“They’re decorative,” he grumbles. “People should read the fine print.”
“Enough small talk,” I say, leaning closer. “You owe me. I’m here to collect.”
He groans again, long and loud, like I’ve just asked him to chop off his own arm. “Iskara, you can’t just show up and—wait, who’s the kid?”
Tess shifts uncomfortably behind me, and I put a hand on her shoulder. “This is Tess. She needs a place to lie low, and you’re going to give it to her.”
Gellesk’s jaw drops. “Me? Oh, no. No, no, no. I’m a businessman, not a babysitter,” he gestures to his table of knock-offs and trinkets.
“She’s not a baby, Gellesk. And you’re barely a man,” I retort.
He slaps a hand on his chest, feigning indignation. “How dare you! I am the most sought-after trader in The Underbelly. My goods are legendary.”
“Your goods are mostly counterfeit,” I say while flicking a frail piece of tin off his table.
“Details,” he huffs. “The point is, I’m too busy to?—”
“You’re not too busy to chug voidroot and gamble away your profits,” I cut in. “You’ll take her. And while you’re at it, you’re going to tell me where Ronyn is.”
Gellesk shifts on his feet, his bravado fading as his gaze flicks to the edges of the corridor. Always the cautious one—when he’s not high on voidroot, of course. He leans forward, lowering his voice.
“Alright, fine. I’ll tell you what I know, but don’t go pinning this on me,” he mutters. “Your arrow-slinging idiot of a friend got himself caught.”
I cock an eyebrow. “Caught? By who? Let me guess—someone smarter than you, which, to be fair, isn’t a high bar.”Fuck.
“The King’s guards,” he grumbles. “Well, not the fancy types. More like the rejects who couldn’t make it to the palace. They were stationed at The Black Stream depot. My sources say Ronyn was sniffing around a supply cache during a raid. He got too close, and they dragged him off to The Tannery before he could wrangle that oversized bow of his.”
I swallow my panic, and take a step closer, looming over him just enough to remind him who’s in charge here. “And The Tannery? How hard is it to get in?”
He groans, throwing his head back like I’ve asked him to part the Stars themselves. “It’s a low-level op, alright? Not palace guards—just a couple of Starborn grunts keeping watch. Bloodbonds, maybe Aetherstrides if you’re lucky. They’ll sense you, and they won’t stay down for long. These guys are ruthless and mean. Like you, only with less charm.”
I smirk. “You think I’m charming? Careful, Gellesk. People might start to talk,” I say with a wink.
He groans louder. “Why do I even bother? You’re just going to storm in there and make a mess, aren’t you?”
“Probably. But don’t worry—I’ll make sure it’s a memorable one,” I say, patting his shoulder. “Unlike your last big mess, which involved no pants, drool and a very angry noble.”
“I’m never living that down, am I?”
“Not as long as I’m breathing,” I reply cheerfully.
I glance at Tess, hovering behind me like a nervous shadow. “Speaking of big messes, you’re going to take Tess here off my hands. She needs somewhere safe.”
Gellesk stares at me like I’ve just told him he’s been conscripted into the Royal Guard. “Me? I’ve got a business to run!”
“This,” I scoff, pointing at his miserable table of trinkets, “is not a business. It’s a scam. And Gellesk,” I look at him with intensity, “her father sold her into The Flesh Circuit.”
Gellesk’s face drops. He may be a shitty businessman running a counterfeit operation, but heisgoverned bysomelevel of morality. He refuses to trade in people. He looks at Tess, and for once, his expression softens with something like genuine care. If there’s one thing I know about this goon, it’s that he draws the line at The Flesh Circuit. “Come here, love. Uncle Gellesk will sort ya out.”
I tell myself Tess will be safe here, with his counterfeit charms and dusty codes of honor. But I’ve learned not to trust safety—not in Virellin.
As I turn to leave, feeling a modicum of assurance that Tess will be okay, Gellesk’s grumbling follows me. “One day, Iskara, you’re going to push me too far.”
I glance back with a grin. “And one day, Gellesk, you’re going to grow a backbone and a legitimate business. Let me know when it happens. I’ll bring cake.”
I hear him mutter something about Starsdamned women and their impossible demands as I disappear into the shadows.
The Tannery is waiting. And something in my blood tells me this won’t just be a rescue—it’ll be a reckoning.
