“They should be.”
“Silas,” he warned, “you’ve been running for too long. No matter how justified your actions, there are consequences.” He raked his fingers through the brown waves of his hair, and I swore there was a tremor. “I’m surprised he has taken so long to initiate any sort of correspondence.”
I waved a dismissive hand. “Do what you must to delay him. He will only entertain a goose chase for so long. Hopefully, we areback by then.”
He stared at me for a beat too long, displaying something like hesitation. “I’ll send something back to the Nest,” Luka finally said.
Right past Luka, I spotted the little blond sprite from the other night. “Excuse me.” I abandoned my seat, eager to escape the conversation in more ways than one.
If anyone would know more about the politics of the area, this one would.
She pressed her palms against the edge of the bar, glancing at the mirror behind the bottles.
I stalked forward, appearing behind her in the reflection. “Were you hoping to see me again, or is this a typical hunting ground for you?”
Her eyes widened, and she spun around.
“Don’t look so surprised; at least try to look like you expected a threat.” I rolled my eyes, sliding my empty glass to the bartender as I took a seat.
“Why not leave me alone? You already know why I frequent here from our last talk.” She hesitantly sat next to me.
“Relax, I am not here to cause any sort of heartache for you.” I laughed. “But I did have some questions.”
“What about?”
“Just helping out a lost tourist.”
“Well, I will try to help where I can.”
“Where does a stranger get a bite to eat?”
“You’d be looking for a Guild,” she laughed.
“And that is . . . ?”
“There is not much to tell. They run like Dens with a member list. Some are more exclusive than others, but all are welcome with the right fee.”
“How much doyoupay, then?”
“I do not pay, and neither do Hosts,” she started. “I don’t know how it works where you’re from, but here the Hosts are unionized. My Nest was the one to start it.”
“If your Hosts are within your own Nest, why would they go to another?”
“Hosts don’t have to pay to enter a Guild; they are paid to be there,” she explained.
“Where is your Nest?”
She shook her head. “I cannot tell you that.”
“May I know your name, then? We are friends, are we not?”
The blonde appeared to internally debate whether it was a good idea to tell me. It was undoubtedly a terrible decision to tell me anything, but she seemed naive enough.
“Edith,” she said after a while.
“Edith,” I repeated, tilting my head at her. “What about the Dam of your Nest?”
Edith shifted in her seat at the mention. It did not take an academic to see that she was not allowed to talk to strangers about her. What a sweet little thing.
