With her eyes on him, Jin gave the woman a helpless smile. “I guess we’ll be going to the theatre.” The brief sidelong glance he got told him Azara had a similar idea about the theatre being where those in power would congregate.
Havelock chuckled. “It’s always best to let them have their nights out. It’ll make them appreciate you all the more.”
Both women turned looks on him, Merise’s sharp, Azara’s holding a trace of ice. The former was the one to speak. “I appreciate having time off the ship and in company I can converse with about polite things. Sailors are all well and good, but a woman wants more from time to time. Especially those of us forced to live on boats.”
The captain held up his hands defensively. “Yes, yes, I’m sorry. I know, a house would be more proper. But you knew I belonged to the sea when you married me.”
“I did. But you knew I was used to land when you married me.”
Azara turned a smile on him, though her eyes didn’t match the emotion she wore. “I do hope we sound that loving when we argue.”
Both Havelock and his wife flushed, the captain muttering a disclaimer. Jin chuckled but honestly felt a touch of loneliness as he realized how close of a relationship those two had. He’d never experienced anything that close with anyone before, and given his family...”It’s something we can aspire to.”
Face still red, Havelock lifted his glass. “To all four of us then, may we all be happy.”
Raising his own glass, Jin silently wished he could get through this assignment quickly. That would bring him plenty of happiness.
Chapter Ten: Whispers
Azara faced the wooden wall of their room, her hands behind her back, fumbling with the ties. She cursed inwardly at the knot. The dratted thing was resisting her attempts to loosen it.
She couldn’t see him from her position, but the previous rustling of clothes had stopped, so she presumed Jin was finished changing. That did nothing to improve her mood. One long dinner that had given them only a sliver of information wasn’t a good use of her time. Especially since she didn’t think they’d get much more out of the captain or his wife.
Though they had been able to test some of their first ideas for letting her advise Jin without others knowing. None of them had worked particularly well, other than warning him when he was getting into dangerous territory. Even then, she hadn’t been able to give him more specific information. They needed a better way if things were going to work.
“Are you all right?”
Azara grimaced. Wonderful. She’d taken so long he was worrying about her. “I’m fine. I’m having a little trouble with one of my laces.” She’d have already cut the thing if it wouldn’t have been impossible to find replacements of the exact same shade. Everything about her outfit had been dyed to match.
“Would you like some help?”
“No,” she grunted, tugging at it again. “I can handle it.” If she got desperate enough, she might try getting the crystal thin enough it could work its way into the knot. Though last time she’d tried that, it hadn’t ended well. The crystal sometimes had difficulty grasping what she wanted out of it.
Several moments more of struggling, including a few muttered curses and sweat beginning to form, and Azara heard movement from behind her. She tensed, feeling the crystal warm in anticipation of defending her. She forced herself to relax as it was only Jin.
“Here, I can help. It will go faster if the person making the attempt can see what they’re working on.” He stopped behind her, within reach but not so close that he crowded her.
Azara wanted to protest she could do it, but as she was about to cut it, decided to let him have a try. Worst case, she’d slash through the damned thing and find a replacement when she could. “Go ahead.” She dropped her hands to her sides.
“Excuse me.” He took half a step closer, his fingers gentle when they picked up the ends of the laces just under where they joined into the hard little knot. This close, Azara was feeling warmer, his body heat combining with the layers she wore and the small room.
He worked in silence, only the faint movements she could feel letting her know he was trying in earnest. “This is quite the stubborn knot.”
She snorted. “Now you know why I’ve been having so much trouble with it.” Her words came out sharper than she’d intended, and Azara cursed herself. She could do small talk and act like other people when she was pretending to be someone else, but when she was being herself...
“You’re lucky, I have some small skill in untying knots.”
Azara raised eyebrows he couldn’t see. “That seems like an unusual skill for the chief magus to have.”
He coughed gently. “It’s not a skill I gained from my work for the emperor. More a side effect of having spent half my childhood in the palace, studying magic.”
“Oh?”
His fingers stopped for a few heartbeats before they resumed their movements. “I... I was not well liked by the other students. I believe they thought his celestial majesty favoured me, though he was still crown prince at that time. But that was more my own dedication to repaying the kindness he’d shown me.”
Azara frowned. So there was a story of why Jin was so loyal to the emperor. It had seemed to be more complex than loyal subordinate, and that was something she was interested in, at the very least so she could know how far to trust Jin. Pressing now might ruin things later, so she left it. He’d given her enough information to mull over when she had time. “I see. You dealt with tricks and the like?”
“And the like is accurate enough.” He moved closer, leaning down closer to the knot. Azara could tell, because she could feel his breathing against her back. It was almost ticklish and very warm, to the point where she could feel her whole body heating up even more.
She shifted her weight from one leg to the other. Really, their room was too small. She’d have to make sure the room or rooms, if they were lucky, they found in Lound were large enough. She didn’t think this close quarters for long would end well for either of them.
