where river meets sea

CHAPTER THREE,

WHERE RIVER MEETS SEA | THREE

CONSTANZA CASTRILLO HAD appeared a year ago, offering her services to the Saian. Her own father had just been executed by the Meliqueans for supposed treason, and she herself had narrowly escaped. The girl was young, quick-witted, and fitted in with the Meliqueans seamlessly.

  The only problem was that she was sometimes too reckless. Which made cleaning up after her a damned headache. She reminded Danna of Io in her early teenage years, brave to the level of stupid, desperate to achieve something great, something that would be recorded in history. Desperate to be listed in the books as someone important. Wanting to leave behind a legacy no one would forget.

  She'll grow out of it soon. Realise that it was never so easy, and that hard work often didn't matter half as much as sheer luck—because no amount of hard work could keep you from the path of a speeding bullet—and start becoming more careful.

  Until then, Danna was stuck trying to make sure the girl didn't get herself accidentally killed.

  Constanza had dropped by earlier this morning, dressed as a young shopgirl trying to sell her wares. Danna had pretended to shoo her away, but not before the girl had surreptitiously handed over her newest report.

  The paper with sprawled, messy writing Danna was now attempting to decipher. Not even years of codebreaking had prepared her for this.

  It seemed Constanza had successfully infiltrated Leocadio Mallen's house as a young maid. Danna had been preparing a proper scouting of the man for a while to inform her allies in Sai whether to support his bid to power or not, or to continue pursuing the treaty with Caba's government and support him. Now, with Mallen apparently being the Black Camellia's newest target, this was making things a thousand times more convenient. In two days, Constanza would return with a new report and to collect orders.

  She'll send out Heng Kang and Pei Yun to scout out Mallen's house and search for obvious security blindspots. They were considerably much more experienced. Most likely she'd be posting those two on permanent patrol on the house for a while, not that it would really do much against someone like the Camellia.

  After all, one of the Black Camellia's targets had been a former princess living in the centre of a Kozlov stronghold. It hadn't stopped her. Svetlana Makarova still laid in some unmarked grave somewhere, dead.

  That was the Camellia's style. Not a single body found, leaving behind a paper with a black flower stamped on it. Mocking. Threatening.

  They'll put an end to that. To that terror, to that fear. She and Aleks would make sure no one ever woke up with a family member missing and nothing but a piece of paper left behind.

  The Black Camellia was a dead woman. She just hadn't realised it yet.

  Danna snapped back into reality. The report. Leocadio Mallen seemed a man who was indifferent to his servants, not even casting Constanza a single second glance. He left most matters of the house to his wife and spent most of the day out and about. If he was back, he'd keep to the office and library and deal with matters there. Mallen and his wife did not seem to get along excellently, barely sharing a word with each other. His wife seemed a bit frightened of him.

  That did not bode too well for him. Though perhaps the wife could be convinced to turn against him, shall he become too much of a threat? But that wasn't the worry right now. It was whether or not Mallen was a better choice to lead Melique in comparison with Rufino Caba.

  Constanza's answer: he does not discuss politics in the house, and I have not yet had the time to break into his office.

  Lockpicking was one of those skills Danna had quickly taught the girl, along with some basic self-defence. Constanza was already one of those people who rarely brought attention upon herself, not so different from Danna herself, so she hadn't required much training in that regard.