Page 80 of A Drop of Corruption

“Two years in the jungle is not that long,” said Malo. “Not if you don’t mind worms living in bits of you.”

“Oh, I mean longer than that. In fact, I think he cametothe Shroud with these monstrous intentions already in mind, many years ago.”

Malo stared at Ana so open-mouthed that I could glimpse the dark clump of hina root balanced on her tongue.

“You think he planned all this before he ever became an augur on the Shroud, ma’am?” I asked. “Why?”

“Well, first there is the missing augury,” said Ana. “Ghrelin said they’d found small discrepancies in the dosages over the past few months. This suggests that Pyktis had been stealing them for some time—saving up, then, for a period when he’d no longer have access to it. But then there is the suspicious nature of his death! This man isa genius. So were his colleagues. And yet—someone justhappensto leave tree pollen upon their warding suit while trudging about in a leviathan’s entrails? A horrible coincidence that justhappensto leave all bodies unrecoverable, and grant Pyktis the cover he needs to fabricate his death? No, his exit was planned, and cleverly planned at that. I believe he has been designing all this for years.” She paused. “And I don’t think he’s doing it alone.”

“Eh?” said Malo.

I nodded, grimacing. “The money.”

“Indeed,” said Ana.

“Money?” asked Malo. “What money?”

“The money that Pyktis apparently used to pay his way into the good graces of the smuggling clans!” said Ana. “Your ragged captive told you Pyktis offered a fortune for the clan’s cooperation. But where in hell could he get such a thing, assuming he’d just barely survived some catastrophe on the Shroud? The obvious answer is, someone gave it to him. He is beingfinanced.But by whom? And why? We do not know.” She sighed deeply. “And then, stranger still, there is the mask…Malo, you said your old fisherman spied Pyktis floating downstream with a bag over his head. And now we hear tales that Pyktis never took his helmet off! Yet why hide his face? He didn’t bother to do so when robbing the vaults. What is special about his features that drives him to do such a thing? Again, we have nothing.”

An uneasy gloom stole over us, broken only by the sounds of the distant waves.

“It is an awkward moment,” Ana said. “We are like a man finding blood upon his feet, trying to discern where he has been stabbed! But at least we knowwhohas wounded us so.”

Malo scowled. “But it is not just Pyktis who has harmed us. What a thing it is, to have all at risk because of Thelenai’s lies! So many dead—and Kol here likely to join their number, when he goes to the Shroud…”

I shot a glare at her. “Thank you for your concern.” Then, to Ana: “Do you think the commander-prificto will be charged with high crimes for what she’s done, ma’am?”

“Thelenai I shall have to handle in good time,” said Ana grudgingly. “I am sure she thinks she did the right thing—that healing so many in the future was worth inflicting pain on a few in the present—but secretly, she did it for the same reason so many regents crumble.”

“Which is?” I asked.

“Pride,” answered Ana. “She wrote a story in her mind, with herself as hero, clad in the trappings of triumph. It’s possible the greatness she has accomplished here could have been done with no deception, and thus less disaster. But a prideful creature can talk themself into believing that every deed they do is legitimate. Thus, they both giddily and greedily spin their own doom.”

Unable to bear the stench of Ana’s feast anymore, I slid out a shootstraw pipe, knelt before the fire, and lit it on one of the coals. “Will we be so lucky that Pyktis shall do the same?”

“Perhaps,” said Ana. “First, I have questions.”

—

Ana stabbed a holein another egg with her fingernail and greedily sucked it back. Then she turned to Malo, her lips gleaming. “First, Malo…when shall the Apoths burn the warped clearing?”

“They’ve already begun, ma’am,” Malo said. “Though the work is slow and thorough. I could see the first smokes in the distance as we returned to your quarters.”

“Really?” I said. “The skies seemed clear to me.”

“Your eyes aren’t as mine,” Malo said. “But you shall see it soon. The smoke will only grow the more they burn.”

Ana tossed the eggshell into the fire, where the whites instantly began to sizzle. “Will the smoke be visible for some leagues?”

“It would…” said Malo slowly. “You think Pyktis shall watch the horizon to confirm that we have found his horrid display?”

“I think he watches us most closely, yes,” said Ana. “We are in something of a dance with him, though we do not know his steps. And one thing we do not know bothers me most of all—forhowdid Pyktis predict all these Apoth shipments so perfectly? Every time, heknew not only what to steal, but when and where and how to steal it! And that I cannot explain.”

“He is a genius at prediction, yes?” I said.

“Yes, but even a genius needssomeinformation to extrapolate from!” said Ana. “Which makes me think he had some advance warning. Could it be something as simple as bribing some Apoth in the city to sneak him notice of the shipments?”

Malo shook her head. “Shipment orders are given mere days before the shipment goes out, for that exact reason,” she said. “The less time you know something, the less you can sell what you know. We Apoths are not the source.”