Page 20 of A Blade of Air and Darkness

The scent of food teased my nose. “Then something to eat while I look around? I’m here on business for the Halls.” A set of un-rechargeable batteries would have paid for a week’s bed and full board, he could cough up lunch today as well. The greed amused me.

I wanted to spend the night in a warm bed. I was tired of sleeping cold.

“We’ve cheese and bread.”

As I handed over the batteries, I asked, “Where are the children who saw the creature?”

His eyes flicked toward Durgion, then side to side as he leaned forward. “They’re at their father’s shop. They aren’t popular right now.”

“Which shop?”

“Leatherworker, two buildings down the street.”

I finished the bread and cheese as I walked.

The small shop, built using a variety of scavenged stones, displayed a sign with an awl and a square. The combination of the scent of leather and pot-pourri made me smile as I entered. It was a homely touch, something I hadn’t experienced much of these past two years. A boy and a girl were seated at a low table at the back of the shop. They paused in their work, a strip of leather covered in holes in front of them.

Both children moved stiffly as they turned toward me, the boy’s face was bruised. The late afternoon sun shone through the window slit, setting off the reds and purples covering the side of his face.

From behind a set of shelves, a dark-skinned man appeared. In good shape, though his balance wasn’t a fighter’s. A faint frown, quickly erased, creased his face as he saw my onyx.

Both children resembled him, though they still had hair, and he’d shaved his head. He wiped his hands on his thick apron as he approached me. “Do you need something mended, or something new? Ma’am.”

“Neither,” I answered, reaching into my satchel and pulling out a package of batteries, another of pepper, then a handful of individually wrapped hard candies. While I had authority and had no need to bribe people, questions got better answers when those I interviewed were happy. “I hoped the people who saw something moving in the waters could talk to me, and perhaps take me to the place where they saw it?”

The boy stood and moved to his father’s side. Young enough that he could still attend school, he’d be apprenticed or in the Guard soon—he could stare me in the eye without looking up. His sister joined him as I placed my offering on the counter.

It vanished under their father’s hand. I pulled two more candies out and handed them to the children.

“Tell her.”

“Why don’t I sit here with you while you work, and you tell me what happened?” I smiled down at the kids.

Their father’s nod answered their questioning look.

“I’m Alys; what are your names?”

“I’m Ephraim. She’s Deb.” The boy tried to talk without moving his mouth, and the girl huddled next to him, big-eyed and shivering. Both watched the door.

“What happened to you? Did the creature attack you?”

The girl shook her head. Neither spoke, which set off alarms in the back of my head.

“Where and when did you see it?”

“By Leed’s orchard, two weeks ago. It was curling around the apple trees, like a big snake with a face.” Ephraim rubbed his arm.

“What was it made of?”

“Water and dirt,” Deb whispered. “T’wasn’t a person.” She slurred her words, speaking rapidly, her voice trembling.

“Did it talk to you? See you?”

Ephraim shook his head violently, his sister joining him. Fear filled the room, thick and gluey.

I sighed, setting out the Lawbook where all three could see it. “Would you close the shop for the next hour?”

Their father barred the door, staring from me to the LawBook.

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