8. Chapter Eight

Two weeks had passed since the incident with the hornets, and Kalia had not seen a hair on Cranford Reed"s head. While Nadine was grateful for the intervention, even though she didn"t quite understand how Kalia figured it out, Mintie had been embarrassed. News of the ordeal spread like wildfire in a dry forest, kindling with the regulars before exploding in a spell of rumors and made-up stories. Each one was more outlandish than the next, and each one fueled a want from foul men with even more foul kinks that Mintie was having a hard time keeping up with.

Kalia had been sequestered to the upper balcony of the bordello as she healed, much as she often was when the madam didn"t want her answering questions about her split flesh or bruised skin. But Pete"s salve"s healing power, accompanied by the madam"s itching desire to return Kalia to her full employment, permitted her to the main room as long as an armed guard was kept by her side.

And luckily for Kalia, that guard was not Odion.

The privateer had fulfilled his promise to find a new position, leaving his lucrative job at the bordello only hours after their argument. She didn"t know where he had been transferred to, nor did she care to find out, but she was grateful that his replacement had the sexual prowess of a dying toad and was no closer to sticking his cock in her than Cranford Reed was.

As grateful as she was that the new guard was decidedly not Odion, she was equally displeased that he was there at all. He made stealing coins from the drunken men passed out against the cushions much harder. She still managed a coin or two, but only when the crowd was so heavy that he couldn"t spot her hands pickpocketing the men as she made her way to and from her station.

Kalia leaned against the red curtain that graced the marble wall, the stone smooth beneath her bare feet. She had opted for golden anklets in place of her usual strappy sandals, the heat from the summer weather pouring into the stale-aired brothel making her skin sticky. The string quartet in the opposite corner played a sultry song that the ladies used to grind against the laps of the men seated in the cushioned poufs. Aromatic smoke from the incense burning at the end tables curled high above the heads of the patrons.

It was stifling, and, not for the first time that night, Kalia was forced to take deep breaths to calm her rapidly racing heart. The heat only constricted in her lungs, tightening her throat into a narrow passage that made it difficult to swallow. She cleared it, shifting on her feet slowly enough that the guard sent her a long look.

"I"m not going anywhere," Kalia snapped in return, adjusting her satin dress to cover the tops of her breasts. She felt raw. And, despite the dress having a slit that showed off the majority of her tanned left leg, she wanted to take it off. The fabric rubbed against her skin, flaying an unknown nerve open. She needed out of this bordello, out of this city. And having him right fucking there all night long was an obstacle that she couldn"t figure out how to cross. "I can move without your permission."

The guard scoffed, and his response earned him an eye roll. She bit back the additional retort on the tip of her tongue, instead sweeping her gaze over the new throng of clients who had waltzed through the door.

Five men, each clad in tunics and breeches that had certainly seen better days, crossed the threshold of the bordello, their eyes widening at the sight of the women dancing to the whine of the strings. Sailors. Kalia hated it when the sailors came into port. Loud, brash, and bringing the smell of rotting fish with them, the sailors weren"t nearly as enticing as the brothel ladies led them to believe. Something that Kalia liked to remind them of, and often.

Kalia lifted her chin to survey them over the growing crowd, scanning their tunics and frock coats for the telltale ship emblem that typically graced their left chest pockets. They didn"t have any pins or patches designating them to the navy or mercenary group. That meant they were more than likely pirates… and that was even worse.

"Come on, lads," a man pushed to the front of the group, clapping one hand on the shoulder of another as he passed. "We"ve been to six temples already. I think it"s time to take a break while we"re on land, don"t you?" He lifted a hand to tighten the strap of his eye patch, the motion kinking his blonde hair at the back of his head. "We"ve got enough coin to satisfy ourselves a few times over."

Grunts of laughter rose over the crowd as the five men walked past the marble staircase that led to the private bedrooms on the second floor.

Gods, Kalia hoped they would be quick. At the very least, she hoped their smell wouldn"t saturate the main room as the pirates" smell usually did. Her eyes followed the five men as they squeezed past a man on a barstool, his fingers digging into the hips of one of the women. Kalia glanced at the cracked door, nodding toward the madam who had stuck her nose from her office. The door clicked shut, and Kalia knew what she needed to do, what she had been brought from Sha"Hadra to do.

The first two men of the group didn"t require Kalia"s intervention; their minds were already set on Iris and Calliope at the back of the main room. The ladies lounged on their poufs, their legs spread wide, as they beckoned the two men toward them with gesturing fingers. The two pirates scuttled forward, pushing straight through the gap that had split in the crowd.

The third man swept his eyes over the iron chandeliers that hung from the ceilings, taking in the gold that adorned the end tables and bar counter. Kalia began to wonder if he was trying to figure out how to steal them when his gaze finally landed on Nadine, who was descending the stairs as she fluffed her hair and blotted at the lipstick smeared near the corners of her mouth. A vision collided in Kalia"s mind, barreling down the bond she had bridged. He wanted her, wanted her mouth around his cock, and the feeling of her moans vibrating down to his balls.

