The Cask of Cranglimmering, page 16
"But of course, my dear. Now, then, if you need me again, you can find the place?"
Svetlana winced. "I doubt that."
"I’ll give you a little secret. As you leave, turn left at the end of the street, left on the second street, and then keep turning left at the second street all the way out."
"Wouldn’t that just put me back where I started?"
"Some places, maybe, but not here, darling. Ta!"
Chapter Fifteen
Svetlana caught a cab at the entrance to Chickie’s neighborhood to give herself some time to try to put together the pieces she had. If what Mirage said was true, then Lady de Whittvy was the key to finding the Cranglimmering. If what Bobby believed was accurate, then maybe it was the Kavisolis she ought to be looking at. Either way, she didn’t see an easy path to the riches promised by locating the cask.
By the time the cab stopped at the docks, she had no better sense of a next step than she had prior to returning to Heliopolis. She walked across the space to The Silent Monsoon, still deep in thought. It wasn’t until she got there that she realized something was amiss. The ship was still docked where she had left it, but the gangplank was up.
"Athos?" she shouted. "Annette?"
"Just a minute, Captain," Annette replied, her face appearing over the bulkhead. "We’ll get the gangplank back out."
"Why is it up in the first place?"
Annette smiled. "Because someone brought us a present."
Svetlana wanted to ask her more, but Annette disappeared again. A moment later, the winches began to run out the gangplank. Svetlana leapt from the ground to the end of it as soon as it drew near and ran the rest of the way onto the boat.
In the center of the deck, Athos and Jo stood beside Corporal Richards, who was seated on one of the mess chairs and gagged. Nearby, Indigo tinkered with something that looked like a pair of small rockets. Annette strolled up beside Svetlana, carrying a coiled rope. "Look what the cat dragged in. And by cat, I mean ... okay, just look who showed up."
"Showed up?"
"Yep. Flew on board with that rocket pack. Wanted to talk to you. Athos decided that maybe a little payback was in order first."
Svetlana spun toward Athos. "How is that a good idea? You’re just going to make him mad!"
"Don’t think it matters this time, Captain. Notice anything different about Richards?"
Svetlana paused and scrutinized Richards. Stubble darkened his cheeks, and his eyes looked a bit sunken. She gasped. "No uniform?"
"No uniform," Athos confirmed. "Seems our friend Mister Richards is no longer a corporal with the Port Authority. Meaning he has no authority. So payback."
Svetlana smiled. "Well then, why is he here?"
"He said his information was for no one but you. So we gagged him before we tied him up, just to make sure that juicy gossip didn’t get to anyone else first."
Svetlana took the rope from Annette and sauntered up to Richards. "You know one of the things that we learn in the Air Fleet? Knots. Lots and lots of knots."
Richards mumbled something unintelligible through the gag.
"Sorry, didn’t catch that?" Svetlana drawled.
"... don’t have to tie ..." Richards said, a bit louder this time.
"Oh, I don’t?" Svetlana frowned. "But I want to." She unwound a length of the coiled rope and began wrapping the rest around Richards, starting at the level of his armpits.
"Make it good and tight, Cap’n," Jo said. For once, she wasn’t hiding below decks, and she seemed as enthusiastic about finally having Richards at their mercy as Svetlana was.
"Can’t make it too tight on his torso, Jo," Annette said. "He needs to breathe a little bit to be able to talk."
Svetlana shifted the wrapping pattern to hold the tops of Richards legs to the seat of the chair, but did not linger long there. Winding the rope around his legs and the lower uprights of the chair, she tied a constrictor knot around his ankles, then rose and made a matching knot at the top. She stood on his toes as she untied the gag. "So."
Richards sighed. "So. I’ve got information you want. What’re you offering for it?"
"Mmmm, that we don’t cast off right now, and then drop you when we’re done?" Jo suggested.
Svetlana hushed Jo. "I don’t have much to offer you, Richards. I’m just a humble ship captain, looking for something that’ll fetch me a mighty pretty penny. Till I’ve got that, all I can offer you is the warm hospitality of my ship. And a promise that I won’t call Air Fleet and tell them that you’re trespassing on said ship."