A sudden uptick in Jin’s movements had Azara freezing in place. After a few more moments, she could feel him straighten and his hands drop away. “Your problem has been solved.”
Azara turned around and smiled. “Thanks.” If he kept being this useful, she might end up not regretting his involvement after all.
He returned the expression. “It was my pleasure.”
At the same moment, they both realized how close they were to one another. Jin flushed and stepped backwards while Azara turned around. “I need to finish getting this rig off. I can handle the rest, thank you.”
“Of course. If you do come across any more knots, I’m happy to help as I can.”
She nodded and waited until she heard him cross the room before undoing the buttons. It wasn’t fast, but she did eventually get the dress off without tearing anything. Her travel corset was far less burdensome and was easy enough to remove. She glanced at Jin before taking that piece off, but he stood in one corner, facing the wall.
Not that she’d expected anything else. As quickly as she could, she divested herself of her corset and pulled on one of the nightgowns she’d been provided with. High necked, long sleeved, and reaching to her ankles, it wouldn’t give improper thoughts to the drunkest of men.
“I’m finished,” she said as she carefully packed away her clothes. The last thing she needed to do was ruin one of her dresses through carelessness. It would be waste of their resources to have to buy her more.
Once done, Azara moved to the nearer side of the bed and paused at the side of it. Across from her, Jin was in a similar position, dressed in his own night shirt that reached his ankles. Their gazes met, before they both looked away. Azara pressed her lips together and decided that enough was enough. They were adults and professionals. Sleeping in the
same bed as one another was nothing more than a triviality.
She reached forward and turned the blankets down on her side. “I suggest we both get some rest. I think it’ll be an early morning with the crew overhead.”
Jin met her eyes again before clearing his throat. “I imagine you’re correct.”
Rather than draw it out any longer, Azara got into the bed, feeling the blankets shift as Jin moved them down on his side and joined her. The bed creaked as he got in, and they both pulled the blankets over them.
Jin got half up long enough to blow out the lantern that hung on his side of the bed, plunging the room into darkness. Lying on her back as near the edge as she could get without falling out, Azara felt Jin’s body heat filling the narrow space between them. If she shifted over any, she’d end up touching him. She swallowed. This was going to be a long night.
* * *
Azara opened bleary eyes, prepared to glare up at the deck overhead where the sound of pounding feet and shouts had yanked her out of the sleep she’d finally found. Instead, she found Jin’s face far too close to hers. She shoved herself upwards but found one foot stuck under his and ended up flopping down on her face.
The movement woke Jin who jerked upright. That pulled his ankle away, and she was able to roll off the bed and into a standing position. They both stared at each other, dark smudges under their eyes a testament to how they’d slept without either having to ask. Jin broke the growing silence with a cough. “I believe we should look into getting a larger bed when possible.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “That was my plan. If it wouldn’t have aroused too much suspicion, I’d have asked about us getting another cabin. Unfortunately or fortunately, neither of us snores so that excuse is out. Anything else would seem odd for a married couple I think.”
“That’s true.”
Again, quiet spread out from both of them, making the walls in their room seem closer. Azara leaned against one of them as she cast about for a topic. Something, anything to break up the almost physical weight of their silence. “What did you dream of?” The words had only just left her mouth when she regretted them. Of all the stupid, inane things to say...
Jin’s reply didn’t make her feel any better. “I don’t remember my dreams.”
“Oh.” She turned away to glower at the far wall, her shoulders hunching up. She needed to get herself together. Lack of sleep wasn’t helping, and Azara could only hope that tonight would be better. They should eventually get used to sleeping next to one another. At least, she hoped they would. She knew she’d accidentally touched him more than once in the night and had jerked away each time. Though apparently not the last time.
The air grew heavy around them. “Are you feeling well? No seasickness?” Jin’s voice made her turn back around.
“No, I’m fine. You?”
He nodded. “I’m fine as well.”
“Good.” Azara found the position with her knee that caused her leg to jig uncontrollably. She wanted to get out of this room, wanted to run, to get to work on finding her parents. Working didn’t make her feel like this. Working had her at her most confident, not fumbling for words like she was on the cusp of womanhood. This was why she didn’t spend time with people outside of the work she did. Relationships, even friendships, only complicated things. She much preferred the single nights she spent with the odd man who took her fancy. There were no expectations beyond the evening, and she rarely saw them again. “Is this your first time on a ship?”
Jin, sitting with his hands folded in his lap, shook his head. “No, I travelled previously with his celestial majesty up the canal to the hunting grounds in the north. It’s an annual trip. This is the first time I’ve travelled on a ship over the ocean.”
She raised her eyebrows. “I thought the emperor never left the Palace City.”
“His celestial majesty does so rarely, the only planned leave-taking is the annual hunt, but he will leave as necessary. He’s responsible for the entirety of the Empire, and there are times that requires his personal presence.”
