Last Life

I HAD TO GIVE TREBOLT his due — he got himself together very quickly. Catching the eloquent gaze he cast toward the front door, I shook my head:

“Don’t even think about it. They can’t save you. You’ll just get them killed. As a matter of fact, whether or not everyone currently in this building lives or dies is completely dependent on you. As I’m sure you realize, I am not too keen on witnesses.”

Trebolt scowled. I didn’t know if he believed me or not, but he hadn’t tried anything yet. He was clearly stalling and waiting for a convenient opportunity to attack.

I meanwhile looked around the room and said:

“Not a bad little den you got yourself here. Cozy. And to think — just a few hours ago, I was wondering how I was going to get inside. I was working on a plan to break in. And here you up and give me a gift — you opened the doors for me and led me in past your security. What can I say? You have my gratitude!”

Not a single muscle twitched on Trebolt’s ugly mug. But in his eyes there flickered something... Something that looked like realization.

“Who are you?” he finally asked.

“Now that is a very good and reasonable question,” I praised. “You already know my name. And trust me — it’s the genuine article. I really am Maximilian Renard. But I understand why you’re asking. Particularly after what you just saw. I don’t seem like the Max you used to know. The pea-brained spoiled capital-city nobleman who your loyal jackal de Nevers lured into your gambling den, and who you mistakenly believed you had caught in a trap.”

I of course was bluffing, but my words were landing in fertile soil. Particularly after demonstrating my abilities.

“Listen, I’m not one to judge,” I continued. “Everyone earns their keep as best they can. Clearly, your scheme had many long years of smooth operation. Whoever could have thought it would trip up on me? I think it was de Nevers’ mistake.”

A crack finally appeared on Trebolt’s stony mask.

“What do you mean?” he lurched slightly forward.

Heh... So predictable. As soon as you heard you could pin the blame on someone else, your interest was piqued. One more piece of tangential evidence that I was sitting in front of a petty tyrant who couldn’t stand being wrong. Beetle, without suspecting it, had clued me in with something he said to security in the bookmaker’s office.

Trebolt, whose sense of his own infallibility was severely inflated, sought fervently for others to blame for his failures, which he then punished severely. Actually though, it was all just a fear of admitting his own mistakes and errors. In my world, almost everyone in positions of power had the same sin. Unlikely things were any different in this world. And that was the very weakness I intended to exploit.

“What do you mean what do I mean?” I feigned surprise. “Here, look... I’m sure you ordered de Nevers to look into me thoroughly. Who I am, where I come from, that sort of thing... Right?”

Trebolt nodded mechanically. The wrinkles on his forehead started smoothing out. He even slowly started sitting back in his chair.

“And he probably assured you there would be no problems. That I was the mere bastard of some capital-city count who had been executed for betraying the king. That no one cared about me. My own uncle kicked me out of my home and ordered me never to return to the capital. Also, I have another set of relatives on my mother’s side. They are very wealthy, but they also don’t want anything to do with me. Is that about it?”

Trebolt nodded again, now deep in thought.

“Moving on,” I continued calmly. “You, as an experienced man who has seen a lot in this life, fairly assessed that the storm in the capital would eventually settle and the useless bastard might be called back into the fold by his family. And no matter which set. Family ties and all that. And when that happened, the bastard would be fully under your thumb, in debt up to his eyeballs.”

Trebolt was no longer nodding along, but I could still tell I was right.

“Excellent plan,” I praised. “But the other actors let you down. The scheme worked flawlessly for many years. And so your subordinates got lazy. But it isn’t your fault. You can’t be everywhere at once and doing their jobs for them.”

What petty tyrant didn’t love flattery? And so, Trebolt did not insist. He just shook his head fatedly and breathed a heavy sigh. Beyond that, seemingly, it had finally hit him that I had not come to talk, but to kill.

“You are correct,” he said, adopting a more formal tone. “No one can be trusted with anything. They are all a bunch of imbeciles. Now I see a completely different man from the Max that idiot de Nevers dragged in here. Where did his calculations go wrong though? Other than the fact he did not recognize you as a mage.”

I chuckled.

“Tell me, how was that moron supposed to recognize me as a mage?”

“Indeed,” Trebolt chuckled back. “What am I saying...? My nerves are clearly shot. You’ve shaken me out of a dreamland.”

I bared my teeth.

“You’re welcome.”

“Oh, no!” Trebolt shuddered nervously. “Nothing we cannot handle.”

“But speaking of miscalculations,” I stroked my chin thoughtfully. “As you understand, I cannot tell you everything, but I will tell you a few publicly known facts about myself. Note, de Nevers knew all these things, but for some reason never reported them to you.”

I decided to further soothe his ego, and also adopted a more formal tone. I might need him again in the future. I was particularly interested in the magic item smuggling operation. I had to build bridges.

Beyond that, I kept bringing his attention to de Nevers even though I was certain he reported everything he actually knew. His boss always had the last word. But I didn’t blame him — he actually got Max exactly right. How was he supposed to know his body would be taken over by an otherworldly and extremely dangerous entity?

