Thief by Colville Matthew

Author:Colville, Matthew
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Panic Volcanic
Published: 2014-04-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-six

When he woke up, his door was open, and Ballisantirax was sitting on his chest, staring at him with her wide, black, yellow-rimmed eyes.

“Mow.”

One of the girls must have opened his door to let her in. They’d do that if she was persistently yowling to get in.

He stretched and looked at his cat.

“You hungry?”

“Mow,” Balli said, still staring at him. She jumped off the bed and padded to the doorway. She turned in the doorway and looked at him, eyes still wide. Hunting mode.

“Mow.”

Heden sat up and watched his cat.

“What’s wrong?”

Balli disappeared out the door and, after a moment, stuck her head back in the doorway.

“Mow.”

“You want me to follow you?”

“Mow.”

“Uh oh,” Heden said, and went downstairs. It took him a few moment’s searching before he understood why Balli was worried.

Vanora was gone.

Heden stood in the middle of the common room, not panicking. It was morning, and the girls were setting up, and none of them were acting strange. If there was a problem, he was sure they’d show it.

He noticed the shorter of Vanora’s two lieutenants, Caerys, watching him expectantly from behind the bar.

He walked over and put his hands on the bar calmly.

“Where is she?”

Caerys shook her head quickly.

“You don’t know or you won’t say?”

“She wouldn’t tell me!”

Heden nodded slowly, just to be encouraging. “Is she alright?”

“I…I think so,” Caerys said.

“Tell me everything,” Heden said.

Caerys nodded, wound herself up, and let go.

“She went to the fishmongers last night and I asked, I said, ‘do you want me to go with you?’ And she said ‘No,’ and I said ‘ok,’ and she went and came back two turns later and something had happened, I could tell and she said ‘I have to go,’ and I said ‘what else is there to do?’ because there’s just the fish buying at night and she said ‘No, I mean I have to leave’, and I said, ‘where are you going?’ And she said ‘I can’t tell you,’ and I asked ‘why not?’ And she said ‘because if you know, they can get it from you,’ and I said ‘Violet what are you talking about?’ and she said ‘I’m not sure.’”

Caerys took a breath finally and Heden blinked at her.

“Ok,” he said, with some idea what was happening. He let his suspicion stay unformed in his mind, the way he was taught. “Did she give you the impression she went somewhere safe?”

Caerys nodded.

“Hm,” Heden said, frowning.

“You’re worried she went back to the count,” Caerys guessed.

Heden shook his head. “I would be, but no one knows where the count’s operation is.”

It was Caerys’ turn to stare at Heden blinking.

“Violet knows,” she said.

A chill went down Heden’s spine. “What?”

“Violet knows where he is.”

“You don’t…,” Heden began. “He has a club. You’re thinking of the Lamplighter's club. But he's not there anymore."

Caerys shook her head. “Un-uh. Everybody knows about his club. This is his other place. Violet said he told her all about it once. His hideout. We sort of thought he meant like a

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