Interlude – Skinner

“Impossible,” Skinner said, readjusting his posture. “Are you sure?”

Thana gave him a stiff nod and Skinner tried to read beneath those dark brown eyes of hers but could not--it was like staring into the sun. If Thana was telling the truth there could be an opportunity here, but if she was lying, however. He imagined the notion of peeling her skin back from her body while she was still alive. He had never skinned a woman before, only men and the idea chilled him. He chewed the brown leaf tucked under his cheek and spat a wet blob onto the floor. It was a new habit of his and helped quench his nerves.

He gave Thana a piercing stare and allowed the air around them to grow stale with suspicion.

“Without a doubt my Lord” Thana confirmed.

“Lord?” Skinner said amused. “Don’t try and flatter me, woman”

The silence extended and it gave Skinner a moment to consider. Could this Sabrina Black really be an Arachne like Thana claimed? Was it possible she was…daughter to the Mother? Why hadn’t the Mother mentioned as much, did she not trust him with the information?

Skinner needed a victory; the last few days had gone from bad to worse in the grand scheme of things. The WC had lost their wizard Arthur and the Mother’s favour with it. Skinner cursed his foolishness every night, how he let Theo Wood put an end to all his plans in one single stroke of his dagger. He should have anticipated that Theo the informer, would have more cunning and bravery than the usual sops he dealt with. It was a devastating wound Theo inflicted on the WC when he decided to slit the throat of Arthur, and Skinner wagered whether he would survive to see the end of this year. Perhaps if he claimed the Mother’s daughter, gain her favor, or better still, gain her compassion, the baby spider might convince the mother spider not to eat him whole.

“Any idea on where we could start looking?” Skinner asked, fighting the urge not to cross his fingers together on the account he only had five now.

“She’s an Arachne my…sir,” Thana said flatly. “Darkness and moisture are her two new habitats”

Skinner pondered, feeling he was always two steps behind this Thana woman. The girl was smart he would not deny her that, but something about those eyes put him off, made it hard for him to stare into them for too long.

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“The sewers,” he concluded tapping his desk lightly, and Thana stiffened another nod. “Find her and bring her to me” he added.

Skinner was not used to following up his orders, usually, his men would have moved to obey the moment he gave one, but Thana only looked at him, as if waiting for him to understand something he’d misjudged. When Skinner had nothing, she said:

“Unless the girl is stupid, she won’t return willingly. Not without Theo and you’ve…” she broke off.

“Well try!” Skinner protested sending the brown leaf in his mouth to fall onto his lap. He wiped it aside like a man might wipe a dead fly on his desk.

Thana allowed his empty answer to sit there a while as if it were a chess piece that had just been placed on the wrong tile. Skinner withdrew that chess piece reluctantly when he realized that was the case.

“Alright, how do we get her back,” he said quietly. Thankfully, Thana had the decency to answer quickly.

“When I find her, I could tell her it’s at Theo’s request, to return to the guild?”

Skinner considered the idea then spat a final glob of brown spit to furnish his stone room.

“No. You do not try and trap a spider in a web of lies,” he said and rubbed at the two fang marks concealed beneath his collar.

“Besides, It will not serve to betray the daughter belonging to the Mother I wish to appease,” Skinner raised his goblet to his lips and caught a glance of his own image in its reflection; the man that stared back looked much older than he remembered, and thinner too. His cheekbones stood out like crescent hills on a field of white.

“She is the Mother’s child and must be treated as such, offer the girl whatever she requires,” he finished, taking a swallow of wine to help wash away his annoyance.

‘Damn you, Theo, damn you’ he cursed secretly in his head.

“Very well”

Thana stood to leave his office.

“And Thana,” he added. “Who else knows about her, about what she is?”

Thana gave him a reassuring smile, her tight lips curling into a sinister grimace, and Skinner suddenly felt fear wash through him like the wine, Thana’s eyes looked strangely hungry.

“Just you, I, and Theo,” she answered. “Oh, and Sabrina of course”

Skinner nodded feeling slightly reassured. He would not trust anyone again after this and when Sabrina was in his hands, he would deal with this woman like the loose end she was.

“You’ll need some protection. The sewers are not safe for a woman wandering around alone,” he said, but instead of receiving eyes of comfort and appreciation, he thought he saw Thana suppress a smile.

“As you say, sir” she answered, and Skinner left it at that. She knew where to find the men, should she require it and who to mention if they refused her. His name had weight down here in the city beneath a city, down here he was King.

Skinner leaned back as Thana was leaving and pulled at the drawer in his desk, inside lay a bundle of cloth which he began to unfold. Tucked inside was a collection of brown leaves, dried and folded. He tucked a portion in between his gum and cheek. It was expensive stuff and imported all the way from Yuanland, illegal too. He allowed himself to sit back and exhale.

“The mother had a daughter here in the city the whole time” he whispered softly to himself. He was astonished when Thana answered over her shoulders:

“One can never have too many webs, sir.”