Dark Matters_ Ghost Dance (Book 2) - Christie Golden [34]
She continued to watch them as they took a seat in the darkest corner of the room. The pale green illumination globe on their table was the only light, but it was enough for the sharp-eyed Jekri.
Jekri couldn't hear their conversation over the droning sound of the flute and the chatter of the other patrons, but she didn't need to. She had a clear line of vision; that would suffice. Reading lips was a skill she'd mastered almost before she had reached puberty.
"He told me he won't be able to attend the meeting tonight," said the woman.
"Is he being watched?" asked the man, his body language revealing his anxiety.
"He's not sure and he doesn't want to risk it."
Jekri smiled to herself. No one was watching these people, except of course for her.
"Perhaps we should move the meeting place," the woman continued, her uncertainty plain on her face even as she pretended to peruse the list of alcoholic beverages the establishment provided.
"I think you may be worried over nothing," said the man, reaching out to cover her hand with his
own. "We're small, yet. There's nothing for the Tal Shiar to fear."
You're half right. The Tal Shiar couldn't care less about you, thought Jekri. But the chairman of the Tal Shiar...
"The children are starting to ask questions, according to Mairih," said the woman.
"Then let her bring them," said the man. "I still have the toys I played with as a child, and I know you do too. We have no children to pass them on to. Let us give them to Tonna and Dral."
A server stepped forward, blocking Jekri's view. She waited patiently as he took their order and moved away.
Eagerly the two returned to their illicit conversation. Jekri wondered if they were more interested in doing something forbidden than in the theories and culture they were allegedly devoted to reviving.
She was disappointed that they spoke aloud, even though it made it fool's work to eavesdrop on their conversation. She had hoped-well, she was unwise to hope. Perhaps the skills she sought to learn from these people could not be taught. Perhaps all they did was gather clandestinely, read old books, and dream of a future that could not possibly happen. Perhaps they did not truly study the disciplines. She had seen such things hi so-called "enemies of the state" before-not a genuine yearning for something different, only a desire to be daring and rebellious, to do something illicit for the sake of doing so, not for any real cause or belief. She hoped she was wrong about this particular group.
The couple now began to chat about aimless things, and though she continued to watch their lips move, Jekri learned nothing new. They ordered soup and a salad of greens. It looked good. Jekri had the same thing, and was surprised at how delicious real food, freshly prepared, tasted to her. She had been living solely on replicated fare for months, perhaps years. Food had become little more than a source of nutrition, and it was certainly not an occasion for pleasure.
She paced her meal with theirs, finishing as they did. They did not rush through their meal, but did not seem to be enjoying it overmuch. Now and then the female would glance around. Jekri willed herself to melt into the background, and the woman's eyes slid right over her. The chairman of the Tal Shiar could command the attention of the entire Senate with a word or two, or she could be utterly inconspicuous if she so chose. That was an old, old skill, one that had saved her life in dark alleyways and taverns far more run-down than this one.
The specter of her past had long arms, and Jekri willed the memories away. She valued the skills the past had taught her, but she had no wish to linger there overlong. She lived in the present, and in the present, the couple she was stalking had paid and were leaving.
Jekri did likewise, scattering a few coins on the table