A Jewel Bright Sea. Claire O'Dell

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СКАЧАТЬ Maté, who disliked this expedition and had expressed that dislike, in spite of all the clues that led them here.

      “My lady. Lady Vrou.”

      Maté burst from the forest at a jog, with Raab close behind. Both were breathless, as though they had galloped a mile up the mountainside. With great effort, she pretended to yawn. “What is the matter? Did you discover a ferocious mouse?”

      Neither man laughed, and Raab glanced around at the guards, as though to reassess their worth. Maté’s expression was much harder to read. Excited? Anxious? She could not tell.

      “Nothing so terrible, my lady,” Raab said. “But we’ve discovered a far better prospect for your picnic.”

      “Ah, interesting.” Anna looked toward Maté. “And you, what do you say?”

      He shrugged with a fair show of indifference. “Our friend is correct for once. We’ve come across the perfect site for you—an exquisite patch of shore, with an equally exquisite expanse of ocean.” His voice dropped low, in an imitation of their innkeeper’s breathless tone. “Indeed, it cannot be matched elsewhere.”

      Sarrész, she thought. He’s found a clue.

      “Excellent,” she said. “Let us mount up and you shall lead me to this nonpareil view.”

      * * * *

      A narrow trail, little more than a gap in the forest, brought them down from the summit to a wider path. Anna noted the carefully tended road with growing unease. This was not another work of priests from centuries past. Someone had cleared away the tangle of trees and vines, someone else had paved sections with bricks and stones against the late-summer rains, and those someones were most likely bandits smuggling goods over the mountain. She wiped the sweat from her face and wished the air wasn’t as close or as humid.

      Raab had placed himself directly behind Anna, while Maté took the lead. Neither of her companions had spoken for the past hour. Their guards, those young and feckless creatures, rode silently at the rear. Perhaps they understood both men considered them expendable, a mere barrier in case brigands did appear.

      As soon as the path widened enough for two to ride abreast, Anna urged her horse forward next to Maté. “Was he there?” she asked quietly.

      Maté glanced back toward Raab, then to the guards.

      “I believe so,” he said just as softly. “We found evidence of a large company, ten at least. They built a fire and buried their garbage, all very neat, which tells me our friend Sarrész hired professionals.”

      The bondsmaid Iouliana, back at the inn, had mentioned a company of expensive guards, but Anna had not believed her. Sarrész was the younger son of a minor lord, with only a small allowance from his father. She remembered seeing him once or twice in Lord Brun’s household. A man of middle years, his manner smooth, his smile much too easy. He must have borrowed the money for the ship’s passage to Eddalyon. He had definitely borrowed more from Iglazi’s moneylenders, but gossip said he had spent as much as he received.

      Maté’s voice sank lower. “They shifted six or seven stone tiles outside the temple walls and dug a hole at least three feet deep. One of the tiles had been marked with an X in grey paint, nearly invisible against the stone. The hole was empty, of course.”

      Oh. That was significant.

      Their theory said Lord Sarrész would seek a buyer for the jewel as soon as possible. Clearly, he had not found one on the mainland. Just as clearly, the matter had proved more doable in Eddalyon. Anna had heard the rumors about the trade in legitimate and not-so-legitimate goods throughout the islands. Even so, anyone who dared to buy the Emperor’s jewel would have to do more than produce enough gold. They would have to know a second market, one where they could dispose of the jewel before the Imperial forces caught up with them.

      “He found a buyer,” she said flatly. “The trade did not take place.”

      “No,” Maté agreed. “My first guess is Sarrész cheated his buyer. He took the money, kept the jewel, and fled back to the mainland, where he will repeat the game as many times as he can. He’s a greedy man, Lord Sarrész.”

      She nodded slowly. “That fits his character. What about the guards?”

      “The guards are the flaw in my theory,” he admitted. “If Sarrész meant to run off with the jewel and the money, he’d never take them along. At the same time, we didn’t find any sign of an ambush by the temple. This trail we’re following shows tracks from a large mounted company. I suspect a third party was involved.”

      Anna wanted to ask more about this supposed third party, but they had already talked longer than usual for a lady and her servant, even if that lady did have a reputation for flouting rules.

      It was such a delicate balance, this disguise Brun had insisted upon. Lady Vrou Iljana had access to the same nobles Lord Sarrész would, and no one questioned Anna when she inquired about her old friend, under whatever name he used. But there were boundaries even the most eccentric noble dared not cross, and Anna was certain she had violated them more than once.

      And then there was the secrecy Lord Brun had imposed…

      With a sigh, she drew rein to let Maté resume the lead, while she turned over the implication of his words.

      Sarrész had arrived on Vyros twelve days before them, showering silver and gold on the servants at the inn. The girl Iouliana had chattered on about his charm, his habit of bedding the servants, his odd comings and goings around the city, and his curiosity about the trade between the islands. Though he called himself Hêr Lord Gerhart Toth, it was obvious he was the man they were hunting.

      And he came this way not three days ago.

      Patience, she told herself. They had nearly caught up with Sarrész on several occasions, and each time, the interval between their arrival and his escape had grown shorter. Certainly this time they would succeed.

      Two more hours passed. They rested the horses frequently, but Anna could tell the beasts were weary from the long, long descent. She was about to ask Maté if they ought to pause again when they rounded another bend and the silent green forest broke open into sunlight and the roar of surf.

      Maté had already reined his horse to a stop. He tilted his head back and sniffed. Now he glanced over his shoulder. “Vrou?”

      She caught the uptick in his voice. “Yes? What is it?”

      “The shore lies ahead, as you can see, but I’ve sighted an object that might interest you. An item from before the Empire days…”

      Sarrész. He had come this way. The hired guards were listening, however, so she kept her voice bored. “Tscha. You’ve promised me exotic memorabilia before, Kovács. Is this thing any different?”

      “I make no guarantee, Lady Vrou. If you would prefer to ride on—”

      “No, no. Let us examine this curiosity of yours.”

      She dismounted with an air of impatience. Maté took charge of her reins and tethered both their horses to a nearby tangle of roots. Anna had not missed how her mare flicked her ears back and forth, while Maté’s normally placid gelding trembled under his touch. Anna sniffed, just as Maté had done, but the air was СКАЧАТЬ