Deadly Games

She winced when the helmet nearly bounced offand into the water on the other side. “I’ll tell you about it whenwe’re safe.” She heaved the suit over the railing and gestured forBooks and Akstyr to follow.

“Whatever it is,” Maldynado said to Akstyr,voice muffled, “I’ll pay you a thousand ranmyas if you canincinerate it with your mind.” He was wearing hishelmet.

Akstyr paused, his foot on the railing.“Really?”

“No.” Amaranthe shoved him from the boat andnodded toward Books. “You next.”

The tentacle grabbed the rail on the oppositeside of the ship and pulled. The deck tilted thirty degrees,lifting Amaranthe’s side high in the air.

She hooked her elbow over the railing, evenas her feet skidded out from beneath her. Books was not as quick tograb hold. He hit the deck and started to slide away. Amaranthethrust a foot out, and he caught it.

The jolt popped something in her hip, but shegritted her teeth and hung on to the rail. She caught it with herother hand and anchored herself, so Books could crawl up her legand find purchase again.

The dock, previously ten feet below the deck,lay twenty feet down now.

“Go,” Amaranthe told Books.

Without pause, he flung himself over theside. The deck rocked. The kraken seemed to know Amaranthe andMaldynado were still on board, and it was trying to shake themfree. They pushed the last of the gear over the side.

“You go first,” Maldynado said.

A new tentacle shot up between the dock andthe ship, the gleaming purple skin not five feet from Amaranthe andMaldynado. Water sprayed everywhere and spattered her in theeye.

“Both of us,” she said. The tentacle sweptdown toward them. “Now!”

They leaped over the railing just as thekraken smashed through it. A chunk of wood hammered Amaranthe onthe back as she fell. Air whistled past her ears.

In the dim lighting, she struggled to judgethe distance to the dock. Through luck more than skill she landedwith a roll that kept her from breaking legs, but her momentumthreatened to send her tumbling into the water on the far side.

A hand clamped about her collar, hauling herback before she flew over the edge.

“Thanks,” she said.

“You’re welcome,” Maldynado said, head stillensconced in the helmet.

“I caught her, you dolt,” Books said.“You’re lucky you didn’t land headfirst wearing that thing.”

Amaranthe hustled to her feet and grabbed oneof the sets of gear. “Let’s chat later.”

The dock lacked any sort of comfortingsturdiness, and she ran for the street as quickly as she couldwhile dragging the suit and helmet. The men raced after her. Woodcracked behind them, and the dock shuddered. She did not look back.Only when they reached land and the solid cobblestone of thewaterfront street did Amaranthe feel safe enough to check.

“Emperor’s warts,” she breathed at the sight.Or the lack of a sight.

The Tuggle was missing, along withhalf of the dock. A ship that had been moored opposite the tugboatwas tilted on its side, its wooden masts broken, with water flowingthrough a hole in its hull. Tangled sails smothered the deck. Inthe water, boards, rope, and other jetsam floated, the only remainsof the salvage ship.

The tentacles were gone.

“That was a kraken?” Books shook his head.“That cannot be here. The Aracknis Kraken is adeep-sea-dwelling relative of the giant squid that’s native to theTrechara Trench, two thousand miles away. It feeds on large fish,squids, and other species found only in that environment. It’sphysiologically adapted to a saltwater habitat, and itcannot be here.”

“Thank you, professor.” Maldynado removed hishelmet, and his damp curls stuck out, creating a silhouettereminiscent of a dandelion gone to seed. “Perhaps you should swiminto the lake and tell that to Lord Tentacles out there.”

“That was brilliant,” Akstyr said. “My firstsea monster.”

“Sea monsters can’t be in freshwater lakes,”Books muttered.

“They can if they’re guarding a submergedmagical fortress full of kidnappers,” Amaranthe said.

“A fortress?” Books frowned.

“That’s what I’d call it, yes.”

He groaned.

“Does this mean we’re not going divingtonight?” Akstyr asked.

Books groaned again.

CHAPTER 14

Though darkness had fallen hours earlier,light crept beneath the door of Deret Mancrest’s flat. No lampsburned in the hallway outside.

“He stays up late for a respectable newspaperman,” Amaranthe said.

“Maybe he’s entertaining,” Maldynado said.“Though I’d expect more thumping and moaning if that were thecase.”

Books was not there to glare at him.Amaranthe had sent him and Akstyr to slip into the library andresearch krakens-specifically how to kill them-and check forinformation on underwater habitations as well, though she doubtedthey would find anything there. She did not think the technologyexisted to create something like that without the mental sciences,and the curators of the imperial libraries would never put booksdiscussing otherworldly construction on the shelves. Not if theyvalued their necks.

“Be ready. He answers the door with a swordstick.” Amaranthe knocked.

“Naturally,” Maldynado said.

Shuffling sounds came from within, along witha noisy yawn that could have woken half of the building. A momentlater, the door opened. Mancrest stood inside, leaning on his swordstick, his tall form limned by candlelight coming from behind him.Papers scattered a desk, as well as a couple of quills and anold-fashioned ink jar.

Mancrest gaped at them, though he dismissedMaldynado with a glance and focused on Amaranthe. She tensed,expecting a barrage of imprecations.

“Ms. Lokdon!” he blurted.

“Yes….” She tried to judge his tone, butcould only read the surprise. Given the hour, that was hardlyshocking.

“Hello. I didn’t expect you.” Mancrestwinced. “That’s obvious, isn’t it? What time is it? Aftermidnight?” He peered at a clock perched on a fireplace mantle. “Itis. Huh.”

“Does he seem scattered to you?” Amaranthewhispered to Maldynado.

“His shirt buttons aren’t in the wrong holes,so I don’t think he’s been entertaining,” Maldynado whispered back,then he raised his voice. “Have you been drinking, Deret?”

“What? No?” Mancrest rubbed his eyes andyawned again. “Just been up. Thinking.”

Amaranthe fought back a yawn of her own.

“Come in, come in.” Mancrest shuffled to thetable in sandals that slapped the wood floor with each step. Theneighbors below probably loved that. “Since you’re here,” he said,“I might as well…” He poked through papers. Some were empty, somehad a line or two on them, and some had more. A few crumpled ballsoccupied a nearby waste bin. “No, that’s awful. Ugh, what was Ithinking there?” He discarded those two pages and surveyed others.“No, I was closer on a previous draft. Uhm…this one isn’tentirely horrible. It’ll have to do.”

Amaranthe exchanged eyebrow raises withMaldynado while Mancrest folded the selected page with care. Heplaced it in an envelope, melted the end of a wax stick over acandle, and sealed the missive with a smudge. He tugged on a goldenchain around his neck, pulling a flat, oval signet out. Mancrestpressed it into the wax, leaving the image of a soldier holding asword aloft-his family’s crest.

Amaranthe was about to interruptletter-crafting time-they had important matters to discuss-whenMancrest