by T. A. White
Dewdrop turned his eyes forward.
“Daniel, why would he come after you?”
Dewdrop’s shoulders hunched at the sound of his real name.
“They didn’t throw me out of the gang.”
That was an unexpected answer. So unexpected, that it took Tate a moment to understand. When Night had discovered Dewdrop at the Red Lady’s chamber of torture, Dewdrop had told them he’d figured out where Tate was going with the intention of reporting back to the Luciuses with her whereabouts. He’d failed and was captured instead. He said it was enough to get him kicked out of the gang. Now he was telling her that hadn’t happened.
“Then what did they do?”
“Most of what I said was true. I did go there because they threatened to throw me out, and I did get caught trying to report back. When Lucius found out that you rescued me and offered to let me stay with you, he changed his mind.”
“He told you to spy on me,” Tate said in a flat voice.
She jerked her arm out of his hold.
Dewdrop stopped and turned to her with remorse on his face. “Yes. He told me to spy.”
Tate jerked back feeling a familiar hurt beginning to take hold. Anger was an old friend, edging out that hurt so it couldn’t make her do something drastic, like cry. She didn’t need that. It only had the power to hurt her if she let it. If she had a choice between hurt and good old fashioned anger, she’d choose the anger.
She could feel it building.
“I can’t believe this,” Tate muttered.
“I didn’t though,” Dewdrop said in a desperate voice as she started to turn away from him. She stopped and he continued, trying to get everything out before she stormed off. “I didn’t spy on you, Tate. I wouldn’t. Especially not after seeing how much it hurt you to know Jost and Danny kept you around to do the same. I told him no. Then when he insisted, I told him I was out. That I was no longer part of his court.”
Tate found herself listening, despite a large part of her wanting to put her fist through something.
“And that’s why you’re avoiding Blade?”
“Yes. To exit one of the night courts you need to buy your way out, and I don’t have the money yet.”
That’s what Jost had meant when he referenced Dewdrop’s continued tie to Lucius.
She wanted to believe him. She wanted to believe the boy she considered a little brother hadn’t been reporting to a dangerous group her habits and weaknesses, but she’d been betrayed in this exact same manner before. Unlike before, she didn’t think she had it in her to pretend forgiveness if she was wrong.
“Why didn’t you tell me before?”
“I was afraid.” Dewdrop’s face was stark with desperation and fear. “I thought if you knew what Lucius wanted you would turn me out. He approached me right after you learned about Jost and Ryu. I didn’t think you would want to take a chance on me and I was desperate.”
He made a convincing argument. Tate couldn’t say whether she would have given him a chance. She didn’t know if she would have been willing to accept another potential spy into her life so soon after learning that the entire life she remembered was spent with people who had an ulterior motive in every interaction.
“And since then? Why haven’t you told me at any time during the last three months?”
“I planned to. I just kept losing courage,” he said. “I kept hoping I could fix it. Make enough money to buy my way out. After that I planned to tell you. Once I’d fixed things.”
“That’s why you work for Ryu,” Tate said, putting the pieces together. It wasn’t just because they were low on money.
Dewdrop looked relieved that she hadn’t cut him from her life or stormed off yet.
“Yes. He pays well and has the contacts I need when it comes time to approach Lucius about severing my ties with his court.”
“Does he know about your little problem?” She couldn’t help the fresh wave of hurt at the thought that Ryu, someone Dewdrop had viewed with considerable suspicion in the beginning, knew more than she did.
“I haven’t told him, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he put it together. I know he’s worked with several of the Night Lords in the past. He would be familiar with the way that world works.”
He fell silent, his brown eyes looking like those of an abandoned puppy.
“Come on. If he’s here for you, we need to keep moving,” Tate said.
He nodded quietly, seemingly robbed of the cockiness he’d had while negotiating with Ashwin. Tate knew she was the reason for that loss of animation, but she couldn’t find the words to set his mind at ease.
She had trust issues. Made worse by the discovery that Jost and the crew took her on board at Ryu and the empire’s orders. Because she was Dragon-Ridden. Because she was the first female, the first person, in a hundred years to bond with a dragon. Because she’d done so without their knowledge or say so.
Dragons were weapons. They didn’t like it when there was a weapon running around outside of their control.
She understood Jost’s reasons. The crew’s reasons. They hadn’t known her in the beginning. She was a feral animal, possibly mentally unstable at best and homicidal at worst. She understood why they didn’t tell her after first capturing her, but they’d served on the same ship together for months. At any time, Jost, Danny, or Trent could have explained. She would have forgiven them. Probably.
Instead, they waited until things boiled over and she discovered the truth on her own. It was the first time she’d felt less than. Less than a friend. Less than crew. Less than a thinking person with feelings.
She forgave them. A little because she understood. Mostly because she didn’t have much choice. Not stuck on probation with the empire as she was. She needed every friend she could get. Even if they came in the form of empire sanctioned pirates that weren’t entirely trustworthy.
Dewdrop was different. He was closer to her than they’d been. Almost family. If he’d been spying on her… If he’d broken her trust in such an intimate way, it would break something in her that the previous betrayals couldn’t touch.
