Sighing, Viv stepped away from the bookcase. “Well, we don’t have to figure it out tonight. Let’s sleep on it.”
They were all too tired to argue, and nobody had a better idea. After awkward goodbyes, they left Thistleburr, each of them thinking of the creature folded up in the bag—waiting or asleep or gone to some netherworld they couldn’t imagine.
Viv and Gallina hiked the slope to The Perch as fast as they could through the lashing rain and whipsawing wind. Lightning scattered between the churning clouds, and in the distance, the mournful cry of some creature in the hills made them hurry even faster.
23
“It’s a lie.All of it,” said Beckett.He gestured with his snake’s-head cane at the disarray: the overturned table, the lens shattered across the floor, the debris spilling from the window, and even the splash of blood that trailed up the wall.
“A lie?” Leeta’s expression was dubious as she capped a phial and shook it vigorously, examining it for changes in hue.
The old man raked his fingers through tangles of gray hair, and his grim smile was half admiring.“This is Aramy’s work.She’s giving me just what I want to see.Of course we’ll believe it’s the groundskeeper, and of course we’ll believe Lady Marden is dead.I’d warrant that’s even her blood.”
The gnome narrowed her eyes at him, searching his face for signs of fatigue or misgiving, but there was only certainty chiseled there.“How can you be so sure?”
“Because it’s all too obvious.Because she’s toying with me.She said as much in that damned cryptic letter.” His expression soured.“But that’s what vexes me most.She’s beentooobvious.Which means there’s something else I’ve missed, and we have to find it before it’s too late.”
“So you believe Lady Marden isalive?” exclaimed Leeta.“Then that’s what we—”
“Hey there, hon. Thanks for waitin’. Got another one, huh?”
Viv glanced up from her seat on the boardwalk in surprise. Maylee closed the door behind her with a jingle, forehead still damp with sweat, cheeks sparkling like fresh-washed fruit.
“Hey.” Viv smiled back, glad of the distraction. She’d read the same page at least five times, plagued by thoughts of the bone homunculus sitting in the back of Fern’s shop, of Balthus lying dead in the sand, and wondering if Rackam had cornered Varine yet. Maylee’s company was much more welcome.
She snapped the book closed and tucked it away. “Yep. Fern’s still picking them for me.”
Maylee squinted at her. “Somethin’ botherin’ you?”
Viv shrugged awkwardly. “Yesterday was… a lot.”
Maylee bumped Viv’s left leg with her hip. “Well, let’s get movin’, and you can tell me about it. I’ve got an hour before the bakery falls to shambles without me.”
Viv grabbed the walking staff from where it leaned against the clapboard. She figured if she had it in hand, Highlark was less likely to use the sharp side of his tongue.
“Back with the stick, huh? How’s the leg, then?”
Viv considered the question. “Little stiff today, but on the mend.”
They walked together toward Murk proper. In Maylee’s company, Viv didn’t struggle against her own deliberate pace. The sand was still soaked and hard from the prior night’s storm, and the sea had a gray, sullen look about it. The smell of waterlogged wood and spent rain was heavy.
She saw Gatewardens patrolling on top of the fortress wall.True to her word, Iridiawastaking the potential threat of Varine seriously. Viv wondered what other preparations the tapenti might be making.
As they strolled, Viv relayed all that had happened the previous day, from the discovery of Balthus to the appearance of Satchel.
“Eight hells,” breathed Maylee, eyes huge. “So, what’re you gonna do?”
“Wish I knew. You got any ideas?”
Maylee thought about it as they continued, two strides to every one of Viv’s. She stared out over the breaking waves, and finally asked, “You think there’s any harm in him?”
Viv thought it over as they walked, then sighed. “Maybe not in him. But maybe he drags it behind?”
“So you’re tellin’ meyouwant to stay out of trouble? Who’re you kiddin’? Remember, I used to do this stuff, too.”
“Well, it doesn’t mean I want to bring trouble down on everybody around me.”
“I’ll risk a little trouble. I’m a big girl.” Maylee looked Viv up and down. “Relatively.”
