Page 31 of The Dagger and the Flame
The moratorium also gave Sera precious time to learn precisely how tobea Cloak.
After defence lessons with Albert each day, Sera, Bibi and Val took over the recreation room on the third floor to practise the art of pickpocketing. At first, Sera was woefully bad, bumbling and stuttering and far too obvious, but she was a quick learner. By the end of the first week, she managed to pilfer a gold butterfly clip from Bibi’s hairandtake Albert’s watch from around his wrist.
‘Nice work, farmgirl,’ said Val, as she watched her. ‘Ten silvers if you manage to swipe my nose-ring.’
Sera didn’t dare. But her competitive streak meant she sure as hell thought about it.
Even Pippin was improving. One morning, he managed to steal Madame Fontaine’s pipe while she was napping in the library, earning him such a scolding from the old woman that he had to sleep it off in front of the fireplace.
Theo didn’t often join in with their lessons, but he was still drawn to their group. Perhaps it was because of all the Cloaksat House Armand, the four of them were closest in age, or maybe it was the sound of their laughter echoing through the halls that drew him out of the cloakroom most days. When he came, he preferred to sit by the window, chuckling into his coffee as he watched them. Sera tried to pretend his presence didn’t unsettle her, but every time she caught a glimpse of his slanted smirk, her cheeks burned.
‘Don’tfall for those pretty eyes,’ said Val, one rainy evening when they were all dressed in their cloaks. They had been flitting from shadow to shadow in the drawing room, immersed in a heated game of chase. ‘He’s like that with every new recruit.’
‘I don’t know what you’re talking about,’ said Sera, leaping from a shadow on the wall to catch a sliver by the window. She welcomed the cool slick of darkness, pleased at how quickly she had got used to it.
Val lunged, catching her by the hood before she disappeared entirely. ‘Yes, you do.’
Sera shook her off, folding herself between the drapes. ‘Nope.’
Val huffed, losing sight of her. ‘You are hopeless.’
‘Who’s hopeless?’ said Theo, stepping out from a nearby table lamp.
‘You,’ said Val, pulling her hood back. She combed her fingers through her hair, fluffing out the purple curls. ‘Aren’t you supposed to be working?’
He grinned lazily. ‘Isn’t this work?’
‘This ispractice,’ said Bibi, twirling out of the fireplace. ‘You never practise with us.’
‘Maybe I’ve got rusty.’
‘You haven’t,’ said Val. ‘And you hate thieving.’
‘Maybe I want to broaden my horizons?’
‘You don’t,’ said Bibi flatly.
Sera peered out from between the drapes. ‘Is anyone else hungry?’
‘Starving,’ said Bibi and Val, in unison.
‘Me too.’ Theo looked between them. ‘You wouldn’t deny your faithful Shadowsmith some company at dinner, would you?’
Val rolled her eyes. ‘You can come, but keep the flirting to a minimum.’
‘All right,’ he said, dipping his chin. ‘I solemnly swear not to flirt with Pippin.’
Sera laughed, before she could help herself.
‘Hopeless,’ Val sighed, as she swept out of the door.
Later that night when the rain finally sputtered out and the new moon peeked through a tuffet of clouds, Madame Mercure summoned Sera, Bibi and Val to her office in the high tower of House Armand.
When they arrived, she was standing by the window in a long indigo robe with flared sleeves. Even from the side, Sera could see that her face was drawn, her mouth pinched at the corners. ‘Good evening, girls,’ she said, turning to greet them. Her eyes fell on Sera. ‘I’ve got a job for you.’
Sera drew in a breath. Her test had come at last, and she was surprised by the thrill of excitement in her stomach, her eagerness to prove herself worthy of the welcome she had found here, and the friends she had made.
The moratorium on theft was over. But the threat of danger remained. The Daggers had continued to kill regularly and sloppily, at all hours of the day and night, leaving broken bodies strewn like petals across the streets of Fantome. There were just as many unexplained disappearances, although most of these new horrors seemed to be concentrated down near or inside the south quarter.