Chapter Five
Dewdrop shot several sidelong glances at Tate that she pretended to ignore as they made their way out of the market and aimed toward the Lower city.
They both kept an eye on their rear to see if they were being tailed. Not that it mattered. She had a feeling Lucius, and by extension Blade, knew exactly where they lived.
Colton’s Place loomed over them by the time the sun set, turning the sky into a kaleidoscope of colors. A tall, two story brick building that was nicer than anything else on the street waited to welcome them home. Tate had briefly thought about finding alternate lodging since Ryu had originally been the one to drag her here kicking and screaming, but she found she liked its quirky charm. Even the charred black soot next to her window that was the remnant of an attack a few months ago had a way of making her feel at home.
“Hey Thad, the temple guardians are supplying clean water in their places of worship to any who request it,” Tate told the homeless man sitting in the shade of her building. As usual she couldn’t see much of his face, just a pair of warm green eyes staring out from under a black hood. She didn’t understand how he could bear to be wrapped up in so many layers when it was this hot out. She dropped a coin into his outstretched palm.
“Thanks for the information. I’ll keep that in mind for later,” a rusty voice answered her.
“Try to stay cool,” she told him.
Tate and Dewdrop made their way into Colton’s Place. Dewdrop hovered at her back as she walked into her room. Tate felt like a monster for not automatically forgiving him for withholding information.
Night lifted his head from his bed in the corner, sensing the tension between them. Pax and Willa, his cubs, were curled up at his side. When the two troublemakers saw Tate, they gave twin chirrups and bounded across the floor to attack her legs and shoes.
“Enough of that. I’m not a damn
chew toy,” she said, gently pushing them away with one foot. She was careful not to put too much force into the push.
What’s going on? Night asked, coming to his feet and stretching in that weird way of felines everywhere, arching his back and leaning back then forward. He shook himself, his pelt doing a full body shimmy before he sat. You smell of anger and desperation.
“She found out about my troubles with the Luciuses,” Dewdrop said miserably.
Night’s nose twitched and he showed one fang.
Tate looked between the two. “Wait, Night knows?”
Of course, I know. I’m extremely observant.
Tate gave him an incredulous look. “And I’m not?” Her voice made it clear she didn’t appreciate his comment.
Only sometimes, and never with the people close to you.
“This is just great.”
Why are you so upset? Night’s mental voice held a note of sourness.
“Why wouldn’t I be upset? There’s this huge thing happening and neither one of you thought to clue me in on it.” Her voice had risen to almost a shout by the time she finished.
The cubs gave twin mewls of distress and slunk back to their father. Tate felt a twinge of regret that she had scared the children.
It was his business. He’s entitled to share when he feels comfortable.
“Business that involved me, Night. I deserved to know.”
Night’s whiskers moved forward, and he straightened even further giving her a regal look that cut through the bullshit.
I disagree. Once he decided against spying on you, he was free to handle the situation in a matter he felt best. He obviously made the right choice given how upset this has made you.
Tate threw up her hands.
Do you really believe he’s been spying on you all this time? Night asked. His eyes stared unblinking at hers.
She looked away. “No. I don’t.”
Dewdrop’s breath left him in a whoosh.
She had to believe that. What’s more, Night believed him. If he’d known about this, he would have checked to make sure.
“I’m still livid with you,” Tate told Dewdrop, not willing to let him off the hook. “You should have told me. You should have trusted that I would have your back. If not right away, once you had gotten to know me better.”
“You’re right. I should have. I just got caught up in trying to fix it myself.”
“Don’t let it happen again.”
Dewdrop nodded solemnly, his eyes sad. She couldn’t take it and ruffled his hair.
“How much money do you need to buy your way out?” she asked.
“A thousand taros.”
Tate’s felt her heart drop. That was a lot of money. More than most people saw in five years of working.
“How much do you have?”
“Three hundred.”
More than she thought. Ryu must be paying him well.
“We’ll figure this out. In the meantime, stay clear of your old haunts and keep your head down when in the city. We don’t know for sure that Blade was after you. He could have been at the Cliffside market for any number of reasons.”
They both knew that would only take him so far. If Lucius got serious about corralling his wayward thief, it would take a lot more than keeping his head down to stay safe. It made her wonder why he’d left Dewdrop alone for so long.
“We didn’t get my uniform,” Dewdrop said.
“We’ll go tomorrow.”
Night yawned and leapt onto the window sill.
“Where are you going?” Tate asked.
It’s cool enough to go exploring. I’ll be back before dinner. Take care of the cubs.
With that he disappeared out the window, using his claws to hook onto the narrow ledge outside. They were on the second story, but that never seemed to bother Night. He had a preternatural sense of balance and claws that could latch onto solid rock. The brick around the window was gouged and pockmarked.
There was a tug on Tate’s pants and two deceptively cute faces mrrphed at her. They only had the faintest shadows of spots and stripes that their father had, their fur retaining the fuzziness of the very young. Pax chose that moment to rise up onto his back legs, wavering a moment before setting a paw on Tate’s leg. Tate knew the cuteness was a façade. The two were terrors when they put their minds to it. Every day they got more and more adventurous.
