Page 42 of Monster's Good Girl

It’s well known that elves despise the orcs and anything to do with them, so making people think Zyranth is a creature from the orcs’ lands in Kaynvu should keep them from asking unwanted questions. Elves also look down on orcs, so if they think Zyranth is from Kaynvu, it should encourage them to minimize his importance.

“Good thinking,” I respond, forestalling any retorts from Zyranth concerning Dirnyn’s ‘pet monster’ comment. “Maybe we could use the orcs for other purposes as well. We can spread rumors about ties between Lord Everan and the leaders of the orcs. Make it seem like he’s doing business with them.”

“Yes,” Dirnyn agrees eagerly. “We spread about that he sleeps with orcs, or even claim he’s part orc himself. People will believe any rumor they’re previously inclined to believe. If we can draw a connection between Everan and the orcs in the minds of my fellow elves, they’ll be ready to believe whatever absurd things we make up about him.”

Dirnyn’s voice is positively devious by the time he stops speaking. The man takes far too much joy in crafting deception.

“We should also say the Thirteen Who Sleep are displeased with Everan for his dealings with the orcs,” Dirnyn continues. “Nothing stirs people up like religious fervor. If we can convince them he no longer holds the favor of the Thirteen, they’ll turn on him in a heartbeat.”

“So,” I say. “We spread doubt about his power by telling people about our escape from his manor,” I continue, holding up a finger for every point I make. “We spread some dirty rumors about his heritage and his involvement with orcs. Then we claim he’s out of favor with the Thirteen. What else?”

Silence engulfs us for a moment until Mirose breaks it. “Power isn’t just about the ability to kill and torture,” she says. “Lord Everan is exorbitantly rich, and he uses his money to control people as well. We should let it be known that after some bad business dealings with the orcs, he’s nearly destitute. That should further discourage people from coming to his aid.”

Dirnyn looks over at her with a hint of surprise as she speaks, but it quickly melts into a possessive gaze full of greedy desire. I ignore it, deciding to focus on the issues at hand.

“That should be sufficient in turning enough houses and individuals against Lord Everan, don’t you think, Dirnyn?” I ask, trying to keep the conversation moving.

“Hmm,” Dirnyn responds after ripping his gaze from Mirose. “Yes, it should be enough, but the real problem is how we spread all of this sufficiently in such a short period of time. We have a day, maybe two, before Lord Everan realizes what’s happening and comes for us. I’ll issue a formal challenge to him once we’re ready, but it must happen before he gets wind of our plotting.”

“As to that,” I respond deviously. “I believe I have the answer. See, I was a slave for many years, Dirnyn. And if there’s one thing I learned during that time it’s this. Gossip spreads faster than wildfire. All we need to do is make sure the right guards and servants hear of this and the news will be all over town before the end of the day.”

I look around at my audience, nodding to show my conviction. “You may have to send a few respectable delegations to convince the most important nobles, but the common elves won’t be a problem. Any holdouts or sycophants refusing to turn on him will get a midnight visit from Zyranth and me.”

With the basics of our scheme decided upon, we spend the next couple of hours thrashing out the finer details, then Dirnyn sends for his most trusted servants and soldiers. We send servants to all the major seats of power, including Lord Everan’s own estate, with orders to spread all the gossip we discussed.

Then we send soldiers to do the same in all the major barracks and guard posts. Dirnyn also hand-selects a group of trusted allies to speak directly with the controlling members of the major houses.

Zyranth and I walk to the door as the last group of messengers is departing. We stand there for a long moment, watching the messengers disappear in the fading light of the evening sun. Zyranth and I remain long after they are out of sight, cherishing the sight of the setting sun and wondering if this might be the last time we see it.

24

ZYRANTH

“Things are progressing nicely,” Dirnyn says, seating himself beside Mirose. Ariella and I are sitting across from them in the kitchen. We’ve been waiting several hours for news and are both relieved when Dirnyn finally arrives.

“More than half of our messengers have returned with reports of success,” he continues. “A good portion of them have yet to bring word, but the most critical ones are back now. That means we’re ready to move forward. There are two allies of Lord Everan that were always going to need a little extra coercion. It appears, for now at least, that we only need to add three other elves to that list. The rest seem to have been sufficiently swayed by our arguments.”

Dirnyn breaks off for a moment, fishing a document out of his pocket and handing it to Ariella. “This is a list of the remaining elves in need of extra encouragement. I’ve included directions to their manors and some useful bits of information to use in your…negotiations,” Dirnyn says slyly.

“I’ll warn you now, at least three of these elves are unlikely to listen to any arguments. They are too deeply tied to Lord Everan to let him fall from power. Those select few will need special care. Perhaps even a more…permanentsolution.” Dirnyn’s eyes are the very image of malice as he finishes his monologue, gazing at me expectantly.

Ariella reads through the list quickly and nods. “Good,” she says. “Zyranth and I will take care of them, one way or another.” She stands up. “Let’s get moving, Zyranth.” I stand up eagerly, following Ariella out into the darkness.

“So,” I say as we traverse the dead of night. “What’s the plan?”

“We try to talk sense into them,” Ariella responds. “We have to make them see that they can benefit from our removal of Lord Everan. Tyranny benefits very few, so they should be willing to listen. Failing that though…” Ariella trails off, looking at me. “Failing that, you’ll have to kill them,” she finally says, sounding reluctant but determined. Her ruthlessness pleases me, and I nod in acceptance of her plan.

We arrive at the first manor we plan to visit tonight just a few minutes later. We stop outside the front door, and after a brief conversation about which way we should enter, we decide to simply let ourselves in the front. The door creaks open as we enter, doing our best to remain quiet. Ariella figures the lord here will have his rooms on the top floor, so we carefully creep our way up the steps.

Once there, Ariella points to the large double doors at the end of the hallway. “That must be his chamber,” she whispers. We inch toward it carefully, and Ariella slides one of the doors open quietly. I tense behind her, ready to pounce at the slightest hint of danger. All is still in the room as we approach the bed.

A dark-haired elven male lies asleep in the bed, chest rising and falling with each breath. Ariella nods toward him, and I understand her unspoken message. Time to wake him up. I extract the claw on the little finger of my right hand and slide it up under the elf’s chin, just hard enough to draw blood. His eyes pop open, terror obscuring his features.

“What do you want?” the elf asks in a horrified tone of voice. “I have money, I’ll give you whatever you want, please just don’t kill me.”

“What we want,” says Ariella in a tone that brooks no nonsense. “Is for you to withdraw your support from Lord Everan. When he calls for you and your men, you are to stay home. Ignore him. If you do, you will be rewarded handsomely. If not…” she cuts off looking at me expectantly. I release an ominous growl and slightly increase the pressure of my claw on the elf’s throat.

The elf sputters for a moment, seemingly lost in indecision. “You have little chance of defeating Everan. If he survives and I’ve betrayed him, I’ll be tortured for decades. I’d prefer to have my throat slit now and be done with it. Unless… unless this reward you mention is truly worth such a risk.” He looks at Ariella curiously as he finishes.

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