Chapter 65

I stared at the prisoners. They were quivering, and I heard a feeble, scared moan from one of them. I tensed. The system played tricks all the time. The Fallen Comet quest had been proof enough of that, but I had to wonder. Were these real people? Or just a trick of the labyrinth.

But as the first’s hood was removed, I had to admit. Seemed pretty real to me.

‘Give now, your testimony,’ said the judge, banging his sword on the ground.

It was a young woman, late teens or early twenties perhaps. Frightened and dishevelled yes, but beautiful. Her hair was like golden wheat, her blue eyes slightly smudged from crying.

‘Speak,’ said Kassandra, ‘come, no harm will come to you.’

I said nothing, but was privately annoyed at this.

The young girl sniffed. ‘My name is Dierdre. I was newly married, my husband had gone to work the fields. I was celebrating with my mother and sisters in the local taverna, when we heard commotion.’ Dierdre sniffed slightly. ‘I went to intervene, but when I did the two men turned on me. Said that if I didn’t give them my wedding day jewels they’d…they’d…’

‘They’d hurt you?’ said Kassandra, not unkindly. Her features had hardened. I could already tell that her kind of justice could only be meted out at the end of a spear.

Dierdre’s tears were flowing now. ‘They attacked me. My sisters were powerless against them. They robbed me and they fled and I was left with nothing.’ She sobbed. ‘My husband was angry. Said the jewels were a dowry, meant for him. He left me…now I have nothing.’

She went quiet then and I too said nothing when the next prisoner got to his feet. He was older, and had the weather-beaten tanned skin of a seasoned sailor. His face was creased with lines, his hair already greying.

‘My name is Heklos,’ said the old man. He gestured to Dierdre. ‘I wouldn’t have believed that she was newly married. She approached me more than once that night at the taverna. I saw no family with her other than one other friend of hers.’ The old man stretched slightly, clearly made cramped and uncomfortable by his bindings. ‘She accosted me. Demanded I pay for her drinks, said that her husband was a military man. A captain of King Minos’s guard, that he would hurt me.’ Heklos shook his head. ‘She attacked me. I had to defend myself. When her jewels spilled, I helped her gather them, but she labelled me a thief.’

‘So what did you do?’ demanded Kassandra. ‘Give them back?’

‘It…all happened too fast,’ admitted Heklos. ‘Before I knew it, the guards were called. They believed her, so I fled. I had to, but they were too fast, too many of them. I went to my brother, but they struck him down.’

‘A thief,’ said Kassandra, ‘just as she says.’

I looked to the old man, once more saying nothing. He didn’t look at me, he didn’t look at anything, as though unaware of his surroundings. Dierdre too remained upon the ground, staring there, quietly sobbing. Finally it came to the third prisoner, a handsome young man, a little pale by Mediterranean standards with broad shoulders and a surprisingly warm expression given his situation.

‘My name is Adrem, and I’m a guard of Minos. Newly instated, just a few weeks, and I know that Heklos.’ He spat at the ground. ‘Vagrant, and a thief. Lost all his money gambling, and now he frequents the tavernas, but he is too stupid to swindle anyone.’ Adrem’s features darkened. ‘He was watching that girl all night, waited until she was alone. She was with her husband that night, but he was in his cups, and had to be taken home. Old Heklos waited for his moment and pounced for the jewels.’

‘How did you know she had jewels?’ I asked. ‘Did you know her?’

Adrem seemed annoyed by my question. ‘I knew of her. Didn’t know her entirely, but I called the guard. It was obvious he was after her jewels, or perhaps something more. That old bastard. Now the jewels are gone, a small fortune, and he’d rather die than tell us where they are!’

I looked to the three of them. Dierdre, the victim, losing her jewels. Heklos, the apparent thief, and Adrem, the one who’d corroborated it.

‘This old man is guilty,’ announced Kassandra. ‘It is clear. He attacked this poor girl and this guard confirms it-‘

I turned to her urgently, putting my hand to her mouth. Her eyes widened and she pushed me off her.

‘Is that your verdict,’ said the judge.

‘No!’ I said. ‘No!!’ The judge’s sword had been in motion from the moment Kassandra had said the word, but it began to lower once more.

The girl, the victim. The guard. The old man. Something…wasn’t adding up here. The details were inconsistent. The girl had said she’d been with her family. Adrem had said she’d been with her husband. He claimed he didn’t know her, but how could he possibly have known about the jewels?

The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

I was no Bronze Epoch expert, but it seemed very odd you would bring such immensely valuable things on a night out. Then the old man…the obvious culprit. Two corroborating stories, and the old man without any alibi.

Then there was the fact that he’d run, and he’d run with the jewels… An honest mistake? I looked at him. No emotion there, just…acceptance. He’d accepted the verdict, but not the guilt perhaps…

Kassandra was twitching beside me, her impatience beating like a drum in the chamber.

Their stories corroborating, Dierdre and Adrem. But only one person was guilty…I narrowed my eyes. Wait. I looked to the judge. ‘You never said one person was guilty did you? You only said that we must pass judgement on the guilty and the innocent?’

The judge made no motion, no note that he had either heard or acknowledged me, but that was answer enough.

‘I have-‘