But the three times she’d tried it, Jemsin’s summoner always found her. It always brought her back.
“It’s almost as if Jemsin doesn’t want you and Leandra to cross paths,” said Kor thoughtfully. “As if he’s afraid she’ll know who you are and take you away from him.”
Eris froze, looking up into his hard eyes.Has he figured out who I am?
He laughed then. “Can you imagine it? Jemsin losing his precious Death Dancer to the woman he despises? I would pay to see that.”
Eris tried to relax. Kor didn’t know who shereallywas. He thought of her only as the Death Dancer—a thief.
“I’d rather be owned by a pirate than a monster,” she said.
“Is there a difference?” Kor lifted his cup.
Eris forced herself to lift her own, clinking it against his.
They both drank.
Eris wiped the wine from her lips and then set the cup down on the floor. Thinking of his closed door, she asked, “Who was in your cabin tonight?”
He raised one dark brow. “Why? Are you jealous?”
Ugh. No.Not in a thousand years.
Kor took another sip. “Kadenze was there.”
Fear rippled through her as Eris thought of the creature who did all of Jemsin’s summoning. Red eyes. Black talons. A voice as old as the sea.
It was Kadenze who’d located her all three times she tried to escape.
According to the cook on theHyacinth, who liked to tell Eris stories when she helped him wash up after dinner, Jemsin killed Kadenze’s former master and took the bird for himself. Kadenze was an ancient creature, sung about in old sailor’s ballads, said to be capable of tracking down three things: treasure, enemies, and the blood of immortals.
“Jemsin wants us in Darmoor,” Kor said. “Both of us.”
Another assignment? That was good. It would keep Eris away from the sea—and those hunting her on it.
It would also keep her out of Kor’s reach. He tended not to toy with her when there was a mission occupying him.
“What does he want us for this time?” she asked, picking up Safire’s stolen knife and running her hands over it again. The cool steel had a calming effect.
“Didn’t say. Just that he expects us there by tomorrow.”
Kor talked on, but Eris was no longer paying attention. Because this time as she traced the knife, her fingers found something new. When she raised the blade, trying to catch the lantern light, she found something embossed in the steel: a pattern of fiery-looking flowers.
“Tides, Eris. Would youlistento me?”
She had just leaned in to examine the pattern when suddenly, the knife was gone. Snatched out of her hands by Kor.
“What are you fidgeting with?” He squinted at the knife.
Annoyance broke like a wave through Eris. She reached for it. He jerked it out of the way.
“Give it back, Kor,” she said through gritted teeth.
“Gilt handle,” he murmured, ignoring her as he studied the weapon. “The owner must have a good deal of coin—or at least connections. And the flower pattern is very pretty. Delicate, you might even say. A girl’s knife?” He looked up to see if he was correct.
Inexplicably, Eris felt her cheeks heat.
“Whose is it?”
