Page 9 of The Ragpicker King
Kel could not help but remember something Andreyen had said to him earlier, when they had been alone.I fear you cannot hold all conflicting things within yourself. Being a Sword Catcher, and also this.
Kel only shrugged. “Jolivet seems to feel we should know more than we do at this juncture—”
“Oh, he thinks it’s easy, does he?” said Ji-An. “Having us do his job for him?” She shook her head. “No one in Castellane is talking. Not to the Hill, and not to us, either. There are no clues—”
“Well,” said Kel. “As to that. Montfaucon is hosting a gathering at the Caravel tonight.” Merren glanced over; his sister, Alys Asper, owned and ran the Caravel.
“And?” said Jerrod. “Shall we all go drown our sorrows with the dissolute nobility?”
“I doubt that would be as much fun as you think,” said Kel. “Anyway, Montfaucon invited us all there expressly to meet his newest lover, someone known as the Gray Serpent.”
“The Gray Serpent,” Andreyen murmured. “Gremont’s last words?”
Kel nodded.
“You think the Gray Serpent is a person now? Not a metaphor? Not the snake-headed boatman of the tales?” asked Andreyen.
“The Dark Guide,” said Merren. “He ferries souls into the underworld.”
“Gremont spoke with such urgency,” said Kel. “I have long wondered why he would waste his last breath reminding me of a fable. But perhaps it was no fable. Which means I will be at the Caravel tonight.”
“Does that mean you will be attending with the Prince?” inquired Jerrod. “Orashim?”
“Neither,” Kel said shortly. He always said as little about Conor as he could get away with. He was not here to report on the Palace, and even if Conor would never know it, even if it might never matter, keeping Conor out of the discussion as much as possible felt less like a betrayal. “I’ll be there as Kel Anjuman. If this Gray Serpent is a person, then I’ll follow him, see what he does.”
“I don’t like Alys being near to all this,” said Merren, frowning. “I should tell her—”
“Tell her what?” asked Jerrod. “That you believe Lord Montfaucon might know someone involved in the attack on Marivent? Telling her that will bring her closer to danger than telling her nothing.”
Merren set his jaw in a stubborn line. “I still want to be there tonight.”
“You shall be,” said Andreyen. “Andyou”—he indicated Jerrod and Ji-An—“will go with him.”
“Do we have to wear disguises? I hate disguises,” said Merren glumly.
“No,” said Andreyen. “You needn’t wear one. You should remain outside the Caravel—”
“Merren could be a courtesan. He’s attractive enough,” said Jerrod absently.
“I just said he didn’t need to wear a disguise; pay attention, Jerrod,” said Andreyen, not without a flicker of amusement. “You three stay with the carriage, where Kel can signal if he needs you. Ji-An can drive.”
“I disagree,” said Jerrod.
Ji-An shot him a dark look.
“Well, if you change your mind and decide you need costumes this evening,” said Kel, “I may have a pirate’s hat I saved from the Queen’s last nautically themed ball. Jerrod, let me know if you need it.”
Jerrod glared at him darkly. Merren said, “Kel, at the Dial Chamber meeting... was there any mention of Artal Gremont’s planned arrival?”
Kel shook his head. “He’s still at sea. Literally, I mean, not figuratively.”
“He is cutting it rather close, isn’t he,” said Merren, “if he plans to marry your friend Antonetta before the end of the month?”
“Merren.” Kel tried to catch his friend’s eye, but Merren was looking studiously in the other direction. “Are you still planning on killing Gremont in revenge?”
Merren blinked rapidly. “I have not made what you might call a concrete plan. I prefer spontaneity.”
Jerrod looked worried. “Merren, Artal Gremont is very well connected. He’s about to be a Charter holder, which is as close to being royalty as you can get without being royalty.”
