Page 99 of The Isles of the Gods
“He’s a powerful magician,” she replies. “He almost burned me alive, but I caught a glimpse of him.”
“How did he…?”
“Survive? Excellent question, Jude. I sent my people out to search for the answer. And do you know what they found?”
Slowly, I shake my head. Perhaps she doesn’t know about the club. She would have said something by now, wouldn’t she?
“A boat, sold down at the docks last night. It’s called theLittle Lizabetta.You saw the name on the merchant we chased down, I’m sure. It can’t be a coincidence.”
My body turns cold as everything comes together. That ship was never sailing south just to escape us. It was sailing southbefore it saw us.On a course for the Isles of the Gods.
And Leander was never on the progress fleet.
I thought, for an instant, that I saw someone on theLizabettaafter we left. I saw someone scurry across the deck. And I said nothing.
It must have been him.
The ship’s magician—the dead woman near the mast—was very,verygood. Far too good for a regular merchant’s magician. It would make much more sense if that wind, those waves, were Leander’s doing.
This isn’t going to play well with Ruby. And when Ruby’s not happy, nobody else is either. I can’t manage even an ounce of relief that Laskia doesn’t know I’ve seen Leander too.
All those deaths, and we didn’t even get the one we were aiming for.
“Did you recognize Lord Wollesley’s son?” Laskia asks, soft and dangerous, and my breath stills. She wants to blame this on me.
“Yes,” I wheeze. “But he and the prince hated each other at school. They’d never be on the same ship.”
“They clearlywere,” she snaps, eyes flashing fury.
“Laskia, there’s no way I could have—”
Dasriel abruptly shifts his weight at the mouth of the alley, and I fall silent.
“Now what?” I whisper instead, trying again to push up on my elbows, though everything hurts.
“Now,” she says crisply, “we’re going to finish the job.”
“Ruby wants—”
“We’ll talk to Ruby when it’s over,” she snaps. “Sister Beris can keep her company until then. They seem to be getting along well enough. That boy can’t hide anywhere in this city I can’t find him. And he can’t get out of here without me knowing. I’m going to track him to whatever hole he tries to crawl into, and I’m going to bring her his head.”
Her dark eyes are burning—something’s snapped insideher.
And I can’t run. Because she knows where to find my mother.
“Stand up,” she snaps, rising to her feet. “And find something clean to wear. We’re going to finish this.”
Without another word, she turns on her heel, stalking past Dasriel and disappearing back out onto the street.
The big man turns to look at me and blink slowly. He doesn’t move as I struggle to my feet, covered in muck, aching all over. He still doesn’t say a word as he follows me silently to our apartment. And I still don’t speak to him.
I take my time, my head spinning as I work furiously through every possibility, picking up ideas and discarding them in a frenzied rush.
But they all end in the same place: I need money to get Mum out of the city.
I don’t have any.
And if I try to run, and fail, Laskia will kill us both.
