He had expected them to say no, but Katje immediately smiled. “That would be best.”
Which means the matter is urgent. And he told them, but not me.
Gerek suppressed his frustration and smiled. Not very convincingly, because Theo flinched. “Let me arrange everything,” Gerek said. “Go to the common room and tell the maids to serve you an early supper. I should have money and horses for you within a few hours.”
Alone once more, in the quiet of his office, Gerek rested his head in his hands. He had accomplished much in the past three weeks. He had danced the great dance of secrets. And yet … he wanted nothing more than to hide in a quiet room, well away from this pleasure house and Lord Kosenmark’s intrigues. To forget all about ships and provisions and which men and women he could trust.
I want— I need a day of peace.
If he were to admit the truth, he wanted to sit with Kathe on that bench overlooking the harbor and listen to her so-called babbling. She was clever and kind and true. In her presence, he had a sense of competence, of completeness.
Kathe had not spoken to him in the ten days since Kosenmark departed. He knew she received the book—Hanne had told him about the episode in the kitchen. How the kitchen girls watched, whispering, as the runner handed over the gift. Kathe had thanked the runner, of course, and she smiled at Janna’s teasing, but she had said nothing. Not to Hanne or the other girls. Nor to Gerek himself.
He scribbled out the orders for money for Katje, Theo, and the Fortezzien man. Then he sent a runner to the stables for two fresh mounts, with tack, gear, and fresh provisions. Another runner went off to the agent, alerting him that two new crew members would join the ship’s company, and here was a letter written and sealed to confirm the order. It was a risk, this direct contact between Gerek and the captain, but he could not risk the delay with the usual channels.
Mistress Denk sent back three notes of hand to the bearer, each for the requested amount, each drawn from a different anonymous account. Gerek recorded the transactions and forwarded the notes to their proper recipients. Thereafter he deposited the true records in his magically sealed letter box and, as part of the usual fiction, wrote a new set of receipts for rare books in the official ledger. If anyone examined the records for this household, he thought, they would spend a hundred years untangling the truth.
He trudged down to the guards’ quarters and the office Ivvanus Bek held during Detlef Stadler’s absence. Bek was buried in his own paperwork, but he at once cleared off his desk and made himself available to Maester Hessler. Two guards with ship experience? He would suggest Ralf and Udo. Both had served Lord Kosenmark seven years, both had the requisite skills. Gerek gave directions to reach the ship and handed over the letter for the captain.
One more transaction, and then he would be free for the night. He took a roundabout path from the guards’ quarters, to the far side of the house, and up the stairs to the second floor. His own sense of time said it had to be late at night, but the golden sunlight of late afternoon pouring through the windows gave him the lie. He rounded the first landing and paused to catch his breath. From far off, he heard voices raised in cheerful conversation. Closer by, in one of the private rooms, he heard the sudden cry of pleasure, followed by the whispered words “slower, softer, yes.”
Gerek drew a painful breath and continued up the stairs. Usually he was spared such scenes until much later, but sometimes clients requested early visits. Sex and more sex until we are sated, he thought miserably. Until we hardly notice its delights.
His path took him along a gallery that overlooked the common room. He paused and looked down below. Half a dozen chambermaids were at work, brushing and dusting and sweeping. Several courtesans occupied the couches, while Eduard played at the hammerstrings—his fingers running over the keys in a soft and melancholy tune.
They were all beautiful. All of them trained to pleasure. For a moment, he wondered what it might be like, to be a client of this house, to have a man or woman exert themselves to give him delight. His stomach pinched