“For instance,” I continued bluffing, juggling facts. “Let’s take as an example my father the Count de Gramont. Everyone knows he was executed for betraying the king. But for some reason, I am still alive and got sent to this backwater town. Even though all my older brothers were executed. No one was bothered by that fact. But they should have been. De Nevers should have dug deeper. If he had, he would have found out that the de Gramonts stood shoulder to shoulder with the prince in that legendary first expedition into the Shadow, and that my ancestors have been defending the frontier from shadow beast invasions for a very long time. Now do you understand what I’m getting at?”

“Ancient blood,” Trebolt whispered and, squinting, shook his head. “How could I miss it...?”

Bertrand had told me a lot about house de Gramont. And one thing was that gifted people were often born into the family. In fact, that was exactly why the old servant wasn’t too surprised by my admission.

“Your father realized you were gifted, which was why he recognized you,” Trebolt continued. “And His Majesty...”

“Silence!” I cut him off sharply. “Not another word. Or I’ll have to do something I was hoping to avoid.”

My voice wafted with a cryptlike chill. At the very least, I was trying very hard to achieve such an effect.

Based on Trebolt’s frightened face, it was working just fine. He pressed back into his seat, which made his stout body practically halve in size.

I laughed internally. Done. I didn’t know what fantasies he was dreaming up, but I enjoyed seeing the horror in his eyes.

“Listen closely,” I continued in the same tone, boring into him with my gaze. “The frequent visits from your underlings are beginning to tire me. I want you to forget about me. At the very least, for a time.”

Before that, Trebolt was nodding very fast, but the last thing made him shudder and press back even further into his chair.

“Do not be afraid,” I smiled, standing to my feet. “When the time is right, I will pay you another visit. Trust me, both of us stand to profit handsomely.”

Trebolt hopped up out of his chair after me and, bowing his head, extended me my coin purse.

“Monsieur Renard, I beg your sincerest apologies,” he said with a parched throat. “You have my word, neither I nor my people will bother you again.”

“You can keep the money,” I said in a careless tone though inside I was squirming with greed. I had a hard time not revealing my mood. The new Max he had just seen in me had to behave in a way that was becoming of his high position in society. “The gambling den must remain operational.”

Stepping over Gaston’s unconscious body, I calmly went to leave. Despite his emotional state, Trebolt was already at the door opening it for me respectfully.

Before stepping across the threshold, I stopped for a moment and, walking up face-to-face with Trebolt, said quietly:

“I trust I don’t have to explain that this stays between us. Remember this the next time you run into your friends from the chancery.”

Trebolt shuddered and turned even paler.

“If they ask any questions, say my uncle paid off my debts.”

“Yes, monsieur,” Trebolt rasped. “I understand.”

* * *

“Oh, come on...” I grumbled to myself in annoyance as I jumped out of the buggy Trebolt had so kindly provided to spirit me back to my modest residence. “It’s like a big conspiracy.”

My stomach was regularly piping up, hinting that it was ready to accept a meal the size of an elephant. Preferably whole.

The reason for my dismay was a glamorous coach parked outside the main entrance to Madame Richard’s guesthouse accompanied by six soldiers on horseback.

And that was not all. I was also extremely displeased see Bertrand standing out in the cold next to the coach door. The old man was clearly on his last legs. But the person now sitting inside and conversing with my servant through the cracked open door didn’t seem to give a hoot about him.

Bertrand, upon noticing me, bowed deeply to the person he was speaking with and came over to me.

“Why aren’t you in bed?” I grumbled. “What did I tell you? You can hardly stand...”

“Monsieur,” Bertrand said to me at half voice, ignoring my tone and giving me puppy-dog eyes. “Look at the crest on the coach... Your blood sister Valerie de Gramont has just come to visit you from the capital along with your cousin Viscountess Yveline de Gramont.”

I frowned. Now this was the last thing I was expecting. Why on earth did they have to remember me just now?

“Listen, old fellow,” I said in a near whisper. “I don’t remember them at all. Who are they exactly?”

“As far as I know, you never met your cousin. You did meet Valerie on several occasions, but they were very long ago, when you were just children,” Bertrand filled me in without excess detail also in a whisper.

I sighed with relief. Nothing too bad. I just had to figure out what they wanted with me.

“What do they look like?” I asked.

“The one with flaxen locks is Yveline, and Valerie... You’ll recognize her. You look a lot alike.”

Our conversation was shamelessly interrupted.

“Cousin!” I heard a sonorous high-pitched voice behind me. “What are you and your servant whispering about?! And where are your manners? Just so you know, you’ve kept us waiting!”

I turned. A little blond head with a big happy smile stuck out of the coach window. Aha, so that was Yveline. She was seventeen or eighteen years old.

“Viscountess,” I bowed respectfully. “Welcome to Abbeville. I trust the road was uneventful.”

Instead of responding, the green-eyed marvel ducked into her coach where I heard her sonorous and slightly muted voice saying:

“Valerie! Take a look at him. You are like two peas in a pod!”

