Glass Swallow (20 page)

‘So, Peri, now you’ve got us on board this chunk of wood, what do we do now?’ asked Mikel, breaking into Peri’s reverie.

‘Land it as close to the barracks as we can. There’s a dock not far from the gates; the fishermen use it to bring their catch ashore. At any rate, we want to end up on the same side of the river as the city if we can.’

Mikel nodded. ‘I’ll do my best, but the river’s in charge of this little voyage.’

Rain got to her feet and picked up a coil of rope, paying it out to judge its length. ‘Anyone swim?’

The scavengers shook their heads. Peri admitted to being able to manage a few strokes but no major skill.

‘What about you, Ret?’

‘Me?’

She smiled encouragingly at him. ‘You’ll have to get used to people expecting you to take part in things.’

‘But I … no, I don’t swim.’

‘It’ll have to be me then. I’m pretty good—my father made sure of that and the sea is a lot warmer where I come from so swimming’s a pleasure. I used to go to the lagoon near my city most holidays in the summer. When we get near, I’ll go ashore and get some help to pull us in.’

‘You’ll do no such thing,’ said Peri, right on cue.

‘I knew he’d say that. Someone sit on him, please. I can manage this, Peri. Let me do it.’ She wriggled out of her tunic, leaving on her cotton shift, and then looped the rope over one shoulder and across her chest. ‘If I get into difficulties, you just pull me back.’

Sly slapped Peri on the back. ‘Let her do it, my friend. If she says she can manage, it’s better than floating this crazy vessel all the way out to sea.’

Tight lipped, Peri nodded. ‘All right. But give me the other end.’

With a huff, she placed the rope in his hand. ‘You really need to work on that calm thing you mentioned. Will here do?’

Mikel shaded his eyes. ‘Aye, I’ll take us as close as I can. See that little platform there?’

‘Yes.’

‘I think that’s the dock Peri was talking about. There are some people milling about on the shore—a market of sorts—doesn’t look too threatening. Do your best, lovey.’

Kicking off her shoes, she gave him a salute and dived neatly over the side. The cold punched the air from her lungs but she surfaced quickly and began swimming strongly for the shore. The current was powerful but she made use of it, angling across rather than fighting it. It was harder work than it had looked from the barge but she eventually found herself entering the slack water around the docking area. Time was of the essence: if she didn’t get the rope fastened quickly, she’d be towed after the barge as it sailed on by. Her icy fingers grasped the edge of the wooden staging and she struggled to pull herself up—only to find her wrists seized by the gnarled hands of a fisherman. He lifted her clear of the water and dumped her on the deck.

‘As I live and breathe, a fey mermaid!’ he laughed.

Relieved he seemed friendly, Rain shook her head, teeth chattering.

‘Trying to land that there big fish?’ he asked, seeing the rope around her.

She nodded and, before she could make a move, he’d taken it over her head and tied it off.

‘Come on, mates, let’s give the mermaid a hand.’ Three fishermen joined the old fellow and began reeling in the barge.

A portly fishwife wearing stout wooden clogs, her bare legs roped with varicose veins, approached Rain and draped a tattered blanket over her shoulders.

‘There now,’ she said in her deep mannish voice. ‘Can’t have you catching your death, can we?’

Rain got to her feet and clutched the blanket around her, shivering with cold. ‘Thank you.’

As the barge neared shore, close enough for Sniff to be seen, the fisherman’s friendly expression changed to suspicion. ‘What’s this? Scavengers?’

‘Some of them are,’ admitted Rain.

The fisherman spat. ‘Don’t know why I’m lifting a finger to aid them when they’re hoarding all the meat! They only think of their own kind, so why should we help?’ He almost dropped the rope in disgust but Rain caught his hand in hers.

‘Please. They’re not like that. They came into the city to rescue me and my friend—he’s a bondsman and I’m a servant.’

‘You a servant? Nay, I was right first time: eyes like yours, you have to be a mermaid. Still,’ he picked up the rope again, ‘maybe they did help you.’

Conal threw a second rope once they were close to shore. The fishwife caught it and tied it to a mooring post to bring the barge alongside.

‘Thanks!’ shouted Peri, jumping on to the quay.

‘You’re welcome, scavenger,’ said the fisherman coldly, watching Peri with ill-concealed hostility as the falconer lifted the gangplank and moved it to bridge the gap for the horses.

Rain refused to be daunted by the unfriendly atmosphere.

‘Peri, this man pulled me out of the water. And this lady gave me a blanket.’

Peri looked up from his task, wondering why she was stating the obvious. ‘That’s very kind of them.’

‘See, not everyone in Rolvint is like those looters. Some people are ready to come to the aid of others.’ Rain gestured to the fish market on the quayside. ‘Not everything has stopped working.’

‘No, I can see that too.’

‘Don’t you think it would be a good idea if people like you and these fishermen got together to try and do something about the situation?’

‘Rain!’ he said in warning.

‘It’s obvious really: who else is going to step forward?’

He gave a growl of frustration. ‘First you wanted to appeal to the Master and look where that got us; now you’re saying it’s up to us?’

‘Well, yes.’

If she hadn’t been dripping so charmingly all over the decking, Peri would have been tempted to shake some sense into her.

‘Forget it, little mermaid, his sort aren’t interested in other people,’ announced the fisherman, turning to leave.

‘Yes, he is. He just doesn’t know it yet,’ countered Rain.

Feeling a little ashamed of his impolite behaviour, Peri held out his hand to the man. ‘She’s wrong: I do know it, but I’m just not sure what to do about it. Shall we start with this?’

