“You could take Books to translate for you,”Amaranthe said.
“Most men would prefer to take a woman on adinner date with the emperor,” Maldynado said.
“Well, if Basilard could find one that couldtranslate for him, I suppose. I’m too notorious to show up at sucha venue these days. But anyway, Basilard are you interested inentering? Sicarius can help you train.”
I can train on my own, Basilard signedswiftly.
Amaranthe gave Sicarius a bemused smile. “Iguess nobody else appreciates your stair-climbing sessions the wayI do.”
Sicarius did not respond. Theirrelationship-if they could be said to have one-baffled Basilard.She treated him like a friend and confidant, and half the time hedid not even respond when she spoke to him.
“Where are Books and Akstyr?” Amarantheasked.
“They went back to the hideout,” Maldynadosaid. “Akstyr found…I don’t know. Bas, did we decide it was acork?”
Magic, Basilard signed.
“Oh?” Amaranthe asked. “Related to thekidnappings?”
“I’m not sure precisely,” Maldynado said. “Iwas looking for my pants at the time.”
Amaranthe opened her mouth, then shut it,probably deciding she was better off not knowing. “Have there beenany more kidnappings?” she asked. “Are the people who disappearedlast night still gone?”
Three total, Basilard signed. Twoforeigners and one Turgonian man from a different…place.Though he had added a lot of signs, giving his language versatilityamongst the group, saying “The Chevrok Satrapy” was beyond him fornow, but Amaranthe nodded understanding, and he went on, Theenforcers I overheard are starting to accept that something strangeis going on. They’re blaming Sicarius since he was sighted thismorning.
“Supposedly sighted,” Amaranth said.“I wonder if we can find out who sent that fellow and what hewanted to accomplish. Basilard, I apologize, but my reason forwanting someone from our team in the Imperial Games isn’t entirelyselfless. I’m hoping an insider might be more likely to hear aboutwhat’s going on. Maybe they’ll even target you for one of thekidnappings.” She bounced on her toes, then caught herself. “Sorry,that should probably not excite me.”
I’ll take solace knowing you’d be just ashappy if you could pose as an athlete and get kidnapped.
Maldynado snorted. “That’d make her evenhappier.”
“Basilard, you’ll need someone to play therole of trainer and translator,” Amaranthe said. “Akstyr and Booksmay be busy, so…”
Maldynado slung an arm over Basilard’sshoulder. “I’m always happy to spend time at the stadium and watchall the fine…events.”
Just keep your pants on, Basilardsigned.
Amaranthe opened her mouth again, shut itagain, and shook her head.
“No promises.” Maldynado winked.
CHAPTER 5
An ice wagon trundled across the grounds,selling blocks to vendors who turned them into chilled tea andstrawberry juice. Amaranthe thought about buying a glass of thelatter, but the midday sun left few shadows for wanted women tohide in. Clad in white athlete togs again, she was sitting on abench on the edge of the grounds with a wide-brimmed sun hat pulledlow over her eyes while she waited for Fasha to meet her. Sicariushad pointed out that night meetings would be safer, but Amaranthewanted to listen in on the local gossip. The trail leading from thestadium to the baths and barracks wound past her perch, and she hadalready overheard quite a bit.
“…need more guards,” a woman withsweat-dampened bangs told her comrade as they strolled past.
“The enforcers aren’t admitting to anything,”the other woman answered. “They’re saying nothing’s going on, thatthe missing athletes probably went home.”
“Oh, sure, they trained all year, and thenjust went home before the competition even…”
The women walked out of hearing range.Amaranthe bent her head to study the short list of names on anotepad in her lap. Five athletes were missing now: two foreigners,including Fasha’s sister; and three Turgonians, one a local, andtwo from other satrapies. She recognized the local man, awarrior-caste wrestler, because they were the same age and hadcompeted in the junior events at the same time. What eluded her wasthe common theme. All of the missing people had disappeared in themiddle of the night from their barracks or, in the wrestler’s case,a private room in the lodge.
“You should pay attention to yoursurroundings when you’re in a public area,” Sicarius said from theshrubs a couple of feet behind the bench.
Amaranthe stifled her usual twitch ofsurprise and did not lift her head, wondering if she could wheedleher way out of a lecture. “I knew you were on the grounds.”
A long moment passed before he answered. “Youare assuming that you’re safe, simply because I’m in the area?”
“You know I’m not at my most attentive whenI’m plotting and mulling. I’ve come to trust you’ll keep an eye onme.”
“That’s reckless,” Sicarius said. “I’m yourcolleague, not your bodyguard, nor can I guarantee your safetysince I cannot walk about freely here. If you must study papers ina public area, you should scan your surroundings every fifteenseconds, ensuring you are aware of the movements and interests ofeveryone within a radius of at least… Why are you smiling?”
Actually, it was more of a grin. “You calledme a colleague,” Amaranthe said. “I’m flattered.”
“You are not taking my admonishmentseriously.”
“I am, too,” Amaranthe said.
Another pair of athletes was approaching, soAmaranthe left the bench to join Sicarius in the foliage.Mischievous branches tugged at her hat and rained leaves onto hershoulders. She dusted them off. As much as she liked the idea ofnature, it was difficult to maintain a tidy appearance whensurrounded by it.
“I’m just bad at admitting out loud that I’mwrong about something,” Amaranthe added.
“A character flaw you should correct.”
“Likely so.” She lifted her notepad,intending to ask his opinions about the names, but he surprised herby continuing.
“It would bother me if you died while I wasattending to biological needs.”
Amaranthe’s grin returned at the admission.“It would bother me if I died then, too. Or any time.” She handedhim the notepad. “These are the people missing thus far. Onedisappeared three nights ago, two the night before last-that waswhen Fasha’s sister went-and one last night. I’m trying to figureout what the common link is. After talking with Fasha, I figured itmight be another ploy against foreigners, but we now have moreTurgonians missing than outsiders. The wrestler, Deercrest, has wonoften, so I could see him being targeted as someone to get rid of.Though it’s not honorable to make opponents disappear, it’scertainly not without precedent in the history of the ImperialGames. But the other four are young no-names. One isn’t even oldenough to compete in the regular events; he was entered into thejunior Clank Race.”
“Perhaps they are promising contenders forthis year’s competitions,” Sicarius said.
“How would a kidnapper know? The qualifiersdon’t start until tomorrow. Sure, some people post their practicetimes, but most don’t, and the best athletes often only competehard enough to make the cut in the early rounds.” Amaranthe leanedagainst a tree. “Besides, who would want to get rid of multiplegood athletes? I could see rigging your own event, or your child’sevent, but why wrestling, running, and the Clank Race?”
As was often the case, Sicarius did notanswer, but she knew he was listening.
“Could it be a gambling scheme?” she mused.“People bet on the events, and some people bet a lot. Issomeone trying to set things up so they can guess the winners?”