The soldier disappeared, then returned a few moments later with a man in tow. In his thirties, with thinning, disheveled hair, he wore a dirty apron over hisclothing.
“Mr. Marnal,” the major said, giving the man a cold look. “Do you still maintain that you know nothing of the bandits who have been harassing the locals in thisregion?”
The man set his jaw stubbornly. “Like I keep telling you, there are no bandits. We have gotten along just fine without the king, and will continue to do so long after you’ve left. Might as well save the taxpayers some coin and go back to thecapital.”
The resentment in the man’s voice was real, making Calrain wonder just how well-liked the Carlissian king was. He imagined that if he were one of these locals who had been terrorized and bullied for years, he would feel hatred for the king for not protecting his landsbetter.
“I see.” The major shook his head, looking disappointed. “I had hoped that, as a loyal citizen of Carliss, you would cooperate. But since you refuse, I must resort to othermethods.”
The man’s face paled. “What does thatmean?”
“It means that if you do not tell me what you know, then I will make sure that when we capture Lord Traize, he is told that you are the one who gave up the hidden location of his valley and that he is behind all theserobberies.”
The innkeeper’s eyes bulged with terror, and he fell to his knees. “Please,” he begged, tears spilling over his rawboned cheeks. “Don’t do that. They’ll kill my wife and burn my establishment to the ground.Please.”
“They won’t be able to do anything if you tell us where they are and allow us to do our jobs,” the major growled. “Now are you going to remain a coward and stay silent? Or will you help us get rid of thesevermin?”
The man shuddered. “You must promise to protect my family until you have smoked out Lord Traize and his men,” he said. “I won’t say a wordotherwise.”
“Fine,” the major said, his voice clipped with impatience. “Now tell me what youknow.”
Calrain and Yarim stood in silence as the innkeeper confirmed what they had already told the major—Lord Traize and his men held this entire province in their grip, forcing the locals to pay tithes in exchange for “protection,” which really meant that their homes and families would be largely left alone. But even those who did pay protection money were not truly safe, and Lord Traize had an appetite for very young women. If he took a fancy to one, and her family did not cooperate, he would often take her anyway and punish the family for resisting. And if a family had a bad year and was unable to pay the tithes, they rarely got an extension to pay. The bandits would merely take whatever they wanted in lieu of payment, and would often raze homes to the ground or burn crops to make apoint.
“That seems so foolhardy to me,” Calrain said when the man was finally finished. “Why burn down homes and crops, if you are relying on those families for tithes? Would it not be more profitable to let them keep their facilities so that they can continue to providerevenue?”
The major snorted. “No one ever said criminals were particularlysmart.”
“It isn’t that Lord Traize isn’t smart,” the innkeeper corrected shakily. “It is that he makes the bulk of his coin by robbing merchants and travelers who pass through this area, or forcing them to pay extravagant tithes themselves. It does not bother him if he has to burn an occasional house, so long as the rest of us continue to live infear.”
After giving a few more details, the innkeeper was sent away with an escort. The soldiers would help him retrieve his wife and children and bring them back to camp, where they would be protected. Calrain was relieved that the major had kept his word—in his experience, men of power rarely did unless they had no choice. Perhaps that meant he would deal with themfairly.
“Well, now that your story has been verified, this makes my job quite a bit easier,” the major said. “The two of you can lead us back to the entrance you found, and we can round up these infernal bandits and be home in time fordinner.”
The officers laughed, but Yarim shook his head. “It will not be as easy as that,” he warned. “Even when we were standing right next to the passage, we were unable to find it without Tariel’s help. It is possible that the magic will try to confuseus.”
The major scoffed. “It should be easy enough to follow your tracks back to where you made camp,” he said. He glanced through the crack in the tent flap—the sun had already set, and the last vestiges of daylight would soon disappear. “The two of you will have your weapons returned and will be given a tent for the night. Sleep well,” he warned, “for we will be leaving at firstlight.”
