Page 70 of Surfaces
“Of course.”
The judge chuckled and nodded. “Well, you might lose a point or two for lack of restraint,” – Watkins’s face dropped at that—“but I do appreciate your honesty.”
The judge took the horseshoe and placed it on the table next to his peers. Then they consulted in low whispers, jotting down notes as they sat in their wicker chairs.
Meanwhile, the herald took to his conch shell and announced to the city all the details of Watkins’s adventure, setting off a cheer that rang through the neighborhoods.
Humberto arrived next wearing only his underwear, clutching a needle in his fingers as if it was a sword.
To say the roof was shocked was an understatement. The guards couldn’t contain their chuckles and even the whiskered judge had trouble keeping a straight face.
Both Marea and I averted our eyes while Humberto explained his trade to the judges. Sahar sent a servant off to find him some new pants.
The announcement of Humberto’s “victory,” if it could be called that, got an even louder cheer from the crowd because of its entertainment value.
Valdez arrived next, the pirate trailed by several angry mer and a glaring siren. In his hands, he had three huge signs, which he brought directly over to the judges’ table, dumping them unceremoniously on top of the other contestants’ items.
“I present all three requested items.”
The whiskered judge lifted the first. “These are…tavern signs.”
“Yes.”
The judge glanced over at the angry citizens, who were prevented from swimming onto the roof by the guards.
“I presume you stole them?” the whiskered judge asked.
“Borrowed.” Valdez lifted up the first sign and panned around the roof so everyone could see it. There was a black outline of a winged bird on it, with a large red heart painted behind it. “May I present: The Raven’s Heart.” He grabbed the second sign, which had a silver needle and a twist of green thread painted on it. “The Needle’s Eye.” He showcased the final sign. “Landlubbers.” It had a horse and rider on it.
“There’s not even a horseshoe here,” one of the judges protested.
“Nonsense. Humans don’t ride horses without shoes.” Valdez was dismissive.
I glanced around at Keelan, who looked amused at this turn of events—perhaps keen to find another troublemaker like himself.
Gorgono only looked annoyed, while Marea still glared at her nephew.
I wondered what the judges thought of Valdez’s interpretation. It was certainly clever. But was it what they wanted? And would stealing lose him points?
Personally, I was both amused and a bit admiring. Valdez had interpreted the judges’ requirements his own way. And then gone full pirate.
I glanced over to see him watching me. He gave me a saucy wink and I couldn’t stifle a small laugh. A large part of me hoped that he’d make it through because I wasn’t ready to be done with him. I was attracted to his rule-breaking, to his outright distaste for rules and all the manners of polite society that had dictated my life up to this point.
He was refreshing.
Though definitely no contender for diplomat,I thought wryly as I watched the angry tavern keepers argue with the guards.
Still. His appeal—besides his obvious sensual appeal—was the novelty of his free thinking.
There was a long, whispered discussion between the judges—so long that the herald ended up announcing Valdez’s items over the conch shell before they’d even finished. They didn’t write anything down before Mateo swam up over the roof, breathing hard.
I glanced over at my silver-haired merman. The only one who competed for me, for the legitimate right to be with me instead of being my dark secret. I noticed, with some surprise, that his silver tail was getting a streak of burnt orange in it, like a true mer’s did when they reached the mer age of maturity…a bit later than humans.
Mateo’s eyes were strained as he looked at me, like he was trying to communicate a secret, but I had no idea what.
When the head judge swam over to ask him what item he’d retrieved, he handed over a horseshoe.
But it didn’t look quite right. It wasn’t old and aged and corroded like the horseshoe that Watkins had brought back. It was clean, gleaming even, and had a slightly blue hue to it.
