“It was terrible advice.”
He shoved my head aside. “Well. I’d say you can either go straight to Durb yourself, or go to the Bricks and warn them. This crew you’re running with, they’re not going to wait. And they won’t suddenly decide they don’t want to off Alby Durb. So you need to be careful, because if they find out you’ve warned either of them, it could destroy whatever trust you’ve gained so far.”
“I was afraid you’d say that,” I said. I slanted him a glance. “I know you’ve warned me about bringing you incomplete information before, but…you should probably hear this. I found a body in the Troyce & Fallon factory.”
He jerked away from the wall. “You mean, like the others? In the Hole or whatever they call it?”
“Yes, like the others. No, not in the Hole. In the factory, above ground. Derrin claimed not to know anything about it, and I’m inclined to believe him. I don’t know who, or what, or how, only that the person was a mage. Anyway, I just thought you should know.”
Kor thrummed his fingers against the wall, chewing on the inside of his cheek. “There’s something fishy going on around there. You’ve got to get in with this Kantian fellow, or somehow get past him to Rivano.”
“I know.”
He thought for a while, twirling a coin through his fingers. I watched him surreptitiously, suddenly noticing all the ways he reminded me of my mother. The warm complexion, the dark eyes, the presence that had annoyed me at one time but now didn’t even surprise me. They even had a similar profile, which I supposed meant I must have looked a bit like him too, since as far as I’d ever been told, Tarik was the spitting image of Elanar. I sighed and slumped back against the wall.
“There’s something you need to know about how suppliers work,” Kor said after a while. “If Alby Durb does hit the cooler, the Bricks are going to have a load of trouble coming down on them. See, Durb brokers deals for weapons, drugs, skirts, information, whatever, between the Bricks and the buyers. He keeps the buyers honest, because he’s got the force he needs to make them comply. So he protects the crew from them, not just Vanek Meed and the city police. If he’s gone…there will be no one to keep the buyers from basically making the Bricks their slaves.”
“They’ve got a handful of kids who can handle a weapon, from what I saw,” I said. “Those people underground…they wouldn’t have the spirit to stand up for themselves. Half of them were glassed out anyway.”
He shook his head. “Such a bad business. Tarik, of all the dangers down in South Brinmark…that’s the one you need to fear the most.”
“Don’t worry,” I said, shuddering as I thought of Liza. “I saw what it does to people.”
“Well, now that I know that Alby Durb’s the supplier you were looking for, I’ve got a bit of information you might need. If something happens to him and the buyers start nipping the Bricks’ heels, arrange a meet with a fellow named Joren. He’s boss of the buyers’ ring. Basically sees to it that the drugs and goods and services get where they’re needed. Just tell him you know about the little Gribsy Squeeze he’s been up to.”
“Gribsy Squeeze?” I echoed, baffled.
“He’s been grafting, skimming the profits, just a bit here and a bit there, making himself a tidy sum. His lackeys don’t know a thing about it, and if they did, they’d take him on a long drive down a short road.”
“How do you know about that?”
He grinned and tapped his forehead. “Told you. I’ve been working those streets a long time.”
“So I just mention Gribsy Squeeze and he’ll let up?”
He took a long breath as if to answer, then hesitated and studied me seriously. “Probably. But be careful. I mean it, Tarik, watch your back. Because that kind of information is powerful, but…it can kill, too. A man like Joren is a coward, but I wouldn’t put it past him to take a life if it meant protecting his own.”
I swallowed. “All right.”
“You got any lads down in the Hole you can trust yet?”
“There’s a few,” I said.
“Good. Don’t go alone to meet Joren. Don’t ever. You’re not invincible. Take your own crew and try to meet on neutral ground. You might not be able to get a daylight meet, but at least go somewhere you can see clearly. Do you understand?”
My stomach squirmed. I’d strutted up to Vanek Meed like I was an untouchable prince, but there were so many things I didn’t know about the underground. So many ways my ignorance could get me killed. I hadn’t been brave to go to Vanek Meed; I’d been stupid. I’d skipped over bravery and gone straight from cowardice to rashness. It should have gotten me killed. But I’d thrown myself into a world where I’d have to press on, and because I’d gone to Durb, now I would have to go to Joren. And after Joren? What then?
