business, Kragar?”
“Good. Not so much income as when you ran things, but less trouble.”
“No border disputes?”
He smirked. “No one seems to notice my operations.”
“Nice.”
“And you? Anything new?”
“I think I might have a way to get this matter handled.”
“By ‘this matter’ do you mean—?”
“Yeah.”
He whistled. “How can I help?”
“For starters, let me stay here.”
“Here? In the office?”
“I’ll curl up in a corner.”
The klava arrived. I drank some, and the day became better.
“Seriously, Vlad?”
“Seriously. I need somewhere to operate from. Somewhere I know the Jhereg isn’t going to be able to get me.”
“Here? This is your idea of a place the Jhereg can’t get you?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Vlad, did you lose your mind on the road, or was it since you came back?”
“Kragar, who hangs out up here in your office?”
“Jhereg, Vlad. You know, people who want to kill you?”
“Yeah, have a lot of them done ‘work’?”
“The people in my office? No, but—”
“And do they do what you say?”
“I…”
“Yes?”
“If word gets out—”
“As Loiosh says, when word gets out. It will. And then they’ll have the problem of setting up a shot at me in the worst possible place.”
“But every time you leave—”
“Kragar, remember? I know about the other exit.”
He frowned, looking pained. “How long?”
“A few days at the most.”
He shook his head. “All right. I’ll have my old office cleared out. Been using it for storage. However crazy I am for letting you do it, you’re crazier for wanting to.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“You know, I can’t believe you haven’t gotten me killed yet. Even once.”
“Yeah, we’ll see if we can do something about that before it’s too late.”
“Hey, thanks, Vlad.”
“What are friends for?”
“How does the thing work?”
“What thing?”
“Your idea for getting out from under.”
“Oh. It’s complicated. The short version is I’ve come up with a business opportunity so lucrative, the Demon says he’ll clear me if I can prove it’ll work.”
“Really?”
“So he says. And I trust him as well as I trust anyone in that position.”
“What’s the plan?”
I hesitated.
“No,” he said. “Skip that. What do you need to make it work?”
“Kragar, are you really asking me that?”
“Yeah. I invited you to stay here, and now I’m asking what you need. Tonight, I’m going to drop a rock on my foot, and tomorrow is eat a live teckla day.”
“Hey, now—”
“Shut up.”
“Fair enough,” I told Kragar.
“So, what do you need?”
“Any idea where we can find a hawk’s egg?”
He frowned. “A hawk’s egg. I assume you mean the, you know, the magical hawk’s egg, not just the egg of some hawk.”
“Right.”
“I’d ask Daymar.”
“Yeah, I’ve been trying to avoid that.”
He chuckled. “I can understand that. I could look for someone else—”
“No, no. We’ll go with Daymar. I told him I’d be needing his help again.”
“That makes me feel better. If I have to deal with you, you have to deal with Daymar. More klava?”
“Always.”
“Want me to get a message to him?”
“If you would, Loiosh would be grateful.”
“Got that right, Boss.”
“What should I tell him?”
“Let’s say an hour before noon in the back room of Mertun’s.”
“Will do. Need any money?”
“No, thanks. I’m good.”
He gave the orders for the message to be sent, then we sat in companionable silence while we waited for klava, and then again after it arrived. It was good, and I felt some tension drain out of me.
* * *
I was going to need a hawk’s egg.
Depending on the region, it is known as the thorn-hawk, the gully-hawk, the scatter-hawk, or the brushbird. It is one of 114 varieties of raptors so far identified by Imperial naturalists, all of which are commonly called hawks. The thorn-hawk is ubiquitous in many regions,
“Good. Not so much income as when you ran things, but less trouble.”
“No border disputes?”
He smirked. “No one seems to notice my operations.”
“Nice.”
“And you? Anything new?”
“I think I might have a way to get this matter handled.”
“By ‘this matter’ do you mean—?”
“Yeah.”
He whistled. “How can I help?”
“For starters, let me stay here.”
“Here? In the office?”
“I’ll curl up in a corner.”
The klava arrived. I drank some, and the day became better.
“Seriously, Vlad?”
“Seriously. I need somewhere to operate from. Somewhere I know the Jhereg isn’t going to be able to get me.”
“Here? This is your idea of a place the Jhereg can’t get you?”
“Well, yeah.”
“Vlad, did you lose your mind on the road, or was it since you came back?”
“Kragar, who hangs out up here in your office?”
“Jhereg, Vlad. You know, people who want to kill you?”
“Yeah, have a lot of them done ‘work’?”
“The people in my office? No, but—”
“And do they do what you say?”
“I…”
“Yes?”
“If word gets out—”
“As Loiosh says, when word gets out. It will. And then they’ll have the problem of setting up a shot at me in the worst possible place.”
“But every time you leave—”
“Kragar, remember? I know about the other exit.”
He frowned, looking pained. “How long?”
“A few days at the most.”
He shook his head. “All right. I’ll have my old office cleared out. Been using it for storage. However crazy I am for letting you do it, you’re crazier for wanting to.”
“Thanks,” I said.
“You know, I can’t believe you haven’t gotten me killed yet. Even once.”
“Yeah, we’ll see if we can do something about that before it’s too late.”
“Hey, thanks, Vlad.”
“What are friends for?”
“How does the thing work?”
“What thing?”
“Your idea for getting out from under.”
“Oh. It’s complicated. The short version is I’ve come up with a business opportunity so lucrative, the Demon says he’ll clear me if I can prove it’ll work.”
“Really?”
“So he says. And I trust him as well as I trust anyone in that position.”
“What’s the plan?”
I hesitated.
“No,” he said. “Skip that. What do you need to make it work?”
“Kragar, are you really asking me that?”
“Yeah. I invited you to stay here, and now I’m asking what you need. Tonight, I’m going to drop a rock on my foot, and tomorrow is eat a live teckla day.”
“Hey, now—”
“Shut up.”
“Fair enough,” I told Kragar.
“So, what do you need?”
“Any idea where we can find a hawk’s egg?”
He frowned. “A hawk’s egg. I assume you mean the, you know, the magical hawk’s egg, not just the egg of some hawk.”
“Right.”
“I’d ask Daymar.”
“Yeah, I’ve been trying to avoid that.”
He chuckled. “I can understand that. I could look for someone else—”
“No, no. We’ll go with Daymar. I told him I’d be needing his help again.”
“That makes me feel better. If I have to deal with you, you have to deal with Daymar. More klava?”
“Always.”
“Want me to get a message to him?”
“If you would, Loiosh would be grateful.”
“Got that right, Boss.”
“What should I tell him?”
“Let’s say an hour before noon in the back room of Mertun’s.”
“Will do. Need any money?”
“No, thanks. I’m good.”
He gave the orders for the message to be sent, then we sat in companionable silence while we waited for klava, and then again after it arrived. It was good, and I felt some tension drain out of me.
* * *
I was going to need a hawk’s egg.
Depending on the region, it is known as the thorn-hawk, the gully-hawk, the scatter-hawk, or the brushbird. It is one of 114 varieties of raptors so far identified by Imperial naturalists, all of which are commonly called hawks. The thorn-hawk is ubiquitous in many regions,
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