delicate, but it is as strong as forged steel.'
Smiling, Tazi played with the chain unconsciously as she sat at her table, unaware of the fetching picture she presented. The young man who had been gathering information nodded to the old barfly and approached Tazi's table.
'Successful?' he inquired as he sat down opposite Tazi.
'Excuse me?' Tazi demanded, perturbed that her daydream had been interrupted and that he dared to sit down uninvited.
The young man was undaunted by her sharp tone.
'You have the look of a cat that's swallowed the song bird,' he told her.
Even through her irritation, Tazi could see the young man was pleased with his turn of a phrase.
'I do, do I?'
'Well,' he added and brushed some of his auburn hair away from his face. Tazi could see he had a scar along one cheek. 'As I understand it, you've just returned from the Sunrise Mountains.'
'And how do you know that?' Tazi asked, playing with him a bit and knowing full well the crone had sold her out.
'My informants are well connected,' he replied sagely.
'Your informants are everybody's informants for enough coin,' Tazi shot back at him. She noted he had the good sense to look somewhat abashed.
'Never mind that,' he tried to change his tack. 'My name is Gaed Attimthree, and I have an offer to make you.' He studied her earnestly with his hazel eyes.
'And what might that be?' Tazi asked, enjoying the game in spite of herself. She leaned forward expectantly. The young man became flustered under her scrutiny.
'My friends and I,' he motioned half-heartedly in the direction of the mountain of gear, 'are getting ready to travel the road you've just returned from. You may have heard of Tharchion Nymia Focar's generous offer for the path through the mountains to the Endless Wastes. My companions and I are certain we can find it, and we would gladly share a portion of the reward with you.'
'Then why do you need me? You'd only have to cut the pot more?'
'As you can see, my friends and I are well supplied. We don't like to take any chances, and I would be a fool to pass up the opportunity to have someone with me who was as experienced as you obviously are.'
Tazi smirked at his lame attempt at flattery. 'It's obvious that you are well prepared,' she answered and suppressed a chuckle at his ineptness, 'with the finest supplies that coin can buy. You don't need to buy me.'
'I didn't mean…' he trailed off helplessly.
'No offence taken,' she told him, 'but I'm not interested.'
'I understand,' he finally replied. 'Since this is our last night before we leave, perhaps I could buy you another drink and you might share some of your travels with me. Any detail would be helpful.' And Tazi noticed a shift in his look.
'I'm fine. Besides, these days I travel alone, and I prefer it that way,' she told him and motioned her mug toward her mouth. She hoped her tone would indicate that as far as she was concerned, the interview was over. But the hazel-eyed man just leaned in.
'If it's too crowded here,' he said softly, 'we could go up to my rooms. I could give you my undivided attention.' He tilted his head.
Tazi sat straighter and replied more forcefully, 'I don't think so.' The young man obviously fancied himself a ladies' man.
'No?' he asked.
Tazi smiled sweetly and let her hand fall to her boot. Just as the would-be suitor leaned in even closer to her, Tazi brought back her hand with lightning speed. When her fist reappeared, she had a knife in it.
Balancing the point of her razor-sharp dagger on her index finger, Tazi bounced the mean weapon from one finger to the next, all the while staring at the young adventurer.
His face paled so suddenly that Tazi could see a smattering of freckles across his nose stand out in sharp contrast. Whether it was her easy proficiency with the small blade or the hard glint in her eye, he finally got the message.
'I understand,' he said as he hastily rose to feet. 'No means no.' And as he scurried back over to his friends, Tazi laughed.
She leaned her chair back against the wall and slid her blade back in place. As she continued to sip her ale, she glanced around the room. Judging by the furtive looks that met hers and the quickly downcast eyes, Tazi was certain she had made her point. She was sure that no one else would trouble her this evening. However, Tazi didn't notice the pair of coal-black eyes that remained steady and gleamed with interest.
Naglatha was finally impressed. For the last hour, she and her two boayguards had been observing the inn's customers. They had stopped at The Black Unicorn first, but Naglatha had been disappointed beyond words by the dismal selection of potential candidates. She had verbally abused both of her Thayan Knights for their ineptitude in reconnaissance. By the time they reached Laeril's Arms, she was certain she was not the only one who had a vested interest in success; the servants now knew they would pay a steep price if there was no better luck at this tavern.
Located at a table against the wall opposite from Tazi, Naglatha had initially only caught glimpses of the woman during her survey of the tavern. She first noticed Tazi's black hair. She would never admit it, but Naglatha was a vain creature, and when she met or observed another woman, she always looked to her hair first. It stemmed from the fact that most Thayan women of Mulan heritage were bald or artificially devoid of hair. Only slaves were not allowed to cut their tresses. Even the Thayans of Rashemi extraction cropped their locks as close to their scalp as possible to separate themselves from the enormous slave population. So, Naglatha's interest was piqued when she saw another woman with long, black hair that was clean and healthy like hers. Of course, she thought, it's not as long as mine.
The other aspect that initially intrigued Naglatha was that the woman sat by herself. And she didn't sit like someone waiting for another person to join her; she sat alone but not lonely. Naglatha had made herself a mental note-the woman bore watching. But, in the course of her perusals, not many of the other patrons appeared very promising. They all looked too young and too inexperienced. Eventually, she had turned her attention back toward the black-haired girl, who appeared to be a bit younger than she was, just in time to see her handiness with the tiny dagger.
'Subtle, discreet, and she gets her message across with minimal effort or show,' she whispered approvingly to Milos Longreach. Naglatha tried to get a better look at the woman, shifting her head from one side to the other, endeavoring to see past the regulars seated in front of her.
After a few more moments, the customers finished their drinks and left, affording Naglatha with her first, unrestricted view of the young woman. Naglatha nearly gasped out loud. What she discovered was totally unexpected. She knew the woman. Though Naglatha was no mathematician, she was aware that the chances of that were almost astronomical. She couldn't stop her thoughts traveling back to earlier in the day and her dream of Thay's creation.
'To have had that dream,' she murmured, 'and to discover her here, with all the ramifications that this discovery heralds, is not possible. Unless this is exactly how it is supposed to happen.'
'Mistress?' Milos questioned. Naglatha was not normally given to randomly speaking aloud, so she forgave him his impropriety.
'It is nothing,' she assured him, and she beckoned to her younger bodyguard.
'Heraclos,' she said softly, 'I need your assistance.'
'Anything,' he replied properly, 'and everything at your wish.' The instructions that followed were inaudible to everyone else but Heraclos. She spoke so softly, she was sure even Milos was not able to hear her words. Heraclos nodded quickly, and Naglatha knew he would do his best to fulfill them. Naglatha repositioned herself in her chair, arms folded, and smiled wickedly. What was about to happen next was critical.
Her bodyguard made his way across the large, poorly lit room and stopped a few feet short of Tazi's small table. Naglatha placed one finger against her lower lip and watched the scene unfold with growing excitement. She could see Heraclos motion to the empty seat opposite Tazi and say something. The woman declined to let him join,
