Rae picked up her daily beer and bread and was passing by the nomarch’s estate on her way to the weavers’ workshop when she saw the brewer coming out of the nomarch’s main gate.
What is he doing there?she wondered, slightly alarmed. She hurried to catch up to him as he began walking back toward the brewery.
“The falcon sails across the sky,” Rae said as she sidled up next to him.
The brewer cast a glance her way, his eyes narrowing when he saw who it was. “We shall meet him on the horizon,” he replied in a low voice. “What do you want, Raetawy? We shouldn’t talk out in the open like this.”
“What did the nomarch want with you?” Rae asked. “I saw you coming out of his house.”
The brewer blinked. “Oh, that was nothing. A delivery. Have to keep up appearances, you know.”
Rae sighed with relief. “Thanks be to Ra. I was worried you’d been brought in for questioning. Did you hear anything important while you were inside?”
The brewer hesitated, then motioned for her to continue walking with him. “The nomarch was in a rage. I heard him say last night was a disaster and that he couldn’t believe his men allowed it to happen on their watch. Every weapon except the ones his soldiers kept in their beds was either stolen or destroyed in the fire, and they have no clues to the identities of the attackers.
“In response, he’s sending a troop of men upriver to Thonis to refit with fresh arms. They won’t return for several days. Meanwhile, most of the other soldiers are either being treated for burn wounds or are repairing the damage to the building. It’s a mess. A total mess.”
“Just as Asim had hoped,” Rae said, her mind buzzing.
The brewer nodded. “The old soldier had fortune on his side this time. I still think it was a foolish plan.”
“Think what you like, it doesn’t matter now,” Rae remarked, stopping at the corner where they would part ways. “Don’t you see? This new information—we have to tell the others about it. The Horizon should strike again while the Medjay are weakened and few in number. We must make another plan right away, before reinforcements return from Thonis. Maybe the weavers could pass along a message to Asim to arrange a meeting?”
The brewer scoffed. “You’re lucky to be alive after what happened last night. Running another scheme so soon after the first is a fool’s errand. You’ve had your fun playing rebel. If you were smart, you’d go home and focus on finding a good husband to take over your family land. Stick to what you’re good at, Raetawy. Leave the rest of it to the men.”
Rae’s temper flared. “Perhaps you should stick to beer and cowardice. That seems to be whatyou’regood at.”
“I’m protecting my family,” the brewer snarled. “Which is more than I can say for you. Your poor father, after everything he’s been through—”
“Don’t speak about my father.”
“I’ll say what I want to say, not that you’ll listen.” He waved a hand at her dismissively. “Go ahead, call your meeting. But don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
Rae watched him walk away, her cheeks burning with anger. The brewer had a talent for saying just the right things to get under her skin.You’ve had your fun playing rebel. Leave the rest of it to the men. Your poor father…
Steaming, she made her way to the weavers’ workshop. She hoped to see Tamerit, though it was unlikely they’d have the opportunity to talk. Still, after the kiss they’d shared the last timethey were together, simply seeing her would brighten Rae’s day after that infuriating encounter.
It was busy as usual inside the workshop, and filled with the hum of women’s talk as they bent over their looms and spindles. Rae scanned the room for Tam, but instead saw someone unexpected in the corner, talking quietly with Mamet Mut.
“You bring up the cat, and it comes jumping,” Rae said as she approached. “Hello, Asim. I was just talking about you.”
Asim glanced over at her. His gray-speckled beard had grown unruly, and though there were bags under his eyes, they sparkled with excitement.
“Good morning, Raetawy.”
Mamet Mut looked between them, curious. “You two know each other?”
“The girl has certain skills that have recently come to my attention,” Asim said wryly.
“Too young for you,” Mamet Mut scolded, misunderstanding Asim’s meaning. “Besides, if the young carpenter had any brains, she’d already belong to him.”
Rae smirked, choosing not to mention that her heart already belonged to someone else, as the older woman was called away to fix a snag on one of the looms.
“Have you spoken to Omari this morning?” she asked Asim. “Did your friend survive the night?”
“He’s alive, thanks be to Ra, though we’ll have to keep an eye on that wound. But he’s a lot like you, Rae. Stubborn. We’ll probably have to tie him down to get him to rest.”
Relieved, Rae relayed the brewer’s story. Asim’s eyebrows rose at the mention of the nomarch sending many of his men upriver to resupply.
