Coat of Scarlet: A Clockpunk Tale, Part 4
by Siri Paulson Read previous installments: Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 “Oh, no you don’t!” Marius shouted, pelting after the red justacorps coat as it vanished into the crowd. The thief moved faster, but it wasn’t hard to keep that bright a colour in sight. As he dodged piles of lumber and moving carts, his thoughts galloped along just as fast. What kind of misbegotten son of a poxy dog would steal a coat anyway? Did they want it for the valuable fabric, or because they recognized it as Niko’s, or because there was something valuable in it he hadn’t noticed? Some of the seams had felt a bit bulky, but he hadn’t particularly wanted to unpick them to check whether something was hidden inside, on account of Niko being an airship pirate and all. Now he wished he’d known what exactly he had been entrusted with… Just how furious would Niko be if Marius couldn’t bring it back in time? He thought of Niko angry, the way the pirate had shoved him up against the wall of his own shop without any effort at all. Then he pictured Niko’s eyes clouded with an expression of betrayal. His stomach sank. He leaped over a coil of rope, ducked under a descending basket, and dove between two sailors of the female persuasion. A scrap of scarlet fluttered just ahead. Marius threw himself forward and tackled the thief. Two breaths later, and Marius was on his back in the…