Ben Dover's Arc

Chapter 25 of 150

Ben stayed on the floor with his hand on the chest until the hum settled back under the felt. The innkeeper went back to his cloth. The muscle drifted toward the bar. Amber came over and crouched beside him. "He's gone out the back," she said. "But he paid someone to steal this. That person is still buying." Ben nodded. He knew it. Getting the chest back was not the end. Whoever paid for it could pay again, and next time he might not catch up. He needed a name, or a place, or anything. "Did he leave anything at the table?" Ben asked. Amber was already moving. She went to the corner bench and lifted the cushion. Under it sat a small wooden container, no bigger than a loaf. A face was carved into the front. Wide eyes. Pinched mouth. A worried face, not a sad one. It did not silence anything. It was just a box. Justin came over. "It's not humming." "It's not for a relic," Ben said. He worked the lid open. Inside: folded paper, a stub of red wax, and a small brown creature curled tight in the corner. Round ears. Nervous eyes. It looked up at Ben and pressed itself flat against the wood. Anita leaned in. "A courier animal." Ben lifted the paper first. A list. Three items in a careful hand: mask, comb, cup. Beside each, a price. At the bottom, an address he did not know, and above the address, two words: for the herbalist. Amber read it over his shoulder. Her breath caught. "That's my herbalist." "Your buyer works for them," Ben said. "He's not the one paying. He's the runner." "They're at that address," Amber said. "Or they were." Ben folded the paper into his coat. He looked at the small creature. It was shaking. He put a finger near it. It sniffed once and did not bite. He lifted it out and set it on his palm. It weighed almost nothing. "It knows the way home," Anita said. "That's what these are for. Let it go and it runs to whoever sent it." Ben closed his hand loose around it. "Then we follow." Amber stood. She tucked her notebook into her coat. "I've been at this fork three days waiting for a face. You've got more than a face. I'm coming with you." Ben looked at Justin. Justin nodded. Anita picked up the chest by the rope handle. Justin took the taped crate. Outside, the yard was cold and empty. The buyer's tracks went south into the trees. Ben opened his hand. The small creature sat still a moment, ears twitching, then dropped to the dirt and ran. Not south. East. Ben went after it.