He paled. "Don’t call Air Fleet. Please."
Svetlana looked at Richards. The man trembled beneath her gaze, but she suspected it wasn’t her that was making him nervous. "Why not?"
Richards bit his lip. "Air Fleet was behind Kavisoli’s inauguration being disrupted."
"Really? Why?"
Richards shrugged, as much as he could with his arms bound behind him. "They didn’t tell me that. Officially, they didn’t tell me anything. But I know they’re involved. The bomb plans, the dismissal from the Port Authority, all of it goes back to Air Fleet."
"Bomb plans? You’re trying to tell me that the Air Fleet, who had an inordinate number of high ranking officers at Kavisoli’s inauguration, wanted you to bomb it?"
"I got the bomb plans from someone ... unaffiliated with the Air Fleet. But I recognized the way the blueprints were drawn. Had to be Air Fleet."
"Uh-huh. Had to be. Who gave you the plans?"
"This urchin lordling. Goes by the name of The Crow Man."
Svetlana glanced at Athos and Jo, who both stood behind Richards. Athos was barely stifling a laugh, while Jo’s eyes went wide. Indigo turned his attention to Richards for a moment, and Svetlana gave him a quick warning glance. He nodded and went back to poking at the rocket pack. "What did this ‘Crow Man’ look like?" Svetlana asked.
"Tall. Real tall. Thin as a rail. Wears a top hat, and this whole suit made from crow’s feathers. His hair even looks like it’s made from feathers."
"Okay, so this ‘Crow Man’ gives you these bomb plans, you make the bomb, you give it to Mirage to take to Rrusadon, and then what? You just figured it’d blow and ruin Kavisoli’s life, and ... I’m at a loss here, Richards."
"I made sure you’d hear that Kavisoli was getting the Cranglimmering, so you’d go look into it. Two birds, one stone, and all that."
"Okay, that part I’ll buy," Svetlana said. "But the rest of it doesn’t make any sense. A lot of people could draw up bomb plans that look like they’re Air Fleet." She shrugged. "C’mon, if Athos or I drew them, you’d probably think they were official Air Fleet. If either of us were an engineer, at least."
"What about a rogue element within the Air Fleet? I’m thinking this Crow Man was only in with one part of the Air Fleet, because the rest of ‘em got upset about the bomb. When I got hauled in for my dismissal, I could’ve sworn the staff sergeant had something on Air Fleet stationery."
Svetlana nodded, lips drawn tight. "Sure, that makes sense. Richards, do you have any proof of any of this? Or should I have Annette check you for signs of a head injury?"
"No." Richards sighed. "No proof. I was keeping the plans at my apartment, but when I got home after getting the boot, they were gone."
"Oh, that’s convenient," Jo said with a smirk.
Svetlana agreed with Jo, but she didn’t say as much out loud. She decided to try a different angle. "Have you ever met Admiral Beauregard?"
Richards frowned and shook his head.
"See, here’s the thing. When I cut my ties with Air Fleet, there was one person there who didn’t want me to go. And that was Admiral Beauregard. He and I have a pretty good relationship, at least most days. If what you say is true, then I should be marching into his office and confronting him about this bomb. Only that wouldn’t make a lick of sense. Because had your stupid bomb gone off, you’d have killed him too. I’m not buying it, Richards. Gonna give me the real story?"
"Look, all I know is what I saw. The blueprints looked like they came from Air Fleet. I guess they could’ve come from somewhere else."
"Like the Crow Man?" Svetlana asked.
"Are we about done?" Richards snapped. "I can’t feel my feet."
"If you’d stop trying to get loose, you wouldn’t have that problem," Svetlana snarled. "Okay, so let’s say that I buy even half of your story. What do you get out of siccing us on the Air Fleet?"
"Look, I just figured--" Richards trailed off. When he spoke again, his voice was softer, barely loud enough for Svetlana to hear without leaning closer. "I’ve got nowhere else to go. Tom and Henry wouldn’t even look me in the eye when they escorted me out."
