to aid, I may as well abet.”
“If this goes wrong—”
“What do I have to lose, Jes? My life is you and the farm. This is the only way I can protect both of those things.”
Jesper shoved off from the floor, pacing back and forth in front of the windows. “This is insanity,” he said, scrubbing his hand over the back of his neck. “They’ll never fall for it.”
“We don’t ask for too much from any of them,” said Kaz. “That’s the trick. We set a low floor to enter the fund, say, two million kruge . And then we let them wait. The Shu are here. The Fjerdans. The Ravkans. The Council will start to panic. If I had to bet, I’d say we’ll have five million from each Council member by the time we’re through.”
“There are thirteen Council members,” said Jesper. “That’s sixty-five million kruge .”
“Maybe more.”
Matthias frowned. “Even with all the stadwatch at the auction and the presence of the Council of Tides, can we really guarantee Kuwei’s safety?”
“Unless you have a unicorn for him to ride away on, there is no scenario that guarantees Kuwei’s safety.”
“I wouldn’t count on protection from the Council of Tides either,” said Nina. “Have they ever even appeared in public?”
“Twenty-five years ago,” said Kaz.
“And you think they’re going to show up to protect Kuwei now? We can’t send him into a public auction alone.”
“Kuwei won’t be alone. Matthias and I will be with him.”
“Everyone there knows your faces. Even if you had some kind of disguise—”
“No disguise. The Merchant Council are considered his representatives. But Kuwei has the right to choose his own protection for the auction. We’ll be up there on the stage with him.”
“The stage?”
“Auctions are held at the Church of Barter, right in front of the altar. What could be more holy? It’s perfect—an enclosed space with multiple points of entry and easy access to a canal.”
Nina shook her head. “Kaz, as soon as Matthias steps on that stage, half the Fjerdan delegation will recognize him, and you’re the most wanted man in Ketterdam. If you show up at that auction, you’ll both be arrested.”
“They can’t touch us until after the auction.”
“And then what?” said Inej.
“There’s going to be one hell of a distraction.”
“There has to be another way,” said Jesper. “What if we tried making a deal with Rollins?”
Wylan pleated the edge of his napkin. “We don’t have anything to offer.”
“No more deals,” said Kaz. “I never should have gone to Rollins in the first place.”
Jesper’s brows rose. “Are you actually admitting you made a mistake?”
“We needed capital,” Kaz said. His eyes slid briefly to Inej. “And I’m not sorry for it, but it wasn’t the right move. The trick to beating Rollins is never sit down at the table with him. He’s the house. He has the resources to play until your luck runs out.”
“All the same,” said Jesper. “If we’re going up against the Kerch government, the gangs of the Barrel, and the Shu—”
“And the Fjerdans,” added Matthias. “And the Zemeni, and the Kaelish, and whoever else shows up when the auction is announced. The embassies are full and we don’t know how far the rumors of parem have reached.”
“We’re going to need help,” said Nina.
“I know,” said Kaz, straightening his sleeves. “That’s why I’m going to the Slat.”
Jesper stopped moving. Inej shook her head. They all stared.
“What are you talking about?” said Nina. “There’s a price on your head. Everyone in the Barrel knows it.”
“You saw Per Haskell and the Dregs down there,” said Jesper. “You think you can talk the old man into propping you up when the whole city is about to come down on you like a sack of bricks? You know he doesn’t have the stones for that.”
“I know,” said Kaz. “But we need a bigger crew for this job.”
“Demjin , this is not a risk worth taking,” said Matthias, surprised to find he actually meant it.
“When this is all over, when Van Eck has been put in his place, when Rollins goes running, and the money is paid, these will still be my streets. I can’t live in a city where I can’t hold up my head.”
“If you have a head to hold up,” said Jesper.
“I’ve taken knives, bullets, and too many punches to count, all for a little piece of this town,” said Kaz. “This is the city I bled for. And if Ketterdam has taught me anything, it’s that you can always bleed a little more.”
Nina reached for