“Yes, I have no doubt the Ess Noti were well aware,” I affirmed.Every thought of the organization grated my nerves, not only because of their threat and the coin still bound tight to my skin.
A cure was closer than ever.And for the sake of all of us—Mary, Grant, Ben,Hart, the Uknaras—I had to ignore it.Perhaps if we had to stay the night, I might slip away, but—the risk was so high.No.
No.
I continued, “It does not change our immediate needs.We must findHart.”
Ben squinted at me.At the same time, the whores grew bored and vanished from the balcony above.“Just go into the Other, Sam.”
“There is no need to risk that.Yet,” Mary interjected.“We’ve all eyes in our skulls, and there cannot be so many ships around thecity.I say we split up—Samuel and Charles, Ben and I.We search and set a place and time to reunite.”
We all looked at one another: Ben impassive, Grant startled, and I off-footed.Despite all we had endured together, I doubted Mary would volunteer to partner with Ben without reason.
She, evidentially, read my thoughts.“You twins are too notable together and Benedict—” she added with the ghost of a grin “—is a terrible influence on Charles.”
Grant scoffed.“Well I am a marvelous influence on him.”
“And,” Mary added, becoming more serious, “I have Tane.I can Otherwalk, though I can’t track as well as you.And if all else fails, Sam, we can look into the Other.So each pair will have similar advantages.”
Ben studied Mary for a moment, passably curious now, then nodded.“We can meet in front of the cathedral we saw from the hill, the one with the four spires.Midnight bells?”
I glanced up at the sun, only to find it completely hidden in the crush of roofs, spires, chimney caps and laundry lines.
We still had a few hours before nightfall.Eight hours, then, to search forHart.Eight hours separated from Mary, knowing she was alone with Ben.I did not like it, but I saw the wisdom in it, and I doubted Ben would outright harm the Stormsinger this far into their acquaintance.
I nodded.“Grant and I will go out to the naval docks and see what we can through that fog.Mary, Ben, search the public ones.We will see you at midnight.”
THIRTY-FIVE
The Ess Noti
MARY
Ipresume we are doing something my brother would not approve of,” Benedict observed as we were swallowed by the crowd.He was shockingly close, the buttons of his coat a breath from my shoulder.“Are we seeking out the Ess Noti?”
“Yes,” I affirmed.My instinct was to speak low, but the market was so loud that was both impossible and irrelevant.“Sam will not save himself, so we must try.Will you help me?”
The Magni shrugged and nudged me aside—none too gently— as a large man with a huge, slathering hound barged through.We were not the only ones to move, and for an instant a swath of open cobbles remained.I could see to the gates to the city proper, the second-oldest tier.Beyond its stretch of wood and slate tiles, the stone ramparts of the Old City rose—the heart of Ostchen, summer seat of the monarchy and headquarters for every power in Mere.
Including the Ess Noti.
Like a sigh, the crowd overflowed back into the space and the press resumed.I imagined the forest for an instant, the scent of earth and the feeling of blessed loneliness among the trees.I took a calming breath, caught a whiff of a passerby’s pungent odor, and gagged.
“Whatever cure the Ess Noti have, I will not use it,” Benedict warned as we started off again towards the gate.
“I don’t expect—” I was cut off as we were forced to weave through the line for a vendor selling spiced, roast meats, and my stomach clenched in hunger.
Ben and I met up again on the other side and he passed me one of two skewers of meat.
“Did you just steal these?”I asked, startled and grudgingly impressed.
“Do you care?”
I stared at the skewer, thick with savory scents of fat and pepper and other spices.Hesitation fled, and I took a bite.Flavor burst over my tongue, and I resisted the urge to make an undignified, happy sound.
“Fine, don’t use the cure,” I said.Whether or not Benedict wanted to use it now, Sam needed help.Perhaps Ben could be convinced—or forced—at a later date.“We find the Ess Noti’s headquarters and see what we can see, steal what we can steal.”
Ben eyed me askance.“That is your plan?”
