Gorlas scowled. He wasn't asking for advice. Still, yes, a partnership might work. Something he'd heard about that smith . . . some Guild trouble. Well, could be Gorlas could smooth all that over, for a consideration. 'Never mind,' he said, a tad overloud, 'it was just a notion I've already discarded it as too complicated, too messy. Let's forget we ever discussed it.'

'Yes, sir.'

But was the foreman looking oddly thoughtful? Might be necessary, Gorlas reflected, to hasten this fool's demise.

From up the road behind them, a trader's cart was approaching.

Stupid, really. He'd elected to wear his riding boots, but the things were ancient, worn, and it seemed his feet had flattened out some since he'd last used them, and now he had enormous blisters, d.a.m.ned painful ones. And so, for all his plans of a stentorian, impressive arrival at the camp, full of dour intent and an edge of bl.u.s.ter, to then be ameliorated by a handful of silver councils, a relieved foreman sending a runner off to retrieve the wayward child, Murillio found himself on the back of a rickety cart, covered in dust and sweating in the midst of a cloud of flies.

Well, he would just have to make the best of it, wouldn't he? As the ox halted at the top of the ridgeline, the old man walking slow as a snail over to where stood the eponymous foreman beside some fancy n.o.ble now both looking their way Murillio eased himself down, wincing at the lancing pain shooting up his legs, thinking with dread of the long walk back to the city, his hand holding Harllo's tiny one, with darkness crawling up from the ditches to either side a long, long walk indeed, and how he'd manage it was, truth be told, beyond him.

Soldiers knew about blisters, didn't they? And men and women who worked hard for a living. To others, the affliction seemed trivial, a minor irritation and when there were years between this time and the last time one had suffered from them, it was easy to forget, to casually dismiss just how debilitating they truly were.

Raw leather rubbed at each one like ground gla.s.s as he settled his weight back down. Still, it would not do to hobble over, and so, mustering all his will, Murillio walked, one careful step at a time, to where the foreman and the n.o.bleman stood discussing things with the carter. As he drew closer, his gaze narrowed on the highborn one, a hint of recognition . . . but where? When?

The carter had been told by the foreman where to take the supplies, and off he went, with a pa.s.sing nod at Murillio.

The foreman was squinting curiously, and as Murillio drew up before them he spat to one side and said, 'You look lost, sir. If you've the coin you can buy a place at the workers' table it's plain fare but fillin' enough, though we don't serve nothing but weak ale.' He barked a laugh. 'We ain't no roadside inn, are we?'

Murillio had thought long on how he would approach this. But he had not expected a d.a.m.ned n.o.bleman in this particular scene, and something whispered to him that what should have been a simple negotiation, concluded by paying twice the going rate for a five-year-old boy, might now turn perilously complicated. 'Are you the foreman of the camp, sir?' he asked, after a deferential half-bow to the n.o.bleman. At the answering nod, Murillio continued, 'Very good. I am here in search of a young boy, name of Harllo, who was sold to your camp a few weeks back.' He quickly raised a gloved hand. 'No, I have no desire to challenge the propriety of that arrangement. Rather, I wish to purchase the boy's freedom, and so deliver him back to his, er, terribly distressed parents.'

'Do ye now?' The foreman looked over at the n.o.bleman.

Yes, Murillio thought he might know this young man.

'You are the one named Murillio,' the n.o.bleman said, with an odd glitter in his gaze.

'You have the better of me-'

'That goes without saying. I am the princ.i.p.al investor of this operation. I am also a councillor. Gorlas Vidikas of House Vidikas.'

Murillio bowed a second time, as much to hide his dismay as in proper deference. 'Councillor Vidikas, it is a pleasure meeting you.'

'Is it? I very much doubt that. It took me a few moments to place you. You were pointed out, you see, a couple of years back, at some estate fete.'

'Oh? Well, there was a time when I was-' 'You were on a list,' Gorlas cut in.

'A what?'

'A hobby of a friend of mine, although I doubt he would have seen it as a hobby. In fact, if I was so careless as to use that word, when it came to his list, he'd probably call me out.'

'I am sorry,' Murillio said, 'but I'm afraid I do not know what you are talking about. Some sort of list, you said?'

