Viper's Kiss - Lisa Smedman [17]
The captain tilted his head slightly in her direction and spoke to Arvin in a low voice. "Is she the one you're-"
"No," Arvin said firmly. "She's not. We met on the wagon to Riverboat Landing. I got to know her during the journey."
The gray-haired guard smiled knowingly. "Lucky man," he said, a chuckle in his voice. "I can see why you wanted to slip the other woman."
The wife clucked her tongue in disapproval and tucked one of her hands possessively into the crook of her husband's arm. The merchant rolled his eyes.
"What about my sword?" the hook-nosed guard complained. "It was dwarven-forged steel."
The captain gave him a disdainful stare. "It was a standard trade sword, and cheaply made."
Hook-nose lowered his eyes.
"But I'm sure this man-Vin, his name was?-will pay for it," the captain continued. Then, to Arvin, in a low voice, "Five plumes is more than enough. And nine more, for your passage."
Arvin nodded, rummaged in his pouch for the gold coins, and handed them to the captain, who counted five of them into the hand of the guard.
Karrell, meanwhile, moved closer to Arvin. "I am glad you are aboard, Vin," she said, taking his arm. "Come. We will talk."
Arvin picked up his pack and followed her to the bow. As they passed the sail, the wind of the ship's passage hit them full force, whipping Arvin's cloak. They were traveling up the broad, open river at the speed of a galloping horse; already the cluster of inns that made up Riverboat Landing was far behind.
The windblown how was empty; the closest person was the lookout, who sat on a swing-like perch that had been hoisted to the top of the mast. He was a teenager, judging by the cracking of his voice as he called out hazards on the river ahead. Cupping his hands to his mouth, he shouted back at the captain. "Snag! Snag dead ahead, two hundred paces!"
The yard creaked as the sail shifted, swinging the bow slightly to port. Arvin glanced over the bow and saw a submerged log, its tangled root mass just below the surface and barely visible. The roots were wound around something round and gray, probably a large stone that had been uprooted with the tree when the wind blew it over. Arvin heard a thump and scrape as the hull grazed the snag, and the riverboat continued on its way, having avoided the worst of the hazard thanks to the lookout's keen eyes.
Arvin set his pack at his feet and turned to Karrell. "I'm surprised to find you on the boat," he said. "I didn't, ah… see you come aboard."
Karrell's lips twitched. "I did not see you board, either."
"I slipped into the hold this morning, just before dawn," Arvin said. He lowered his voice so the sailors wouldn't overhear. "I told the guard the truth-there was a woman, back at the Eelgrass Inn, who I'm trying to avoid. A woman with red hair and green scales that look like freckles. And a blue forked tongue. Did you notice her?"
"So that is why you left so hastily." Karrell thought a moment. "She is yuan-ti?"
"Yes. But she can pass for human, at a distance."
"I saw her. Twice. Last night, when I first arrived at the inn, and this morning, when she was talking to the innkeeper."
Arvin leaned forward, tense. "You didn't say anything about me, did you? Anything she might have overheard?"
"No."
Arvin relaxed a little. "Did you hear what she said to the innkeeper?"
"That she would stay another night."
Arvin nodded, thankful that Zelia hadn't chosen to catch this morning's riverboat. He'd been terrified by the prospect of being trapped in the cargo hold, unable to emerge on deck, and slowly freezing to death during the long voyage. Even if she