Chapter Eleven

 

The second time down the long ramp that led from the Goblin's Romp to Big Dave's Town was a different experience. The first time, she was a servant in Lady Saha's retinue, wearing simple clothing and hauling overstuffed duffle bags. Now she and Emilio were dressed as lighters, their faces modified by sorcery for a sum that seemed astronomical, especially since it was the second time in days.

"Quit fidgeting," she said to her brother, slapping his hand as he tugged on the tie around his neck.

"How do they wear these? It's like a noose."

"It symbolizes their slavery to the corporate world," said Vasilisa.

"But we own our own business."

She shrugged. "Better to fit in. Your hair looks ridiculous."

"Shut up, Vasy."

He fussed with the new wig, which was curlier than before. She extended her left hand, which was only an illusion, extending her middle finger. The cuff on her left wrist provided the enchantment, which would interpret her moods accordingly. It was better than the prosthetic that she wore on their first trip, but it would be harder to remember.

The traffic on the ramp was busy. Two golf carts full of people passed them on the upper half. Vasilisa waved down the third, handing over a folded bill for the ride.

"Headed to the tournament?" asked the guy driving the cart. The left half of his jaw had silvery scales and his left arm was wrapped in a cast, but she knew it wasn't an injury. Like a lot of residents of the Undercity that had chosen to live in one of the settlements, they did so to get away from the normalcy of the light. She didn't know if the driver had been cursed or was the recipient of a nasty spell, but it wasn't polite to ask.

"Yes, but not to watch," said Vasilisa, hugging her backpack in her lap.

"What kind of business?"

"Excavation and mining logistics," said Vasilisa, handing over a card. The driver read it while navigating around a group of drunken college students who were drinking from plastic cups as they descended.

"Molly Franks. You look pretty young to own a business," said the driver.

"Magic hides a lot of age," she said with a wink. "My brother, Adam, however, is as young as he looks."

Emilio elbowed her, eliciting a chuckle from the driver.

"Been in the Undercity before?"

Vasilisa shook her head. "No. Anything I should be worried about?"

"Now? Nah. As long as you stay to the settled areas, you'll be fine. Not like it was when I first moved down here. The Alliance expansion has made it as safe, or safer than the city."

"That wouldn't be hard," said Vasilisa, nodding as if she understood.

When they reached Big Dave's Town, the driver dropped them off near the tunnels.

"This is as far as I go, but the Alliance has transports from here to the Terreno, which is where the tournament is."

The wait for a ride from Big Dave's took longer because a crowd had built up. Emilio stayed quiet. He looked like he was working hard not to fidget, which made her smile. They weren't the only people in suits waiting.

"Stop looking so glum, you're scaring people off," said Vasilisa in a whisper when some of the crowd moved away.

When the cart arrived, she and Emilio were stuck on the back. An older gentleman blocked them from climbing into the seats. Vasilisa had to grab her brother's arm when he moved to force his way through.

"This sucks," he whispered as the cart zipped through the old Razor tunnel.

"Can you at least not glower at them? We need to talk to them. If you're scaring them off, this isn't going to work. We're not going to get any business," she said.

The Terreno was packed when they arrived. It felt strange to return for a second time in a week with an entirely new disguise, but unlike the first, no one was staring at them. Lady Saha had drawn attention, while they looked like most of the other tourists in attendance. They found a room at one of the smaller hotels.

"Not that way," she told her brother when he moved towards the arena. "That's not our battle."

He stayed on her hip as they entered the Arcanix Club, a newer hostess bar. They were greeted by a woman in a skintight aqua outfit, but Vasilisa informed her they would stay at the bar. The woman was disappointed, as the bar wasn't where the club made its money.

"Looks like they've copied off the Onyx," said Emilio.

She elbowed him hard, and he was about to retort, but he seemed to remember they weren't supposed to know about the Terreno. Her brother shrugged and said, "I read about it a few days ago."

With a drink in her hand, she surveyed the other guests. While she'd never gotten to go to the Onyx, she knew the stories well. It was strange to see an Undercity club filled not with waku and soldados, but tourists and business folk.

A group of three younger men in suits were laughing at the end of the bar, eyeing the hostesses and speaking too loudly about the woman singing karaoke on the stage. Vasilisa took a deep breath and approached them.

"Hey," she said when one made eye contact, the prepared introduction leaving her mind the moment she reached them.

