Mia M Dre's Arc

Chapter 6 of 13

Mia crouched behind the gate post and counted her breaths. The driver was still inside the house, but he wouldn't be for long. She could hear him through the open door, laughing at something the buyer said. Her potion had hours left, no more. If she wanted in, it had to be now—while the door stood open and the driver's bulk masked her from the windows. But one look from the buyer, one moment of recognition, and her cover as a browsing trader would crack. She pressed her palm flat against the cold iron and made herself decide. She slid the shoulder bag forward and checked the trader ID clipped to the front pocket. Inside were small wrapped parcels—dried kelp samples, a string of polished sea glass, two corked vials of pale oil. Enough to explain any trader's visit. She slipped through the gate, head down, matching her steps to the driver's voice. The hall smelled of pipe smoke and wax. She turned the first corner and nearly stopped breathing. The buyer stood at the end of the hall, three paces away, looking right at her. His eyes moved over the badge, then her face. Something flickered there—not recognition, but interest. "You're early," he said. Mia's mouth went dry. He thought she was someone else, someone expected. She gave a small nod and let him wave her past, toward a wooden hatch set flush in the floor of the back room. The driver's laugh rose behind her. She was inside. But the buyer was watching her go, and whoever he'd been waiting for was still coming.