A second later, another head poked out the window. Well look at that. Max and his sister really did share a great resemblance. Not twins exactly, but there was a lot in common.

“Renard,” she came scornfully, practically spitting out the word. “Why haven’t you been answering the Count de Gramont’s letters? Because of you we had to drag ourselves down to this backwater and search all the dens of iniquity.”

“What letters, sister?” I asked in surprise. She clearly had no lost love for me. “I didn’t get any letters.”

“It’s unimportant,” she replied, pursing her lips and extending me a scroll. “Here. Read it and start gathering your belongings. You’re coming with us to the capital. And another thing... Renard, never call me sister again. To you, I am the Viscountess de Gramont. Got that, bastard?”

She was twenty years and change. But her arrogance was to the hilt. Yep, quite some relatives...

Without responding, I unfurled the scroll and delved into its contents. It was a personal letter from the Count de Gramont. The short, dry missive informed me that they had located me a bride. Someone called the Viscountess de Marbot. And that I was required in the capital for the wedding.

Once finished reading, I glanced at Bertrand who was burning with curiosity and smiled wide:

“Old fellow, it appears I’ve been married off.”

Bertrand’s face stretched out in surprise.

“Have you read it?” Valerie asked haughtily.

“Yes,” I nodded and extended the scroll to Bertrand.

“Then pack your belongings!” she ordered and wanted to dive back into the coach, but my response made her stop short.

“I’m not going anywhere,” I said and turned, no longer paying attention to the pompous hen and asked Bertrand a question. “Have you eaten breakfast yet, old fellow?”

“What did you say?!” Valerie hissed threateningly behind me.

With a heavy sigh, I turned. Two heads were sticking out the window. Whereas Valerie now looked like a snake winding up to strike, Yveline’s face danced with a joyous smile. She was extremely amused.

“Well cousin, he’s refusing to obey you! You said he’d be in seventh heaven and would eagerly run after the coach all the way to Herouxville like a loyal hound!”

“You’ve been given a great honor, bastard!” Valerie hissed, paying no attention to the girl. “You should be grateful. Comply! Otherwise, I’ll have to resort to force.”

I snorted. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that a crowd of onlookers had started gathering outside the guesthouse. Jacques, for the record, was also right on the scene. We traded glances. His look of happiness was as pure as the driven snow.

“Go ahead,” I replied calmly, already having an approximate idea of what was coming next.

“You asked for it,” Valerie said maliciously. “Captain!”

“Milady,” a broad-shouldered rider decked out in fine armor walked up to the coach. His thick gray mustache looked like a horseshoe from a distance, and his pox-scarred face was frozen with a look of indifference.

“Help the Chevalier Renard get packed,” Valerie said, looking me angrily in the eyes and savoring every word. “If he resists — you have my permission to use force. It is a direct order from His Lordship.”

“Yes, milady,” the mustached captain turned his head to his troops, who were lazily looking on, and gave a short shout:

“Bruno! Hugo! You heard the Viscountess! Get on it!”

The two stout riders hopped off their horses and quickly came my direction.

Both young. A blond and a brunette. Smirks on their faces.

“I hope you won’t take offense, chevalier,” the brunette said. “You must understand — it’s an order from His Lordship. Better comply and do it the nice way.”

“I hope you boys don’t take offense, either,” I winked at him. “I promise I won’t injure you permanently.”

The count’s retinue men traded glances and with condescending smiles, started coming at me from two sides at once.

“Why all this dawdling?” Valerie shouted indignantly from the coach. “We’re wasting time! We still have to check into the hotel.”

“Just be careful,” Yveline asked the captain. “Do not hurt him.”

The one with the mustache nodded and kept looking at me. He clearly didn’t like any of this but, seemingly was used to the family’s antics. I meanwhile was starting to get annoyed by the fact my status wasn’t worth a dime to anyone.

First, his eyes wide with surprise, the blond flew into the snow. I should note he was trying to be very careful. He clearly wanted to simply pick me up by the arms. And he fell into the classic shoulder throw. I had to spend a good mass of energy to flip his heavy carcass.

A few seconds later, the brunette was laying in the neighboring snowdrift. My relatives’ faces were a sight to behold. They stared at me like a ghost.

The onlookers meanwhile started loudly mocking.

“He’s going easy on them!” someone from the crowd shouted. “They are his uncle’s retinue, after all!”

“Yep!” a hoarse voice repeated. “This morning, against Evans’ boys he pulled out all the stops!”

While Bruno and Hugo shook their noggins and climbed up out of the snowdrifts, I turned to their commander:

“Listen, captain, I could keep laying them out like this all day. But I have better things to do. I have a very busy day ahead of me. I understand this is your duty, but understand where I’m coming from, too. Because this might end up making me mad.”

The captain let my words go in one ear and out the other, and I heard him give a sharp command. “Seize him!” After that, the other troops started jumping off their horses.

“Well, you asked for it,” I shrugged, and drew a fairly large mass of energy from my reservoir.