The fisherman looked at Peri’s hand suspiciously. To touch it would be breaking a thousand taboos.

‘Oh come on!’ huffed Rain impatiently. ‘He won’t bite.’

The fisherman gave her a gap-toothed smile. ‘He just might, but I’ll risk it.’ He took Peri’s palm in his work-roughened fist. ‘The name’s Murdle. These here are my crew, Gator and Arlo.’ He gestured to the two fishermen hovering at his back. ‘And my wife, Marla.’ The stout woman gave Peri a brief nod. ‘Come find me when you’ve worked out what you want to do. Me and the other fisherfolk are here most days, or on our boats when things get dicey.’

‘I’m Peri Falconer and these are my friends.’ He quickly introduced the others as they led the horses off the barge. ‘And I expect I’ll be back soon.’

‘Yes, I expect you will. No one turns down a mermaid.’ The fisherman tipped his cap to Rain and returned to his friends by the market stalls.

His wife lingered a moment longer. She surprised Peri by poking him in the chest with her forefinger. ‘Now you get this little one into the warmth,’ she said threateningly. ‘Or you’ll answer to me.’

‘Yes, ma’am,’ said Peri quickly.

She strode off, her clogs clumping on the deck.

‘Can we go home now, Rain, or do you have any more adventures planned for us?’ Peri asked her, rubbing his rib where the fishwife had prodded him.

‘No, that’s it for today,’ Rain said primly, squeezing out her skirt. ‘At least, until I think of something else.’

‘I
’m sorry, Peri, but I just don’t like her.’ Katia Falconer pounded the grain in the quern, beating out her bad mood. They had only been back a few hours but Peri’s mother had already worked up a temper. Late afternoon light poured into the common room; most families were outside making the most of the warmth but the Falconers had guests for supper and too much to do. ‘She’s trouble.’

Peri said nothing, searching for an argument to change his mother’s mind. She had taken in Mikel and Retsam without a protest but had treated Rain with cold suspicion the moment she saw her standing in the gateway wrapped in a blanket. Katia’s motherly instincts had gone on high alert, recognizing a threat to her son, all the more dangerous for being prettily pack aged.

‘Look what she persuaded you to do today. I still can’t believe you went all the way into the Master’s palace. You all need your heads examining. What were you thinking! You could have been killed.’

‘But we weren’t.’ Peri took the quern from her and brushed the flour into a mixing bowl. They had almost enough to make bread for the evening meal, but with three extra mouths to feed there wouldn’t be much to go round.

Katia added a pinch of salt. ‘She’s manipulating you. You can’t see it because you’ve fallen under her spell.’

‘She’s not a fey, Ma. She doesn’t do magic.’

Katia waved her whitened fingers dismissively. ‘Of course not. She’s foreign. I meant she’s charmed you into doing things which you know are foolish. That’s not my Peri. You were always the calm and careful one—the only child I never had to worry about.’

A squawk of protest burst from the far side of the room as Ret took a ball in the stomach. Helgis stood in the doorway glaring at him.

‘Don’t you even know how to play catch?’ Helgis asked in disgust.

‘No, I don’t, unclean one.’ Ret rubbed his stomach, shocked that someone had dared inflict pain on him.

‘Who are you calling unclean?’ Helgis’s fists were bunched but Ret was too inexperienced to recognize the signs.

‘You, of course.’ His tone was imperious.

Helgis took a swing, knocking Ret to the floor. He then jumped on top of him, pinning him to the ground. ‘Apologize!’ he snarled.

Peri crossed the room in ten strides and hoisted his brother off the boy.

‘What’s got into you?’ Peri asked Helgis, giving him a shove away from his victim. ‘Ret is new; I told you he’s not used to playing with boys his own age.’

Ret got up from the floor, wiping at his nose which was trickling blood. ‘I don’t want to play with him, Peri.’

‘I’m not surprised when he treats you like that. Helgis, what have you to say?’

Helgis scuffed the ball, kicking it out of the door into the sunshine. ‘He called me unclean.’

Peri prayed for patience. ‘Unfortunately, for Ret, that isn’t an insult but a fact.’

‘He’s rude.’

‘Not intentionally; he just doesn’t understand, like a hatchling that needs training.’

‘Sorry,’ muttered Helgis, barely audible.

‘No more name calling, agreed? Let’s start again, shall we?’ Peri brushed off Ret’s dusty tunic. ‘How’s the nose?’

Ret was staring at the blood on the back of his hand in amazement. ‘It’s bleeding.’

‘Welcome to life as an ordinary boy.’ Peri held out a hand and shook Ret’s solemnly. ‘Congratulations.’

A slow smile spread over Ret’s face. ‘Ordinary: I think I like the sound of that.’ Before Peri could intervene, he leapt forward, fist clenched, and swung at Helgis’s nose. The punch missed but caught an ear. Helgis didn’t waste time howling: he retaliated with a blow to the stomach. The two boys went down, rolling on the floor in an attempt to land a good hit on the other. Peri struggled to separate them, Ret’s silken clothes making him as slippery as an eel, Helgis skilled at twisting free. Experienced at handling such scuffles, Katia rushed forward and threw a basin of water over the pair.

‘Enough!’ she scolded. ‘Take it outside.’ She grabbed them by the scruff of the neck and hustled them through the door.

Peri wondered if he should stop them, but if he didn’t let Ret stand on his own two feet, he would never gain the respect of boys his own age. He trusted his brother not to let it get too far out of hand. Following them to the entry, he was relieved to see they were already running off together, united by a desire to escape a tongue lashing.

‘Who is that boy exactly?’ Katia asked, her mouth pursed in disapproval.