Page 19 of Embrace the Serpent

Grimney sat on the floor and removed the vaguely heart-shapedslab of slate in his chest. It revealed a hollow cavity, with a delicate lattice of gold and jewels. They were like his organs.

I crawled half in and got to setting him to rights. He hummed to himself and the sound enveloped me.

Taking care of him made me feel better. And if we did have to run, better that Grimney didn’t leave a trail that led the Imperial Guards right to us.

When I finished up, I swept up the gravel and dust and took it out back.

There came a rattling at the gate. A wrinkled little hand rose above the wood, waved hello and produced a wooden bowl. “Alms?” said a shaky voice.

“Yes, just hold on.” I grabbed the rest of the bread and ran back to open the gate.

A stooped, cloaked figure shuffled in.

“Here you are,” I said.

“I apologize,” he said, stepping forward and shutting the gate behind him. He straightened up to a formidable height and pulled his hood back. Dark hair in waves to his shoulders; dark, amused eyes; and a crooked smile that sent a tingle of surprise down my spine. “Please forgive me this little subterfuge.”

I crossed my arms. “Rane.” His hands were smooth and large. Had I imagined the wrinkled, weather-beaten hand? “Sneaking around is quite the habit with you, is it?”

“Think of it as a measure of my desire to meet with Master Galen.”

“I’m afraid Master Galen is rather busy at the moment. You might’ve heard if you went around front.”

He waved a dismissive hand. “Yes, I’ve heard, everyone has heard.But Master Galen will want to hear what my boss has to offer.”

“I—Galen could lose the shop. Be stripped of his title and his home. Your boss can’t offer anything more important.”

Rane leaned in. “You might be surprised. I can’t tell you much. But it may be the most honorable thing any jewelsmith could ever do in their life.” His eyes glittered with purpose. “What I work for—what my boss works for—it is as right as the sun rising in the east. I promise you that. Galen would be remembered forever. How can any jewelsmith prefer making pretty little baubles for the whims of these silly nobles?”

His passion startled me.

Rane smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “And I do not come empty-handed.” He produced a pendant with a faceted purple stone. “If Galen would be so kind as to meet—”

Really? “Bribery?”

“Don’t pretend. I have heard that Galen is quite receptive to such... gifts.”

I glanced at the pendant. “First of all, you’re wrong. Neither Galen nor I believe in bribery. Second, your pendant... If it’s a purple topaz, which I’d guess it is from the cut of the stone and that you haven’t bothered to get it re-engraved—then it’s not worth very much except to those fools who want to make their eyes a different color. If it’s a purple corundum, then it’s far too valuable—and dangerous—to offer as a bribe. If it’s the first, then Galen won’t look twice, and if it’s the second, you never intended to gift it in the first place.”

He gave me a long, considering look. “You realized all that with just one glance?”

“I’m a good assistant,” I said quickly. And to keep him fromasking any more questions, I went on the offensive. “And who is it that you work for?”

A long pause. “I can’t say.”

“How can I trust you if you won’t tell me that?”

Rane’s lips curved in a soft smile. “My dear little peafowl, how can I trust you with that, when you won’t even tell me your name?”

I wanted to say,Youdon’t need to know me.

“Saphira?” Galen stood silhouetted in the back door, red-cheeked, fuming. Behind him, like a stone wall, was Grimney, fidgeting.

Rane strode forward. “Master Galen. I’ve been meaning to talk to you. I have a job—”

“You and everyone else, boy. So you thought you’d seduce my assistant?”

Dumbfounded, I said, “What?”

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