A guy with a bright lime drink gave her a once-over. "You're not a hostess."

"Of course not. I'm here for the opportunities. What about you?"

He nodded towards his friends. "We're here to find some strange."

"Strange what—"

The meaning hit the moment the words left her lips. He started laughing and sipped his drink, leaving her to storm back to her brother, cheeks burning.

"Want me to punch one of them?"

Vasilisa threw back a big swallow of whiskey. "I wish. Fucking lighter wayhos."

"Language," said Emilio, smirking.

"Fuck, I know."

After a half hour at the Arcanix Club, she realized no one was there to talk business. They moved to the High Shadow, which had the quietest music playing on its speakers. After ordering drinks, she leaned back and observed, trying to make herself approachable. Emilio was clearly trying to do the same, but it was like painting a bull to look like a cow. No matter the colors, the horns were still easy to see.

"I'm gonna take a walk around," she said.

In the busy bar, she wished she had an amber to overhear conversations. She found an older gentleman with stylish gray hair swirling his glass of amber liquid and took position near the bar, acting like she was trying to get the bartender's attention.

"Is it always like this here?" she asked as she drummed on the bar.

He gave her a warm smile. "First time?"

"Literally just got here."

"Not at the fights?"

"Not why we came here," she said.

He held out his hand. "Arnold Peters. Dynacore Industrial Enchantments."

Vasilisa shook his hand, thankful her missing hand was on the left. Handshakes weren't the preferred greeting in the Undercity, but Dane had coached her about returning a strong grip.

"Molly Franks. My brother and I own an excavation and mining logistics company."

"Lot of that going on down here," said Arnold. "I have to say, the Undercity isn't what I thought it'd be."

"Heard from our driver that it's changed a lot recently." She lifted her drink. "What does Dynacore Industrial Enchantments have to do with the Undercity?"

"We provide secure protections for all manner of industrial projects. Our enchantments keep equipment from failing, excavations from collapsing, that sort of thing. We were the lead safety contractor on the rebuild of the Portland Zoo a number of years ago."

The way he said it suggested she should know, so she nodded approvingly.

"That's impressive. We're still small fish, but trying to grow. When we heard what was happening here, we put our business on autopilot and came here."

"Smart move. I smell a lot of opportunities," said Arnold.

"You have any advice? We've really grown on word of mouth recommendations, but that's taken a long time."

"Long time?" he asked with an eyebrow raise.

Vasilisa grinned before she took a long drink. "I wouldn't want to give away all our secrets."

Arnold laughed heartily. "Fair enough. Cultivating an air of mystery can be a good strategy. As for advice? They say the man to talk to is Dominion Thule, but fair warning, he's a maetrie. But not like some of the other city fae you may have met, if you've met any. I've heard he's lived in the city for decades, so he understands our ways."

"Talk to him about what? I know little about what they're doing down here, except mining for faez crystals. I was a bit shocked when I saw how big this place was."

"The mining operations are a good start, especially if you're into logistics. I'm sure they need more of that." He scrunched up his face and reached into a pocket, pulling out a business card that had scribbles on the back. "You know, I met someone a few days ago. She's in charge of the logistics around here. Maybe she could help you. The name's Elani Perez. Hard woman, but she knows her business. That much is for sure."

It took all of her self-control not to react when he said Elani's name. Vasilisa drank deeply to hide her reaction, relieved he was busy fussing with the card rather than watching her.

"Thanks, I think I can remember her name. Where does she work out of?"

The location he described was her old office in the Terreno. Vasilisa was surprised to hear Elani had been relegated to logistics work, but given the contractors Dominion was bringing in, they might not need her expertise any longer.

"Thanks, Arnold." She finished her drink and set it on the bar. "Before I go, just so I understand the situation, besides mining faez crystals and holding martial arts tournaments, what else are they doing down here? I ask because I've seen a lot of different companies, more than you'd need for mining."

Arnold checked around before leaning in conspiratorially. "Between you and me, Molly, I haven't the slightest idea, but you're right. There are a lot of weapons manufacturers in attendance. Or other companies that don't make sense. Which says to me there's more money on the line than it first appears." He gave her a wink. "Good luck."

Vasilisa grabbed her brother on the way out.

"Where are we going?" he asked when they were outside.

She checked the time, realizing that Elani's shop would likely be closed.

"Let's check out the tournament and then return to the hotel. I'm tired from the long day and want to get up early in the morning to see an old friend."