“When did I become a nanny?” she muttered.
“When you decided to get involved with one of the Creators’ creatures,” Dewdrop responded.
She looked at him and smiled. There was no reason she had to watch the children. Dewdrop was more than capable of doing so.
Seeing the smile on her face, a smile Dewdrop had seen more than once right before she saddled him with something she didn’t want to do, Dewdrop stepped back and then bounded for the door.
Tate darted after him, her hand just touching the back of his shirt before he made it out of the room.
“Come back here,” she shouted.
“I suddenly remembered something I have to do,” he responded.
“It’s your turn.”
“Ha, I took the last two times.” He bounded down the stairs and shot her a victory salute at the bottom.
She didn’t want to have to do this, but desperate times called for desperate measures.
“It’d go a long way in making up for lying to me.”
He snorted. “Sorry, Tate. Some things just aren’t worth it.”
She stomped a foot. “Dewdrop.”
“Nope.” He fled the building, the door banging after him.
There was a chirruping behind her as if Pax and Willa were laughing. Tate looked back to see two faces peering around the corner, one using the other as a stool.
“Alright, you two scalawags, we’re going to have a list of rules and this time you’re going to follow them.”
Willa, the cub on the bottom, got a crafty look on her face and disappeared into the room, sending her sibling, Pax, tumbling to the ground.
Tate knew what that meant. It was going to be a very long night.
*
“Quit fussing with your gown,” Dewdrop snapped.
Tate gave up trying to tug her gown into a more comfortable fit. “I feel like I’m trussed up like a rump roast.”
Tate wasn’t the only one finding the clothes restricting. Dewdrop was in the middle of trying to pull the tight collar of his uniform away from his throat. He gave up with a grimace. Night had brought back a bundle of clothes that morning containing the uniform Dewdrop found himself in.
He looked dashing in the formal wear, his hair slicked back and the dark gray and cream of the jacket and pants lending him an air of efficiency. The collar was high and stiff; Tate doubted he’d be able to turn his head while wearing that thing. Large silver buttons marched down the front. He’d waited until right before they had to get into the carriage to put on the coat. It was stifling in the stiff fabric.
Tate’s dress was at least sleeveless even if it pressed tightly against her ribs and waist. The soft blue set her pale skin off nicely. Together they looked ready to attend a ball, not a dinner.
She hated it, even as she conceded they presented a pretty picture.
Tate walked slowly up the stairs to the front door of the mansion they’d disembarked in front of, trying to prevent herself from doing something embarrassing, like falling on her ass.
Their destination was so far outside her realm of comfort that she was at a loss for words for once. It was in an area of Aurelia that Tate had never visited before. The fancy part, as Dewdrop would say.
“Is this someone’s house?” Tate asked Dewdrop in a hushed voice.
“Most likely it’s the house of someone high up in the government who has lent it out as a neutral place to conduct these talks,” Dewdrop said in a low voice.
They reached the top just as a butler opened the mammoth door to admit them.
High up in the government, maybe at th
e very top of it. If Tate had been impressed by the utter majesty of the outside with its cream-colored bricks, oversized windows and white pillars complete with arch over the entrance, it was nothing compared to the inside foyer.
It was a room that shouted its owner’s unmatched wealth and privilege. Something that made a normal person’s jaw drop and evoked the feeling they’d stepped into a dream or another world. Tate didn’t know which.
With a raised cream-colored ceiling, the entrance gave the impression of space and light. The furnishings simple in their tastefulness. Tate liked it, even as she knew she didn’t belong.
“Name?” the butler asked.
Dewdrop answered before Tate could. “The witness, Tate Fisher, and her manservant.”
“We’ve been expecting you,” the man said, giving them an abbreviated bow. “Right this way.”
He held out an arm and then walked quickly before them, leading them through a maze of rooms, each nicer than the last.
Tate followed behind the butler with Dewdrop bringing up the rear.
She didn’t often get nervous, but right now she had to try to manage the butterflies taking flight in her stomach. She didn’t know what she’d expected, but it wasn’t this. If she hadn’t already made promises, she would have beat a full retreat. There was also the little matter of what Dewdrop had revealed the previous day. Their need for money was more dire than she had thought, taking with it the privilege of rejecting this assignment.
She took a deep breath and resigned herself to grinning and bearing it. She’d survived pirates, Night Lords, and the tunnels. A couple of soft nobles should be no problem. Right?
The butler opened a set of double doors that led to a large room filled with people. Like the other rooms, this one had a raised ceiling. Its theme seemed to be silver and gold with the furniture matching.
The inhabitants of the room were dressed as finely as Tate, perhaps more so, a glittering gathering of butterflies and peacocks.
Dewdrop matched his step to hers as the butler announced her to the group. Tate suddenly found herself the center of attention.
Despite what she’d first assumed, it wasn’t just one gathering with people mingling. There was an edge of hostility and tension in the air. The group was separated into three distinct cliques. Each giving the other suspicious glances that only abated long enough to look over the newcomers.