She mixed herbal spirits and they all drank deeply. When she made a new batch, she used a light simple syrup she’d found in the pantry. “This could be from Orium Saroyans!” she exclaimed when she tasted it.
“It is from Orius. It was shipped to an outpost where we picked it up,” Detrey said.
“Let me see the box,” she said suspiciously.
Detrey brought it to her, and she gasped at the small symbol of a pair of trees. “This syrup is from our own Saroyan trees! Zawri’s and mine. It’s very expensive and rare in the universe.” She turned to Larsinc who stood near the counter. “How did you get it?”
“I bought it.”
“When did you start buying it? There’s a waitlist for new clients, and Zawri’s very strict about not allowing anyone to jump the line.”
Detrey smirked.
“Did you force her to sell it to you? In exchange for what?”
Linc cocked a brow. “I could have. She’d have paid any ransom in the world to protect you. She offered to take your punishment and hers. And offered to trade time as a handmaiden in a bid to protect you.”
“What?” she asked with a horrified gasp. “What’s a handmaiden?”
Detrey’s smirk faded. “It’s a term pirates use for a member of the crew whose duties include sex. So, Linc, you said no to that offer from Giss’s sister, right? Because Ketturans don’t force women to become whores to avoid beatings.”
“I didn’t negotiate with Zawri. Her crime was secondary, and not of interest to me. I had an objective, which I pursued.”
“How’d you hear about the offer? Was she on the Canypscan pirate ship?” Detrey asked.
“She was.”
“How? How’d she get on it?” Detrey demanded.
“The way you might expect,” Linc returned.
Gissandre stared at him. “Are you saying Zawri was abducted?”
Linc nodded.
“We talked to those pirates when we were looking for you. She wasn’t with them then.”
“I told them to shorten her term of service. I guess they did.”
Gissandre sat down heavily on a stool, clutching the table to steady herself. “She wouldn’t have offered to do that. To become some sort of concubine to pirates? Not even to protect me. Not for any reason. She’s a virgin.”
After a beat, Detrey asked, “Is she still, Linc?”
“No. And she’s agreed to marry one of the Canypscans.”
Giss’s head jerked up. “That is not true! It can’t be! She’d lose the house and the property. She swore—no. She had options. I’m the one whose options were cut off. Zawri stayed on Orius to protect our assets. She—she would not let our father’s legacy be lost.”
“Go, Detrey. And tell the others, no more company tonight,” Larsinc said.
“Maybe she should come with me? I’ll take her to Lana and Varse’s?”
“No.”
“Gissandre, why don’t you stay with Lana? You can come back here in the morning,” Detrey said.
“If you go, you won’t learn the rest of the story until Zawri arrives,” Larsinc said.
“It’s all right, Detrey. You go. I’m staying to hear the rest of this sordid tale. How long have you known, Larsinc?”
