Midnight Jewel
Page 48

   “I’ll be attending one there tonight.” His expression turned sly. “But it’ll probably be a lot different than the one you’ll go to.”
   “How so, Mister— I’m so sorry. I missed your name.” I’d been too distracted when Aiana introduced us.
   “Miller. Abraham Miller. Cornelius hosts the best poker games in this colony. Maybe any colony. A bunch of us are heading way out to his place as soon as this lets out. Should be fun. We’ll have a lot to talk about after this, and maybe I’ll make some coin on the side.”
   Abraham Miller.
   I knew that name. I’d heard it just a few nights ago when I’d told Silas and Grant about Theodore Craft. Abraham Miller worked in the port’s customs office and was suspected of forging ship manifests for the conspirators. And find out if Abraham Miller was the customs inspector on duty. We really need to search his place one of these days, if we can ever get a safe chance.
   “I wish you good luck then, Mister Miller,” I said. “Isn’t the Chambers plantation well outside of town? Seems like you’ll have a late night.”
   His lips flattened into a straight line. “Yes, that’s the one downside about his games. Takes over an hour to get there, even by horse. Their family used to keep a town house here in the city but sold it over the winter. No idea why.”
   When that dance ended, Aiana told me I could have a short break. As we walked toward the dais, I whispered, “I have some information that Grant might want. Do you think you could get a message to him tonight?”
   She turned, puzzled. “I thought you were done with all of that.”
   “Why?”
   “Because I spoke to Silas the other day. He told me about your trip to see him.” She didn’t elaborate on my illicit excursion, but her expression conveyed exactly what she thought of it. “He also said it was a bad idea having you involved and that you’d been cut out.”
   “He changed his mind. I think Grant talked him around.” I hoped she wouldn’t read the lie in me, that Grant simply hadn’t followed Silas’s instructions.
   “I wish he hadn’t.” Her frown deepened. “I can’t get anything to Grant tonight—not with all of this going on—but I’ll take a message in the morning.”
   “But—”
   “It can wait, Mira. And you’ll wait too. No more sneaking out. It’s my job to protect you, even if it’s from yourself.”
   I didn’t argue, not with that steel in her voice, but I couldn’t let the matter go so easily. She was wrong. My news couldn’t wait until morning, not when I knew for sure Abraham Miller would be away tonight. But how could I get it to Grant any sooner?
   Adelaide was on break too. I sat beside her, glad to rest my ankle. We recapped our nights and then fell into weary silence, simply content to watch the buzzing crowd. The Glittering Court might be the most dazzling guests here, but plenty of Cape Triumph’s leading citizens drew the eye in their own elaborately embellished and colored finery. They made a fascinating display as they moved about the room in dances and conversations, and I took a moment to appreciate what a truly incredible world I’d somehow ended up in. Then, amidst all that brightness, I caught sight of a dark spot. A laborer, stooped and clad in a dull, oversized coat, was pushing chairs out through the back door we’d used for our entrance. I couldn’t believe it.
   “What is it?” asked Adelaide, seeing me stand up.
   “I . . . it’s nothing. But I need . . . I need to check something. I’ll be right back.”
   I darted down the steps, feeling horrible for leaving her without a real explanation. But I had to know why Grant was here.
   It took some time to work my way through the packed room. A few guests regarded me with interest, but it was Aiana and the Thorns I needed to dodge. They were the ones who maintained my schedule here, and they’d know slipping out the back door wasn’t part of the agenda.
   I managed it unnoticed and found myself back in the holding room, which was mostly deserted, except for a couple of other laborers bringing in barrels of ale and wine. None of them was Grant, and I wondered where he’d gone.
   “Here she is, the sensation of the night.”
   I spun around and found Grant standing right behind me. He was in the disguise he’d worn at our first meeting but spoke to me in his regular voice. “What are you doing here? Checking up on me?”
   “Checking up on everyone.” The fleeting, upbeat Grant was gone. He was on the hunt again, focused and to the point. “You and your friends might be the alleged attraction, but this is the type of event that throws the rich and powerful together. It’s a great chance to watch and see who’s chummy with who.”
   “Whom,” I said. “Who’s chummy with whom.”
   “Don’t correct me on your second language.”
   “Isn’t it your second language too?”
   “I’ve been speaking it longer.”
   “Well, I’ve been studying its grammar longer. Look, it doesn’t matter. And I can tell you two people who are chummy. Cornelius Chambers and Abraham Miller.”
   “I already know that. They run in the same circles.”
   “Did you know Cornelius is having a poker game after the ball?”
   “People like me don’t make those kinds of guest lists.”
   “Abraham Miller does. He’ll be there. Late. And his town house will be all alone.”
   Understanding flashed across his face. “Mirabel . . .”
   “You can thank me later. Stop moving chairs, and get over there.”
   He sighed, hope fading. “If only. That’s a two-person job, and Silas is still away. You did good work, though.”