Sapphire by the Sea by Kiersten Lillis

Author:Kiersten Lillis
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Kiersten Lillis
Published: 2022-05-20T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 28

COLFAX

Colfax collapsed into his bed, exhausted from all the talking. He wasn’t used to using his voice this much; the scratchy tickle in the back of his throat confirmed that. He was an observer, used to blending in. Now that he was responsible for at least keeping up the appearance of conducting an investigation, he had to engage in a different way. Ask enough questions—and the right kind—to keep his cover, but also to dig a little deeper to get what he needed. Surely, a sapphire of the kind he sought wouldn’t be a true secret. Someone had to know something about it. It was just a matter of finding the right person.

He rubbed a drop of peppermint oil—a vial of which had been thoughtfully placed on his bedside table—on his fingertips and massaged it into his temples. The scent filled his nose as he breathed deeply. What he had learned didn’t match up. Jellyfish or Katamai’s angry spirit? Adolescent fun turned deadly or rebellious teenagers flouting authority? Either people were lying to him, or everything really was just a story passed down through the generations, changing along the way. If that was the case, he was chasing ghosts to nowhere.

He hadn’t heard a word about the Sapphire Wall since that first encounter with the students. Wait a minute. Maybe he’d been going about this all wrong. He’d been listening to the wrong people. Master Eliya and Preceptor Hakaru hadn’t let him question any of the students so far—he’d asked. But maybe asking permission was a mistake. He needed to figure out a way to get closer to the school without attracting suspicion. He needed a way in.

Colfax stood and moved to his window, half of which featured a stained-glass image of a woman standing in front of the ocean. Katamai, again. He looked through the other half at the sky. Light pollution didn’t obstruct the stars here, but clouds did. He searched for pieces of constellations he knew were there, finding just a bit of Canis Major before calling it quits. Like with those missing kids and the sapphire, he couldn’t see the most important pieces of the puzzle.

Grumbling, Colfax sat back down and considered trying to sleep. It would be fruitless; his mind was too wired. He spied the clear pint drinking glass on the desk in the corner. He’d ignored it for the past few nights, but tonight he needed something stronger than peppermint. Might as well have a drink to wind down.

He grabbed the glass, pulled on his jacket, and made sure his tools were in his inner pocket just in case. If being a criminal had taught him anything, it was to always be prepared. He made his way down the creaky, light wood staircase to the front desk. “Pub still open?”

“Aye.” Aran, the redheaded boy, nodded toward the simple midnight blue door in the back left corner. “Through there. Down the stairs, take a right. It’s the first door.”

“Thanks.” Colfax went quickly before Aran could ask him any questions.

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