Chapter 95 - Annalisa’s Gift

Very like a highborn to call me up to the upper city just to hand me a book in a twenty-minute meeting before leaving me to trudge back down. Though, if the story was to be believed, he wasn’t born of noble blood. I suppose no one is, really. It’s all about how many people you can convince at the tip of a spear or the business end of a contract. In the end, I managed to keep my trap shut about his daughter. Partly because I’d barely gotten a word in edgewise. Still, the fact that my school bully’s father was my shadowy boss had come as a bit of a shock. You might think I’d have found it something of a relief to discover that the shadowy figure of Daggertongue was, in fact, the father of my academy rival. If anything, I was now even more leery.

On paper, Highlord Guifoyle, Seat on the Shared Court, was a prominent public figure. Shrewd in business, but generous to the city, he’d set up programs to manage sewage, created an endowment to the Mender’s Guild, built a prominent upper city arena at his own expense, and made regular generous donations to the Lamplighters Guild to keep the city streets if not safe, then at least illuminated enough that you could see most threats coming.

He was also a prominent servant of the Fel Witch, Margot Bethane. He was a Soul Seeker, a demonologist, and had spent thousands of years living in spite and poverty, and more living in wealth. He dominated his legitimate business interests by applying judicious use of criminal elements under his demesne to leverage his goals. I should know, I was one of them. Not only that, but he’d been grooming me for years—if he was to be believed, since before my fateful encounter with the Fel Witch. It was some small consolation that I’d managed to inadvertently thwart his plans and intentions multiple times, because I had little love lost for the man.

Regardless of whatever he claimed about parting from her motives, he’d walked in the witch’s footsteps. Even after she’d died, what reason had I to believe he’d departed from their path? Regardless of what he insinuated, that I had the drive to be counted among the highlords, what reason had he to see me as anything but another rival should I climb to such great heights? Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do about him. Yet. Even discounting the near-limitless resources at his disposal, Daggertongue himself was a powerful and ruthless mage, and a prominent senior member of both the Soul Seekers Guild and the Shared Court of Dragonmaw.

The one thing I had on my side was Annalisa. And I’d almost screwed that up.

The sun had risen during our meeting. It glared down at my left side as I headed down hill. The clouds had finally broken, but all the rain and the backed-up sewage turned to steam on the streets in the oppressive heat. This was a dog day if ever I’d felt one, and I had a pressing need to be back at the Mop with a short beer in my hand alongside breakfast. I circled Cradledown, where the worst of both the smoke and sewage rot rose, trapped in the district by the levies of its neighbors.

My blue devilborn partner was clearly worse for wear when I made my way back to the Mop. She had her head cradled in her hands at the bar—and for once, she had a steaming mug of tea in front of her, instead of her usual lager. Her low moan sounded a bit like an old house settling after sunset. I sat down next to her and sniffed at the aromatic cup, before tossing a side-eye at Jacco.

“The first time I wanted tea, you brought me hot water with a flower in it,” I said.

Jacco shrugged.

“Stop talking so loud!” said Annalisa. Dragons above. The prodigious rate this woman consumed alcohol should have caused a shortage, but I’d rarely seen her hungover. She either had a really great time at the pits, or a really foul time.

Jacco reached under the bar, and I half-expected him to pull out another tepid water with a wilted flower bud, but a small package came out, instead.

“Dwarf girl dropped this off for you ‘bout a hour ago,” he whispered.

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I took the small package and saw the mark of the whitesmith I’d engaged the day before. “Ah, perfect. Jacco, give us a minute, yeah?”

The barkeeper made himself scarce, probably grateful to be away from the miserable devilborn.

“I’m never drinking again...” Annalisa crooned.

I barked a laugh, which made my partner wince and moan even harder. I sighed and pulled out my deck. I charged the three of dragons and pressed it to her shoulder. The look of relief on her face was instant. Her eyes cleared, her spine straightened, and she looked around the bar as if seeing it—and me—for the first time.

“Gods Darcent! That’s amazing! You should sell that. You’d make so much money!”

