“Easy enough.” I raised two fingers to my mouth and let out a high-pitched whistle. Every head turned my way, and I waved my hand in the air and beckoned the closest man to come toward me.
“Are you in need of aid, Miss?” the sandy-haired man asked.
I heard Saphira’s audible groan, and I looked behind me as Amaryllis was laughing hard behind her hand.
“She’s fine. Thank you!” Saphira grabbed my shoulder and pulled me away from the worried man. “What were you thinking?” she chastised softly.
“I did what you asked, and in record time too.” I grinned triumphantly.
“Okay, that is not what I meant.” Saphira ran her hands down her dress, and I could tell from what she was not saying that I had irritated her. “Watch me.”
Saphira unpinned part of her shawl and let it dangle off her shoulders. When she walked, like a dancer, and it made her hips sway.
Amaryllis narrated softly to me. “The trick of picking a mark is to make him approach you. You never want to approach them. This way they feel they’re in control, and if you can do it without speaking a single word—all the better.”
“I take it you have done this before?”
“How do you think I got Bravado to fall in love with me?” she laughed softly; her joy evident.
Saphira passed an older gentleman, and she slowed, gave him a wide innocent look, and then very carefully let a silk scarf slip from her fingers, and she carried on.
The man swooped down, picked up the scarf, and gently tapped her on the shoulder.
“Don’t overdo the look of surprise,” Amaryllis said, still narrating. “Be coy, but innocent.”
Saphira looked surprised and carefully took back the scarf, running it through her fingers. As she brought it up to her hair, her finger brushed her lips before they parted and she inhaled.
The man froze, his eyes never leaving her face.
“And then draw attention to one of your best features. She is drawing attention to her lips. Now watch. He’s ensnared.”
Saphira leaned forward and whispered in his ear. The man turned red and nodded.
We waited until Saphira came back, and I asked what she’d told the man.
“I said the Silk Slipper is famous for our sweet and sumptuous desserts which can be attained at all hours of the night,” she answered.
The innuendo wasn’t lost on me, and I stuttered. “But that makes it sound like you offer. . .”
Saphira cackled. “The best desserts in the city, and we do offer them anytime, day or night. Never mind that they are also delivered by Trask, our male bouncer. That lord will have checked out of his current in and be in the Silk Slipper before the night is over. I didn’t lie, but I did poach a nobleman. Remember, I deal in secrets, and the more powerful men I have in my inn, the better the secrets.”
Amaryllis was laughing, and I couldn’t keep my own smirk hidden.
“Your turn.” I turned to Amaryllis.
“Oh, no. My days of wooing men are over. I wanted to be here to watch and coach you. I find it incredibly brave what you are doing, and I think your mother would be proud of you. I know I am.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“Okay, your turn,” Amaryllis said softly.
I steeled my nerves, stopped biting my lip, and started walking. At first I tried to walk like Saphira had, but I heard another audible groan. Okay, too much. I closed my eyes and focused on my training. Walking softly on the balls of my feet muffled the sound and gave my hips a smaller sway. It felt more natural.
But what was my greatest asset to draw attention to? My hands were my first thought because I was a fighter, but that wasn’t what the two women were trying to teach me.
I was raised by a male. I was most comfortable with weapons and blades. I didn’t learn needlework or knitting like my sisters had. The only needle I used was to stitch up gashes on the field.
I didn’t use makeup. I used salves to prevent scarring. My knowledge of flirting was nonexistent because I never needed to. The only person I was close to was Percy, and he mostly tolerated me.
A young man stood in front of a weapons vendor’s table full of blades and knives. I felt intrigued, my attention going to a small throwing knife. I wanted to immediately grab it and test the weight in my hand. But that wasn’t the weapon I was learning to use.
I turned around, casting a helpless look at the two women who were watching from the shadows. Saphira crossed her arms, her mouth pinched, while Amaryllis was all smiles and shooing me on.
The task was to get them to come to me without speaking, but how did I gain their attention? I reached up and patted my curls and felt awkward. I couldn’t do this.
Quickly, I scanned all of my exit routes. I had three. One was in the path of guards; one was over the roof and then a quick jump over the wall. One was the fastest, but would cause the biggest commotion.
I turned, intent on abandoning the quest and giving up, when I saw him and did a double take. It was impossible to miss him among all the others. He stood out a head above the rest because he was the finest specimen there. He was polished, sharp, and attractive. Only a fool would walk away now.
My hands trembled, and my heart ached. I missed the sound of his voice.
Rumple.
He was hanging on a hook on the back wall of the vendor stall. Then a middle-aged man in a green jerkin and cloak blocked my view and pointed to Rumple. “I’ll take that one.”
“No!” I panicked. “That’s my axe.”
The vendor brought over the double-headed axe, and I couldn’t help but stare at Rumple . . . Who was eerily silent.
The man turned and gave me a disbelieving look. His face was tanned, his brown hair was long, brushing against his collar, and he had deep green eyes. I could tell he was part of the blacksmith guild from the hammer and anvil pin he wore on his cloak.
“Your axe? I find that hard to believe,” he scoffed.
“It’s true,” I blurted. “It’s my axe. I lost it.”
“Then how did it end up here?” the buyer asked.
I turned toward the vendor and he offered up a shrug. “Don’t quite remember. Some farmer traded the axe to me a few weeks ago.”
“It can’t be your axe.” The guild member reached for his leather pouch and pulled out coins to pay for Rumple.
“You’re wrong. It is my axe. My sister forged him in Kiln. She even put runes on the side of the blade.”
The guild member was quickly losing his patience with me. “I find it hard to believe that a female crafted this fine work of art. And again, I think you’re mistaken. This is not your axe.”
“No, it is. I can’t explain exactly how I lost him. But the axe can speak up for himself and prove it?” I gritted out to Rumple.
“That’s enough.” The guild member turned and grabbed Rumple, who was missing the leather holster.
“I’ll buy him from you!” I slapped all the coins I had left on the counter, and the guild member just snorted. “I paid three times that.”
“Rumple!” I cried. “Please, Rumple, say something to prove that I’m not lying.”
“My name is Randolph, not Rumple,” the guild member snapped. He turned and walked down the street, carting away my axe.
I cast a look over my shoulder and saw how worried Amaryllis and Saphira were. This was not going how I thought it would. Randolph got into a carriage with a guild mark. The door slammed behind him, and I had a few seconds to decide.