God help me.
“I understand,” I murmured.
“All right, get out of here. Try not to harass your friends this time.”
The stifled smile on his face made me grin, and I pushed away from the wall. I stopped beside him and gripped his arm, meeting his gaze firmly for the first time.
“Never thought I’d say this, but it’s an honor.”
“What is?” he asked, looking rather baffled.
“Being related to you.”
“Reishke,” he muttered, which I assumed was a Tulian obscenity, but he smiled as he said it and pulled me into a fierce hug. “Scram, kid.”
Chapter 17 — Hayli
It was mid-afternoon when Shade finally reappeared. I tried to tell myself that I’d not been watching for him, but the way my heart jumped when I saw him coming up to the gate, I knew it was a fib. He had a look about him that I’d seen Derrin get before, all manic intensity and focus like there was only one thing in the world that mattered. And the way his gaze skipped right over me, I knew that I wasn’t it.
He scanned the enclosure once, and when his steps turned my way, I hopped off the low wall.
“Hayli,” he said, his gaze still roving over everything but me. “Where’s Derrin? I’ve got to see him straight.”
I glowered. “Dan’ na. Haven’t seen him all morning. I was supposed to be training with him but he up and shot off first thing.”
“Damn,” he said, but I think he’d stopped listening after don’t know.
He tipped two fingers to his temple and swung away. I ground my teeth and stalked straight after him.
“Shade, cut it out!” I cried, reaching out to grab his arm.
He spun and ducked a step back, glaring at me. “Watch it, Hayli. What’ve I told you?”
My heart ached like it had got a bitty hole chewed into it, and my hand prickled, itching to slap his face. But I couldn’t face that anger in his eyes, or the sadness that glimmered even deeper inside, a flood behind a dam, as if the anger were the only thing that could hold it back.
I bent my head and said, “Why’d you need Derrin?”
“I need to make sure he doesn’t do something stupid,” he said.
“Dan’ you talk about him like that! Derrin would never do anything stupid.”
He gave me a little mock bow. “I defer to your judgment.” He studied the old factory a moment, then scrubbed his hand over his head and turned back to me. “So he’s not anywhere here?”
“No.”
“Come with me, Hayli,” he said. “Help me find him.”
“You always make it sound so easy. Brinmark is grobbing huge.”
His eyes widened, then he grinned like a mad cat. “I know.”
I balled up my hands, because more than ever I just wanted to grab him and shake him. One minute he was blazing up like a furnace, all fire and fury, the next…the next his gaze held me like an embrace. And I was sick to death of the back and forth, dizzying as a ride at the Medemy Fair.
“Shade, I dan’ get you,” I murmured. “You baffle me sometimes.”
He took a step closer to me, just one scant step, but it turned my world on end as he smiled down at me. For a second he just held
my gaze with that smile, then it quirked a little broader and he dropped his head toward mine, whispering, “That’s the idea.”
And with that he strode off, back toward the gate with that wild predatory grace.
“Drat!” I hissed. “Dratty…drat!”
Anuk would have just cussed him out, the cruder the better, and Derrin might have had some elegant obscenity primed for the occasion, but even saying drat was a reddener for me. I tapped my toes and knotted my hands, and finally gave up and ran after him. He didn’t even slow down, and didn’t glance at me at all, but a few steps later he threw back his head and said,
“Wonder where Alby Durb holes up.”
“Why? That’s the supplier, right?”
“Right.”
“Eee, why d’you want to see him?”
He flicked a glance at me. “I’ve got reasons.” Then, suddenly, he snapped his fingers and said, “Astel! Bet she knows that sort of thing.”
“Who’s Astel?” I asked, glowering.