I withdrew my will, and she hunched over again, her face turning more green than blue.

“Asshole!”

I rolled my eyes and gave it back. I needed her lucid. She shot me a glare as I regarded her.

“I met with Daggertongue this morning.”

Annalisa stiffened. It was a subtle thing. Even though she didn’t move, her fists tightened and the muscles in her shoulders tensed. She looked at me, eyes narrowed. “Did you...you know?”

“No,” I said, shaking my head. “No, Anna, you were right. Daggertongue is... well, truth told, I knew he was bad. But he’s worse than I expected. The amount of blood on his hands...” I shook my head. “We need him. There’s no way around that. What’s more, we can’t afford him as an enemy. But you’re right that we don’t have to be just as bad. We can’t be. I want it all. But fear and cruelty towards the weak isn’t how I want to get it.”

Annalisa grinned and slugged me in the shoulder. “I knew I picked right!” she said. And then, after a moment, “I’m glad I don’t have to beat you up after all. I like you a lot, Darcent.”

I opened up the little wooden box and withdrew the silver ring with the knave signet on it.

Annalisa’s eyes widened and some of that green came back, despite the ‘dragon juice’, as she called it. She held up her palms, as though to stop me. “Not like that! That's not what I meant! I know we’re lovers and all but that’s like a metaphor! You know what metaphors are, right?”

“What?” I asked, initially confused. My face reddened when I realized. “Anna, it’s not that kind of ring!” I pulled out the other. “Look, I’ve got one too. It’s a signet of access authority for the bank. You can take it and withdraw your half from the undercity loot.”

“Oooooh,” said Annalisa. She considered and wrinkled her nose. “Why did you put it in a bank? Of all places, really. I thought you had more sense.”

I lowered my voice. Despite the nearly deserted common room, there were still ears about and discretion is a key part of our operation, as well as one of the best ways to stay secure. “Because I didn’t want to walk through the lower city with sixty flourishes.”

“SIXTY FLOURISHES?!” Screamed Annalisa. I winced. Her eyes took on a far-away look. “And half of it is mine?”

I nodded. “I already gave a chunk of it to Mithra for operating expenses. But thirty of it is yours and thirty of it is mine.”

“That’s good, because I owe fifty cunnings to the Lucitans,” said Annalisa.

I closed my eyes and took a breath. Of course she did. I might have to have a word with the high priestess. “Just make sure you take me with you before buying any magic items so I can make sure you’re not getting ripped off.”

Annalisa saluted and held her hand up to the light. “Thirty flourishes each, and we didn’t even have to haul any scat topside. What are you going to spend yours on?”

I considered. “I need to figure out what my biggest weakness is that can be shored up with a magic item. I’m also debating non-controlling stakes in a few trade ships for reliable long-term passive income. And maybe a store or two on the waterfront. More legitimate holdings gives us an advantageous position within the downs, and a fall back if we need to retreat and consolidate.”

Annalisa nodded along sagely, which was a great indication that she had stopped listening already. I sighed. “What are you planning on doing with your half?”

Annalisa grinned. “Well there’s these boots I saw in the middle city that I think would go great with that dress I got—”

“Boots with a dress?”

My devilborn partner rolled her eyes. “Boys don’t know anything about fashion. We’ve established this. Then after that I’ll probably get some polish for my horns because you’re all out and you should really keep better stocked. I’ll probably go out to a really fancy dinner and the Adventurer’s guild has some older assessment golems that you can buy and they’re really good to train against because they put themselves back together and you don’t even have to be a guild member to get them. Maybe I’ll get two. And some new quills and a pen knife, and maybe some ink so I can stop having to borrow yours—I mean...”

“You take my ink?” I asked.

Annalisa flashed me a guilty smile.

I stood up. “You’ve been adding alcohol to the well so I wouldn’t notice! My journal lines have been getting fainter for weeks. I thought I was going mad!”

“It can be both things,” said Annalisa.

“Not. Helping.” I ground out. I couldn’t complain too much, since I’d stolen the ink in the first place. But it was the principle of the thing!

Annalisa laughed.