Among the Nameless Stars

way. If only we dared, right? Maybe if we weren’t so valuable to him, he would let us go.”
    “He’ll never let us go,” Kai grumbled. “If we’re not valuable to him as a mechanic and a scribe, he’ll keep us around for brute labor. And when we’re not valuable for that— Well, there’s always chum.”
    Bess squeezed her eyes shut, and Kai bit his tongue. That’s right: Pen had killed Sid just to show his power. Sid had been a good laborer, but he’d been far more valuable to Pen dead, as an example of how ruthless a master Pen could be. And though Kai didn’t really think Pen would kill Bess’s baby, he had no doubt their master would use the child to keep the woman under his thumb.
    “I can’t stand it anymore, Kai,” she whispered. “I can’t stand it. He always wins, no matter what. Just once, I’d like to see him lose, the way we’ve lost … everything.”
    “So, what?” Kai blurted. “You want me to sabotage him?”

    Among the Nameless Stars by Diana Peterfreund
    | 41
    She touched the hull, then lifted her eyes to Kai’s face. For the first time ever, Kai read hope on her face. “Can you do that?”
    Making themselves worthless was no way to escape from Pen’s control. The only option was making themselves even more precious than ever. Precious enough for others to notice.
    He shook his head once, very slowly. “I’m not going to make Pen lose, Bess. I’m going to make him win.”

    Among the Nameless Stars by Diana Peterfreund
    | 42

Nine
    Dear Kai,
    I have fownd the peepul you were looking for. I wil meet you at the mareena for the race and sho them tou you.
    Best,
    Cleopatra

    The boat race was scheduled for late afternoon, and by the third time Kai had finished reviewing the instructions for boat operation with Pen, quite a crowd had gathered at the marina, the Posts in their gaily colored clothes and the Luddites in their great carriages or sitting astride their massive Innovation horses. The docks had been lit with sun-lamps, another device that Kai had never seen before coming to Channel City. Unlike the lanterns he’d known growing up, they took no oil and were powered by mirrors that captured the rays of the sun all day and used them to shine all night. Bartholomew had a few in his shop, and Kai knew Pen kept several in his residence, but none of the workers had them. The smell of kerosene was strong in the metal-box village. Tough to save for a sun-lamp when you were worried about putting food in your children’s mouths.
    Now the boats were all bobbing in position behind the starting buoy, and as the sun set over the channel, an air of excitement coursed through the spectators. Kai stood in the crowd, searching intently. Across the way, he saw a pair of light-haired figures waving their arms in the air and shouting his name. He waved back.

    Among the Nameless Stars by Diana Peterfreund
    | 43
    “ Those are your pupils?” Bess asked, appearing beside him. She narrowed her eyes at the waving girl in her skimpy clothes.
    “Yes. And they’ve helped a lot.” He started forward, but Bess grabbed his elbow.
    “She knows you can read?” Bess clucked her tongue. “Not smart, Kai. You know what kind of girl that is. What makes you think she’d keep your secret as soon as she could use it to her advantage?”
    He jerked his arm out of her grip. “Because she fed me when no one else would, and there’s no advantage in that. She no more chose her life than we did, Bess. Don’t be cruel.”
    Bess snapped her mouth shut and looked contrite, but Kai didn’t have time to argue with her.
    Not today.
    “Did you bring the bag I asked for?”
    “Yes,” she said, and handed it over. It had been nice of Bess to offer to help him, especially in her delicate condition. He hadn’t wanted Pen to ask questions about the machine while Kai had been coaching him. “Do you really think it’s going to work?”
    “Are you kidding?” Kai said. “I’m the best mechanic in Channel City. That’s the whole problem.”
    “Yes,” Bess grumbled. “It is.”
    He shouldered the bulky sack and took off toward his friends. When he reached them, he affected a formal bow. “Alexander. Cleopatra.”
    The boy frowned, and his sister sighed. “He’s not Alexander anymore. Now he’s decided he wants to be Napoleon.”
    Kai chuckled. “Of course he does. Short but powerful.” They’d rechristened themselves several times over the past few months, but the new names didn’t seem like