Page 111 of A Tower of Half-Truths
“Two hundred and thirty-three,” Declan said.
Alain gawked at him. “Examining that many is going to take all week!”
“Three days, actually,” Declan said. “I’m front-loading it,starting with the first-years on Onisday.”
“And you couldn’t have given me more thantwo days’notice?”
“I tried! It’s not my fault you can’t be bothered to check your mailbox.”
Alain knew, with the most difficult part of the spell complete, he could spare a few hours. But the University was the last place he desired to be, and he could scarcely think of anything less pleasurable than administering exams.
Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Mavery looking at him, then Declan, then the tea table. She leaned over and picked up a pack of playing cards that, until this moment, Alain had forgotten about. They’d become well-worn during his sabbatical, after countless games of Patience.
“Declan, you don’t happen to play Tribute?” she asked.
He chortled. “Do I play Tribute? Does a Dyadist worship the moons?”
She grinned. “Then how about I challenge you to a game? You win, and we help you with exams. I win, and we’re completely off the hook.”
Declan’s mustache twitched, indicating a smile lurking beneath that mess of wiry red hair. He looked to Alain. “What do you say, lad?”
Alain sighed. “Fine.”
The three of them relocated to the kitchen. Mavery cleared the table of alchemical supplies while Declan shuffled the deck. The two of them took the chairs at opposite ends of the table, leaving Alain to sit in the middle with nothing to do but watch as Mavery wagered three days of their lives.
“Durnatel rules fine by you?” Declan asked.
Mavery nodded. “Are there any others worth playing?”
“Oh-ho! I like this one,” he chuckled as he began dealing cards.
From what little Alain could recall of the rules, each player began with a hand of five cards. They then took turns “paying tribute” to the other player by offering the highest card in their hand. In theory, the game was simple. In practice, the real skill was in tricking your opponent into believing the card on offer actually was your most valuable. After all, the winner was whoeverended the game with the best hand. These were only the basic rules; there were dozens of variations, including some that required actual money to be wagered alongside the cards. Although Alain could manage Patience well enough, anything more advanced was lost on him—especially when deception was involved.
For the first few rounds, Mavery and Declan exchanged cards rapidly but silently, occasionally drawing from the deck, while Alain struggled to keep pace. He soon gave up on following the game and turned to a pastime that made infinitely more sense: preparing a pot of tea.
When he returned to the table with three cups—extra cream and sugar in Declan’s—the deck had dwindled considerably, and the game’s pace had slowed.
“The best I can do is a nine,” Mavery said, laying down a nine of clubs.
Declan grunted. “Oh, I know you can do better than that.”
Mavery shrugged. “Take it, or draw.”
Declan peered at her over his own cards. Mavery’s expression remained flat, betraying nothing. With a groan, Declan took the nine of clubs and added it to his hand. In turn, he offered her a Lord of diamonds. Alain couldn’t remember how much the cards with people on them—Wizards, Lords, and Priests—were worth. But he assumed Lords were valuable, as Mavery added it to her deck without comment.
“Why do you need Alain’s help, anyway?” she asked, laying down a seven of spades. “Why not use your assistants?”
“Trying to distract me, are you?” Declan asked. Instead of taking Mavery’s card, he drew from the deck. Mavery discarded the seven of spades. Alain assumed because Declan hadn’t accepted it, the card was no longer in play.
“No, just making conversation.”
Declan frowned. “I can’t use my assistants because I don’t have any.”
“Why not?”
“Leona,” Declan said, offering a Wizard of hearts.
“Who’s Leona?” Mavery opted for the final card remaining in the deck. While Declan moved the Wizard to the discardpile, she laid her cards face-down and sipped from her teacup.
