Chapter 16 – The Scent of Ashes
The news of Varyn Myrel's death moved through King's Landing like smoke. It drifted through alleys and corridors, clinging to every name that mattered. Merchants whispered of trade suspensions. Sailors muttered of debt collectors vanishing. The Iron Bank had gone quiet — and in their silence, men began to fear.
Aden spent the morning walking the docks. The air was thick with salt and the bitter tang of pitch. Ships bearing the Myrish flag floated aimlessly, their cargo held by order of the Crown until the matter of the envoy's "accident" was settled.
He found a clerk from the harbor registry — a pale, nervous man named Ryne. Aden handed him a coin and a folded parchment.
"Shipping ledgers from the week before the envoy's death," he said.
Ryne's eyes darted. "Those ledgers were claimed by the Master of Ships himself."
Aden smiled faintly. "Then bring me copies. And take another coin for forgetting this conversation."
By the time the sun dipped, Aden had what he needed: a list of captains who had personally signed off Myrel's cargo. Two names stood out — both merchants with ties to Braavos.
That evening, he met one of them, a sharp-eyed man called Gerro Mylen, in a small winehouse near the Hook.
"You're Baelish's man," Gerro said, sipping slowly.
"I'm the Crown's man," Aden replied.
"Is there a difference?"
"Only for those who notice it."
Gerro chuckled and leaned closer. "The Myrish envoy was a fool. He thought himself untouchable because his debts were shared with the Iron Bank. But the Bank doesn't protect fools — it replaces them."
Aden tilted his head. "Replaces them with whom?"
Gerro's smile faded. "Ask Baelish. He'll know. Or perhaps he won't — and that's the trouble."
Later that night, Aden found another note waiting on his desk, written in the same gray ink:
Names vanish. Ledgers burn. But silver remembers.
The scent of ashes lingered in his room for hours, though no candle had been lit.
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