Page 6 of A Taste For Lies (The Apex Kingdom #1)

Chapter 6

ALORA

I miss my cloak.

That’s my first thought as I rush down the mountain to The Spinning Top. The moon is full and doing its best to shine through the cloud cover, casting enough light that I have to cling to the shadows. Sneaking away from the scene of the crime takes longer than I’d like. My instinctual vigilance kicks in and I pause frequently to listen for footsteps, doubling back and around multiple times to ensure no one is on my trail.

At least I’m dressed in head-to-toe black now. My breath puffs out in white clouds, and I rub my bare arms, desperate to spark some warmth. Maybe the next pull-away skirt Eleni makes for me could have a black underside, something reversible to double as a cloak. I start to design the ensemble in my head, a small distraction from the biting wind—and the lingering memory of a certain beastly royal.

Finally, after what feels like hours, I arrive at The Spinning Top. I spend another good ten minutes shivering outside, scanning the darkened streets and alleys, before deciding it’s safe enough to enter.

That’s when I get my second shock of the evening .

The entire tavern is empty. No patrons, no Shenmi—nor anyone else—behind the bar. It’s late, or rather very early, but the hour is usually never too dark for the guests of The Spinning Top.

Yet tonight, the guild master sits alone by the flickering fireplace, nursing a glass of dark liquid. Shadows darken his deeply lined face and the nimbus of his white hair.

Hesitantly, I join him, sliding into the chair closest to the fire. The welcome heat washes over my bare skin almost painfully as it seeps in.

Xinlei pulls out a battered gold pocket watch and flicks it open with a deliberate motion. His eyes cut into me with a look that says he’s not in the mood for excuses.

“I had to be sure I wasn’t followed.” I clear my throat. “I used every trick in the book—it took me nearly half the night to get here.”

“Why is that, Alora?” he rasps softly in Shanterran. “Why were you so worried about being followed?”

I swallow. “So, the heist went perfectly. I have the pearls.” I pat the pocket in my bodice. “But, uh, when I went to leave, there was another client there.”

Xinlei’s brows pull. “Another client?”

“A prospective client. He wants me to do a job for him. I guess he watched me steal the pearls as…an audition, of sorts.” I squeeze my eyes shut and decide to just get it over with. “The beast prince. That’s who the client was. That’s who caught me.”

Tentatively, I open one eye and then the other. Judging by his slightly hanging jaw, I’ve managed to surprise Xinlei—a feat I thought never to achieve in this life.

But, true to form, he moves on quickly. “He let you go.”

It’s a statement, not a question, but I answer it anyway. “He did.”

“And you still have the pearls. He let you take them, too.”

“Yes,” I answer again unnecessarily. Reaching into my bodice, I pull out the pearls and pass them over. They’re cool to the touch, as if they’ve only just been dredged from deep water. But maybe that’s my frozen fingers.

Xinlei weighs them thoughtfully in his wrinkled palms .

“Do you feel the buzzing?” I ask.

He looks up sharply. “What?”

“The pearls. They made my fingers all tingly.” I stretch them out now at the memory, but there’s nothing left—just the blissful warmth of the fire on my frozen limbs.

Xinlei blatantly ignores my question. “Talk me through the heist. From the beginning.”

I give a deep sigh, then launch into my standard debrief. It doesn’t escape my notice that Xinlei still hasn’t explained why he’s sitting here alone, waiting up for me.

“You said you knew he was Apex, dressed as Elite. How?” he interjects.

I shift uncomfortably.

“Alora? What aren’t you telling me?”

He’s too intuitive for his own good. “I sensed the prince’s inner creature.”

Xinlei’s dark eyes nearly bug out of his head. Alright, I was wrong before. Now I’ve surprised him. “You what ?”

“I looked into his eyes, and I saw his inner creature looking out at me. This brutal stoneclaw.” I shiver. “No wonder he’s called the beast prince.”

Xinlei’s throat bobs. “Has that ever happened before?”

“What do you think? Of course not. His Apex guardian came in after him, and I had no idea what his creature was, just like always.”

I jump up and start pacing, my mind whirring. Up until this point, I’ve just been following Rule Number Two: The first thing is first. Focus on the immediate danger.

But now that I’m out of imminent danger, the bigger picture looms. I need to do what I came here to do. I stop dead in my tracks and turn to face my mentor straight on.

“I want to take the commission.” My words come out so fast, it’s a wonder he can understand them.

Xinlei’s face gives nothing away. “The one the Veridian prince offered you?”

“Yes.” I rub my lynx charm. “But…it’s in Ravenscrest. In the palace. ”

“Who’s the mark?” he asks in that same neutral tone.

I bite the inside of my cheek. “King Nyxley.”

A slight lift of the old lockpick’s brows is the only indication he recognizes the level of danger this target represents. “The prince wants you to steal from his own father?”

“So it would seem. Some kind of artifact—an amulet. Does that mean anything to you?”

