Page 9 of House of Dusk
“Of course I can keep you safe,” Yeneris blurted out, only to see Sinoe’s eyes narrow in triumph. Fates, she’d walked right into that one.
“Good, then it’s settled,” said Sinoe. “So you might as well enjoy the show. I certainly am. Ooh, look, it’s my favorite part! The fire spinners!” She gave a wistful sigh. “When I was a little girl, I wanted to grow up to be a fire spinner.”
In spite of herself, Yeneris lifted her eyes to the front gate of the necropolis, where a pair of performers now stood. A young man and a young woman, both wearing so little that it made her cheeks flush.
“Just as well you’re not,” said Yeneris, stiffly. “Your father would never allow you to prance around like that, practically naked.”
“Don’t be a prude, Yen,” said Sinoe. “It’s for safety. Clothing might catch fire.”
“Oh, right, I’m sure that’s the only reason,” said Yeneris, though part of her brain was still caught onYen. She wasn’t sure how she felt about the princess granting her a nickname. Was it a sign of companionship? Or did she think of Yeneris more like a pet hound?
“So youdohave a sense of humor,” said Sinoe. “I thought so.”
The fire spinners began their performance, tossing torches between them in patterns that grew more and more complex. The streaks of brightness burned against Yeneris’s eyelids, like the symbols of some strange alphabet she could not fathom.
Coins clinked onto the steps. Sinoe gave a small, breathlessohand began patting herself, finally pulling free a small purse that appeared to have been hidden in her cleavage. Yeneris flushed even more deeply. Then gave a yelp, as Sinoe heaved back her arm.
Yeneris snatched the purse before the girl could toss it at the steps. “Are you trying to draw every thief in the city?”
“They deserve it,” Sinoe said, unrepentantly. “And what else do I have to spend it on? I already have everything I could ever dream of.”
For the first time, there was an unhappy twist hidden in her smile. But the bitterness fled in a flash, in a wink, in an arch of her russet brow. “Aren’tyouenjoying the performance? You know, the Great Beetle crafted us these bodies as a gift. There’s no reason not to enjoy a particularly fine specimen in action.”
Yeneris tucked the purse into her own tunic for safekeeping. “Please, princess. Let me escort you back home.”
Sinoe tilted her head. “Have I embarrassed you?”
Yeneris made an inarticulate noise.
“I’m sorry,” said Sinoe. “I shouldn’t tease you. You probably think it’s not your place to tell me to shut up.”
“It’s not, my lady.”
“Would it help if I gave you permission?”
Yeneris desperately wished that the princess would stop talking. Or at least, stop talking toher. The tedium of lurking in the background while Sinoe had her fingernails trimmed had never been so appealing.
Sinoe gave a reflectivehmm. “I suppose not. It’s just...sometimes I wish I could slip away somewhere that no one knows me. Be someone else altogether.”
The irony nearly made Yeneris choke on her own secrets. A part of her twanged with pity for the girl, but that twang was drowned out by a deeper fear, that Sinoe might guess the truth.
“So that’s why you came here?” Yeneris asked. “To play pretend?”
Sinoe’s lips tightened. She looked hurt. “You think I’m silly.”
Yeneris’s mouth went dry. If Sinoe dismissed her, all the years of planning were for nothing. All the bribes that her superiors had paid to ensure she got this position. The agonizing hours of training. The years spent removing every trace of her accent. All utterly wasted.
“Come here,” Sinoe said, abruptly tugging Yeneris along as she slid through the crowd, toward the base of the steps that led up to the makeshift stage. She didn’t stop until they were pressed against an alcove along the side. It held an ancient statue of one of the god-beasts, so worn by rain and wind that Yeneris wasn’t sure if it was meant to be the Sphinx or the Phoenix.
Halting beneath the towering, faded sculpture, Sinoe turned to face Yeneris, her expression tense. “You’ll need your swords.”
Yeneris put her hands on the hilts, warily. “Why?” She scanned the nearby crowds. What danger had she missed?
No one was paying them any heed. The fire spinners had reached the exciting climax of their performance, with the woman now perched on the shoulders of her partner, tossing the burning brands high, showing sparks across the dark night sky. Rapt with attention, the hundred-odd onlookers were cheering and whooping.
“Because of that,” said Sinoe, pointing toward the performers. No,pastthem, to the dark gates of the necropolis itself.
Yeneris squinted into the shadows, barely making out the heavy wooden doors. As she stared at them, her heartbeat ratcheting, her skin prickling, the doors seemed to shift. To quiver.
