“I’ll know if that happens because I mean to ask before letting the men go again,” Tain said, making no effort to avoid Killen’s gaze. “If any of those men react like fools instead of rational beings, I’m going to cut their throats instead of turning them loose. I won’t give people like

Himlin any more supporters than they already have.“

Killen’s expression didn’t change, but the look in his eyes almost made

Tain want to flinch. Mention of the slaver Himlin had made Killen show a hint of how he felt about that slaver, a reaction that had nothing in the way of fear about it. Dismemberment and bloody murder, yes; fear, no.

“Now we’d better get this food eaten so we can get on with our chore,”

Tain said, breaking what had become an awkward silence. “I want us to be finished and back here with everyone before daylight.”

They’d all just been sitting and holding their bowls, but Tain’s reminder set the other three to beginning the meal. Tain didn’t really want the vegetable stew, she wanted a decent meal, but getting a meal like that wasn’t going to happen until she was back where she belonged. In the meanwhile there was work to do, and since skipping the meal wasn’t a good idea she picked up her own spoon and began to eat.

Once everyone had finished the last drop of coffee in their cups, Tain, Killen, and Tandro got on with their chore. A candle let them find their way up the stairs and into the room with the secret entrance to the tunnel, then out of the warehouse. Tandro carried the pack holding the doses of the drug, leaving her and Killen’s hands free for any fighting that might have to be done.

It turned out that there was rough stuff, but no actual fighting. Tandro guided them through the empty streets to Gordi’s house, deep night and silence all around them as they moved silently. Four men who could be considered perimeter guards stood a small distance from the house, and Tain made two of them unconscious while Killen did the same for the other two. Once the guards were out of the way, getting into the house wasn’t hard at all.

The man Gordi lay asleep in his bed beside a woman who didn’t wear anything to mark her as a slave, so Tain knew that the woman could well be Gordi’s wife. The man himself looked large and well-muscled even in the dark, which meant that Killen rendered the woman unconscious and then he, Tain, and Tandro all sat on Gordi while Tain forced the drug down Gordi’s throat. Gordi struggled hard before the first of the drug trickled into him, and then his struggles turned very lethargic.

By the time the second dose was down the man’s throat, all the fight had gone out of him. It wasn’t easy to tell in the dark, but Gordi looked dazed and mostly out of it.

“Gordi, can you hear me?” Tain asked softly, needing to know if they’d have to wait until they could all get out of there. “If you can, say so.”

“I can hear you,” Gordi obliged, but the dazed quality was clear in his voice.

“Good,” Tain said, feeling more than a little relieved. “Get out of bed and get dressed.”

Gordi obeyed without hesitation, but his movements were very deliberate and definitely on the slow side. Tain realized that the man wasn’t resisting, he was simply reacting to the drug he’d been given. He obviously needed some time to adjust, but Tain didn’t have the time to give him.

Once they had the man out of his house, Tain moved very close to him.

“You’re going to close your eyes now, but that isn’t all I want you to do,” she murmured. “Until you’re told otherwise, you’re going to see nothing, hear nothing but my voice, and smell nothing. You’ll have absolutely no idea of where you’re being taken, and that will continue to hold true even if someone orders you to remember whatever you can. Do you understand?”

“Yes, I understand,” Gordi answered in the same kind of murmur, his eyes already closed. “There’s nothing around me but unrelieved darkness.”

“Too bad he didn’t realize that sooner,” Killen muttered, and Tain knew he wasn’t talking about the state Tain had put the man into. “Let’s get out of here before one or more of those guards wakes up.”

Since Tain had been about to say the same thing she didn’t argue, and they all moved off into the cool dark. She’d noticed that Killen hadn’t been very friendly lately, not even to the point of neutrality. It looked like her plan to discourage him had worked, helped along by her plan to change the minds of the town and area leaders. Killen knew as well as she did that the job had to be done, but he obviously hated using the drug to accomplish the task. Tain could understand how he felt, but since there was no choice if the talks were to be effective rather than a waste of time and breath…

Getting back to the warehouse took only a little longer than leaving it had. Tain and Killen searched the darkness carefully for anyone who might be around—like some of Himlin’s men, for instance—but the area was completely deserted. Once inside the warehouse they relit their candle, then Tain began to question Gordi. She got the names she needed along with locations of the men’s houses, and shortly thereafter they were in the room with the secret panel. Tain used the release to open the cabinet-door, and once it opened she got a surprise.

“I’ve been waiting for you guys to get back,” Ennie said from where she stood just past the secret door. “It came to me that you three have a lot to do, and it will save time if you don’t have to go all the way down and then back up again. But if you don’t agree—”

“As a matter of fact I do agree,” Tain assured the anxious girl, giving her a real smile. “Your idea is more than good, and I appreciate the help. I’m going to turn this man over to you, and then you can take him the rest of the way. Once you have him you-know-where, don’t let the others start on the rest of the plan. I want to be there to make sure they don’t go overboard.”

“That’s an even better idea,” Ennie said, her own smile on the rueful side. “Those women have been hurt so badly that going overboard is probably a guarantee rather than a possibility. But I’ll make sure they stay away from him.”

“Let them know that the delay is only temporary,” Tain advised.

“That way you shouldn’t have too much trouble.” Then she turned her attention to their captive. “Gordi, from here there will be someone else leading you. When she tells you to lie down you’ll do it, and then you’ll go right to sleep. You won’t wake again until you hear my voice, and when you do wake up you’ll be able to see and hear and smell things again. You just won’t be able to refuse orders, defend yourself, or try to escape. Do you understand me?”

“Yes, I understand,” Gordi answered, his eyes still closed tight. He seemed a little less dazed now so Tain let Ennie lead the man to the stairs, and once they began to descend without the man falling, Tain closed the cabinet-door again.

“Okay, who do we go for first?” Tain asked Tandro, who had watched Ennie until the door cut off sight of her. “I want to take the most distant victim first and work our way back in this direction, and we can’t waste the time to bring each of them here before going for the next. As soon as the alarm is raised we’ll have half the town searching for us.”

“I hadn’t thought of that, but you’re right,” Tandro said, his face showing a frown. “All three of our targets live fairly close to one another, but not in the same area that Gordi does. If we move fast we can have all three down in the tunnel before anyone gives the alarm.”

“Let’s hope it works out like that,” Tain said, shielding the candle’s flame with one hand as they moved as quickly as possible to the warehouse exit. “And here’s hoping none of the three have as many guards as Gordi did. Taking them down isn’t hard, but it does waste a lot of time.”

Tain saw an odd look on Tandro’s face before she blew out the candle, but there wasn’t time to wonder what the expression meant. Instead she just let the native lead the way to the house of their next victim, a man named