I had to laugh at the look he gave me, all indignation and wounded pride. But he didn’t answer. We walked along in silence, me struggling to match my steps to his long strides. The wind nipped through me like flecks of glass, but at least we were dry today. Patchy clouds gave us a glimpse of a rare blue sky, and in the odd flare of sunlight, the city seemed to sparkle. Ice clung to the undersides of iron fences and the crossbars of the street lamps, and turned the wet gutters white. We passed a flock of crows picking through frosty grass in a small park, and the sight of them got my heart fluttering and my fingers prickling. I wondered—like I always wondered—if my crow had a life of her own, lived in rare stolen moments. If she had a flock she belonged to, or if there was a flock she loved but could never quite fit in with.
Shade led the way north, and as we got into some of the finer streets, I saw folks twining the lamp posts and hitching rails with purple and gold garlands for Kalethelia. Some of the carriage horses even wore purple plumes and golden bells, and I tried to imagine if Prince Tarik’s motorcar would be decked with ribbons too—or would have been, if he’d stayed in Brinmark. I wondered if Shade even knew what all the colors meant, but I didn’t know if Istians celebrated the holiday. Even Rivano didn’t like it much, saying it was a false celebration of nothing whatsoever. A made-up festival for the shortest day of the year, when the old feasts and rituals had all been shunned along with mages and all their magic.
But if Shade was curious about the garlands, he didn’t ask. We eventually reached a fine restaurant with a dark green awning and empty tables clustered on the sidewalk, meant for finer days in warmer seasons. Shade jerked his head at me and pushed the door open, holding it with his toe for me to enter. I took a deep breath, letting the warmth from the radiators thaw my numb cheeks. My stomach grumbled at the smell of frying fish but I didn’t think Shade had money for a meal. I certainly didn’t. Still, Shade strode straight up to the counter and thrummed his fingers against the greasy wood.
A few moments later a girl popped out of the kitchen, wiping her hands on a bar rag. She had hair red as Pika’s and a sharp face, all angles and shadows. But when she saw Shade she grinned, and the smile softened all her edges.
“Why, hello there, doll,” she said to Shade, traipsing up to the counter and including me in her smile. She had a south Cavnish accent thick as stew, even worse than Red’s. “Didn’t know if I’d see you around again. Care for a beer or something a bit stronger?”
Shade held open his hands, like he meant to show her he had no money.
“On the house, love. For your moll here, too, if she wants something.”
Shade and I stared at each other, and just for a flash I thought I saw him wink at me. My stomach turned a little somersault and I focused on counting bottles of liquor behind the bar.
“Thanks,” Shade said, “but we’re just here for a moment. Wondered if you could help me out.”
“Anything for you,” she said, leaning her elbows on the counter straight across from him and twirling a loose strand of hair.
I choked back a cough and stared at my hands, because Shade couldn’t be serious. This girl couldn’t be serious. What a load of blithering malarkey.
Shade dropped his voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “Do you know anything about Alby Durb?”
“Oh, doll,” she said, straightening up and shaking her head. “Just dreadful business, that. Just heard about it myself, not ten minutes back. Such a terrible thing. But no, I don’t know what happened to him. Think the coroner said it was a bad heart, but that sounds awful suspicious to me, you know? I mean, it was Alby Durb. He’s got enemies enough for a whole kingdom.”
Shade just watched her quietly, but I saw the knot at the corner of his jaw, and the hardness of his eyes. When Astel’s gaze flicked back up to him, the phantom anger vanished and the indifferent mask reappeared like he’d never felt a thing in his life. It was a neat trick; I envied him that ability.
“Yeah, it’s terrible,” he said, ducking his head and studying his fingers as they drummed on the counter. “Well, just thought I’d see if you’d heard anything else about it.”
“Sorry, sweetheart, that’s all I’ve got. But, you know.” She smiled, coy. “Come back later and I might know something more.”
He smiled and gave the counter a final double tap, then turned without a word. By the time I realized he was leaving, he had already reached the door. I muttered a goodbye to the waitress and rushed after him. He didn’t slow down or stop, not till we’d got clear of the restaurant and turned down a narrower side street—the kind where folks like us felt most at home. Then he swore something fierce and kicked a half-rotted crate, so hard that it crashed in a shower of splinters.
“Shade? What’s wrong?”