Svetlana sighed. The last refuge of a desperate man. Yeah, that sounds like us. She still didn’t trust him, but he’d given her the first inkling of information that she could use. She pulled out her knife and slashed through the upper constrictor knot. "Go home, Richards," she said, reaching down and cutting the other knot, leaving him in a coil of rope. "You stay out of our way, and we’ll be sure to stay out of yours." A smile twisted her lips as she nodded to the rocket pack. "You’ll be leaving that. Indy’s not done playing with it yet."
Richards shrugged his way out of the coiled rope and shook his head as he walked toward the gangplank. "Don’t come crying to me when I’m right, Tereshchenko."
"Don’t worry. I won’t ever have to," she snapped back.
As soon as Richards was away from the ship, Svetlana looked around at her crew. "Well, that was an entertaining little farce."
Jo nodded. "Crow Man’s an urchin lordling now?"
"Well, to be fair, he does employ a higher than average number of children who live on the streets," Athos said.
"Yep," Svetlana agreed. "Indy, put that thing away. You can play with it later. We need to go find your friends."
~
Indigo lagged behind Svetlana as they walked. Each time she noticed he was not beside her, she turned to find him looking in a shop window at some fancy gadget. She also noticed that he was looking at her sidelong.
"What’s going on, Indy?"
"Nothin’."
Svetlana sighed. "Here’s the deal. Tell me what’s bothering you. We’re not going to go until you do. And until we’ve talked to the Crow Man, we can’t go back to the ship either. Which means no more tinkering on the rocket pack till we’re done."
Indigo pressed his lips together in a tight line. "I don’t like the Crow Man," he finally responded.
"Why not?"
"He’s scary. Tells people he’ll have their eyes and feed them to his birds."
"Hmmm. Ever seen anyone who lost their eyes to the Crow Man?"
"No."
"Then do you suppose maybe he doesn’t actually have anyone’s eyes out?"
"There’s an eyeball on top of his walking stick."
Svetlana balled her hand up into a fist and held it out in front of her. "Indy, that eyeball’s this big. I don’t think it came from a person. Anyway, he only says he’ll take the eyes of people who speak out of turn. If you keep quiet, he won’t threaten you."
Indigo nodded slowly. "I can stay quiet."
"Good. But I need your help to find Deliah."
"Oh, her?" Indigo pointed at a dilapidated building beside the store whose window had caught his attention most recently. "She’s been following us this whole time."
Svetlana peered into the gloom of the building’s doorway. The setting sun made little progress through the dirt-caked windows but still caused enough of a glare that she had a hard time distinguishing details. All she could see was blackness, none of Deliah’s bright colored hair or clothing.
"Deliah?" she called, taking a step toward the building. The door jerked open about half a foot, though she still couldn’t see any inhabitants. Indigo’s hand brushed against hers for a moment, and then he gave the door a push, swinging it wide open.
"May we come in?" he asked, his voice wavering.
"Yes." The single word sounded ominous as it echoed out from the darkness.
Indigo pulled his goggles from around his neck and slid them up. He giggled as he focused them, and Svetlana saw traces of the blue light that had surrounded the lenses when Annette had used the x-ray setting. "Bones," he murmured.
"Indigo, you are one creepy boy," she muttered. "Worried about getting your eyes taken out, and then laughing about skeletons?" Svetlana shuddered, but followed him into the building.
Under her feet, something crunched. The sound was such that she could have thought of it as leaves or other debris if Indigo hadn’t already told her that there were bones. Now she imagined the entire building was carpeted with them, and there was nowhere to step where she wouldn’t disturb some poor soul’s final resting place. She moved as slowly as she could while still feeling Indigo’s presence nearby.
Svetlana’s eye adjusted to the darkness once she was surrounded by it, but it was still difficult for her to see much beyond the ghostly glow of Indigo’s goggles. She again considered handing over her monocular to the boy to add new settings, but in addition to Indigo’s stack of successful projects, he also had an enormous pile of those he had discarded as boring. Few things that wound up in that category ever found their way out of Indigo’s workshop, and she was unwilling to lose her monocular permanently.
Deliah’s face was the first thing Svetlana could make out. Indigo stood near enough to her that his goggles lit her skin, eerily pale in the blue light. "Hello, Captain," she said. "Thank you for bringing Indy to visit."
