AT:M 88

“She looks like you,” Tentin told Sirra, peering over her shoulder. “What does it mean?”

Sirra re-examined it. “The Merchant’s Wife. For unexpected, but dubious, gain.”

She peered out over the ocean, where the boat had disappeared, heading south. The thieves could have chosen any direction, of course, to throw them off – if they knew anyone was on to them. There was no reason to think they did. The style of this card, though, was not Skelthan. If she had to guess…

“Is there any good reason to head south from here?” Tentin asked, breaking into Sirra’s thought.

“The opposite, actually,” she recalled. She held up the card. “The dress and style is from Tarthukhan. Sapphires and live sapphire clams.”

Tentin stood beside her as the sun dropped into the water. The hotstones and magicoil in the car reached some balance, subtly hissing and clicking among the ironwood gears. “Pretty big story, somewhere.”