This time he raised an eyebrow. "I was not aware there was one."
"Lucian."
"I had not forgotten. I merely discounted him on the basis that the Raziq tore away his power. Thus mutilated, he would not be capable of creating Razan."
Meaning he hadn't lied to me about everything. I guess that was something to be thankful for. "So you're certain he hasn't got full Aedh powers?"
"I'm certain, yes." He hesitated. "But that does not preclude the possibility that remnants survive. It is far easier to kill an Aedh than to strip them completely of their powers."
So maybe I hadn't been imagining his fingers going through my flesh, after all. I shivered, and wondered what the hell else we didn't know. A lot, I was beginning to suspect.
I shoved the license back into the wallet, then handed it to Azriel.
"You do not wish Stane to check his identity?" Azriel asked, surprised.
"Yes, but I can remember the name. It's better if our rat-faced friend doesn't suspect we went through his pockets." I slid a fingernail under the seal and opened the envelope. The note inside was brief and to the point—Go to the station. It didn't say when, so I presumed it meant immediately. I sighed. "You'd better release him."
He did so, and the rat-shifter blinked. "What about a tip?"
Don't pick the pockets of scar-faced men who work for would-be dictators. I reached into my pocket, dragged out a two-dollar coin, and flipped it to him.
He sneered. "Oh come on, a chick as classy as you has to have more than that on her. I went without coffee to deliver that note."
"Take it or leave it," I said, a touch irritably. I mean, a fucking courier telling me off for being stingy? He was lucky to even get a damn tip considering this wasn't America and tipping certainly wasn't the norm. "You were paid well enough to deliver the note, and we both know it."
"Bitch," he muttered.
And got a clip over the ear from Azriel for his trouble. "That is not polite language to use in the company of a lady."