I reached for the handle but realized the door jamb was no longer intact on the inside. A slight nudge of my hand produced a cry from the door that echoed my nerves eeeaaaarrk. A pit hit me in the stomach. Everything I had been working for was lost. “Steady” I whispered to give myself courage as I nervously twisted the family signet ring on my finger. After a second, I drew the mirror from my waistband and used it to look around the blind corners as I entered.
As I glanced around the freshly upturned shop, there were no signs of Master “Ai” Ryōshi. Red Ink was still flowing down the wall where the remains of a shelving system that kept most of the standard ink bottles. It looked like there were still a few that hadn’t been damaged. Almost without thinking I scooped them into my pack after wiping them off. The labels would probably always be stained red, but at least it wasn’t blood.
A flood of thoughts suddenly burst into my head it took me a minute to compose myself once again. I couldn’t tell if there had been a struggle or not. After a quick look around, the whole place was in ruins. Someone had come through here and tossed the whole thing. How could this have happened in the middle market? We had paid our dues. I had delivered them myself. Only two possibilities - Either the people who did this didn’t fear the Crift or they had bought immunity. It didn’t matter which, both were equally dangerous. Like a blow to the head I realized I might also be a target or at least a person of interest. They might still be watching the shop too.
I slipped out the back window and used a levitate spell and an invisibility spell to move to the next street over. I exited the middle market quickly glancing back to make sure I wasn’t being followed. With the right spells or equipment, even invisibility couldn’t hide you. I don’t think anyone was following me.
What next? I couldn’t go home, that would only put my parents and older brother in harms way. Plus, they would ask too many questions. Perhaps I could find help at the ranger’s guild to get out of town and to start the search for Master Ryōshi.