The Clockwork Dagger by Beth Cato Read Free Book Online Page A

ruffians! Making sport like that! Oh. My goodness. That thing is scarcely bigger than a kitten.”
    â€œWe can’t let them kill him,” Octavia whispered. An older man in crisp red attire was headed their way.
    â€œSurely you’re not suggesting . . . oh. You are.”
    â€œPlease, Mrs. Stout. You said yourself that these creatures are harmless.”
    â€œSurely you sensed—saw—that girl who was almost choked to death.”
    Sensed? Only Miss Percival and the other girls knew of Octavia’s heightened abilities. There was no way for Mrs. Stout to be privy to such knowledge. Adrenaline fluttered through Octavia’s veins, but she chose to disregard the slip.
    â€œIt wanted her necklace, not to cause harm. The men aboard this ship certainly didn’t display such mercy. Please, Mrs. Stout.”
    Mrs. Stout sighed and nodded brusquely. “Very well. Take it to our berths. We can sneak it out tonight,” she whispered. She turned on her heel. “Oh, Captain! I must speak with you about this appalling matter.” She practically pounced on the man, her body as formidable as a wall.
    Octavia opened the middle pocket of her satchel, revealing the white of her medician blanket. “Come along now,” she said, scooping up the creature. He weighed as much as two chicken eggs. The gremlin’s eyes were dark and solemn as she snapped the flap shut.
    Octavia escaped the room. In the open space above the stairs, she found the dandies in a mob. Considering how she had just bashed many of them with a tray, she wasn’t surprised at their glowers and commentary as she hurried past.
    â€œUpstart—”
    â€œMeddlesome git—”
    â€œSomeone ought to teach her—”
    Breathless, she fumbled out her key and opened the door, ducking inside. As she turned, a piece of paper on the sink caught her eye. As she drew closer, she noted it was a napkin.
    IF YOU CONTINUE TO DELFORD, YOU WILL DIE.
    The words were bold and blocky, stealing the breath from her lungs. It wasn’t from the other men, not that fast. Whoever wrote this knew what she was, where she was going. What did this mean? Why would she die?
    â€œI’m just a medician,” she whispered, and knew the words for false as soon as they escaped her lips. She had never been “just a medician.”
    Whatever the note meant, it didn’t need to be seen by Mrs. Stout. Her fingers trembling, she set her satchel on the floor and pulled out the gremlin. He quivered in her palm, his squashed nose sniffing the air. Just as Octavia crammed the note into her satchel, Mrs. Stout burst into the room.
    â€œThere!” she said with a huff. “How is the creature?”
    â€œWell.” Octavia managed a shaky smile as the gremlin scurried up her arm to the shoulder, wings tickling against her sleeves. She glanced around the room and couldn’t spy any other threats. Die. Why would I die? How do they know where I’m going?
    â€œGood. I gave that captain a piece of my mind, I’ll tell you! His ear will be burning for hours. Give me space to get to the closet, child.”
    Stooping down, the older woman pulled out a brown suitcase in full leather. The corners showed softness from wear, but the craftsmanship was obvious. Mrs. Stout came from some money. She opened the case and tugged something from the base. Metal clinked. The gremlin made a sound akin to a purr as his long ears perked up.
    Mrs. Stout held a small metal cage, folded down. With a few snaps it assumed its full size of about a foot in diameter. “In Leffen I intended to buy a new mecha bird. The best mechanists in the kingdom are there! I saw no point in buying a new cage when I already had one at home, so I brought this along. Do you think it’s too small?”
    â€œIt looks about right to me,” said Octavia, welcoming any distraction from her new anxieties. Even more, the gremlin was eager. He sprang