Chapter 24: Under Instructions

Chapter 24: Under Instructions

Evan arrived the next morning with two work trays and a question Silas would have preferred him to keep.

"Are you taking every job they send you?"

"No. Some of them pay very badly."

Silas moved a stack of notes off the desk. Evan set the trays down but kept hold of the upper one until there was room for it to lie flat.

"Nera said you offered her another evening. Tobin says you’ve offered him the whole afternoon. You asked me about these last night."

"I’m aware of my own appointments, Mercer."

"I’m asking whether you’ve left room between them." Evan nudged the notes farther from the edge. "These can wait until tomorrow."

"They can stay where they are. We’ll do them this evening."

Evan took his hands away and looked around the studio. The new chair occupied most of the space between the bed and desk. Silas had tucked his practice box underneath the desk to keep the floor clear for visitors.

"You’ve already bought the chair," Evan said. "What else do you need?"

"Must I submit a list?"

"No. But you didn’t used to ask what else I had before I’d paid you for the last job."

Silas turned toward the kitchenette. He meant to give himself a moment to answer. Evan noticed the movement and started shifting his bag out of the way, apparently expecting to be dismissed.

That irritated him too.

"Tea?" Silas asked.

"Oh. Yes, please."

He filled the kettle. There were ways of explaining the allowance that would make his family sound generous, provided he left out enough of it. He didn’t have the patience this morning.

"House Rooke pays my academy expenses," he said. "Food. Lodging. The things someone might ask about if they went unpaid. That does not mean I can order whatever I please and send the bill home."

Evan lowered himself onto the spare chair. "They don’t give you spending money?"

"Very little. You needn’t look so astonished."

"I thought—"

"Yes. Most people do." Silas put a cup in front of him. "If I want decent furniture, I see no reason to wait for someone at home to decide I deserve it."

Evan rubbed a thumb along the cup’s handle. He seemed to be reconsidering something, which was uncomfortable to watch. Silas regretted mentioning the family at all.

"Well," Evan said, "these two jobs are twelve and sixteen for your part. Same as I sent you. Neither needs finishing tonight."

"Then you’ll be pleasantly surprised when they are."

Evan didn’t smile. "I still have to do my part. I’m leaving at ten."

Silas opened his mouth, then shut it. Fine. He has a bed too.

"We’ll start early enough."

They drank their tea. Evan asked where the cloth for the work trays was, and the conversation became easier once Silas could point him toward a cupboard.

Tobin Reed came after lunch. He was a senior student with a carefully packed instrument case, ink on the heel of his hand, and no intention of unpacking until the terms were settled.

"Nera says you can manage several separate holds," he said from the doorway. "I’d like to see that before we register anything."

"Come in, then. Unless you expect me to perform in the corridor."

Tobin hesitated before crossing the threshold. Silas cleared the private guest reading from his vision and indicated the desk.

The instrument inside the case had a glass face and a fine pointer that lay crooked against its markings. Tobin placed four wooden spacers beside it for the trial. At his direction, Silas raised three and held them at different heights, then eased one sideways while the other two stayed still.

"Like that?" Silas asked.

"Slower on the sideways movement. Yes. There." Tobin leaned down to check the gap. "That will do."

He brought up the commission form on his slate. Twenty-four silver for assisting with the repair and tests. Tobin supplied the tools, parts, and instructions; Silas supplied the control.

Tobin added a line specifying that a fault in the instrument wouldn’t be charged to Silas unless he’d caused it.

"Very conscientious," Silas said. "Do you write down which of us opens the case?"

The other student looked at him. "I want a record of what we agreed, Rooke. If something goes wrong, I don’t want an argument about what you meant afterward."

Silas could hear the rest without needing it said. The original would have been delighted to dispute an agreement nobody could prove he’d made.

He read the form and accepted it.

"There. Shall we repair your instrument?"

Tobin checked the confirmation before removing his coat.

The meter measured mana flow through training equipment. Its sensing strip had been damaged, but the surrounding assembly was still good. A repair would spare its owner the cost of replacing the entire instrument.

"Why can’t you lift this whole section out?" Silas asked, pointing at the narrow framework above the strip.

"Because those little connections go through it." Tobin brought the lamp closer. "Break one and I have to rebuild that side. Keep them in place, and I only replace the strip."

He disconnected the meter from its test supply and checked it before opening the inner casing. Then he showed Silas what could be lifted, what had to remain level, and the support beneath each part.

Silas listened with his chin resting on one hand. Halfway through, he asked Tobin to repeat the order.

Tobin reached for his slate.

"Show me," Silas said. "I’ll remember it better."

They rehearsed with the loose spacers first. During the real attempt, Tobin needed the upper frame raised just far enough to get a tool beneath it. Silas held that while easing a small fitting to the left. A third hold supported the connections exposed underneath.

"A little more," Tobin said.

"Which one?"

"The fitting. Sorry. Toward me."

Silas moved it. The gap opened enough for Tobin to loosen the damaged strip, but the man’s fingers blocked the line Silas had been watching.

"Move your hand a moment."

"I nearly have it."

"And I can’t see whether I’m pulling the connection out."

Tobin withdrew his fingers. Silas checked the exposed section, restored a little slack, and waited for him to continue.

The strip came free with an ugly bend at one end.

"That explains the pointer," Tobin murmured.

Silas wanted to look, but the frame was still hanging where he’d put it, and his eyes had begun to ache from staring into such a small space.

"Can I lower any of this?"

"The fitting can go back into its support. Keep the top raised."

One hold eased. Silas swallowed and adjusted his position without disturbing the others. Tobin unpacked the replacement strip and stopped before fitting it.

"Ready?"

"Yes."

Getting the new part in took longer than removing the damaged one. Silas had to lift the connections clear in turn, supporting each until Tobin had guided the strip beneath it. Once, Tobin asked for a movement Silas couldn’t make without pulling on the next connection.

"Hold on," Silas said. "Let me take this side first."

Tobin kept his tool still while the support shifted. Silas worked around the obstruction, lowered the connection, and finally let the fitting settle.

"Now."

Tobin secured it. They lowered the upper frame together, checked every connection, and closed the casing before restoring the test supply.

The pointer rose, stopped, and returned neatly when Tobin reduced the flow.

Silas rubbed his eyes while the tests continued. He could still picture the tiny gap he’d spent so long watching. When he opened his eyes again, Tobin was smiling at the meter with an expression so pleased that Silas found himself watching him instead.

"Your own?" he asked.

"No. One I sold last term. I’d rather repair it than have someone else open it and wonder what I was doing." Tobin checked the pointer once more. "Good. That’ll do."

The twenty-four silver arrived before he packed the case.

At the door, Tobin adjusted the strap over his shoulder. "I’ve got another job you could help with tomorrow. About the same time involved. Same fee, if you’re interested."

"Send the details."

"Through the registry."

Silas inclined his head. "As you wish."

Tobin left with the signed terms saved on his slate and an appointment to discuss another set. Silas shut the door, sat down, and discovered that he’d been smiling faintly at the payment notice.

He let himself keep doing it for a moment before clearing space for Evan’s trays.