Night Study (Soulfinders, #2)(66)

Valek grinned. “Exactly.”

After Endre finished his chowder, he left to report to work. Valek asked Annika about the local gossip. “Anyone mention my name?”

“A few noticed you arriving in town, but they all assumed you’re here to help with the nets.”

Good. “How about speculation over these Stormers?”

“Lots of that, from the ridiculous—ghosts living in the clouds—to the mundane—local kids taking advantage of the weather. A couple folks think the security officers are making a big deal for nothing. So far, I haven’t heard anything of value.”

Annika returned to her job at the inn. Valek waited thirty minutes before finding a spot at the bar of the inn’s common room. He ordered an ale and listened to the various conversations around him.

“...best net caught on the blasted rocks and shredded like wet paper.”

“I wanted to ring his bloody neck...”

“I’d bet Nichel’s boy is behind all this trouble. Damn kid never did listen.”

“...fat cats at the garrison. You’d think they’d help us with these bastards.”

When Valek finished his ale, he inquired about work, and one of the boat captains said he needed an extra pair of hands. Then he climbed the stairs to his room, changed into his sneak suit and slipped out the window. He spent the next three hours reading reports. A couple of comments from the searches snagged his attention, and he wrote a list of buildings and shipyards to recheck. Overall, there wasn’t any information that challenged his theory.

Good. The sooner he could solve this and reunite with Yelena, the better.

*

Over the next couple days, Valek helped repair nets. His nimble fingers and skill at tying knots earned him a favorable reputation. The fishermen soon relaxed and Valek listened to their gossip. Eventually he steered the conversation to the lost ships.

“Everyone knows the risks you take when you step on that boat.” Pug looped new twine around a tear. His fingernails were black and he smelled like brine. “You expect a few losses, but it’s a heartbreaker regardless.”

“Yeah,” Joey agreed. He was one of the oldest men on the crew. “And sometimes you can guess who’s not coming back. I told Nell not to take on such a young, inexperienced crew, but she wouldn’t listen. What you get in energy and stamina, you lose in experience and plain old good sense.”

“Poor Nell.” Pug tsked. “At least those tadpoles didn’t leave behind younguns, but I’m sure their parents are beside themselves.”

Valek remembered Nell’s name from the Starfish’s manifest. Annika had copied it along with the Sea Serpent’s last night while the Port Master had been slumped over a table at the inn, snoring. The list of names hadn’t meant anything to him, but learning the crews’ ages helped. A person with children and a spouse wouldn’t be as likely to pretend to disappear at sea so he or she could become a thief.

After a few more questions, Valek would have bet money that the Starfish was the Storm Thieves’ ship. Now the next step would be to find it. There hadn’t been a break-in in over three weeks, and most of the fishermen believed the weapon raid was the last one. Only thirteen days remained until the start of the warm season and the first safe day that the fleet could set sail.

Valek figured the Storm Thieves would make one more raid before lying low for the fishing seasons. He needed to review the stolen items again. Once he determined what was next on their list, he could anticipate their destination.

“We better finish this net today,” Pug said. He gazed at the sea. “I don’t like the look of those clouds.”

“Could be a big blow.” Joey massaged his stiff fingers.

“Any idea where it will hit?” Valek asked.

“If it’s big enough, it don’t matter. The whole coast gets punched,” Joey said. “If it’s smaller, then you follow the waves.”

“The waves?”

“Yeah. If the storm’s coming right at you, the waves are parallel to the shore, lined up like rolling pins on my granny’s table. If the waves are angled to the right, the storm’s moving north. Angled left means south.”

Valek studied the waves lapping under the dock. Rolling pins.

“Too soon to tell,” Joey said. “Look in the morning.”

“When will the storm hit?”

Pug squinted. “Tomorrow...maybe tomorrow night.”

Valek needed to hurry. He didn’t have much time to prepare.





18


LEIF


As he traveled to the Citadel, Leif’s thoughts kept returning to Irys’s comment about the twelve missing and four dead magicians. And Irys’s lack of intel about the attacks gnawed holes of worry in his guts, ruining his appetite. Irys could only speculate why—to regulate all the magicians. As for who, she suspected a group of influential and wealthy people was behind it, but she had no evidence.

The timing of the incidents matched with Yelena’s loss of magic. Almost right after she’d been shot with that damn poisoned arrow, the Cartel—Irys’s name for them—started their aggressive campaign against magicians. The only suspected member of the Cartel was Bruns Jewelrose, who’d hired The Mosquito to assassinate Yelena and supposedly the other four magicians. And perhaps he’d also targeted Ben Moon and Loris and Cilly Cloud Mist.