A Dark and Starless Night

Chapter Fifteen

Sett

There was a subtle art to earning a stranger's trust. It was in the greeting, the gestures, the eye contact. Even the rhythm of the words spoken went a long way to swaying someone's trust. It was an art that gicould say he was learning. He might not have mastered it fully, but he would have plenty of time to practice.

Kaseff, his cousin, had never even tried. He believed that everyone should simply trust him because he thought he was the most intelligent, most mature, most powerful person in the room at any given time. It was why Sett had worked so hard to convince him that they should start investigating in different corners of the expansive city separately. It was bigger than any of the cities he'd visited on the Isle. Faer Bryale was large, but it was tighter packed, with slums built on top of the skeletons of other slums. Lyrae, the largest of the oasis cities, was still only a fraction of the size of Teryon.

He had already managed to glean little bits of information from the women who worked the fish stalls at the market and the girls that sold silks that were obviously stolen. Purchasing some of their wares had certainly helped win them over, but he liked to think his charming smile helped. The blush that had risen in one of the girl's cheeks certainly hinted towards that. He made his way through an area known as the Greydocks, following the directions carefully. The streets he walked led him to a brothel known as the Sea Lily. Kaseff had warned him to steer clear of any brothels or prostitutes, but all the information he had gathered pointed him towards the surprisingly charming building. He exhaled a slow breath before stepping inside.

It was a lot quieter than the establishment's reputation would have hinted at, but murder would do that. That was what had drawn him here. Two murders. Two prostitutes. Both working out of the Sea Lily. And both of Islan descent. On the Isle, the deaths would have probably gone unnoticed. And he knew that they had almost gone unnoticed here too. But the rumblings of dissent made noblemen and politicians nervous, and that was the difference between Zyrna and the Isle.

It didn't matter how frustrated the people of the Isle got. Toss a handful of grain their way and they were so starved and exhausted that they'd probably forget. In Zyrna, the public's opinion meant everything. If a king let his people down too often, he – and his nobles – were likely to end up on a pike. Sometimes he wished his people were more like that.

"All right, love," a woman said from behind the counter. She smiled meekly at him and he found himself returning that smile. She had skin much darker than his own and a red scarf bound her hair. "We're not reopened for business just yet, but if you come back tomorrow any number of the girls would be happy to service you."

"You can say that again," one said, biting her lip.

"I call dibs," another said, winking. "Unless you've got a preference."

His smile widened, his cheeks warming. It was nice to be wanted, even if they wanted his coin as well. "I was actually hoping to ask a question," he said, leaning on the counter and working to make the tension leave his shoulders.

"Oh?" the dark-skinned girl asked, looking a bit more guarded.

"I'm not from Zyrna, although I wager that's obvious," he said, and her eyes lost some of the tension around the edges. "I came with my cousin, and the idiot hasn't been back to the inn we're sharing for a few days."

"You think he might be lost?" a blonde girl asked, sounding mildly concerned. Her eyes were slightly pink around the rims, as if she'd been crying.

He nodded, doing his best to look a little more concerned. "He has a habit of pissing away money, but he prefers to drink in the company of women. When I heard the reputation of this place for the charm of the women who work here, I figured he would have as well." He described the man – if he could still be called that – they were pursuing, sparing the details of the tattoos he had. "Any chance you've seen him?"