“Alby Durb is dead. Derrin said I had three days to figure out what to do about him, but he went around me and offed him before I even had a chance.” He dug his fingers against the back of his head, pacing back and forth. “He’s dead and those poor folks are going to have hell riding them down the rails.”
He turned, his gaze on me like he didn’t quite see me, wide-eyed and terrible.
“Stars, I didn’t want it to come to this.”
“You think Derrin killed him?” I whispered.
I almost didn’t want to ask it. I knew Derrin wasn’t perfect, and I knew he had a temper you’d never much want to face, but to kill a man… He wouldn’t do it, not unless he had a good reason to. He had to have a reason.
“If he didn’t do it himself, I’m dead sure he’s behind it. A word, a nod to the right person, and Durb was good as dead. And it’s my fault!”
He shouted the last two words, his hands in fists, horror in his eyes. I wanted to try to console him, somehow, but I knew he’d never let me close. He’d never even admit he needed it.
We returned to the Hole in silence. It was getting on towards dinner, but part of me hoped Derrin wouldn’t show. I didn’t really fancy watching a confrontation between those two. But I knew Shade wouldn’t stop hunting till he’d got his answers, and just being around him right now was exhausting. He might respect Derrin, but he didn’t worship him the way the rest of the skitters did. The way I did. So when we walked through the gate and found Derrin leaning against the factory wall, I flinched and tried to walk away…and failed.
I just froze and watched as Shade strode straight up to Derrin, grabbed his shirt front, and punched him square in the face. Derrin reeled and stumbled against the building, but Shade just stepped back, shaking out his hand and glaring at Derrin like a blaze of lightning.
“Derrin!” I cried, finally shaking myself out of my stupor and running toward them. “Shade, what’d you punch him for?”
Derrin staggered upright and wiped blood from his lip, but he didn’t strike back. He just measured Shade quietly with a look rather like respect.
“I’m sorry, Shade,” he murmured. “I didn’t do it. I just heard what happened.”
“But you made i
t happen.” Shade clenched and loosened his fist. “Whoever you told. That’s the reason Alby Durb is dead.”
“No, unfortunately, you’re the reason Alby Durb is dead. He had it coming, one way or another.”
“Derrin, what’ll happen to the Bricks?” I asked. “Who’ll protect them now?”
“Hopefully we will,” he said, turning to me like he was surprised I was there. “That was the idea.”
“And if they won’t come?”
“Then that’s their own fault.”
Shade cast his head back and stared at the sky. He had that little line of pain drawn across his brow again, the one that I’d seen when he’d gone off about the moon singing. But he didn’t make any quirk comments this time. He just sighed and turned away, and disappeared into the Hole.
“Actions have consequences,” Derrin said, watching him go. “He’s got to learn that.”
“But at the cost of someone’s life? That’s just wrong, Derrin.”
“I know. Make sure he doesn’t do anything stupid, will you? I’ve got to get him to meet Kantian. Kantian doesn’t trust him quite yet, but I’m not surprised at that.”
I nodded. Before I turned to go, I squinted up at him in the growing twilight. “Is your mouth a’right?”
He gave a rueful kind of laugh and gingerly touched the split in his lip. “It’ll be fine. Nothing Doc can’t fix up.”
I shivered. I’d heard rumor of the Clan’s Blood mage, but I’d never seen him, and didn’t much care to. Bloods were a tricky sort, in general. Folks said they spent too much time straddling the line between the living and the dead, and were half-specter themselves.
“I don’t really blame him,” Derrin said, soft, as I headed toward the stairs. “I regret my own part in what happened.”
I just nodded and headed down into the Hole in silence. Shade didn’t come into the mess at dinner, and when I made my way into the barracks after, I found him sitting on his bed, with Bugs perched at the foot, yammering on and on about nothing at all. I watched a minute, smiling in spite of myself. Shade didn’t ignore Bugs the way Jig always did. Even though I couldn’t hear what he said, I could tell he was answering Bugs’ infinite questions, the stony anger about him crumbling bit by bit under the kid’s relentless joy. Somehow I almost envied Bugs his ability to make Shade smile.
The Madness Project (The Madness Method) Page 30