Kalia sent another vision down the bond, changing his initial one just enough that Nadine glanced up at him through her lashes, her cheeks hollowed as she took him. Kalia knew how to manipulate these men and knew what they wanted, even if they didn"t know themselves.

And it seemed to work, as the third man nearly tripped over the edge of the area rug while hurrying to meet her at the bottom of the stairs, pulling out a handful of copper coins as he went. Nadine"s brows rose as she glanced at Kalia, but she only sent a nod of confirmation before turning back to the final two men.

The fourth had sidled up to the bar, a stein of fion clenched tightly in his fist. That was good enough for now. Fion was the remedy for an anxious man, and Kalia knew better than to push someone who wasn"t ready to dive into the world of women. She had made that mistake before, which usually resulted in a disastrous encounter with losing a potential return customer. Though from the visions flicking through his mind, he had no limit to his imagination, and the liquid courage would be minimal. Perfect.

Kalia turned to the fifth man, the blonde with the eye patch, and focused on him. He shuffled on his feet, glancing uncomfortably around the bordello with his single eye. Hand on the pommel of his cutlass, hand back to his side. Shoulders squared toward the door, shoulders swiveled to face the bartender. He moved as though he were trying to find a position that looked natural and realized that he was failing. And she was bored enough to be intrigued by it.

She pushed her magic forward, infiltrating his mind with ease.

Well, that was certainly peculiar. Instead of the usual visions of dancing women and sultry stares, his thoughts were fraught with old maps, ruby gemstones, and the guard who stood at Kalia"s side. Kalia furrowed her brow, glancing inconspicuously toward the man at her right.

Him?Kalia returned her stare to the one-eyed man. She wasn"t one to judge, having had her fair share of dalliances with both men and women herself, but him. The man kept sliding his gaze toward the guard, attempting to keep his single eye low to the ground. Kalia made another pass at the guard, narrowing her attention onto him once more. She couldn"t see it. The thin lips, the wide-set eyes, the high nasal bridge, the curled sneer as though someone had run a crate of bad oysters under his pointed chin.

The guard turned to Kalia, leveling her with a glare that would have melted any of the younger women to a puddle of nerves. Kalia merely returned it, deciding to reach out to brush an antagonizing hand down his forearm. His knuckles whitened as he curved his fingers into fists, crossing his arms over his chest in warning. Kalia watched from her periphery as the one-eyed man looked away, the tips of his ears reddening.

"Sir, how much time do we have?" One of the other men called from across the room, his voice rising above the noise.

Kalia grimaced. Pirates. His bold tone drew the attention of those seated at the bar counter.

The one-eyed man spun on the heel of his boots, putting his back to the guard as though he had been caught red-handed trying to steal a fresh loaf of bread from a Sha"Hadra market. Twenty minutes, Thomas. Long enough to bury your face between a pair of thighs." His laugh was gruff. "I don"t think you"ll need much longer than that."

Thomas grinned, and Kalia noticed that a top front tooth was missing. "Maybe I"ll have time for two." He paused, tilting his head toward Mintie, who had just finished with her third man of the night. "Get yourself one, aye, Alaric? I heard that one is popular."

Kalia wrinkled her nose in disgust. Gods, fucking pirates. She glanced through the stained window, staring at the cool moonlight slicing across the cobblestone. It cast the darkened gaslamps in silver as they awaited lighting. She spotted the men with the flamed torches making their way down the street, and, in the best case, the lamps would be lit by the time it was time for these men to return to their ship.

Kalia could hardly wait.

"Gotta keep my wits for the captain," Alaric responded with a sly smile that Kalia knew covered his lie. That man had no interest in the ladies of the bordello. Kalia thought he didn"t have much interest in women at all. "I don"t want to be smelling like cunt when we deliver the bad news to the captain."

That seemed to sober Thomas. "Should we be…" He trailed off, looking over his shoulder as though this captain might burst through the front door of the bordello in the next moment. "I mean, should we get back then?"

Alaric swept his gaze through the haze of incense smoke, the hilt of his cutlass glinting in the firelight. "Give them a few minutes. We"re all dead men anyways."

Kalia tilted her head toward the two men, perking her left ear to better hear over the string instruments.

"Did the captain even tell you who we were looking for?" Thomas asked, crossing his arms over his chest. Mintie came up behind him, caressing the top of his shoulder with a gentle hand. He ignored her, fixing his expectant stare on Alaric. "Maybe we should double back and revisit one of the temples to see if we missed something?"

Alaric shook his head, leaning an elbow on the wooden surface of the bar. The bartender slid a stein of fion next to Alaric"s arm before grabbing the stained rag from his apron to wipe a spill. Alaric nodded, wrapping his hand around the stein and taking a large gulp. He wiped his mouth with the back of his hand before answering. "Captain gave me strict instructions. One pass to not draw attention. If we don"t find anything today, we"ll return in a few months." There was a clink of metal against wood as he set the stein down. "We"ll still be flayed within an inch of our lives, hence—" He gestured vaguely toward the two men in the corner, both locked in a tight embrace with Iris and Calliope.

