Chapter 43: The Shadow of the King's Executioner
"Think, Ren, think!" Ren's mind screamed. The wind whipped his hair as the carriage hurtled toward the Palace. If I jump now, I'll break every bone in my body. But if I stay, I'm dead anyway.
His hand blurred as he drew his Golden Revolver, pointing it straight at Wex's head. "Stop the carriage or I'll open your skull!"
Wex didn't even flinch. He didn't even look back. "A bullet? You think that will stop me? I am a Level 6 Healer. Unless you hit me perfectly between the eyes, I'll heal the wound before your shell casing hits the floor."
Wex paused, his voice dropping to a sinister whisper. "The King wants you gone, Ren. But a King can't be seen killing a student. That's why I'm here. To make you disappear quietly."
Ren realized he couldn't kill Wex easily. He shifted his aim. If I can't kill the driver, I'll kill the engine.
BANG!
The revolver roared, and the lead buried itself into the horse's neck. The beast let out a pained neigh and collapsed, the carriage skidding sideways and losing its deadly momentum. Using the split second of deceleration, Ren tucked his head and threw himself out of the moving vehicle.
He hit the pavement hard, rolling through the grit. Pain flared in his arm and leg, but the adrenaline masked the worst of it. He scrambled up and bolted into a nearby alleyway, his lungs burning. He turned one corner, then another, weaving through the labyrinth of Sector 1.
He was sprinting so fast he didn't see the figure coming around the next corner.
THUD.
Ren collided with a man, and both of them tumbled to the ground. "Sorry! I'm sorry!" Ren gasped, scrambling to help the man up.
Ren froze. The man looking back at him had dark green hair and dark red eyes. It was Wex.
"No... how?!" Ren's heart hammered. He didn't wait for an answer. He turned and sprinted toward a crowded marketplace, losing himself in the sea of people. He ducked behind a fruit stall, his breath coming in ragged gasps. I lost him. I have to have lost him.
He looked back over his shoulder. Standing perfectly still in the middle of the moving crowd was Wex, staring directly at him.
Panicked, Ren saw a small house with its door slightly ajar. He dived inside, slammed the door shut, and threw the heavy iron bolt. He collapsed against the wood, sliding down to the floor as he tried to catch his breath.
"Safe... I'm safe..."
"Are you?" a voice drifted down from above.
Ren's blood turned to ice. He looked up. Wex was standing in the center of the room, his hands behind his back. Slowly, Wex reached up and peeled off his mask.
His face was pale, with a thin, jagged scar running across the corner of his mouth—a permanent, mocking smirk.
"You're fast, little crow," Wex said, a cold smile touching his lips. "But nobody outruns a King's shadow."
With a flick of his wrist, a jagged bone-white knife spawned in Wex's hand. Before Ren could even reach for his gun, Wex was there, the cold edge of the blade pressed firmly against Ren's throat.