Free Sea of Death: Blade of the Flame - Book 3 by Tim Waggoner Page A

granite gargoyles perched upon the roof, and a pair of manticore statues flanked a huge oak door at the top of marble steps. Casual passersby would appreciate the building’s beauty, but few would realize that, should the need arise, the gargoyles and the manticores would come to swift and deadly life.
    There was no sign to indicate the name or even the nature of this establishment, but then none was necessary. Only those who alreadyknew of the Culinarian sought it out, and few of those were permitted entrance. And of and those who got inside, even fewer knew the restaurant’s true nature.
    Though Yvka hadn’t let on to her companions, this wasn’t her first time in Kolbyr. She had no specific reason for not telling them the truth, and she wasn’t sure why she’d kept that information from them, and especially from Ghaji. Habit, she supposed. By necessity, operatives of the Shadow Network lived by a strict code of secrecy, but living by that code came with a price. Operatives couldn’t afford to get too close to anyone, even other members of the Network.
Stay silent, stay guarded, stay alone, stay safe
. That was an operative’s motto, and while Yvka had never come out and directly admitted to belonging to the Network, her friends knew the truth. That was why she stood out here hesitating. It was possible—no, almost certain—that the man she had come here to see was aware she’d become too close to Ghaji, Diran, and the others. The question was what, if anything, he planned to do about it.
    She took a deep breath, let it out slowly, and started across the street.
    She walked casually, seeming relaxed and comfortable, but inside she was tense and alert. As she approached the stairs, she had to force herself not to look at the gargoyles and manticores. She could feel their cold stone eyes upon her, and though she knew it was probably her imagination, she sensed displeasure in their gazes, as if even the guardians knew of her failure to remain detached and professional.
    She reached the steps, ascended them, and stopped before the oak door. There was no knob, no handle, no device for signaling those inside. Yvka simply stood there, and after several moments—a bit longer than strictly necessary, she thought—the door swung inward, and Yvka stepped inside. She found herself standing at the end of a narrow corridor lit by tiny everbright lanterns hovering close to the curved ceiling. The lanterns gave off a soft blue light that only dimly illuminated the way, but they provided more than enough light for elvish eyes to see by. Yvka started down the corridor, and she didn’t look back as she heard the door close behind her with a gentle
snick
that sounded all too final to her ears. No one came forward to greether, but that was normal here. If the door opened for you, you already knew you were welcome in the Culinarian.
    The corridor ran straight for a few dozen yards before opening onto a vast dining hall. The hall was illuminated by cerulean everbright lanterns floating in the air to simulate an underwater environment, and saltwater aquariums filled with exotic sea creatures were placed in various locations around the hall to further enhance the illusion. A long table constructed from coral stretched the length of the hall, and spread out on its craggy surface was a buffet of seafood dishes: lobster, shrimp, squid, crab, clams, mussels, mullet, salmon, scampi, prawns, grouper, conch, blowfish, octopus, halibut, monkfish, and many more. Dishes were served raw, baked, broiled, and fried, along with a wide assortment of vegetables.
    The diners sat at smaller tables in groups of two, three, or more. Like the main table, the diners’ tables had been fashioned from coral, with animated centerpieces enchanted to resemble seaweed drifting in an underwater current. Servers moved constantly throughout the room, some bringing new dishes in from the kitchen, others carrying plates loaded with food to diners too lazy—or