"I’m sorry that it can’t be a very long visit, Deliah. We need to speak with the Crow Man."
Deliah frowned but nodded solemnly. "He knows."
Before Svetlana could ask how he knew, a rush of cold air surrounded her, and the sound of flapping wings echoed throughout the dark space. Deliah’s face vanished back into the gloom, and Indigo’s hands clutched at Svetlana’s trousers. She found his hands and held them, but then his legs began to kick, as though he was trying to run. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she pulled him close. "Shh. Just be quiet, Indy."
A sphere, glowing purple, rolled across the floor and stopped a few feet in front of her. Deliah’s small hand covered the top of the ball, and the girl giggled, ghostly in the darkness. Svetlana had enough presence of mind to tug the goggles away from Indigo’s eyes and shield her own good eye. A quick popping sound, and the room was lit by a whiter light, still tinged with purple around the edges.
As soon as Svetlana took in what there was to see, she almost wished the room had stayed dark. A dozen young men and women dressed in black had surrounded her, Indigo, and Deliah. All of the sullen gazes, framed by gaunt faces, were fixed on Svetlana.
One of the girls, wearing a threadbare cloak that had been patched with stray feathers, spoke. "You wish to see the Crow Man?" Though her cloak was not impressive, she had more feathers on it than any other person in the room. Svetlana knew it marked her as a leader among this group of Crow’s Children.
"That’s correct."
"We can make that happen." The girl smiled. A wickedly curved silver blade slid from her sleeve into her hand. The tip, which looked more like a scoop than a point, caught Svetlana’s attention, and she swallowed.
"I’m requesting audience."
Several of the assembled Crow’s Children drew back at her statement. The girl pursed her lips before growling, "His Grace does not accept requests from no ones. Who do you think are you, to ask for him to see you?"
"Captain Svetlana Tereshchenko, of The Silent Monsoon. More importantly, I’m the one who’s heard disparaging comments about the Crow Man’s involvement with an officer of the Port Authority, and perhaps the Air Fleet." She paused, letting her words sink in. More of the Children drew back, and there were whispers as well. "I’d like to give him the opportunity to address those comments, and if his answers are satisfactory, I’m prepared to give him the name of his accuser."
The girl frowned, gaze darting to one of the other girls in the group. "You ... you would come willingly to share this information?"
"To be sure, there’s going to be some exchanging of information. Tit for tat. But yes. I have information for the Crow Man. Take me to him." She glanced down at Indigo, who had gone rigid in her arms. "Myself and the boy. Neither of us to be harmed. And this girl, Deliah, she is under my protection as well."
"Deliah is already under the Crow Man’s protection." The leader of the Crow’s Children sighed, and plucked one of the feathers from her cloak. She handed it to Deliah and nodded solemnly. "The boy and yourself. We will take you to see the Crow Man."
~
The room that the Crow’s Children took Svetlana and Indigo to was far more civilized than the run-down building where they had spoken with his messengers. Though she and Indigo had been blindfolded as they made their way across the city, Svetlana had a good sense of where they had been taken. The uphill hike and fresh air, untainted by garbage or sulphur, put them in one of the best neighborhoods of Heliopolis.
The décor in the room led Svetlana to the same conclusion. Overstuffed chairs, plush carpets, and what appeared to be real wood paneling surrounded them. Sunlight filtered through the windows and caught dust motes swirling in the air, but the room itself was tidy, despite the shelves being burdened with an overabundance of small, shiny knickknacks.
Svetlana heard a muffled click from behind her. Indigo spun to look in that direction. Svetlana sighed and put a hand on his shoulder. Looking him in the eyes, she mouthed, "Stay quiet."
"Captain Tereshchenko." The voice was that of a man, inflected with the sing-song quality that many of the street urchins used. "My Children tell me you have witnessed aspersions against my character."
"Indeed." Svetlana rose from the overstuffed chair she had perched on the edge of and turned to face the Crow Man. The man fit Richards’ description--tall and gaunt, with black hair like feathers brushing across his cheeks and trailing over the shoulders of his feather-covered suit.
