Talia sat on the end of Zeedra's bed, her legs crossed beneath her as she read from the book in her lap. The crime lord had a surprisingly well stocked library, including novels that Talia had never come across even in the Royal Library. Zeedra had given her permission to read whatever she wanted and so, over the past three days of her incarceration, she had slowly devoured book after book in an attempt to escape the reality of her situation.
She still wasn't sure about Zeedra. The crime lord seemed nice enough and Talia had been kept well fed, comfortable and safe from the rest of the Red Hands, but something about her captor had her on edge. She felt like she was one wrong word away from all those pleasantries being stripped away and she had a feeling that Zeedra was not a woman to be crossed.
She she closed the book as she finished her latest chapter, tilting her neck to the side and rubbing the red patch that had formed on her skin where the iron collar that she wore had started to rub. The chain clanked behind her as she moved, the noise setting her teeth on edge. It was a crude thing, the chain just long enough to allow her to walk around Zeedra's bedroom, and nowhere near as comfortable to wear as the leather collar she wore for Alec. She sighed at the thought of her lover and wondered where he was. She knew he would be looking for him. From what snippets of information she had overheard, most of the city was looking for her.
The door to the Zeedra's chamber opened with a groan and she heard several sets of footsteps march into the room. She set the book aside and slipped off of the bed, cradling the chain of her collar in her hands to keep it from making too much noise. She crept up to the dividers that separated Zeedra's bed from the rest of the room and peered around the side. The Red Hands' base was located in an old storehouse complex beneath the streets that, she believed was linked to the city's old sewers. The rooms that she had been into were all the same sort of large storage halls with domed ceilings made of large yellowish bricks on the walls and floor and Zeedra's chamber was no different. A large, slightly moth-eaten rug covered most of the floor whilst the majority of light was provided by a fire pit that spat and crackled in the centre of the room. Worn leather chairs and a sofa were clustered around the pit whilst off to one side was an oversized mahogany desk with two chairs set in front of it. As Talia peered around the partition she could see Zeedra sitting behind the desk, her dark skin illuminated by the light of the firepit and the lantern on the desk. Two men were sitting in the chairs in front of her; a red headed dwarf and a human with dark skin and a shaven head.
"We are monitoring the patrols," the human said softly. "The royal guards are searching around the clock for any sign of the prisoner. It won't be long before they close in on us."
"We have survived this long," Zeedra said thoughtfully. "I'm not about to have that all undone."
"We could let her go?" the human offered. "If we pump her full of enough narcotics there's no chance she would remember any of this. We could even make it look like an overdose if you want to be sure."
Talia gasped, clasping her hand to her mouth as Zeedra looked up. Their eyes locked, Zeedra's almost-white grey eyes piercing her soul before she shook her head. "If she dies then there truly will be no place for us to hide. No, we need to distract them. Offer them a clue that leads them in the wrong direction."
"What about the Westhall warehouse?" the dwarf suggested gruffly. "It's on the other side of the city."
"We have a crew there," the human protested.
"Exactly," the dwarf grunted. "A crew that knows nothing about the prisoner."
"They were about to launch an operation!"
"Small price to pay if it means throwing off the royal hounds," the dwarf countered. "They get to play hero when they find the warehouse and the weapons and then they assume that the rest of us are that side of the city."
"Interesting," Zeedra muttered. "The crew that's there. Do you trust them not to talk?"
The dwarf shrugged. "I trust them not to let themselves be caught."
Zeedra nodded. "Fine," she said. "Go. Make the arrangements."
Talia shrank back as the two men stood and bowed awkwardly before walking out of the room. She sagged back on the bed, tears pricking the corner of her eyes as she realised Zeedra's plan would probably work and that she would have to wait even longer for rescue. Where was Alec? Why wasn't he here?
"Cheer up, Princess."
Talia looked up to see Zeedra leaning against the partition, arms folded over her chest. She was wearing black leather trousers and knee high boots, a cropped vest top exposing her midriff and arms, the right of which was covered in tattoos. Black lipstick covered her full lips and eyeshadow made her dazzling eyes seem even brighter than they were. Her black hair, shot through with strands of mint green tumbled over her right hand shoulder whilst the left side of her scalp was shaved close to her head.
"Your men want to kill me," Talia whispered, her voice trembling as she spoke the words.
"They are being practical," Zeedra said. "When Vargus brought you here, he left us with no good decisions about what to do with you. Fortunately for you, I prefer to keep you breathing."
Talia sighed, wiping her eyes as she looked away from the crime lord.
"What are you reading?"
She reached for her latest book absently, turning it over for Zeedra to see the cover. It was a story about a runaway girl who saved the princess of her land from a terrible dragon. The two became friends before love tore them apart.
Zeedra laughed softly as she picked up the book and dropped onto the bed beside Talia. "I haven't read this for years," she mused. "I used to want to be a writer, you know? When I was little... Funny how life turns out."
"You mean, funny that you became a crime lord?" Talia spat.
Zeedra frowned. "Come now, Princess," she said cooly. "We don't always have choice in where life takes us. I think you know that as well as I do."
Talia looked down, remembering all the times she had longed to be free of her titles and duties. She told herself that Zeedra was different, but deep down maybe they were more similar than she realised.
"I want to show you something," Zeedra said, standing up. She slipped a key out of her pocket and released the lock securing the collar around Talia's neck. "Come with me."
Talia hesitated before taking Zeedra's hand, following her out of her chamber into the corridor beyond.
"Put this on," Zeedra instructed before they left the room.
Talia nodded. taking the cloak that Zeedra had plucked from the stand beside the door. She fastened it around her shoulders, pulling it into place over the white dress that she wore and raising the hood over her golden hair. Zeedra had said that most people in the gang knew who she was but that there was no sense in advertising her presence regardless.
They stepped out into the corridor but instead of turning off towards the main hall, turned right and walked to the end of the corridor. At first Talia thought they had reached a dead end but then she saw a grate in the floor. Zeedra reached down, grunting with effort as she pulled the grate free before unhooking a torch from the wall.
"After you, Princess," she said.
Talia wrinkled her nose as she peered into the dark hole, the smell of stale air filling her nostrils. A ladder vanished into the dark, its surface hard and cold and she carefully stepped onto the first rung and began to descend, Zeedra following close behind. She eventually found the floor and as Zeedra's torch light followed her down she found herself in a circular tunnel that looked like it hadn't been used in centuries.
"What is this place?" Talia asked, looking around and the smooth walls.
"The old sewers aren't the only tunnels beneath the city," Zeedra said, stepping up beside her. "We think these used to carry water around the city before the Colleges of Magic created the aqua-sleuths."
