Total pages in book: 142
Estimated words: 134898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 540(@250wpm)___ 450(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 134898 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 674(@200wpm)___ 540(@250wpm)___ 450(@300wpm)
I’m not surprised to hear that. Nothing against Hawk, but he automatically assumes everyone knows the basics as well as he does. Master Jay has been teaching a lot longer, and he’s more fully aware that some students have come from a more sheltered background than others. “They have different teaching styles,” I tell her. “Master Jay is a big proponent of his students being as independent as possible before they work as a team. How can you be expected to perform tasks for the guild if you don’t know the layout of Vastwarren? Knowledge is power, and even if you don’t pass this year, Master Jay wants to make sure you’re well-equipped for next year.”
She shoots me a furious look, as if the thought of failing enrages her. “Just seems utterly foolish to me to waste class time memorizing buildings on the riverbank when I could be digging in the tunnels.”
So impatient. It’s adorable. “Every fledgling says the same sort of thing, but you have an entire year to learn to be an artificer. Take your time. Master Jay knows what he’s doing, much as it pains me to compliment the man.”
She considers this. “It doesn’t mesh with my experience, I suppose. Magpie took us down into the tunnels early on.”
“Magpie was also banished from the guild for her many questionable actions, and her students all flunked or were kicked out. I wouldn’t look to her for expertise.”
Her expression tightens. She grabs the straps on her pack, adjusting it. “Let’s just get this done, shall we?”
As we walk, I watch her expression. I look for nervousness on her part, just in case she might be one of the thieves and doesn’t like being shadowed. I also keep an eye on how well she knows the city. One of the thieves we’re hunting for would surely be an expert on the layout of the buildings. She could be pretending to be ignorant of her surroundings. Magpie was a bad seed, and her students could be worse. Definitely bears scrutiny.
I traipse through the bustling city with Gwenna at my side. Vastwarren is always crowded, but there’s a bit of order to things in the heart of the city, where the guild holds full rein. As we get deeper into the bowels of the city itself, the streets become narrower, the congestion of people thicker. I’m lucky in that as a Taurian, my big frame and menacing horns make most people avoid me. Gwenna isn’t quite so lucky—she’s nudged and pushed around and has to constantly squeeze past people who won’t give way to a mere woman, even one in a guild uniform.
I put up with it for a while, because it’s clear she’s determined to manage on her own, but when a man shoves her and she staggers into my side, my temper flares. “You want me to carry your pack for you?” I ask, helping her right herself. “Might let you move a little easier.”
“You’re not supposed to.”
“I won’t tell if you won’t.” My urging is a test in many ways. If she’s open to breaking the rules in this small way, what else is she open to?
“I can manage, thank you.” Her tone is prim as she pushes me away. “Do I look helpless or something?”
I can’t help but approve of her answer. “You look soft and sweet.”
She scowls, and I grin to myself.
The types of buildings lining the busy streets grow less appealing the closer we get to the river and the docks there. The outskirts of Vastwarren are full of slums and run-down businesses squeezed together as tightly as possible, carving space out for themselves when there’s little space to be had. Along this dirty, congested strip are several brothels, many of which I’ve frequented in the past when I couldn’t acquire potions to handle the endless rut that’s upon me thanks to my ever-present knot. It’s early in the day, so the women aren’t hanging out the doors trying to pull in passersby. All is quiet.
I should stop in and ask about Sarya. See if anyone here recognizes her by the description or the name. I should…and yet I don’t want to leave Gwenna alone. Not in this part of town. I’ll just have to return later when Gwenna is safe and back at the nest.
Part of it is probably that I’m currently full of my knot-alleviating potion, and so I’m not feeling particularly sexual at the moment. Flirty, yes, but I’m always flirty. Yet my thoughts turn to Sarya most when I’m aroused, and I feel guilty that I haven’t looked for her more. If I’m in love, shouldn’t I be thinking of her constantly, instead of only when my knot is full? Then again, it’s not like there’s been anything between the two of us but sex. It’s hard to imagine what books Sarya might like, or what her favorite food is, when all I can think about is her throaty laugh and the way she touched me.