hands on a silencer, but I would dearly love to. All communications from inside a six-foot radius from the silencer would not transmit outside that radius—voices, coms, bugs, nothing. Yet we could still hear the faint murmurs from the front of the shop.
They were so illegal that I hadn’t even bothered to steal one when I’d left home. Because while Ada von Hasenberg had permission to carry one, neither Irena Hasan nor Maria Franco did. And getting caught with one was an automatic ten-year sentence.
“You may lower your hood, if you like. It’s safe here. And would you prefer Irena or . . .” She paused delicately.
If it was meant to shock me, it worked. I pulled myself together and refocused on my purpose. I lowered my hood. “Irena is fine. Thank you for agreeing to meet,” I said after another sip of tea. At least the tea was good.
I picked up one of the delicate triangle tea sandwiches and was transported back to my mother’s afternoon tea parties. The women of the Consortium were just as bloodthirsty and power-hungry as the men, perhaps more so, and entering a ladies’ tea always struck me as entering a nest of pretty vipers.
“I am still not sure it was a good idea,” she said, breaking me from my thoughts.
“Probably not,” I agreed. She grinned. The expression made her look years younger. Perhaps she was not that much older than me after all. “But all the same, I’m glad you did,” I said. “I need . . . assistance. I am willing to pay.”
“Money is only an incentive if I’m alive to enjoy it,” she said. “And considering I have an idea of the trouble hounding you, that’s a pretty big if.”
“I’m not asking for involvement. Just a little information and perhaps an item or two, if you happen to have them sitting around.”
She took a sip of her tea. I let the silence settle around us. I’d said all I was willing to at this point. The rest was up to her.
Finally, she said, “And if I want to be involved?”
“I would strongly discourage it,” I said immediately. I paused, reconsidered. “Unless you are special ops,” I said. “Then I could use the help.”
Her laugh was even more entrancing than her voice. “You are not what I expected,” she said. “Let us discuss details. As I’m sure you’re aware, the silencer will keep our conversation private. I will begin: I want off this planet.”
Warning bells went off. “What is preventing you from doing that now?” I asked. From the look of her shop she was highly successful. Successful fences were not poor.
Shadows darkened her eyes. “No one will take me. Even new visitors are warned off before I can book passage.”
“Okay,” I said slowly. “If I take you, do I need to worry about an angry husband hunting us? It won’t affect my decision, but I need to be able to prepare for it.”
“He is not my husband, and he is off-planet now, so we should not have to worry about him. But, yes, he will follow me if I leave a trail, so I will not leave a trail. And when I am safe, I will deal with him.” She smiled with vicious intent.
I finished the last of the tiny sandwiches and broke off a piece of scone. “I am not opposed to taking you off-planet, but my own escape plan is shaky at best. There are many things that can go wrong. Most probably will. And even if it goes off perfectly, we won’t be safe. You should know that before you commit.”
She tilted her head and studied me for a few seconds before her eyes widened. “You’re stealing a ship,” she breathed. “You’re stealing Rockhurst’s ship.”
I neither confirmed nor denied the claim.
She laughed, caught between delight and astonishment. “What do you need to pull this off?”
“First, I have reason to believe my companion has been captured. I need to know his location, as well as the building blueprints. Guard locations would be helpful, too.”
“Do you know who he is?” she asked. I gave her a pointed look. She smiled, then sobered. “He is being held at the detention center the mercs use before they ship out their bounties,” she said. “News travels fast here. So far his identity remains secret but it won’t for long. Same for you.”
“I am hoping to be gone before it becomes a problem. I also need these items,” I said. I held up my