“That makes sense. I don’t have much to do with the ruling class typically, so I wasn’t sure what holds true and what doesn’t. Most of those who buy or use fire mages are the underlings of those in power or those seeking power themselves. Those at the top generally don’t like dirtying their own hands.”
Jin frowned. “I don’t know how it’s done elsewhere, but in the Empire, everyone within the government must be competent. Those unable to pass the official examinations are not allowed to work for his celestial majesty, and those found not capable of doing their jobs are removed. Advancement only happens if you prove you’re capable of handling more responsibility.”
“That’s true everywhere in the Empire?” She wondered if he’d lie to her. She might not have a spell like his, but she hadn’t survived this long without being pretty good at telling when people weren’t telling the truth.
He gave her a sharp look. “Don’t be unreasonable. Of course it’s not universally true, especially in those places in the Empire far from others’ eyes. There are always those who’ll abuse their position and attempt to secure jobs for family and friends, not the most competent people. His celestial majesty tries to keep such things to a minimum and has been active in rooting it out within the Palace City.”
Azara shrugged. “So the Empire isn’t a perfect place.”
“Is anywhere?”
“No, but the way you talked, I had thought you’d have a more starry-eyed view of your country.”
“I’ve seen the best and worst of the Empire. But I have seen more good than bad, so I continue to work with his celestial majesty to improve things so that the Empire will get closer to what it could be. I may have high hopes, but those are tempered with a realistic outlook.”
Azara gave him a razor smile. “I’m glad to hear you say that. I’ll be honest with you, my first impression of you was a born bureaucrat. I’d thought this trip would break you if you didn’t ruin things. Or die.”
He frowned, then offered her a half-smile that had an edge to it. “I will return your honesty with my own. When you first appeared, I expected an uncivilized mercenary woman without any tact or decency. I’ve been pleased so far to find you otherwise.”
“Thanks,” she replied dryly, ignoring the faint sting of his words. She’d opened that door herself. It explained some of the looks she’d gotten from him. Still, Azara did feel a bit better now that they’d told each other what they’d first thought of the other. She didn’t like letting things stew inside of her.
And, if Azara was being honest with herself, she’d admit that she didn’t want Jin to think poorly of her.
* * *
Shouts in a multitude of languages, not just his own, mixed in with the call of gulls, the snap of sails and flags, and the rumble of passing carts. Jin felt his shoulders relax as they walked down the dock towards the white stone buildings that clustered around the harbour. With one hand on his arm, dressed in another of the Nalbinian dresses that were a little too close to the body for his taste, was Azara.
The sun was bright as they made it through the crowds to the edge of the dock area. Up the rise and walled in was Hekou, the last Imperial port before Lound. Situated where Shell River met the sea in a large bay, it was one of the deepest and busiest ports in the whole Empire. It was also where any foreigner could trade and try to prove themselves worthy of a writ to trade elsewhere in the country.
Which also made it a hotbed of crime, smuggling and corruption. Jin hid the curl of distaste that tugged at his lips. He’d never been to this city himself, but the last magus of his that had come here had asked to never be sent again. She didn’t make requests like that lightly.
For right now, he was Verryl, tea merchant on his way to Lound. He and his wife were stretching their legs as the ship offl
oaded some cargo and picked up a bit more before setting off again. As they weren’t due to sail until dawn, they had plenty of time to visit the city.
Jin led the way to the right, towards Hekou proper. “Is there anything you would like to look for?”
She offered him a smile, ducking her head, like she was embarrassed. The glint in her eyes said she was anything but. “It would be lovely to have dinner at an eating house. We have more of our voyage ahead to eat the ship chef’s food.”
He nodded, feeling a bit of relief over the proposal. It would be nice to escape the captain and his wife for one night. He didn’t think they would be able to do so again, and while he didn’t dislike the couple, keeping up a façade the whole time was more wearing than he’d thought it would be.
They passed the smaller markets that always sprang up where goods and people did, some filled with cheap goods, others things that would spoil. The proper fish market was farther down from them, close to one of the canals to the centre of Hekou, but this late in the day, people would be scarce.
And they needed people around if they were going to continue their practice of being a married couple in public. They wound their way around another miniature market, this one seeming to feature pottery, when Jin noticed something. He frowned slightly at the man sitting at the market with the lowest prices for his bowls and doing a brisk business because of it. The colour of them was dark brown, and they were unpainted. The colours of clay native to the Empire were red, both light and dark, white and a yellow-brown. There was no colour so dark as what he saw here, which meant it was imported. And with the import taxes the way they were...
Jin made a mental note to add this to the report he’d be writing this evening. He already had a pen and paper folded and tucked away inside his clothes so he could do exactly that. It could be nothing, but it could be that the import officials were getting too lax or corrupt, which was something his celestial majesty needed to know.
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