“Again, why do you carenow? There have been hundreds of bounties issued and the Nightsworn never bothered to interfere.”
Marta ran her finger around the rim of her teacup. “We think that if you were to escape prison, the Employer would try to find you, and we would like to find the Employer.”
I looked between them. “You want to use me as bait for a trap,” I said flatly.
“Essentially, yes,” Marta said. She looked rather pleased that I’d caught on so quickly.
Lochlan must have seen the look on my face, because he hurried to add, “If we replace the Employer, we can start issuingbounties for people that the Nightsworn aren’t allowed to touch. We have rules. The Syndicate doesn’t.”
They wanted criminals to do their dirty work for them; that was all. So much for the morally upstanding Nightsworn. They were just as corrupt as the Syndicate, or at least their leader was.
“I suppose Elvin told you all about the Syndicate’s operations, didn’t he?” I glared at Lochlan. “Is he even your half-brother, or did you lie about that, too?”
“He was telling the truth,” Marta said evenly. “My sons might not always get along, but they are both highly loyal.”
It took several seconds for what she said to process. Her sons… Lochlan and Elvin were Marta’s sons.
My mouth fell open. “Your sons?” No wonder Marta looked so familiar. Just as had happened when I’d discovered that Lochlan was Roderick’s son, I could suddenly see the resemblance between the two. “So…you and Roderick…”
Marta smiled ruefully. “Ah yes. Roderick and I were childhood sweethearts. We even both applied to join the Nightsworn before Lochlan was born. We wanted more justice in the world; that was what drew us together. But when I got in and he didn’t, he became resentful and angry. He said he could do everything the Nightsworn did but without all the rules to tie him down. We separated when Lochlan was about seven years old, and I remarried another member of the Nightsworn and had Elvin.”
So Lochlan had told me some of the truth then, as distasteful as it was to hear.
“It’s taken years for us to get Elvin inside the Syndicate. Originally, I had planned to have him go after Roderick, but then Lochlan came to me a few years ago when his allegiances changed.”
“Then why not have Lochlan kill Roderick and be done with him at the time?” I asked. “Or you could’ve sent the Nightsworn to do it once you knew where he was.”
“You’re still thinking about this from a bounty hunter’s point of view. Complete the task and earn your reward. But many of those contacts, like Roderick, would kill themselves before talking. So they require a more subtle approach. I would need to assign a member of the Nightsworn to go undercover long-term to gain information. Information is often more valuable than the target themselves. That’s what I had with Roderick. Lochlan has been there at my request for years. Roderick trusts him more than anyone else, so it was easy to leave Lochlan where he was and pass information back and forth.”
“Roderick blacked Lochlan’s eye,” I spat. “Some mother to leave your son in a predicament like that.”
“My son knows the risks of missions like this,” she said dismissively. “He’s just as likely to get injured on other missions.”
“So what is it exactly that you want me to do?” I asked.
Marta leaned forward. “I already told you. We want your help to catch the Employer. He tends to remain more elusive, and Ambrose was very tight-lipped about the subject when questioned. There are other methods I could use, of course, but I’d prefer a kinder approach if we can manage it. Otherwise it’s a great deal of paperwork.”
I stiffened. I might not personally care for Ambrose’s stuffiness, but that didn’t mean I wanted him tortured. “What did you do to him?”
“He’s alive,” Lochlan assured me. “Ambrose is. And we didn’t hurt him, if that’s what you’re wondering.”
My hands balled themselves into fists. “You said you wanted to use me as bait. So what do I get out of this deal?”
“Your freedom,” Marta offered. “And I’ll find your family for you. I have contacts and resources that you don’t.”
I rolled my eyes and drawled, “So you think that we can set a trap, the Employer himself will come toddling in for me, and when he does, you’ll just pop up to surprise him and drop a gunnysack over his head?”
Marta threw Lochlan a look. “I didn’t think you’d be interested in such a sarcastic woman.”
Lochlan gave a shrug along with his crooked smile that I loved so much.
Marta turned back to me. “Sarcasm aside, essentially, yes.”
I crossed my arms. “The Employer doesn’t go on missions himself. That’s why he has a veritable army of bounty hunters. You’ll never catch him.”
“We can,” Lochlan said. “Remember, we have Ambrose. He isn’t talking, but if we put you two together and you happen to help him escape, I have a feeling he will run straight to the Employer and take you along. We’ll follow after.”
“To recover my dead body? Thanks.”
