Deep Roots by Beth Cato Read Free Book Online Page B

gold-­threaded snood. Like Miss Leander, she wore the white attire of a medician, with its sparkle of cleansing enchantment, but this newcomer had considerably more style. Her robes were accented by gold trim and ruffles. The thick skirt rustled with each step.
    â€œGet the arms ready.” She motioned to unseen ­people. “Broderick! Get those blankets out of the circle. I told you to stop coddling the beast. It could gnaw on them and choke to death, and I daresay Mr. Cody might gnaw on your bones if anything were to happen at this juncture.”
    â€œI’m sorry, m’lady. I had the sense that it might be cold.” A young man advanced to the edge of the circle. He wore a male version of medician gear, the narrowness of his tunic and trim white trousers revealing his lanky frame.
    â€œSense or not, it can endure the cold. Or learn to.”
    â€œYes, m’lady.” He raised a hand as he murmured something into the circle, then lunged forward to grab blankets by the armful. His hair, woven into a multitude of beaded dreadlocks, chimed and lashed against his shoulders. The chimera didn’t move. The green body of the beast, despite its size, looked like a helpless lump in the center of the room. Its worried expression fixated on the woman in white as she opened several valises.
    Men in Mr. Cody’s blue livery came straight toward the crates where Rivka and Tatiana hid. The two of them retreated, following the wall around the curve of the room and farther from the door. The men opened a large box.
    â€œDamn. I feel the magic’s heat from here,” muttered one.
    â€œThey been praying over these things for weeks. The legs and wings, too. Hours each day.”
    â€œMagic.” One of the workers spat the word and made a slashing gesture of contempt.
    â€œMagic, aye, but I know what I’m placing my bet on next Arena bout.” The fellow jerked his head toward the circle.
    Rivka was simultaneously appalled and fascinated. The research, the blueprints, the tools—­she’d give anything to see what went into a project of this caliber to combine flesh and machine.
    As a team, the men grunted and pulled forth a gleaming copper arm some five feet in length. They carried it into the circle and close to the chimera, then backed off quickly. The chains obviously didn’t make them feel safe. The next arm was pulled out as well.
    A new man entered, rolling a cart of his own. He wore a workingman’s suit, his hat dangling from a pole on the cart. He offered a grunt of greeting as he set up shop beside the medician. He had to be the mechanist. Rivka had heard plenty of old soldiers talk about when their new limbs were attached, how it involved a medician and mechanist working in concert.
    Her outright giddiness was held in check by the terror on the chimera’s face. She desperately hoped the herbs somehow spared the chimera any pain—­surely the medicians would know?
    Rivka knew very little about medician magi and the Lady’s Tree they worshipped. The actual Tree was located somewhere in the Waste—­there had been a battle there a few months before, with Miss Leander involved—­and its ancient magic connected to life all over the land. Circles like the one in the floor were used to concentrate the Lady’s power, and medicians used special herbs to draw on her might to heal.
    The older medician rolled up her sleeves to reveal skin hued like midnight. “Let’s get this done before Cody comes down to gawk at his monster.”
    â€œYes, Miss Arfetta,” said Broderick. He wheeled in a table covered with open valises and massive herb jars. “I can likely finish the wing work afterward. There are a lot of yellow flags to tend to.”
    Rivka bit her fist to hold back a horrified gasp. The little gremlin who had just clutched her hand had been designated a yellow. It must be near death, along with dozens of others. What