than ten grains on any one person,” I said. “If a man doesn’t react to that amount, he won’t react at all, so don’t waste them trying to increase the dosage. Just try them on someone else.”
“How many will you give me?”
I shrugged. “All of them.”
“You don’t want to keep any for yourself?”
I couldn’t keep from laughing. “No. Jovah’s bones. I’ve had enough of trying to better my life through the man I could catch by whatever means necessary. Here’s a secret: It never made my life better. My life didn’t improve until I started making sure I got what I needed.”
She gave a faint, disdainful shrug. “Maybe you didn’t catch the right man.”
“And maybe the kind of man who can be caught isn’t the kind of man anyone with any sense would want.”
“If you see angels come down from the mountain,” she said, “come find me. I won’t have time to go looking for you.”
I nodded. “I’ll do that.”
She didn’t linger; she had no interest in us. David and I ate in near silence, until we began discussing the state of our provisions and the best way to restock them. I turned over some of my cash to him and told him to bargain with anyone who had food to sell. I wouldn’t need money while I was in the hold, but it would be a different story once I arrived at Velora.
If I made it to Velora.
First I had to make it to Windy Point.
It was two days before the angels came, and then there was a whole flock of them, fluttering down like great snowy birds. I snatched up my bag and ran for town. Everyone else was on the move, too, the dozens of us who had camped here patiently for days, everyone eager to secure an interview. I wove between clusters of farmers and groups of Jansai, detoured around the individual angel-seekers, and found Demaris pacing in front of the building where she had rented a room.
“Have you talked to any angels?” I panted.
“Not yet. But at least three of them saw me and made a point of smiling.”
“They’ll be back,” I said. “They’ll deal with the petitioners first and then start picking through the girls.”
She turned to face me, hands spread in a gesture that invited inspection. “What do you think? How do I look?”
I suggested she put on a bright scarf in purple or red—something flowing and colorful, something that would attract attention. I told her to wear her hair forward over her shoulders and muss it a little bit. Raphael had always liked long hair; most angels did. Other than that, not much needed enhancement. Demaris was a striking young woman.
We drifted toward the center of that little town—all the angel-seekers did—and soon there was a ring of pretty girls posing casually around a makeshift conference table set up right on the main dirt road. Angels sat in specially made chairs, with cutaway backs designed to support their spines without troubling their wings, while mortals took turns standing before them and airing their grievances. Twice while we watched, angels took wing, going off to handle some more immediate problem.
That still left about a dozen angels.
It took nearly the whole day for the angels to meet with all the petitioners. The sky was ever so faintly tinged with red when the last farmer nodded and stepped away. Almost as one, the angels came to their feet, joking and talking with each other. Almost as one, the angel-seekers surged forward, smiles on their lips, seduction in their hearts.
I wondered what Demaris would do to set herself apart, to catch an angel’s roving eye, but it seemed she had already done the trick. Two young angels whom I did not recognize—in their twenties, perhaps, both of them wickedly gorgeous—came straight toward her and laughingly competed for her attention.
“Do I have to pick just one of you?” she said, splitting a smile between them. “I don’t think I can choose.”
“ I’ll share if he’ll share,” said the one who was taller and darker.
“I’ve always
“How many will you give me?”
I shrugged. “All of them.”
“You don’t want to keep any for yourself?”
I couldn’t keep from laughing. “No. Jovah’s bones. I’ve had enough of trying to better my life through the man I could catch by whatever means necessary. Here’s a secret: It never made my life better. My life didn’t improve until I started making sure I got what I needed.”
She gave a faint, disdainful shrug. “Maybe you didn’t catch the right man.”
“And maybe the kind of man who can be caught isn’t the kind of man anyone with any sense would want.”
“If you see angels come down from the mountain,” she said, “come find me. I won’t have time to go looking for you.”
I nodded. “I’ll do that.”
She didn’t linger; she had no interest in us. David and I ate in near silence, until we began discussing the state of our provisions and the best way to restock them. I turned over some of my cash to him and told him to bargain with anyone who had food to sell. I wouldn’t need money while I was in the hold, but it would be a different story once I arrived at Velora.
If I made it to Velora.
First I had to make it to Windy Point.
It was two days before the angels came, and then there was a whole flock of them, fluttering down like great snowy birds. I snatched up my bag and ran for town. Everyone else was on the move, too, the dozens of us who had camped here patiently for days, everyone eager to secure an interview. I wove between clusters of farmers and groups of Jansai, detoured around the individual angel-seekers, and found Demaris pacing in front of the building where she had rented a room.
“Have you talked to any angels?” I panted.
“Not yet. But at least three of them saw me and made a point of smiling.”
“They’ll be back,” I said. “They’ll deal with the petitioners first and then start picking through the girls.”
She turned to face me, hands spread in a gesture that invited inspection. “What do you think? How do I look?”
I suggested she put on a bright scarf in purple or red—something flowing and colorful, something that would attract attention. I told her to wear her hair forward over her shoulders and muss it a little bit. Raphael had always liked long hair; most angels did. Other than that, not much needed enhancement. Demaris was a striking young woman.
We drifted toward the center of that little town—all the angel-seekers did—and soon there was a ring of pretty girls posing casually around a makeshift conference table set up right on the main dirt road. Angels sat in specially made chairs, with cutaway backs designed to support their spines without troubling their wings, while mortals took turns standing before them and airing their grievances. Twice while we watched, angels took wing, going off to handle some more immediate problem.
That still left about a dozen angels.
It took nearly the whole day for the angels to meet with all the petitioners. The sky was ever so faintly tinged with red when the last farmer nodded and stepped away. Almost as one, the angels came to their feet, joking and talking with each other. Almost as one, the angel-seekers surged forward, smiles on their lips, seduction in their hearts.
I wondered what Demaris would do to set herself apart, to catch an angel’s roving eye, but it seemed she had already done the trick. Two young angels whom I did not recognize—in their twenties, perhaps, both of them wickedly gorgeous—came straight toward her and laughingly competed for her attention.
“Do I have to pick just one of you?” she said, splitting a smile between them. “I don’t think I can choose.”
“ I’ll share if he’ll share,” said the one who was taller and darker.
“I’ve always
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