Alchemy by S. J. Parris

Author:S. J. Parris [Parris, S. J.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollinsPublishers
Published: 2023-06-14T17:00:00+00:00

EIGHTEEN

The bells of St Vitus tolled eleven as I hurried back across the courtyard, past the convent of St George towards the East Gate. A thin rain had begun to fall, chased by the wind into shifting veils that lent the castle a melancholy aspect. I cursed again my complacency the night before in leaving Sukie alone in the tavern; the thoughtless decision of a moment that I would give anything to undo. I trusted – as Bartos obviously had – that she possessed enough sense not to try the elixir for herself, but sooner or later she would attempt to sell it, and that would attract the attention of unscrupulous people, if it hadn’t already.

I made my way to the Winged Horse to find it busy, though it was too early yet for the midday dinner rush. I took a seat in the same nook by the fire where I had eaten with Sukie, my back to the wall so that I had a good view of the tap-room, though none of its occupants seemed at all interested in my presence. From my visit to the Powder Tower I could confidently identify the majority of them as alchemists – not the individuals, but the type. Stained smocks, smudged faces and fingers, the smell of smoke and sulphur that clung to their hair and clothes. After a few minutes Magda appeared, glaring down at me.

‘You again,’ she said, tight-lipped. But I was too alarmed by her appearance to question her hostility; a livid bruise bloomed along her right cheek. ‘Stable door blew open in my face,’ she said flatly, before I could ask.

I ordered a mug of beer; she paused, head tilted, as if considering whether she could comply with such an outlandish request. ‘Is there a problem?’ I said.

She glanced towards the kitchen and leaned one hand on the table. ‘Look, I’m not in the habit of turning away customers,’ she said in a low voice, ‘but if you know what’s good for you, you’ll find your food and drink elsewhere.’

‘And why is that?’

‘Because there are people in this town who are taking a good deal of interest in you and your questions. People you don’t want to cross, trust me.’

‘I see. And what if I don’t know what’s good for me?’

She shrugged. ‘Then you can’t say you weren’t warned.’

‘Will a stable door hit me in the face?’

Her jaw tightened. ‘That’ll be the least of it.’

She turned to go and I caught her by the sleeve. ‘Listen, Magda. Sukie is in danger. Her father is driving himself mad with worry.’

She let out a bitter laugh. ‘That’s rich. Do you know how many times I’ve given that child a hot meal from my own pot because Erik Moller never worried about her enough to shift his arse out of whichever shithole he’d passed out in?’

‘Well, exactly,’ I said. ‘You care about her, I know you do. Erik says that, apart from Ziggi Bartos, you’re the only person she would confide in.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.