Scavenge the Stars (Scavenge the Stars #1)(42)

He spent the next hour going over his father’s records, often glancing at the door in case Kamon walked in. He had to weed through the most recent documents first, some of them detailing his father’s attempts to purchase unclaimed Widow Vaults, possibly as a means to inflate their coffers a bit. It wasn’t an uncommon practice to bid on a Vault that couldn’t be opened by a blood heir once its statute of limitations was up.

Finally, he found the workman records. But after several minutes of scanning the sheets, he came up frustratingly empty-handed.

Then he realized it wouldn’t be in the current employee records, but in records of sale.

Cayo searched for the transaction document and found it near the top of a stack of papers to be filed. It detailed the passing of ownership of the Brackish from Kamon Mercado to a nameless buyer from the Ledese Islands.

The Brackish—that was the name of the ship that Countess Yamaa owned. Then why would it have been bought anonymously? Unless the countess wanted to be discreet for some unknown reason.

Although he found it odd, all his attention turned to the ship captain’s name: Zharo. There was an address scribbled underneath in his father’s handwriting, an address here in Moray. Now all he had to do was pay the captain a visit, ask him how he acquired his counterfeit coins, and follow whatever new lead that gave him.

A grin split his face as hope surged within him. This was going to be easier than he thought.



Half an hour later, Cayo stood outside the address he had copied onto a scrap of paper, blinking at the swarm of officers and curious onlookers who flocked around it.

The midmorning sun was bright and hot, making it painful to look at the lime-green apartment building on the outskirts of Moray. Cayo had to squint to make out the officers on the balcony above the street coming and going via an open apartment door.

The same apartment where the former captain of the Brackish was supposed to live.

Cayo approached the nearest officer who was keeping curious citizens away. “Excuse me, what’s going on?”

“Investigation,” the officer said. “There’s been a murder.”

“M-murder?”

“If you have a queasy stomach, best leave now,” the officer said, looking toward the balcony. “They’re removing the body.”

Cayo followed his gaze. Two officers were carrying a large body on a stretcher. It was shrouded, but as they went down the stairs, an arm slid off the stretcher, revealing a heavily ringed hand.

Cayo stepped back as they passed and caught the unmistakable scent of blood. His gorge rising, Cayo turned away from the murmuring crowd and walked back to the carriage.

His best chance at a lead, and now the man was dead. He couldn’t even enter the apartment, swarming with officers as it was. The capatain’s death seemed too close to his arrest to be a coincidence. But who would want to kill him?

And then he realized: the Slum King. Salvador had to be behind this—nothing else made sense, not with the coincidence of the counterfeit coin and Zharo being briefly held by the Port’s Authority. It would be little effort for the Slum King to cover his tracks and do away with one of his unwilling peddlers.

He sat in the back of the carriage for a moment, thinking about what to do next. When the driver popped his head in, he startled.

“Sorry, my lord, but you haven’t said as where you’d like to go.”

“Oh. Um…” He could go back home to get some much-needed sleep, wait for his father to leave the house again before he dove back into his records. Frustrated, Cayo reached into his pocket to double-check that he had the right address, but the paper he pulled out wasn’t the captain’s address—it was the countess’s invitation.

“My lord?”

Cayo hesitated. His father’s words came back to him, the idea to try to flirt the countess out of some pocket change. After all, if his plan to dethrone the Slum King worked and his engagement to Romara was severed, he would need to get the money for Soria’s medicine some other way.

“Laelia Teahouse,” Cayo told the driver. “But take the long way. I’m going to take a nap.”





A lady must always keep her guests engaged. Begin by inquiring after their day, or offering them tea. Please note that the offered tea should not be steeped too long, lest your guest become as bitter as the drink.

—A LADY’S GUIDE TO ENTERTAINING



Laelia’s was the finest teahouse in Moray, frequented by the gentry and those who saved up for special occasions. Amaya had a vague recollection of passing by with her mother and being stunned by the beauty of it, but when she’d asked if they could go, her mother had laughed and claimed she could make better tea at home for a sixth of the price.

Now Amaya sat in one of the most coveted spots within the teahouse, a round glass table on a mezzanine overlooking the main floor. The railing was low and crafted of gold-veined marble, affording a grand view of the rest of the teahouse. She had to admit, it was absolutely stunning—from the domed glass ceiling to the moldings of leaves and flowers along the walls, it was easy to see why so many longed for a few hours within this place.

She had almost not come. She had almost dressed in disguise to visit Zharo’s apartment, to confirm what she already knew: that he was dead, and he was never coming back.

But she had to do her part in learning more about the Mercados. She had to follow Boon’s plan in getting closer to the son, Cayo, in order to create a door to Kamon Mercado.