House of Salt and Sorrows(11)
Papa looked unconvinced. “How much for eight pairs?” From the chaise, Morella sniffed. “Nine pairs,” Papa corrected. “Nine pairs, delivered before the end of the month. My daughters are having a ball. We’ll need them ready by then.”
Gerver whistled through his teeth. “That’s not much time. I’ll have to bring in extra hands….”
“How much?”
Gerver counted on the tips of his fingers, then adjusted the gold spectacles hanging from the end of his nose. “Each pair is one hundred and seventy-five gold florettes. But to have nine pairs made up, in only three weeks…I couldn’t charge less than three thousand.”
The room’s playful mood died away. There was no chance Papa would agree to such extravagance. I couldn’t begin to calculate what the new dresses and underpinnings were already costing him.
“Surely nine pairs of shoes won’t send us to the poorhouse, Ortun,” Morella prompted with a winsome smile.
Verity stood on her toes, watching his expression with rapt attention. He knelt beside her. “Do you really think these slippers are worth all that, child?” She looked back to us, then nodded. His face broke into an unexpected grin. “Go on, then, and pick yours out. Fairy shoes for everyone!”
With a final tug of the oars, I pulled my dinghy into the marina at Selkirk, slipping alongside the sun-bleached dock as the sun rose over the horizon. At Eulalie’s wake, Morella had mentioned she’d been about to tell Papa about the baby but had been interrupted by the fishermen bringing Eulalie’s body home. Perhaps they had seen something, some small detail they might have forgotten to tell Papa because they believed the fall was an accident.
I threaded my rope through the eye of an open cleat and tied off the excess line, then pulled myself out.
I needed to find those fishermen.
* * *
The five islands of Salann spread across the Kaleic Sea like jeweled clusters of a necklace.
Selkirk was the farthest to the northeast, home to fishmongers, captains, and sailors. A bustling wharf handled the seafood arriving daily on the boats.
Astrea was next in the chain, and the most populated. Shops, markets, and taverns sprang from its rocky shores, a glittering city of commerce and wealth. The triplets had been there nearly every day since their ball was announced, scouring the stores for little treasures. An extra pair of stockings, a new shade of lip stain. Somehow Morella convinced Papa they were all absolute necessities for young ladies about to make their societal debut.
We lived directly in the middle of the chain, on Salten.
Vasa stretched out like a long, skinny eel, with ports on the north and south sides. Papa oversaw the massive shipyard that took up the whole island. Most of the King’s naval fleet had been built on Vasa. Someone at court once heard him boast the Salann ships were the swiftest in his navy, and Papa had beamed with pride for months.
The final island was the smallest but most important. Hesperus was one of the most pivotal defense posts in all of Arcannia. Its lighthouse, affectionately named Old Maude, stood taller than any other in the country. Not only did it assist ships coming in and out of port, it was also an excellent perch for spotting enemy boats.
I loved the lighthouse. It felt like a second home. When I was small, I’d volunteer to clean the windows in Highmoor till they sparkled, imagining I was polishing the lighthouse gallery. I’d climb to the highest cliffs and pretend to be atop Old Maude, spying on foreign ships—really, fishermen out for their daily catch—and noting all the pertinent details in a giant ledger, as I’d seen Silas do.
Silas had been Keeper of the Light for as long as anyone could remember. He grew up in the lighthouse, learning the beacon’s workings from his father. When it became clear Silas would never have children of his own, Papa realized an apprentice would need to be chosen as an eventual replacement. I prayed to Pontus every night it would be me.
Hanna’s son, Fisher, was chosen instead. He worked on the docks, but Papa said he was destined for greater things. As young girls, Camille and I followed him all over Salten, in awe of his every move and hopelessly smitten. When he left to begin his apprenticeship, I cried myself to sleep every night for a week.
Looking across the Selkirk wharf now, I could just make out the beacon’s flash and wondered what Fisher was doing. Probably cleaning windows. Silas was fanatical about them.
I made my way down the docks and stopped at the first boat I found, asking the captain if he’d heard of any men who’d discovered a body near Salten. He waved me off, saying it was bad luck for a woman to be near the ships. Two other crewmen followed suit before I found a dockhand willing to talk with me.
“The Duke’s girl?” he asked around a wad of chewing tobacco. The juice drizzled down from his lips, staining his beard yellow. “A couple of weeks back?”
I nodded eagerly, hungry for information.
“You’ll be wanting to talk with Billups….” He scanned the wharf. “But his boat is already out.”
“Do you know when he’ll return?” With all the party preparations, I could stay away for most of the afternoon without being missed.
“Not today,” he said, crushing my plan. “Nor tomorrow. He’s wanting one last big catch before Churning sets in.” He held up his hand in the breeze. “Feel that cold snap in the air? It won’t be long now.”