“No.” And that does disturb him, I can tell. “Whatever it is, it must be very powerful. The prince is taking quite a big risk attempting to engage you.” His eyes narrow. “Let me guess, he doesn’t want to contract with the Veridian Guild.”

I swallow. “Correct.”

“Which means he hasn’t told them about the job and doesn’t want you to, either.”

“Correct again.”

Xinlei shakes his head. “No.”

My heart sinks. “The commission they’re offering is the highest I’ve ever heard of. And I’d be willing to split it fifty/fifty with the guild.” His gaze turns scrutinizing. “Fine, sixty/forty. The guild takes the majority.”

He doesn’t move, doesn’t even blink. We sit in an uncomfortable silence. Xinlei’s favorite negotiation trick. Even knowing that, it’s still remarkably effective.

“Seventy/thirty.”

His white head cocks to the side. “Why are you so keen to take this job, Alora? I know the size of the payout isn’t it. And how are you so eager to work for an Apex? They’re unpredictable at best and deadly at worst. Especially this one.”

I have nothing left to bargain with but the truth. “It’s the ache. It’s getting unbearable.” Xinlei sits back in his chair, a subtle indication for me to continue. “There’s this gaping hole. Like an essential piece of me is missing. I thought…if I could go to Veridia, I could find some answers. ”

His eyes soften. “Take it from an old man, Lynxling. Often, when we find the answers we seek so desperately, we discover we only wish to go back to ignorance. There is no reburying the truth once uncovered.”

“I don’t care. I can’t live like this any longer.” My throat closes, and I have to clear it before I can speak the next words. “Please, Xinlei.”

Another long silence as he considers me. “You can go to Veridia with the prince to find your answers, but”—he holds up a hand to stop the gratitude poised to drop from my lips—“if you decide to take the job, you must first clear it with the Veridian Guild.” I open my mouth, and he cuts me off again. “Otherwise, you will be justly excommunicated. And I will not contest it.”

Whatever the prince thinks about our relationship, I know Xinlei better than anyone. If the guild master says he won’t fight to keep me from being excommunicated, he damn well means it.

Tentatively, I broach my next ask. “Can I bring Eleni?”

“Have you considered that she’ll be excommunicated too if you fail to secure a waiver and go through with the job anyway?” My eyes widen. I hadn’t considered that. “In any case, it is her choice, as it is yours. You are grown women, capable of making your own decisions.”

I nod absently, my mind racing through plans and discarding them just as quickly. I could try to find the answers on my own, but the lynx necklace is my only lead. And now that I’m thinking it through, there’s really no chance I can get my hands on those Apex records without the prince’s aid. Or at least his willingness to overlook the blatant spying in his own palace. Neither of which he’ll allow if I don’t agree to steal the artifact for him.

Xinlei’s raspy voice cuts through my anxious scheming. “Alora, did you leave a calling card tonight?”

Godsdamnit.

“Did you?”

“Yes,” I admit, trained, as ever, to answer him.

He gives me a hard look. As if I’m a stumbling novice again. “When you’re in Veridia, Lynxling, you might do well to remember the Ten Rules. Especially if you’re planning on risking your best friend’s life as well as your own.”

I hang my head, thoroughly chastened.

He clears his throat. “When do you leave?”

“I have to meet them on the road to Ravenscrest at dawn.” Not much time left to wake Eleni and pack.

“You’ll be needing this then.” He leans over and drops the Pearls of Azure back into my hand. The tingling starts immediately.

Dumbfounded, I close my fingers over the buzzing stones. “Don’t you have to give them to the client?”

“You might as well do it. Seeing as you’ll be seeing him yourself in—” He glances at the window. “A couple of hours.”

My eyes widen. “You must be joking.”

“Didn’t you wonder why I was waiting up to speak with you alone? A very intimidating guardian came in this evening to drop off the commission. She also said you wouldn’t have the pearls, but not to worry. That this was just a down payment for the next job.” He arches his brows.

“She? Are you sure she was an Apex?”

“If she wasn’t, she was doing a bang-up imitation of one.” He shudders, then drops a heavy purse in my other hand. “Your cut.”

Realization dawns. “The prince was the client all along.”

“Certainly seems that way.” Xinlei’s frown deepens the lines on his face. “When you get to Veridia, before you do anything else, go straight to The Painted Mask. Ask for the Viper—that’s their guild master.” He shakes his head. “I don’t know what kind of reception you’ll get.”

My mentor looks worried. About me . The broken lump in my chest squeezes. Quick as a flash, before he knows what I’m about to do, I drop to my knees and snatch the old man into a tight hug.

“Thank you,” I whisper fiercely in his ear. “Not just for tonight, for…”

“I know,” he murmurs, patting my back. “Be safe, Lynxling. And remember, Rule Number One—”

“Trust in the guild,” I finish, pulling back to meet his gaze. “And no one else.”