Chapter 9 #2
He liked rules, especially ones he made up on the spot. There was something else, however, that I needed from this stranger before we went any farther. Something I should have been told from the beginning and yet had been too distracted to demand with each event that had followed our first meeting.
“Will you at least tell me your name? I have a list of options, but I’d rather not keep coming up with them on my own.”
The flat line of his lips curved into a smirk as he began to drive toward port, toward the Grand Canal that led straight to the docks and the coast of the Narrow Sea. “You have a list? I’m touched you think about me that often, Nina.”
I crossed my arms, glowering in my seat. “Shall we add Arrogant Bastard to that list, Outsider?”
“It’s Maxence.” He spoke above the engine, voice light. “Or just Max, if you don’t want to sound so besotted.”
“Max?” I tested his name on my tongue. Short and sweet for a man who was neither. It was ironic on him. Something about the soft simplicity of a three-letter name didn’t fit with the calloused, complex man in front of me.
His stare shifted from the way ahead to my face, eyes alert and bloodshot from running all night. The motor went idle. “Yes.”
There was an uneasy quiet between us. I cleared my throat before it drove me mad. “Well, Max. I think I like that much better.”
“That makes one of us,” he murmured so quietly that I almost missed it. He shifted gears, and the boat leapt forward, cutting through the misty canal.
A bell chimed at the port just as the sun broke completely over the world, illuminating the water with golden light and stealing the chill that nipped at my cheeks.
The harbor was as busy as I’d ever seen it, enjoying whatever lasted of my luck.
Sunlight and a strong morning breeze filled the sailcloth stretched taut over the mast of a nearby ship that was pulling into the harbor, an impressive galley boat owned by a wealthy merchant.
We lingered alongside it, like a parasite latched to a stronger creature for survival.
The docks were crawling with guards. Their red capes caught the east wind in a kind of warning.
I saw the colors of the constables everywhere, and my heart doubled its pulse, just waiting for them to look up and spot us in one of their own boats.
“Where is this boat you’re looking for?” Max asked.
I scanned the length of the docks, trying to find Maurice’s dismal fishing boat… “There! Right at the end.” I breathed a small sigh of relief at the sight of the Loralynn and of Maurice’s wiry frame cleaning her deck. “Right where she always is.”
“You sure about this? We only get one chance.” He sped the boat out across the wake of the merchant ship, despite questioning my plan. “They’ll kill us on sight if they spot us now.”
“Don’t give me ideas on how to get rid of you.” I looked over my shoulder to catch his reaction—a roll of his glowing, amber eyes.
Maurice seemed to catch sight of us as soon as we emerged from the shadow of the merchant ship. He dropped his broom and hurried to meet us at the bow, leaning over the railing where I usually met him. I grabbed his outstretched hand in greeting.
“Nina! You brought a live one this time,” he laughed before shutting his mouth abruptly. He glanced between me and Max. “I mean…”
“It’s alright, he knows,” I said quietly. “But Maurice, I’m not here for a drop. I need your help.”
“Nina.” He said my name like it pained him.
“Maurice,” I pleaded. “I need you to transport two more bodies. Nothing unlike your last load.”
He asked point-blank, “What did you do?”
I winced. “It’s a long story. Let’s just say I got caught.”
He sighed, leaning against the railing of the ship. Maurice spared a look at the dock before whispering, “You’d better get rid of that boat.”
“Gladly.” Max slammed his boot into the floor of our vessel, using his Cursed strength to shatter the boards and let the harbor water inside.
I cursed as freezing saltwater spilled over my toes. Maurice grabbed me by the forearms and tried to pull me up, but my wet boots slipped as I tried to leap up to him.
The outsider—Max—took my waist with broad, strong hands that enveloped the curve of my middle. In one fluent motion, he tossed me up to Maurice without even a grunt of effort.
The old fisherman held me steady as I gained my footing, and Max pulled himself up. Maurice ushered us both belowdecks before the guards caught sight of a crowd on the deck and came to inspect his vessel.
“I’m glad you came early. They’re out in full force.
I hoped it wasn’t something to do with our business.
” Maurice lit a single gas lamp. There were no windows belowdecks.
The space was small and intimate, with his bed pushed to the stern end of the cabin and a folding table beside it, covered in canned foods with the tops already peeled open.
Pots and cups hung from the ceiling, clinking to the sway of the sea.
He winced as he looked over his quarters. “Sorry, I didn’t have the chance to clean up. Didn’t know I’d have guests.” He motioned to a chair next to his dining table, but I refused. “What do you need, Nina?”
“A way out.” I glanced at Max, who adjusted the open collar of his coat, keeping surprisingly quiet and staying out of my way. Looking back to Maurice, I asked, “Can you sneak us both out of the city?”
His brows rose high, wrinkling his forehead. “You want to hide on my boat? Both of you?”
“It’ll be no different than the coffers you brought upriver a few days ago.
” I tried to make it sound as rational as possible.
It was a simple smuggling run; the kind he’d done countless times.
“You need to understand something. The Governor was just killed, and someone tried to send him to the buyer. I was caught, which means our business is over. The money trail is done, Maurice.”
“I’m starting to put that together, trust me.” He let out a sigh so long and strong that it could have filled a sail.
Hell, I’d give him whatever he wanted, as long as we left the Fissures behind. “Get us away from the guards, and you can have my portion from the last drop. I know it’s nothing compared to the former potential future earnings, but it’s all I have left.”
“Forget the coin. I could never…” His voice trailed into an incoherent mutter. “Damnit, Nina. Of course I’ll help you.”
My breath came a little easier, knowing we had a way out, at least. “How soon can we leave?”
“As soon as I meet with my legitimate client. I’ve got three sacks of freshwater gullies to drop off. Until then…” He motioned beneath the bed. “I need you both to hide.”
“Under there?” Max spoke up for the first time.
“It’s where I kept the coffers. It’s a hidden bunk. I can conceal it from the outside. There should be plenty of room if you get close. Besides, it’s just until we’re out the city.”
“Why can’t we just stay inside?” I asked, uncomfortable with being stuffed into such a small space with Max. “They’ll never see us.”
“They’ll be searching every boat that comes in or out, Nina.” Maurice raised a brow.
“I—”
A knock tapped on his door, and the three of us went completely still. I looked to Max, who was rolling his dice in his palm, scowling. Maurice raised a finger to his lips before calling back to the visitor, “Be there in a moment!”
It was the police. I dropped to the floor and slid under the bed before they could finish introducing themselves. Max sighed through his teeth but eventually followed me under. I pressed against the far side of the bunker, all the space quickly stolen as Max squished beside me.
We settled in without speaking. After a few moments, Maurice quietly placed something over the crawl space to conceal us completely.
“You trust this man?” He turned his head to whisper, the words tickling my cheek.