Page 32 of Godslayer
He shrugs. “OK. So what’s the big deal?”
“What’s the big deal? The big deal is that it’s weird. Why is this book in all the towers?”
He cracks a smile, trying to lighten the mood because I’m acting… weird. “Because it’s about us, Jasina. It’s our history.”
“Well,” I frown. “That’s weird, right? I mean, these stories are about the most infamous couple in all of history. A couple thatcontributed to the downfall of pretty much everything. And this isn’t the story book, Finn. It’s an actual history. I’ve read some of it. It’s like… scholarly. Why would it be required reading for Extraction Masters?”
Now he just sighs. “I dunno. I don’t know what to tell you. I’ve never even read the stories. I mean, I’ve heard of them. I know the basics. But I don’t have any answers for you.”
“I’m keeping this copy,” I tell him, tucking it into the makeshift hip sling. “I’m going to figure this mystery out.”
Finn just grins back at me like I’m cute. “You do that. But it’s a pretty serious book. What is it? Four hundred pages? I bet it’s fine print too, isn’t it?”
“So?”
“It’s gonna be heavy.”
“I don’t care. There’s something weird about this book.”
He offers me his hand. “You know what?”
I take it and let him pull me close to him. It’s still very thrilling to think that I’m the courtesan of the Tau City Extraction Master and that he and I are on a real mission to save the Spark Maidens. “What?” I ask.
“I think it’s perfect that you want to read that history book. Because if you’re gonna be a Tau City scholar’s wife, you’ll have to have your own research. And this is it.”
It also thrills me when he talks about our future. I’m not stupid. I know I’m just a fill in for the woman he truly loves and no amount of trying to convince me otherwise will ever change that. But Clara is gone. For good. Like, she’s never coming back and is most likely dead.
And that is enough for me.
Maybe it’s not entirely true, this love he’s professing.
But it’s true enough for now.
He puts an end to this conversation with a kiss. Not anything sloppy or demanding, just a really small one. The kind of kiss your lover gives you in a moment of encouragement.
“Ready?” he asks, jutting his chin in the direction of the Looking Glass room.
I nod. “Yeah. Let’s do it and get the hell out of here. I don’t like this place.”
For the first time, Finn takes a really good look around and immediately he begins to frown. “Now that we’re up here, yeah. It’s… off. There’s something wrong with this one.” He looks at me, grinning. “I mean, aside from the fact that obviously, there’s no Extraction Master in this tower. It’s abandoned.”
I agree, so I nod. “Yeah.” And then I walk over to the windows, which I already know, overlook the entire city—from the top of the canal all the way down to the bottom.
Finn joins me and we stare down at the lifeless place, but then… movement. “Look.” I point. We both lean in, trying to make out what we’re seeing down the canal.
At first, I think it’s people but then Finn says, “Workers.” He turns to me. “We’ve never seen that before. Have we?”
I shake my head. “No. They stay under the city. Like little invisible slaves. They make the city run. I don’t think they’re supposed to be in the city. I don’t think the people are supposed to see them. I don’t think they’re supposed to know they’re even there.”
“Yeah.” Finn’s eyes scan the city. “What’s going on here?” He turns to me again. “Do we need to know? Or should we just do our job and leave?”
I give him a tiny shrug, but I’ve been asking myself the same question. “Are we scholars? Or are we just…” I search for a word that might describe all the destructive things we’ve done. But it takes a few before I land on, “…villains?”
“Villains?” Finn laughs. “If anyone had told me a month back that I’d be an infamous villain I’d have laughed in their face. Me. A villain. It’s ridiculous.”
This makes me scoff with amusement. I like the idea of us being the infamous and historic Godslayer and his Courtesan, especially since this book seems to be following me. But itisridiculous. He’s Finn Scott, for fuck’s sake. He’s far from perfect, but a villain he is not. “So… scholars then?”
Looking towards the large open stairwell that leads down to the Extraction Master’s private quarters, he gestures. “Scholars it is. Let’s go do some research.”
