez to throw me out of the house — literally."

Chip could feel her eyes filling at the memory. "And that hurt; Sandy particularly. She’d been around for as long as I could remember; playing with me when I was little, taking me to school, looking after me. I just took it for granted she was there to protect me, and she physically threw me out of the house, while nobody else said a word. I couldn’t believe it. I walked the streets in a daze. It was pissing down with rain. Eventually I found a dryish doorway and tried to get some sleep."

"They left you to…" Katryn was dumbfounded.

"My birth-mother is rather good at politics; outmanoeuvring opponents; things like that." Chip’s voice was artificially calm. "It was one of her rare miscalculations. She thought if I had nowhere else to go I’d have to return to the temple; I’d rather have died — and I nearly did. I woke in the middle of the night, freezing cold, with a couple of thugs sizing me up. Then the militia appeared and scared them off. I don’t think the militiawomen even noticed me huddled in the corner, but they gave me the idea. The next morning I went to militia HQ and signed the next fourteen years of my life away. And that’s when I nearly died." Unexpectedly Chip gave a genuine laugh.

"I was sixteen and a half years old and I’d never been outdoors in the streets without a bodyguard before, I’d never handled real money, I’d never been in a tavern. And there I was dealing with thugs and crooks and drunks. I don’t know how I survived the first week. I may have the height and build, but I had the muscles of a Sister. I can’t believe I passed the physical exam to get in. I suspect the militia was short on recruits and accepting anyone that month. I was the joke of the division."

"You’ve obviously…" Katryn looked Chip up and down and then blushed faintly.

"It was shape up or die. I had to work a bit harder than anyone else, no-one would overlook any mistake I made. As far as most of the division was concerned I was a spoilt rich kid playing at soldiers, and they all knew my mother was mayor, which didn’t help."

"Did she know where you were?"

"Yes, I went to see her the day after I’d done my first night patrol, realising what I’d let myself in for. She said she’d buy me out of the militia if I’d go back to the temple." Chip pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Actually, if she’d phrased it as an offer I might have accepted — but she declared it was what was going to happen, whether I wanted it or not. I threatened that if she tried to get me back to the temple I re-enlist again. For once she missed the chance to call my bluff. We had another screaming row and she formally disowned me."

Chip pushed away from the wall and began to pace along flagstones. Katryn fell into step beside her They left the square and entered a narrow riverside passageway.. "What made you join the rangers?" Katryn asked after a while.

"Partly to get away from Landfall and the daily reminders of my family… Like the time I arrested a woman stealing bread in the market. She only had one leg. I found out later she’d lost the other in an accident in one of my mothers’ warehouses." Chip's shoulders twitched uncomfortably. "Their lawyers had managed to wrangle the family out of paying any compensation."

"You weren’t responsible."

"Some thought I was, although by the time I’d completed my two year’s probation things were getting better. I’d done my exercises, lost my naivety. I’d like to think I was quite good at the job, but I still didn’t get on with my colleagues, except for two friends. They were both desperate to join the rangers — it was the only reason they’d enlisted in the militia to start with. I didn’t want to be left alone in Landfall when they went, so we agreed we’d all apply to the rangers at the same time. We went for appraisal together." Chip shrugged. "I was accepted, they weren’t — that’s how it goes." She turned her back on the river and leaned on the wall. The familiar lopsided grin returned as she tilted her head to one side and looked at Katryn. "I know it’s early, but I think I could do with a drink. We could take an early lunch in the mess and track down the relatives of the murdered women after."

Katryn nodded her acceptance and the pair set off along the crowded streets of the city.

continued in chapter 5

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