Spycraft Academy B. Miles (new ebook reader txt) đ
- Author: B. Miles
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âStop that immediately,â Apelles snarled. âYou are a man, not a bratty teenager, and I am not your father, I am your instructor. You will not speak to me in that tone.â
Sam snapped his mouth shut and straightened his expression. Apelles was right, Sam had to remember where he was, who he was talking to, and who he was. Apelles was a spymaster. Sam was only a student.
He took a calming breath and spoke in a measured tone, âDelcan attacked me for going into his room. I went into his room because I believe something is going on with him in connection to the thief. I saw June, his crew member, walking in the forest not that long ago. She lifted a rock and ate something from underneath it.â
When Apelles cocked an eyebrow, Sam quickly added, âI know that sounds ridiculous. But itâs a feeling I canât shake. Something was incredibly off about her behavior, and I couldnât think of anything else nefarious that they could be involved with besides the thief. I was hoping that by searching Delcanâs rooms, I might figure out whether my hunch was correct, or perhaps something else was afoot.â
âWhy wasnât this in your report?â Apelles asked, his voice much calmer now as well.
âIt wasnât while I was on watch.â
âSam,â Apelles sighed. âLook, I get it. I came from the slums in Yort. You get used to keeping your problems to yourself, but I told you before and Iâll tell you again: you are no longer alone. And the more you keep to yourself, the more danger you put upon the rest of us. You see something after your watch, then you report it verbally. I cannot trust you to work with me if you donât actually work with me.â
Sam knew that on a logical level, and he didnât mean to keep things from Apelles, it was just that it was so habitual at this point that it honestly didnât cross his mind to tell the spymaster. At the time, it had seemed like a personal problemâŠoh.
Sam frowned and looked at the ground. It had seemed like a personal problem because he thought Delcan was involved, and when Sam tried to find evidence, it had been an almost desperate attempt. Maybe he wanted an excuse to get Delcan expelledâŠor worse. Maybe he wanted to believe that Delcan was evil by nature, because knowing that the hatred the blonde felt toward him was random meant that there was no reason. Sam needed there to be a reason. Any other option meant chaos. He didnât like chaos, not the kind he couldnât create and control.
âI understand,â Sam said. âI donât mean to keep things to myself, I apologize, and since weâre on the subject, I think itâs pertinent to tell you about something else I saw before that incident. I didnât think it was related to the thief, but I was worried anywayâŠand I didnât think to tell you becauseâŠwell, I donât know. It simply didnât cross my mind...â
Sam trailed off. He didnât want Apelles chasing down Franklin or watching him, it wasnât the old guyâs fault he was dealing with awful people. But Apelles was absolutely right. Sam would have been furious if one of his crewmembers had hidden things like this from him; accident or not.
âMattie and I overheard a woman and Franklin late at night. Months ago. The woman was asking him for something, and he didnât want to give it to herâŠor something like that, I canât remember. She threatened him, though, and said that she wouldnât give him another chance, that he was on thin ice. He seems fine and everything now, but I wouldnât be so sure that the woman he spoke to isnât hanging around.â
Apelles clasped his pointed chin in his fingers and studied Sam for a handful of silent moments. Sam looked straight ahead, just like heâd seen the guards do back home. It was a sign of attention and respect. He was pretty sure thatâs what it meant, anyway.
âThank you for telling me.â Apelles clasped Sam on the shoulder. Instead of the tight grip from earlier, it was warm and familiar. âI will look into it and keep an eye on Franklin. Heâs always been a bit helpless, ever since we were in the Academy ourselves. I hate to think that heâs still being pushed around and taken advantage of as an adult.â
âThank you, sir,â Sam said. He thought that Apelles, satisfied with the tongue lashing heâd given Sam, would dismiss him immediately. Instead, the spymasterâs voice dropped an octave and thinned into a whisper.
âThereâs been a lot of activity around the admin building these past few nights.â
Sam repressed a frustrated sigh because that meant the thief had slipped right by him.
âDonât look so glum, he got past me as well. I picked up some tracks and disturbed foliage three days before, and the tracks have been consistent since. I have a feeling that our thief is going to make a big move very soon, and I donât think it will be in the admin building this time.â
âSir?â
Apelles rubbed the back of his neck. âDid you do any research on the Cipher?â
âNo, Iâm sorry. I havenât had time.â
âFind the time, preferably tonight. Youâll find out eventually, but I would rather you know now when itâs pertinent to the situation.â
Sam gave him a confused stare, but Apelles shook his head and gestured down the hall they came from. âHurry to Hilda. No doubt sheâs about to come looking for you.â
âYes sir.â
Sam almost said, âbye,â but that sounded too casual and familiar in his head, so he just gave the spymaster a stiff nod and walked away, his thoughts pulling in a million different directions. He supposed he could think about each one while he suffered under Hildaâs
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