Cheeyt’s joints ached, she had dirt creased in places that weren’t polite to scratch in public, and, after nearly a week of road fare, she was desperate to dive into a bowl of her sister’s stew. But there were things she needed to do before she headed home.

Where had Supyuunch snuck off to? He had always been of the opinion that, being the owner, he didn’t need to do the grunt work of unloading after a job. He also knew his best employees wouldn’t tolerate his slipping off without making at least some effort, so he had to be around somewhere. Even if it was just standing around telling everyone how to do their work.

She looked over the bustling guards, tuning out the joking and laughter that bounced between the walls. Gear was being unloaded from the company’s wagons, with the supply crew separating out what needed to be repaired, while the animals were being groomed and fed. The one person she didn’t see was Supyuunch.

Maybe she should go on home, then. She could talk to Supyuunch after another job, when she was better prepared. Perhaps it was a stupid decision. She didn’t know what she was doing. Her plans would need a lot of time to work. Maybe she was wrong about her suspicions.

She pushed aside her fears. This was happening. It was happening now. Before she talked herself out it.

There he was, walking toward the living quarters for those who didn’t have somewhere to go when the company was between jobs. “Supyuunch!” she called across the yard.

Her boss froze, then turned to scowl at her over his shoulder. “What is it, Cheeyt? Shouldn’t you be off seeing to your family?” There was a bit of a sneer on his mouth and in his tone. Oh, how she wanted to knock that sneer off his face. Those who had families might be in the minority among Supyuunch’s guards, but having a family didn’t make her any less accomplished as a guard.

If anything, she would argue it made her better, because she had people depending on her bringing home her pay at the end of every job. The others didn’t care how well the job went, as long as they got to where they needed to go and back and received a bit of coin to spend after.

“I have a question for you.”

He sighed, sounding like he had more going on that evening than drinking away half his earnings. Half of their earnings. Then he snapped, “Come in,” as he pushed into the room he used as an office and place to sleep.

Being the owner, he had claimed one of the few smaller rooms that stood separate from the big dormitory where the others slept. All that stood inside was his cot, his armchair, and a trunk that sometimes was pressed into service as a desk. He didn’t even have a rug to help keep out the chill. Some might have seen the austerity as a sign that Supyuunch was responsible with his money. She would agree he wasn’t the worst among the company owners. She also knew he had a fondness for gambling and prostitutes.

Supyuunch dropped into his armchair. “What is it this time?”

Cheeyt crossed her arms. Once she started talking, there would be no turning back. “We just finished a five-day job into Deep Keeyl,” she said.

He waved a hand out to his side. “You think I spent as much time drinking as Nuttulch and Saknuu this trip? I know where we’ve been.”

“And you paid us seven saayi,” she continued.

He snorted. “You’re lucky you’re getting that with the way costs have been going up.”

She kept plowing on, refusing to accept his churlish words. “Three months ago, we did the same trip. You gave us nine saayi then.”

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He shrugged. “Costs are up. I told you.”

“I went around and talked to our suppliers. Costs haven’t increased that much over the past three months. You should have given us at least eight. You could still afford nine.”

The armchair bounced a little when he jerked to his feet. “I told you, costs are up! You coming in here questioning me when I’ve kept you employed since your last company failed?”

To keep her fury in, Cheeyt dug her fingers into her arms. He really thought they were all that stupid. Maybe most of her fellow guards were. They didn’t have a family relying on them—they didn’t care as long as they had enough money to drink and gamble when they finished a job. If they didn’t have a problem with their pay, that was fine. She did. “What costs? I just told you, I’ve been talking to your suppliers. Did I miss something? Tell me, which costs have gone up that much?”

He pushed into her space, trying to intimidate her with his size, she supposed. But Cheeyt had been in the Guild since she was fifteen. It wasn’t as though she was a tiny person, either. Tall, thin, and taut as a bowstring, Supyuunch didn’t have enough weight on her to be intimidating. Her life had been filled with people bigger and scarier than Supyuunch. “You accusing me of cheating you all out of pay?”

“You could tell me you made a mistake, and you’ll be giving everyone what they’re due tomorrow.” Then she would have more time to prepare for what she wanted to do. Supyuunch wasn’t the first company owner she had worked for who had chosen to short their guards.

“There’s no mistake. I won’t be doing no such thing.” He dropped back into his chair. “You don’t like your pay-,” one hand swung toward the tent’s opening, “-there’s the way out.”

Silence stretched between them. Supyuunch smirked from his chair as he reached for his pocket and pulled out a bit of chew.

Her heart fluttered. Was she really about to do this? If not now, then she’d have to months from now after Supyuunch continued to slice their pay. At that point, she’d be more desperate for money and she wouldn’t be able to move forward with her plan. It needed to be now.

And now that she had brought her concerns to Supyuunch, he would start making her life more difficult on the jobs. Maybe even report her to the Guild for something out of her control, which might hurt her future plans. No, he wouldn’t do that, because if he made a report to the Guild, someone would ask why. And then she would get to have a conversation with them about their decreasing pay. Her Guild didn’t have set pay schedules like some of the making and agricultural guilds, but Supyuunch was pushing what was acceptable.

Knowing that didn’t make her other points less valid.

“Then I’m out.” She spun on her heel.

His laugh echoed behind her. “Sure, Cheeyt. We’ll see if I let you back in when you need another job.”

If all went the way she planned, she’d never be searching for a job from a company like Supyuunch’s ever again.

Back out in the yard, Nuttulch and Saknuu fell in beside her. “You did it?” Nuttulch asked, sounding awed. “You quit?”

Tall and broad-shouldered Nuttulch and slender Saknuu had been her closest friends for most of her career. They both fell into the category of Supyuunch’s employees who cared little about the exact amount of pay they received as long as it was enough to buy their time at the tavern until the company struck off on another job. They had reacted to her news that she wanted to start her company by being supportive, but mostly confused about why someone would want to put forth that much effort.

“Yes. You both coming home with me tonight?”

“Oh, I definitely want to see this conversation,” Nuttulch said, rubbing his hands together. He grinned past her at Saknuu. “Entertainment we don’t have to pay for.”

Saknuu nearly stepped on her when she stopped. “I’m not telling them this evening,” she said.

“Sure, sure. You’ll wait for us to leave. Have a private conversation. We understand that.” Nuttulch shoved his hands into his tunic’s pockets.

“No, I mean, I’m going to wait to tell them until I have everything in place.”

She didn’t miss the glance Saknuu flicked toward Nuttulch. “And what are you going to tell them when you’re home every day?”

“That I’m between jobs, which will be the truth. It isn’t as though we always go right back out when we come in.”

“Cheeyt–.” He hesitated. Saknuu had always been more level-headed than Nuttulch. “It’ll take some time for you to get your own customers, you know? You don’t just declare a company with the Guild and have people at your door.”

“I’m aware of that.” She started walking again. “I just don’t want Nuliyaa arguing with me.”

They looked at each other again. “She probably won’t argue with you,” Saknuu said slowly.

“Nuliyaa would argue with the wall if it suited her. I’ll have to prove to her that this will work.”

Nuttulch opened his mouth. Then he closed it and shrugged. “Your family.”