“You always had a serious competitive streak when it came to him,” Zane continued. “I shouldn’t be surprised. Was that really all it took? Kal had to find someone to make you finally want to get serious and settle down?”
“It’s not like that,” he insisted. “It wouldn’t be real. Hence why I’d be paying the guy. I just want something believable enough to show Baikal and Flix that I can do anything Kal can.”
“If it’s fake, it’d be a lie.”
“Thanks, Saint Zane. I wasn’t aware.”
He shrugged. “If you’re going to sin anyway, may as well go all in.”
Kazimir frowned in silent question.
“Sounds like you’re not sure offering him money will get this guy to accept you and play along.”
Even though they’d only had a couple of interactions, it was obvious that Nate was too stubborn and prideful to jump into Kaz’s palm. He could offer more money than Mit Parker could even dream of, but there was still no guarantee Nate would take the deal.
“Like I mentioned,” Kazimir said. “He doesn’t like me very much.”
“How’d you get involved in the first place?”
“He owed me. Sort of."
“You aren’t exactly one to overlook a debt.”
“Exactly.”
Zane dropped to the edge of the bed and started to put his shoes on. “You’re making this more complicated than it needs to be.”
“How so?”
“The solution you’re looking for has already been spoken of in this room.”
“Cryptic bullshit is not really my forte. If you’re leading me on—”
“Only one of us is good at that game,” Zane cut him off. “And it isn’t me.” He stood and smoothed down the minor wrinkles of his shirt before turning to Kaz. “This guy owes you? You want him? And there’s a good chance he can’t be bought. Correct?”
“Yeah, that’s the gist of it.”
Zane reached back and removed a weapon from where it’d been hidden on his person. Not even Kazimir knew where he kept them, not for lack of trying to find out. The knife was part of a set, double-edged and shaped like a long raindrop with a tip sharp enough to draw blood at just a prick. The handle was intricate and carved out of clear star crystal, one of the hardest materials on the planet.
He handed it over to Kazimir, ignoring the surprised look he received in return. These weapons had been a gift from Kelevra Diar, and it was unheard of for Zane to go anywhere without them, let alone loan them out.
“I expect it returned,” Zane said before Kaz could get any bright ideas about absconding with it. “The consequences otherwise would be severe.”
“And,” Kazimir twisted the weapon, watching the way it glinted in the dull motel room lighting, “what exactly are you suggesting I do with this?”
“You’re a Devil of Vitality, Kaz. This shouldn’t be so hard for you to piece together on your own. Laws are for the rest of the world to follow, not us. Whoever this guy is, he’s nothing. He has no rights but the ones we allow him.”
Sometimes, it was very easy for Kazimir to forget that Zane Solarice was fucking crazy.
And other times he made it strikingly obvious.
There was a reason Zane had been chosen as Kelevra’s second-highest-ranking member. They both suffered from ungodly amounts of arrogance and entitlement.
Not that Zane was entirely wrong here…
“What should you do?” the medical student clucked his tongue chidingly. “Do what you do best. Don’t make offers. Don’t waste time on compromises. You want something from him?Take it.Manipulation has always been your mode of attack, true, but let’s be honest here. Brute force is your specialty.” Something flashed behind his eyes, there and gone. “I should know.”
There was the slight issue of Nate being on good terms with Flix, Berga, and Madden but…None of them held a higher station than he did. None of them would get in his way if he made a claim on Nate. The only way they could is if one of them tried to do it first, and as far as Kaz was aware, that wasn’t going to happen.
