House of Salt and Sorrows(66)

She nodded, and I weaved my way through the crowds, fighting through even more onlookers as they joined the show. When I reached the spot in the park where the dark figure had stood, he was gone.

I turned in a circle, trying to spot anyone with his unusually tall carriage. A shadow moved against the trees at the edge of the park, the figure’s silver hair catching in the moonlight. He looked back once as if to make certain I was following him.

As he turned, the gas lamps briefly illuminated his jacket, reflecting the golden threads embroidered across the right shoulder.

A three-headed dragon.

It was the man from the first ball, in Pelage.

What was he doing in Astrea?

Curious, I ducked down a narrow alley, and then another, unsure of where I was headed. Every time I thought I was catching up, I caught a glimpse of the dragon man’s coat disappearing down another street. In the dark, with the decorations for Churning, I soon became completely turned around. I pushed through the long strands of sea glass beads and ropes of fake pearls that formed a curtain across the alley’s exit.

The street I emerged onto looked different from the harbor or the town square.

Darker, dirtier.

Danker too.

The first storefront I saw was bathed in a pink glow, and my stomach turned as I guessed at what merchandise was sold behind such lurid trappings. Several other pink houses lined the street. Some had girls in the windows, waving and posing. Others were awash with tinsel and gaudy paste jewels.

The dragon man was gone, vanished into thin air, and as I glanced about, trying to get my bearings, I wondered why I’d ever followed him in the first place.

As I turned to head back, a pack of young women traipsed out from one of the pink houses, stopping just in front of the alleyway. They were made up as Sirens. Long curls cascaded down bare backs, their goose-bumped skin painted with bronze and silver glitter. Sand dollars and starfish covered their breasts, but just barely, and too few gauzy green ribbons made up their skirts. Some wore heels with impossibly high platforms. Others carried parasols done up as illuminated jellyfish over their shoulders.

“You there!” one called out, and I instantly felt my face flush, horrified she was speaking to me. “Come to drop anchor, sailor?”

A trio of laughter sounded behind me, and the women broke ranks to stare down these potential customers. I ducked back into the alley, my heart pounding in my throat.

“You’re a long way from the park, aren’t you?” a voice murmured in my ear.

I let out a startled shriek, certain the dragon man had doubled back to surprise me, but instead Cassius stood in the alleyway, his blue eyes shrouded in shadows.

“I could say the same for you. I thought you were with Papa.”

He pushed a lock of hair from his eyes, his nose wrinkling even as he smiled. “Tangled Sirens aren’t exactly to my taste. Ivor and Jules started in on the mystery of the shoes again, and I got out while I could. I saw you leaving the park in a rush and thought you might need help.”

I glanced down the alleyway, but the dragon man was truly gone. “Do you know how to get back to the park? I’m afraid I’m all muddled.”

His smile warmed. “Let’s find our way together.”

We headed down the alley, escaping from the street of pink houses. Coming out onto the next road, Cassius stepped on a sheet of black ice and slipped. He grabbed at me instinctively, and I struggled to hold him up, but we both spun, then crashed to the ground in a tangle of cloaks and limbs.

“Are you all right?”

His voice was tinged with real concern, but I brushed it aside with a laugh. We’d been far more graceful on the dance floor. “I’m fine. Are you hurt?”

“Just my pride.”

He helped me back to my feet, and with a teasing smile, I offered my arm to him as a gentlemen might to a lady. He rubbed his bruised hip, then accepted with a snort of laughter.

“Have you enjoyed the day?” I asked as we walked the street, trying to find the quickest route back to the town square. I’d spent most of the time with my sisters. Whenever I snuck a look toward Cassius, he’d been in deep conversation with Regnard or Papa.

“Very much. It’s quite different from the festivals I’m used to.”

“I never asked what you are…Who do you—”

“The People of the Stars,” he supplied, amusement written across his face as I struggled with my question. “Versia.”

“The Night Queen.” I looked up at the sky, the stars dazzling across the inky expanse. “It seems like she’s enjoying the festivities as well.”

“I think so.”

“Where will you go after Churning is over?”

“I still have a bit of work in Selkirk, clearing out the last of my father’s papers, settling some of his final business, but I haven’t given much thought to what happens after that. Walter left me some money and his house. Perhaps I’ll stay there, learn to sail, learn to fish, or—”

“It sounds wonderful,” I interrupted, picturing a small house and dock, quiet mornings waking before the sun, readying the nets for the day’s work. Real work.

One of Cassius’s eyebrows quirked up. “Stinky fish bait and traps?”

“You have the whole world open to you. That’s wonderful.”

He studied me. “What are your grand dreams, Annaleigh? If you could go anywhere, do anything you wanted, what would it be?”