The governor was a short and slender man with blond hair fixed into a slicked-back ponytail. Even in the intense heat, he still wore a red frock coat over a golden waistcoat. Theo scoffed at his comment, resulting in another glower from Bennet. Risley was the type of man bred for politics, not battle, or at least to look the part. He’d only won the election because he’d run unopposed.
“Which will be dealt with.” Bennet ground his teeth. “But were you made aware of who else instigated this fight?”
The governor pulled a red handkerchief from his pocket to dab the beads of sweat crowning his forehead. “Chief, if you plan to insult me, you can stop right there. My soldiers contained these fights before they could turn into full-fledged riots and before your soldiers arrived.” Risley shot Theo with a harrowing frown. “I’ve allowed this meeting, not to squabble over merchants and tariffs, but because I have a more pressing matter. I have too many reports of missing persons to cast them aside.”
The missing runners and the shopkeeper’s employee.Theo replayed Alan and Gris’s comments from earlier. He wouldn’t tolerate it. No one else would be ripped from their home.
Gris coughed beside him, and he glanced at her lazily leaning against the armrest, picking at a loose thread. She raised her brows as their eyes met. Theo flicked his gaze back to Risley, steadying his thoughts before they could ramble further. Somehow, she could always tell when they raced.
Bennet’s voice was gruff as he asked, “What do you believe to be the cause?”
“The first reports coming in were of beggars who vanished, teenagers no longer scouring the docks for small jobs, but now they’ve escalated to esteemed members of society. Lord Freville and one of the Veduco boys has gone missing.”
Theo contained his rage over the governor’s naivete to dismiss the fight and his insults against his people. “Only with the absence of high-class members of society will you look into these disappearances?” Theo chastised, drawing a sharp look from Bennet. It was a waste of resources and time. Lord Freville was a pompous twat, and both Veduco brothers were well known for disappearing with a bottle of liquor in one hand and a woman on the other. “The men whostartedthe fight this morning spoke Tendasy. Are you aware you now have ships docking from enemy territories?”
“Impossible!” Risley shouted, rising to his full height, which only came to Theo’s shoulder. “Our enemies in the Black Sea wouldn’t dare invade Godwin’s waters. The king’s armada stationed at Charibert would see to their demise instantly!”
“They could easily slip through a port of this magnitude,” Theo replied callously. “Falsifying their documentation would be easy. What if they’ve brought their slave trade to Godwin?”
Bennet’s hand gripped into a balled fist at his side, his knuckles burning white for Theo’s outburst and insubordination. They didn’t have time for Bennet’s arrogance or the governor’s naivete. If people were beingtaken, they’d need to put a stop to it.
The governor pressed his hands into the desk, but the color began slowly draining from his face. “What do you know of the ongoings of the Black Sea, Captain?” The inflection of his voice mocked his title.
Theo gripped the hilt of his dagger, running the thumb along the edge.
“You’ve been off fighting in the Nebulous Sea for the last three years in a ridiculous war that has wreaked havoc on trade in my port.”
“Your port?” Theo yelled, releasing his dagger and slamming his hands against the desk. “Our armies are weakened, and our enemies know this. The slavers know this!”
“I will not entertain the ridiculous notions of a child,” Risley ridiculed.
“That’s enough,” Bennet snapped, raising his hand to silence any further discussion. “We would be foolish to discount all theories. A ship possibly manned with our enemies made it into your port. We have brought more soldiers and stationed them along the docks. We’ll leave them in your charge.”
“More soldiers won’t stop the issues,” Risley replied.
“Do you wish for the duke to close the port?”
“That would ruin Duncaster.”
“Duncaster might already be in ruin,” Bennet snapped. “Until the issue with these missing persons is solved, every vessel wishing to trade will be searched before they are allowed to dock and after to be sure they’re only carrying their stated cargo.”
“This is how you wish to handle the situation? They won’t agree to it.”
Bennet pressed his hands against Risley’s desk, leaning over the man as he retreated into his chair. “If they will not agree to pay or have their ships searched, then they won’t be trading in Duncaster. Those are the duke’s orders.”
Bennet abruptly took to the hall, Gerard right behind him. The governor sat with his shoulders hunched and his mouth agape.
“Theodoric!” Bennet shouted.
Theo closed the door.Madness. We discover tenants are missing, and Bennet wishes to lecture me now?He shook off the sweltering anger clinging to every fiber of his body. The inner soldier threatened to break loose as he charged down the steps of the governor’s office, but Theo shoved it down, shutting himself off from that part of him.
Once down the rickety steps and into the town center, Theo turned to Bennet. He forced his heart to slow and his breaths to remain steady. Learning to mask what emotions or thoughts spun within his mind was a useful skill he regretfully attained during the war, growing cold and numb.
“Missing tenants—” Theo began.
“Don’t test me,” Bennet said through gritted teeth, ushering them off the cobbled streets and into an alley between the governor’s office and a butcher’s shop. The smell of rotting meat hit Theo’s nose instantly as they entered the filthy alley lined with rubbish and piss.
Bennet pinned Theo’s shoulders against the building behind him. Theo could’ve pushed him away, shoved him back against the opposite wall, but he stifled his anger.
