Point of Knives

Point of Knives by Melissa Scott Page B

Book: Point of Knives by Melissa Scott Read Free Book Online
Authors: Melissa Scott
Tags: adventure, Romance, Fantasy, Mystery, Retail
at his hair as though an insect had landed there. b’Estorr frowned, seeing that, and made a small gesture with his left hand. The chill faded, almost reluctantly, and Rathe knew the ghosts had been warned to stand further off. From Eslingen’s unhappy look, he knew it, too, but Rathe pretended he hadn’t seen.
    “Anything that makes Hanselin Caiazzo join forces with the points and requires my attention….” b’Estorr let his voice trail off. “Let’s just say it makes me nervous, especially after this summer.”
    “And there’s an unholy echo of this summer in the business,” Rathe said, “which I’d like to rule out as quickly as possible. In confidence, Istre—”
    “My word on it,” b’Estorr said quickly.
    “—there’s a chest of gold missing, gold that’s never been taxed, and two dead men into the bargain.”
    “So far,” Eslingen said.
    “There’s a cheery thought,” Rathe said. “Yeah, so far. And I’m wondering—I know that aurichalcum, queen’s gold, it’s magistically pure, and so it has power. That’s why the queen keeps possession of it herself, or doles it out to trusted associates.”
    “Well,” b’Estorr began, and stopped at Rathe’s look. “Well, yes. That’s the theory.”
    “I know there’s a certain amount of license given to the University, and I know there’s some queen’s gold circulating illegally,” Rathe said. “That’s not what I’m interested in. This missing gold, being untaxed—I wondered whether it had any similar properties?”
    “Now there’s an interesting question,” b’Estorr said. “Technically—well, no, that’s not really true. All coin is bound to the realm by the design on its face, Chenedolle’s coin to Chenedolle, Chadron’s to Chadron, the League’s to their individual cities, and so on. Foreign coin ought to be inherently somewhat unstable, and I assume that the tax and the tax mark is intended to bind it somehow, but I don’t really know. I don’t generally use royal metals in my work.”
    “Who does, then?” Rathe asked. “And who can tell me about the taxes?”
    “You want one of the Fellows,” b’Estorr said. “The Royal Fellows. They’re in charge of metallurgy and related arts. And of all of them—Caillavet Vair is your best bet.”
    “All right,” Rathe said, doubtfully, and b’Estorr smiled.
    “You’ll like her, Nico. She’s very like you.”
     
     

Chapter Four ~ The Royal Metal
     
     
     
    Vair did not live in the University precinct, but further north, where the city’s buildings thinned out to make room for larger houses. It was a long walk, outside the usual range of the city’s low-flyers, but a pleasant one, the afternoon sun dipping into the west, the waning light gilding the dusty streets. The trees were changing here, too, green giving way to gold and russet-brown, and as they made their way into the wealthier neighborhoods, where the minor nobility mingled with the most successful merchants, the air had the heady smell of turned loam and the whiff of burning leaves. Rathe opened the front of his jerkin, enjoying the warmth, and saw that Eslingen was smiling.
    “What?” Rathe asked.
    Eslingen tipped his head to one side. The brim of his hat shaded his face, but couldn’t hide the mischief in his expression. “You know, this Mistress Vair—she doesn’t know we’re coming.”
    “She does,” Rathe said. He knew where this was going. “Istre sent a runner.”
    “Yes, but she doesn’t know when we’ll get there.” Eslingen nodded to their right, where a painted banner stirred in the lazy breeze. It marked the entrance to a wine bower, one of the garden establishments that flourished through the long summer. There would be musicians and dancing in the evenings, and the clock round there were private rooms, screened by curtains of flowering vines. Rathe shook his head.
    “No,” he said. “Business first.”
    Eslingen laughed. “What about after?”
    “After?” Rathe

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