Coldmaker(46)

Thoth greeted me with a big gob of spit to my face.

‘Fine morning, Spout!’ Thoth said with delight as he wiped the corner of his mouth. The spit tingled on my cheek, still fresh with Cold. ‘That will be your water ration for the day.’

I nodded, trying not to let my hands clench.

‘Response, slave?’ Thoth asked in a calm voice.

‘Thank you, sir.’

‘Thank you?’ Thoth’s eyes darkened. ‘Ungrateful. I think I deserve more than that. I just gave you water from my own mouth. And all you have to say is thank you?’

I froze, not sure of what else I could say.

I tried to focus my mind, thinking about my impossible invention. I conjured up the image of Matty’s bird carving in my mind.

‘Eyes,’ Thoth commanded, his voice reminding me of the flies that circled the dead-carts.

I lifted my face with swift obedience.

Thoth spat again, this time rubbing the spit into my eyes. I knew struggling would only make it worse, so I did my best to keep still.

‘Now I’ve given you two rations of water.’ Thoth backed off a bit. ‘Very generous on my part. What do you say?’

‘Thank you very much, Jadanmaster Thoth.’

He regarded me for a moment, the scar on his face deepening as his eyes narrowed. ‘Better, I guess. Still not nearly good enough.’

He slowly took the rod out of its sheath and slid his hand along the length of the metal. One heavy strike later and I was on the ground, curled up, the side of my knee smarting as if I’d been bitten by a colossal Sobek lizard.

‘So close,’ Thoth said.

‘Unworthy,’ I tried between quick breaths, the pain in my knee blossoming. Considering I was still conscious I knew he hadn’t shattered the bone, but it brought flashes of light to my vision all the same. ‘Bless you, sir. Praise be to the Khat.’

‘You’re on the ground, where you belong. That’s a nice start. But how dare you not address me from your knees? Have you forgotten everything about being a Street Slave?’

I squirmed into the proper slave kneeling stance. My knee gave out in a wave of agony, but I pressed against the pain.

Thoth bent lower, his mouth right next to my ear. ‘Unworthy indeed. Don’t forget who keeps you alive.’

He grabbed me by the back of my shirt and lifted me up. I could barely put any weight on my leg without my knee screaming in protest, but he left me alone, moving down the line to check on the rest of my kin.

Cam returned, moments later, swinging through the arriving shoppers. A huge smile rested on his face, and I noticed a few round bumps in his side pocket. He came up to me, patting the pocket. ‘You ready now?’

I nodded, holding back a wince. I limped off the corner, trying to walk as normally as possible.

Cam followed the pain from my face to my knee. ‘What happened? I was only gone a few minutes.’

‘It’s nothing.’ I tried to remain calm, the Sun licking my forehead and enjoying my hurt. ‘What can I help you with today?’

Cam frowned. ‘But shouldn’t you—’

I fixed my eyes on him, and my tone came out unexpectedly harsh. ‘What can I help you with?’

I held my breath. Any other High Noble would have demanded blood for such a tone. Yet Cam seemed to enjoy my fire, his face opening with delight.

‘The Ancient Quarter,’ Cam said. ‘Think you can make it that far?’

Walking helped.

By the time we were out of the Market Quarter, I felt able to carry something other than myself again. I just hoped that whatever Cam wanted in the Ancient Quarter was small and light.

Cam led us into a sheltered alley behind the Kay Street Cry Temple and stopped me.

‘I’m sorry they treat you like this,’ Cam said, pointing to my knee. ‘That we treat you like this.’

‘Cam, you’ve been nothing but—’

He held up a palm. ‘If they can blame all the Jadans for the actions of one, then I can blame all the Nobles for the action of one.’ He swirled his hand, the gold bracelet on his wrist jangling. I tried to spot a Closed Eye pendant, but there was none. In fact, I didn’t remember seeing any Closed Eye on him at all, which was peculiar. No Eye necklace, no Eye parasol, not even an Eye handkerchief.

‘Maybe this will help,’ Cam said, his hand going to one of the bulges in his pocket and pulling out something wonderful.

An orangefruit.

A piece of food so expensive, it made Khatmelons seem like common currency.

Cam pushed it into my palm. ‘Better than figs, right? Had to get him to go through his reserves, but a smart shopper knows the merchants tend to keep the good stuff for themselves.’

I paused, too shocked to know what to do. Last time I’d eaten something forbidden to my kind I had lost one of my closest friends. My heart clenched, and my hands tensed.

Cam looked at me, waiting for me to take a bite.

I knew I needed to get over all this fear. I had to drop the bucket.

I bit into the fruit, my eyes wild as I ripped and gnashed it with my teeth. Cam said something about not eating the rind, but I couldn’t stop myself. The flesh was plump and juicy and I furiously licked the juice off my forearms when I was done.

Cam had been kind enough to look away during my savage display, leaving me with some dignity. Neither of us mentioned the orangefruit again that day.