Clockwork Heart by Dru Pagliassotti Read Free Book Online Page A

he’d be all right.
    Of course, he was a foreigner, and probably not even a licensed resident. Physicians weren’t obliged to treat anyone who didn’t pay Ondinium’s taxes, and any respectable doctor would ask questions about those wounds that the Demican wouldn’t want to answer.
    Why did she care what happened to him, anyway? He’d tried to kill her.
    â€œScrap,” she muttered, angrily.
    Cristof paused, on the other side of the table.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œWhat about you? You shot him, didn’t you? If he dies, he’ll probably die from that.”
    â€œMaybe.” The exalted studied her. “Although needlers seldom kill at range. They’re intended as deterrents.”
    â€œSo if he dies, it’s my fault.” The thought depressed her. How would inflicting a fatal injury on a foreigner affect her chance at the diplomatic corps?
    â€œIf he dies, it’s his fault for going icarus-hunting, not yours for defending yourself.” Cristof went back to work, his slender fingers tugging at the net strands. “And it’s his fault for working with Alzanans. A Demican should know better.”
    Not feeling very comforted, Taya picked up her knife again.
    â€œYou don’t like Alzanans?”
    â€œHalf the Alzanans in Ondinium are thieves and the rest are spies.” He sawed through another rope. “It doesn’t surprise me that they’d want an operational armature. They could demand an imperate’s ransom for these wings.”
    Taya began working on another rope, considering his words. She knew her wings were valuable, of course, but she’d never thought they’d attract thieves.
    â€œDo you think they were specifically looking for wings?” she asked.
    â€œThey came with a net. That isn’t a standard mugger’s weapon. Did anyone know you’d be on Tertius tonight?”
    The rope unraveled beneath her blade, and she sighed.
    â€œJust about everybody in the neighborhood. I was at my sister’s wedding.”
    Cristof was silent. Taya kept working, ignoring the fresh trickles of blood that ran over her hands as she worked.
    She didn’t like the idea that those men had been hunting her. They must have heard she would be attending the wedding in armature and— what? Had they waited to see if she’d leave alone? Had they guessed that an icarus would find it easiest to launch from the Market Tower? Was she that predictable?
    She could have foiled their plans if she’d been more cautious, but why would she? Nobody harmed icarii. They were Ondinium’s couriers and rescuers, its alarm system and its luck.
    Of course, those three had been foreigners. They wouldn’t have an Ondinium citizen’s respect for an icarus.
    The armature jerked as the net slid apart. Taya grabbed the harness before it could hit the ceiling and hauled it back down. Without a word, Cristof tied one of the severed ropes to a harness strap and anchored it into place over the table.
    â€œIt doesn’t look too bad,” Taya said, inspecting the wings. The net had yanked them out of their locked position, which meant they might have sustained damage to the joints, but she wouldn’t know until she tried them on again. She caressed the metal feathers closest to her, tugging them. They remained securely fastened to the wing struts.
    On the other side of the table, Cristof was doing the same thing, frowning as he concentrated. His dirt-stained fingers moved with confidence as he tested the feathers and their housing.
    Taya surreptitiously studied him. His coat was as plain and well-worn as any other craftsman’s. He didn’t wear any rings or necklaces. He didn’t have any pins in his lapels or clasps and jewels in his short black hair. Even his spectacles were ordinary. There was nothing in his appearance to indicate he was anything other than a simple famulate mechanic, except the curling blue waves tattooed