Page 42 of By the Horns
Kipp pretends to study his boots. Arrod clears his throat and glances away.
“It’s fine,” Hemmen says. He pushes his messy hair back from his face. “I’ll just go to the library and study more.”
“Excellent idea,” Master Jay says. “I want no failures in this class.”
No one says anything to refute that. We don’t want to fail, either. In silence, we untie ourselves and leave the obstacle course, following Master Jay back through the heart of the city to the nest. My boots are full of mud and my clothes are sticking to my skin, but I’m not going to complain about any of it. I’m ready for the day to be over. A nice, quick bath by the hearth and a chunk of bread and some cheese for dinner, and I’ll be back to normal. Maybe I’ll even borrow one of Hemmen’s books and see if I can brush up on some Old Prellian. I try not to glance at Raptor too much as we walk. He’s at my side, his body full of tension as if he feels the need to protect me. I don’t know what to do with that. It’s sweet and makes me want to smile far too much, so I keep my face averted.
The walk back to the nest takes forever. The obstacle course is along the side of the large wall that separates the Royal Artifactual Guild from the rest of busy, overcrowded Vastwarren. Master Jay’s particular dormitory is onthe edge of the central square, so it’s a fair bit of walking. By the time the massive statue of Sparkanos the Swan comes into view, I’m exhausted. It takes me a moment to realize the others are slowing their steps, and a rumbling growl starts low in Kipp’s throat. He moves to my side and puts a small hand on my leg to get my attention as I almost walk into Master Jay’s back.
The guild master stands in place for a moment, staring at the nest with his symbol flag hanging above the door. Every window in the dormitory is open, trunks and gear spilling into the street as a frantic Marta, the nestmaid, wrings her hands. What looks like a dozen of the guild enforcers with their green sashes are moving in and out of the dorm.
“What’s the meaning of this?” Master Jay squawks.
A man with a gold-bordered green sash and a large symbolic patch on his sleeve holds out a piece of parchment. “We have orders to search all of the fledgling nests.”
My blood goes cold. I bite back a gasp, but I feel faint.
“Did this come from Head Guild Master Rooster?” Master Jay sounds indignant and confused. He strides forward, snatching the letter from the guild enforcer.
The enforcer just crosses his arms over his chest. “It came from the head of investigations in the enforcer department, which has full approval from the guild and the king himself to perform independent searches. We are following up on an anonymous tip about students stealing artifacts.”
“My students would never!”
“Then you’ve nothing to worry about,” the enforcer drawls. “Now let us finish conducting our search.”
Master Jay throws his hands up in frustration. Hemmen makes a whining sound in his throat, dropping to the cobblestones and sitting down, the picture of exhaustion.
“What do we do, Master?” Arrod asks.
Master Jay paces back and forth, then shrugs. “We sit out here and wait until they’re done.”
Great. I’m not going to breathe until then. My thoughts keep whirling. I was right. I was right all along. Someone’s trying to get rid of me. I have no doubt in my mind that whoever dumped that artifact in my bag is responsible for the anonymous note to the enforcers. I just hopethat they didn’t somehow plant another artifact during the last few days. The thought makes me want to vomit.
A heavy arm loops around my shoulders, and I’m dragged backward a half step against Raptor’s big body. He leans over me, so big he blots out the late-afternoon sunlight. “Calm down. They’re not going to find anything.”
“We don’t know that.”
“We do. We gave it to Aspeth, remember? She’s going to stick it in a box in the archives and tell them it was misplaced in their records and not to worry.” He rests his muzzle atop my head in a friendly manner and, when I don’t relax, leans in. His muzzle moves near my ear and he continues. “If you stand here all white-faced and stiff, they’re going to suspect something is wrong. Try being a little more relaxed.”
Oh sure. Relax while enforcers turn our nest upside down looking for an artifact I know was planted to get me in trouble.Relax.
Relax and hope no one dies nearby and I start hearing the dead babbling.
Raptor presses lightly on my shoulders, and I drop them, releasing some of the tension in my body. He’s right about one thing—if I look guilty, I’m going to make them wonder. I turn to the slitherskin, who has set his shell on the ground and perches atop it with an inscrutable expression. “What are your plans for this weekend, Kipp?”
Kipp looks over at me and then proceeds with a flurry of gestures that I can’t make out. Something about dancing. Or fishing. I’m not entirely sure which. But I nod brightly, as if he’s told me something charming.
“What do you want to practice this weekend, Gwenna?” Raptor asks, keeping that lazy arm around my shoulders. “Any particular skills you feel the need to brush up on?”
“All of them?” I manage to sound like my normal sarcastic self with that and relax a bit more. “In all seriousness, I need help with a great many things, but I’m open to suggestions.”
Raptor squeezes my upper arm. “Could probably work on your strength and endurance before anything else. As a woman, you’re going to need every advantage possible when it comes time for the test.”
I bristle at his words, though I know he’s saying it from a place not ofsexism but of brutal honesty. I do need to be as good as I possibly can at everything. Better than good. Excellent. Because no one’s going to cut me any slack at all. “I don’t mind working on fitness.”
“I do love it when a woman wants to get sweaty with me.”
Shoving his arm off my shoulders, I step out of his embrace. “Don’t be repugnant.”
