The Price of Blood

Chapter 10: Witch Hunt

Giselle had never found Tru'Lis to be an appealing city to be in. The tall buildings hid the sky from view and seemed to absorb as much sunlight as possible, leaving the streets gloomy and unpleasant to be in. Despite its forbidding streets and dreary architecture, it was one of the three largest cities in the empire. Scattered throughout the three districts were quite a few locations of prestige known throughout the empire, bound to draw the attention of this wandering witch with a bag full of coin to spend.

Sunderarms was the most famous armory and smithy in all the empire, with people sailing across the Green Sea just to have the masters craft and enchant for them. Judging by the number of heads she'd cashed in, she was low on supplies or needed repairs made. Thus far, she knew that Valerie had been there and that the master smiths weren't being entirely honest about what they knew.

Then, there was Aradea's, an herbalist shop renowned for the proprietor's skill in alchemy. Mistress Aradea--a Halaani witch like Valerie--had a cure for most ailments but specialized in poisons used by bounty hunters and the Knights of L'Oriath in monster hunting. Surprisingly, Valerie had not stopped in to buy. But, Aradea was quick to deflect when pressed for information about her. Unfortunately, not even Auguste's charms could coax more than the claim that she was just a well-paying customer and that she didn't know much about her at all. With no luck there, that left only one spot worth checking:

 Wornwick's. 

One could never quite figure out what the place was supposed to be. At a glance, it was an old antique shop or a bookstore. On the inside, however, it was clear that it was more of a general store--a hectic amalgamation of all of Lady Arabella's many interests. She sold tomes, exotic antiques, charms, and occult artifacts. Lady Arabella also dealt with information, for the right buyer at the right price. If they were lucky, the Witch may have sold information to her or might have said something in passing about the vampires she slew. Either way, Giselle had a sour feeling she'd be leaving Wornwick's with her purse considerably lighter than when she went in.

The doorbell chimed as Giselle and Auguste entered the shop. Wornwick's main entrance was similar to an upscale jewelry shop. There were glass counters on either side of the room with various necklaces, earrings, bangles, and other accessories displayed. Some with prices, but most were intentionally left blank. Even more assorted oddities dominated the shelves behind the counters that went from the floor to the very high ceilings above them. The walls were all a deep ruby red velvet with black wooden accents. Added in for an undoubtedly more feminine feel were various house plants in glazed pots. Small clouds of mist clung around certain plants, undoubtedly the handiwork of the proprietor.

The only light came from the various candles and brass oil ceiling lamps scattered about the room. The curtains were drawn over the shop window, so little of the afternoon sun entered the building. It was not hard to see why the rumors of her secretly being a vampire persisted even after all these years.

The sales associate behind the counter greeted them quietly before turning to look at the one spot of bright light in the back corner of the dark room. Seated upon a black velvet armchair was Lady Montbelliard, fanning herself with a giant black fan with one hand while holding a book in the other. Her flowing white lace dress and large-brimmed hat made her the focal point of the room.

"Ah, the lone wolf graces my shop with her presence," Arabella said as she slowly tore her eyes away from her book and snapped it shut. She flashed a cheeky smile as she snapped her large fan closed and rose from her plush armchair. "Hello, Duchess. And hello to you, as well, Monsieur Baudelaire. Tell me, how is the empress treating her lap dog these days? I bet she has you chasing your tail in circles with all this madness."

"Hello to you, too, Lady Arabella." Giselle strained a smile. 'Lapdog' had become a common nickname backhandedly given to her by a great many people. The Labelle family had always had strong ties to the imperial throne, but they were not blind servants. "I do have a lot to investigate with the attacks here and in Gwardenveld. I trust you've been fairing well despite the dangers?"