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Carels smiled at me, but he was also looking at me like I was an exotic spice to taste. Some men had that reaction to me.
We went above deck, where stars glittered in the sky like shattered glass.
“Cigarette?” Luckmann asked.
Diesel shook his head. “No, thank you.”
Luckmann shielded his cigarette from the wind and shared a match with Carels. Diesel leaned against the railing and looked heavenward. They talked together, their voices boisterous. How much wine had they drunk?
“Well,” Carels said, “I think it’s time to be in bed.”
Diesel nodded. “We have an important day ahead of us.”
Carels leaned forward to clasp Diesel’s arm, a whiff of wine on his breath. He caught my eye and winked.
“Good night!” he said.
Diesel lingered while his friends disappeared below deck. TheDresdenplowed through a wave, and Diesel stumbled forward. He staggered against the steamship’s railing. I caught him by the elbow before he could fall overboard.
“Careful!” I said.
“Thank you.” He mopped his brow with his handkerchief.
“Too much wine to drink, sir?”
“I had no wine, only water and coffee.”
My stomach plummeted. He didn’t stink of alcohol like Carels, but he slurred his words. He gripped the railing, his knuckles tight, then lowered himself awkwardly to the deck. With unfocused eyes, he panted for air.
“Diesel, I need you to stay awake. Diesel!”
His eyelids closed before he slumped on the deck.
Poisoned.
19
“Fuck!” I whispered.
I couldn’t fight poison with a sword. A blonde woman in a uniform climbed onto the deck—the waitress from dinner.
“Get help!” I shouted. “He needs a doctor!”
The waitress ran toward us.Wait. My stomach flipped. Why was a waitress above deck so late? The sky was much too dark for her to be out, even if she was just sneaking a cigarette.
How easy would it have been to slip Diesel poison in his coffee?
My hand twitched to my sword. A second later, I unsheathed Chun Yi in a cascade of sparks. The blonde pulled a pistol from a holster on her thigh and sighted down the barrel. Cold determination steeled her eyes.
Sometimes I hated being right.
“Stop.” I squared my shoulders. “The Hex might still reach this far.”
“Want to risk it?” the blonde drawled.
“Who are you?”
“Really, darling?” The blonde scoffed. “I’m Natalya. Your superior.”
