Page 20 of Silver & Gold
Raider had not been in Kastari since fleeing it ten years ago, but amid his buzz of anxiety was an unexpected happiness. This was his home city, and he was excited to show it to Seth.
Raider led Seth, Julian, and Adavasti (in tabby cat form) to the River Market, one of the city’s many bazaars. Being the least conspicuous, Julian went to buy food for the three of them. The ifrit vanished from sight.
The stalls of the River Market were tucked under the porches of the surrounding buildings. Fabric of every color stretched between the porches to offer shade from the late afternoon sun. Baskets held shining fish and an array of fruits, spices, and nuts. Scents of roasted meat and onion mingled with the less savory smells of animals and unwashed bodies. Chickens squawked in wicker cages and goats bleated on their tethers. Children dodged among the crowd of kaftans and robes that ranged from gauzy-sheer to stiffly embroidered silk.
“What are you worrying about?” Raider asked Seth as the Curator ignored the chaos to focus his narrow-eyed gaze on Julian. They were standing by a porch column painted with red irises. Raider was leaning comfortably against it, but Seth stood stiff as a sentry.
“He saw you,” Seth replied, his words barely discernible amid the cacophony of voices and the clattering of carts along the paved street, but Raider knew what he meant. Julian had seen the quicksilver.
Last night, Raider had used his quicksilver to break the boat’s chain, but it had been dark and he’d been wearing his kaftan. Today, when he’d stopped that spear from killing Seth, he’d been bare chested.
There was no chance that Julian had missed the sight. There was no way that the intelligent young arcanist, who had had spent months with Kahzir’s book, hadn’t realized what that meant. What Raider was.
Traveling at high speed down the river then navigating the port had yielded no opportunity to address that fact. Raider didn’t want to address it.
He focused his gaze on a fluttering strip of crimson fabric and said the only thing that mattered. “I had no choice. That spear—”
“I don’t like when you risk yourself for me.”
Raider glared at Seth. “I don’t give a shit.”
Seth’s jaw bunched as he ground his teeth, but his gaze never wavered from Julian. Balancing three parcels of food wrapped in plantain leaves, the young arcanist came weaving toward them through the crowd, the tabby cat now visible at his heels. Ignoring Seth’s sound of protest, Raider went out to meet him, taking two of the warm, delicious smelling bundles. He handed one to Seth, who had followed him.
As they walked, Raider opened his leaf wrapping, releasing a burst of fragrant steam. He plucked one of the fried plantain pieces from atop the seasoned pork and popped it into his mouth. Crispy and salty on the outside, sweet on the inside, it was sheer perfection.
“You were right,” Julian said around a mouthful. “The plantains here are really good.”
“Seth?” Raider prompted, watching Seth’s jaw work as he chewed. Why was everything Seth did so damn sexy?
Seth fished out another piece of plantain from his parcel. “Just as good as I remembered.”
Raider stopped dead, causing a man behind him carrying a basket of eels to bump into him. Pulling Raider into a walk again, Seth apologized to the man … in Kastalan.
“What the fuck, Seth?” Raider grumbled. “When were you here?”
“Fifteen years ago? I came here as a trainee with my mentor, Marcus, when he accompanied one of the scholars.”
Raider glared at him. “You didn’t think to mention that? Ever?”
Seth frowned, seeming confused. He stepped over some animal droppings. “It wasn’t relevant. Why? Why are you annoyed?”
“So many reasons, Seth, so many reasons.”
“I’ve never been here,” Julian put in as though trying to redirect the tense conversation.
“What reasons?” Seth demanded, ignoring Julian.
Raider shrugged. “I just find it interesting that lying by omission is in such a different category for you.”
“How did I omit it? We’ve literally never talked about it. I’ve been to a lot of places!”
“Ugh.”
They walked in silence for a while, eating their food and working their way into the heart of the bustling city. Amid so many people and so much activity, even Seth’s distinctive Curator garb didn’t draw much attention.
When they passed a street performer juggling oranges, Raider tossed a coin that he’d filched from Seth into the man’s collection basket. On another street, children kicked a ball back and forth. It rolled into Julian’s path. With a sandaled foot, he kicked it back to them. Rather, he tried to. It hit a set of steps and ricocheted off in the wrong direction. Shouting curses at Julian, the children went running after it.
Julian reddened. “Oops.”