A Day Off

[Nesrin Aziz]

Cade’s response was subdued, which was unusual given Anna was the kind of beautiful most men would consider the epitome of a living goddess. One of the things Nesrin learned young was reading people; men went to whores for all sorts of reasons, after all, and the best kinds understood what a client needed without him having to say. Undoubtedly there was a story there; probably one that involved heartbreak.

Nesrin let herself drift in the background for now, content to let them continue the conversation around her. She was still dabbing at the dampness in her lap while the others puzzled over the text message. Security measures, including cameras, were something Nesrin noted without really thinking about it, and doorways were standard locations. The other night Wicked had been itching to get back to the party and make sure Nox didn’t blow the place up, so it wasn’t unreasonable to assume he’d want to check out a stranger asking after his friend – especially given how cagey the girls had been about protecting their club. Nesrin had an idea as to why that was – one of many rumours she’d heard floating around the RLD concerning the nature of the place. But the fact it seemed Wicked was able to just tap into some random security camera for his own purposes, that she was curious about.

Smile for the camera wasn’t the sort of comment she could make in present circumstances, though, so despite the twist of her humour she kept any acknowledgement entirely to herself. She wasn’t unduly concerned; it seemed unlikely Zigzag would have unpicked all his hard work obscuring her identity, not least because the Emissary would have a vested interest in keeping his leads quietly amongst the m’Antinomian for now. The auction was lighting up the dark web. It’d be a shame for him if someone else got to her first.

It was time she was counting on.

When Elyse changed the subject, she looked over to Cade to allow him to answer first, her smile shy and encouraging around the edges. Somehow she wasn’t surprised to discover he was a children’s doctor, though she wasn’t convinced he was being entirely honest about his motivations for coming to Moscow. But secrets made people interesting. “Seems we’re all travellers here,” she observed with a smile. Neither Anna or Elyse had Moscovite accents either. “I’ve been studying ancient history mostly – art, culture, religion. I grew up in Cairo – we’ve lost so much there since the disasters of the 20s, and of course Al Janyar haven’t helped any.” There was a light when she spoke, easy and charming; she’d been living on university campuses long before she met Zar. “But I came to Moscow for postgraduate study. You guys must have heard of the Brotherhood of the Ascendant Flame? Strange times.”