Coldmaker(72)

‘He was just as Jadan as everyone else,’ Leroi said quietly. ‘The first Khat. Us High Nobles don’t like to talk about that too much, but he was.’

My body jerked at the declaration, especially coming from someone like him. I touched my face and then pointed to Leroi’s milky skin, bringing attention to the stark difference. ‘He had to be different in some way.’

Leroi waved a flippant hand. ‘Bah. That’s just eight hundred years of your people slaving under a scorching Sun. And breeding control. But in a way you are right.’ Leroi snorted, rolling the cork around in his palm. ‘The first Khat was less than Jadan.’

I sucked in a breath. I’d never heard any Nobles talk like this before. Let alone High Nobles. The Priests and Gospels told us that the first Khat was pure, immune to sin, and that’s why he was chosen.

‘They why’d the Crier choose him?’ I asked, feeling him out, my chest rattling on top of a frantic heartbeat. ‘There had to be some reason.’

‘Why, indeed?’ Leroi said, stroking his goatee. ‘Why do High Nobles have shorter natural lifespans? Why do High Nobles get diseases that Jadans are immune to? Like firepox. Sunspots. Achemede’s shakes. Fang-rash. Hmm?’

My whole body went tense, the dizziness in my head not just from the tonic. These were questions I’d often thought about asking, but never found the right time or person. Abb only knew about Jadan diseases, which were few and often mild.

‘I don’t know, sir,’ I said, swallowing hard, the citrus from the orangefruit burning the cuts on my lips.

‘Are these not important questions?’

‘They are! I just—’

‘He enslaved his own people,’ Leroi said, flushed with anger, squeezing the cork till it sqeaked. ‘How does that make my kind “Noble”?’

I paused, finally starting to understand what he wanted to hear. Perhaps it was the haze, but I felt bolder than normal. ‘I guess we’re going to have to even things out.’

Leroi’s eyes narrowed, and then he snorted, as if what I’d said was quite funny. ‘Is that right? And what are you proposing?’

‘We create something new.’

Leroi sat back in his chair, licking his lips. ‘Create, huh?’

‘Cam told me you’re an Inventor,’ I said, fingers itching to get out into the main chamber and just touch everything there. ‘You make things that didn’t exist before. You make the World Cried better.’

‘You already know me so well.’ Leroi gave a series of quick nods, eyebrows raised in a sarcastic manner. ‘You’re referring to the anklets of course.’

I went quiet.

‘Camlish told you about my special anklets, right?’ Leroi asked, the corners of his lips turned up in a wry smile. ‘What I’ve been commanded to do? How I’m making the World Cried better.’

I shook my head.

Leroi sucked down another drink, his eyes lighting up with glazed delight. ‘Lord Tavor didn’t tell me the plan exactly. But it’s obvious.’

‘What are the anklets, sir?’ I asked. His words were beginning to slur, and I didn’t know how much longer we had until the last of his sobriety was washed away.

Leroi bit his lip, holding back a laugh. ‘If you stay here long enough, you’ll get one too. Crier knows how long I’ll be able to keep you secret.’ His eyes filled with humour. ‘With the Vicaress after you, I can’t get you proper papers. You’ll have to hide under the floor like a beetle if anyone comes.’

‘Does that mean you’ll take me in?’ I asked, heart thumping. I couldn’t believe my body felt so healed already. The man’s tonic had worked wonders, and it was obvious he knew the kind of secrets that might help me realize my Idea. I felt invincible. ‘Because I know what I need to build.’

‘What you need to build? You’re the Head Tinkerer here already?’ Leroi chuckled. ‘That was fast.’

‘No, sir.’ I shook my head, life flooding my chest. ‘But Cam told me you’ve stopped Inventing. I figure at least one of us should put this place to use.’

Leroi scratched his goatee, and then burst out laughing. ‘Who are you?’

‘My name is Micah Behn-Abb.’ I sat up straight, trying to make my back like Shilah’s. ‘I’ve tinkered all my life with materials I found in the refuse heaps. I’ve had to work in secret, and in the dark, while friends around me have died. But I’ve created things that make my barracks better. And I’ve spoken to the World Crier. I believe that He led me here so that together we can Invent something to end the Great Drought.’

A heavy silence buzzed about the study.

Then Leroi let out a roar of hilarity. ‘So the Vicaress actually tortured you into madness. I don’t blame you for breaking. I’ve heard stories of what she does to Jadans.’

I got up, my legs no longer wobbly. ‘What can I do to prove to you that I’m supposed to be here?’

Leroi stared at me for a long moment. It was rare that I saw such intelligence in a set of eyes, even through the veil of alcohol. Eventually he reached for the decanter, taking a deep swig right from the bottle.

‘I had an assistant before,’ Leroi said, his eyes glowing with relief as he downed the liquid. ‘It didn’t end well.’