Kalia watched as Thomas bit his lip, contemplation blanketing his features. "Do you know what we"re looking for?" He finally asked, ignoring Mintie for a second time as she pressed her bare breasts into the side of his arm. Her expression downturned into a scowl when she realized he had lost interest.

"I was given an idea," Alaric responded as he took another sip from his stein. A drunken man wobbled forward, jostling Alaric"s arm and sending a wave of fion cresting over the rim of the pewter tankard. Alaric snarled as he pushed the man away, who merely stumbled further into the crowd. "Captain heard the stories from a woman aboard The Phantom Night and wanted to learn. He said that I would know when I saw it." His snort echoed into the half-filled stein, and he shook his head and took another gulp.

"What is it, then?" Thomas pressed on, leaning into Alaric enough that Kalia was forced to adjust. The guard gave her another long glance before shifting his focus to the crowd. "What are we looking for?"

A sudden shout swallowed Alaric"s answer as the drunken man stumbled into Mintie, who had found another client to keep her company. Fists flew through the air as the shouting intensified. The guard at Kalia"s side pushed back his shoulders as he walked into the throng, separating the two men with relative ease.

Irritation pinched at the spot behind Kalia"s navel. She wanted to know things whether or not she was involved in them, and a vague mission by a pirate captain was the precise thing she needed to know. The madam called her nosy, but she preferred the term curious. There wasn"t much for her to live for. This was something.

Leaning back against the marble wall, Kalia sent another curl of her power toward Alaric. She navigated through the first layers of his mind, pushing past the visions of old maps and ruby gemstones. An aching settled into the base of her skull, but she ignored that, too. She needled through the small spaces of his thoughts, rummaging through old memories of childhood and lovers from long ago.

It was certainly interesting, though. His memories, the ones she had brought to the forefront, were…old. The clothing style, how their hair was worn, and the shops on the main artery that ran through the capital city were not recognizable, especially in the last fifteen years.

Kalia wiped the sweat that had formed on her brow, the thin sheen collecting into droplets that ran down her temple. Alaric"s mind was more complex to wade through than that of most sailors or pirates she had encountered. His memories and visions clamped tightly to his subconscious as though he were afraid to let them go. She picked at them, attempting to peel them from his grasp.

Alaric grimaced, slapping a palm against his forehead.

"What is it, boss?" Thomas asked as Alaric fell against the counter, tipping his stein over, where it clattered to the marble floor. "Alaric?"

Kalia"s power wedged into his memories like hooks, pushing and shoving as she wrangled with him. She shouldn"t keep going. She should let him go, should let him— He pulled her under, and the shout he let out as he collapsed to his knees was muffled, as though they had both been submerged in the bay. But it was there she finally glimpsed what she was looking for.

She saw flashes of parchment and the roll spread wide on a wooden desk. Djinn. Magic. Luminaria. The words inked on the parchment were slightly smeared. She took in a breath, smelling wood shavings and mint leaves. There was a muscled forearm, and the shirt"s sleeve rolled to the elbow to reveal tanned skin covered in dark markings—a sweep of brown hair, a firm hand gliding down the parchment.

Kalia was shoved from Alaric"s mind, and she stumbled back, slamming her shoulder against the marble column. She let out a hiss of pain as the guard rushed over, holding out his hands to help her stand. She pushed him away, chest still heaving as she struggled to take in a breath.

"I"m fine, I"m fine," she rasped, straightening her red satin dress. The tightness of the straps smarted against her shoulder, still sore from the lashes and now threatening to bruise from her fall against the column. He reached for her a final time, and she pushed him away again. "Do not touch me."

The guard held up his hands and stepped away, scoffing. "It must be hot in here," he said, placing his hand on the pommel of his cutlass once more. "More than one of you is dropping."

Kalia swept her hair over her shoulder and glanced around, settling back into her nonchalant lean against the marble wall. Djinn? Luminaria? Going through Alaric"s mind didn"t put hers at ease. Instead, it only fueled her curiosity further.

Her gaze slid over the crowd, landing on the blonde-haired, one-eyed man. Her heart lurched in her chest, thunking uncomfortably against her ribs. Alaric, it seemed, had recovered from her probing. His face, though pale and clammy, was turned toward her, his one eye narrowed as it roamed her face. Their eyes connected, and his stare darkened as it bored into her own.

The sounds around them muffled once more. It all ceased to exist for that moment, time stopping just long enough that the garbled hum of chattering and moaning came to a silent pause. It was a long minute before Alaric broke the contact and turned to shake off Thomas, who had busied himself with wiping the spilled fion from Alaric"s stained tunic.

There was no way…he couldn"t have…he didn"t…Kalia swallowed past the brick that had formed in her throat and looked away to watch Mintie drag a client up the staircase. The whine of the string band returned at full force, a loud blast to her already sensitive head.

Though the group of pirates had seemed to move on, stumbling from the bordello only minutes later, Kalia couldn"t help the unsettled feeling that nestled in the pit of her belly. She shook it off. She was being ridiculous.

But as Alaric eyed her one last time through the fogged glass windows, she wondered if she had finally taken her magic a step too far.