'Likely conspirators,' Gorlas said with a faint smile, 'in the murder of Turban Orr, not to mention Ravyd Lim or was it some other Lim? I don't recall now, but then, that hardly matters. No, Turban Orr, and of course the suspicious suicide of Lady Simtal all on the same night, in her estate. I was there, did you know that? I saw Turban Orr a.s.sa.s.sinated with my own eyes.' And he was in truth smiling now, as if recalling something yielding waves of nostalgia. But his eyes were hard, fixed like sword points. 'My friend, of course, is Hanut Orr, and the list is his.'

'I do recall attending the Simtal fete,' Murillio said, and in his mind he was reliving those moments after leaving the Lady's bedchamber leaving her with the means by which she could take her own life and his thoughts, then, of everything he had surrendered, and what it might mean for his future. Appropriate, then, that it should now return to crouch at his feet, like a rabid dog with fangs bared. 'Alas, I missed the duel-'

'It was no duel, Murillio. Turban Orr was provoked. He was set up. He was a.s.sa.s.sinated, in plain view. Murder, not a duel do you even comprehend the difference?'

The foreman was staring back and forth between them with all the dumb bewilderment of an ox.

'I do, sir, but as I said, I was not there to witness the event-'

'You call me a liar, then?'

'Excuse me?' G.o.ds below, ten years past and he would have handled this with perfect grace and mocking equanimity, and all that was ruffled would be smoothed over, certain debts accepted, promises of honouring those debts not even needing explicit enunciation. Ten years past and- 'You are calling me a liar.'

'No, I do not recall doing so, Councillor. If you say Turban Orr was a.s.sa.s.sinated, then so be it. As for my somehow conspiring to bring it about, well, that is itself a very dangerous accusation.' Oh, he knew where this was leading. He had known for some time, in fact. It was all there in Gorlas Vidikas's eyes and Murillio now recalled where he had last seen this man, and heard of him. Gorlas enjoyed duelling. He enjoyed killing his opponents. Yes, he had attended one of this b.a.s.t.a.r.d's duels, and he had seen- 'It seems,' said Gorlas, 'we have ourselves a challenge to honour here.' He gave a short laugh. 'When you retracted your accusation, well, I admit I thought you were about to tuck your tail between your legs and scuttle off down the road. And perhaps I would've let you go at that it's Hanut's obsession, after all. Not mine.'

Murillio said nothing, understanding how he had trapped himself, with the foreman to witness the fact that the demand for a duel had come from him, not Gorlas Vidikas. He also understood that there had been no chance, none at all, that Gorlas would have let him go.

'Naturally,' continued the councillor, 'I have no intention of withdrawing my accusation so either accept it or call me out, Murillio. I have vague recollections that you were once judged a decent duellist.' He scanned the track to either side. 'This place seems well suited. Now, a miserable enough audience, granted, but-'

'Excuse me,' cut in the foreman, 'but the day's shift bell is about to sound. The crews can get a perfect view, what with you two on the ridgeline if you'd like.'

Gorlas winked over at Murillio as he said, 'By all means we shall wait, then.'

The foreman trundled down the path into the pit, to ensure that the crew captains were told what was going on. They'd enjoy the treat after a long day's work in the tunnels.

As soon as the foreman was out of earshot, Gorlas grinned at Murillio. 'Now, anything more we should talk about, now that we've got no witness?'

'Thank you for the invitation,' Murillio said, tightening the straps of his glove. 'Turban Orr didn't deserve an honourable death. Hanut is your friend? Tell me, do you enjoy sleeping with vipers, or are you just stupid?'

'If that was an attempt to bring me to a boil, it was pathetic. You truly think I don't know all the tricks leading up to a duel? G.o.ds below, old man. Still, I am pleased by your admission Hanut will be delighted to hear that his suspicions were accurate. More important, he will find himself in my debt.' And then he c.o.c.ked his head. 'Of course, the debt will be all the greater if I let you live. A duel unto wounding leaving your fate in Hanut's hands. Yes, that would be perfect. Well, Murillio, shall it be wounding?'

'If you like,' Murillio said.

'Are your boots pinching?'

'No.'

'You seem in discomfort, Murillio, or is that just nerves?'

Bells clanged in the pit below. Distant shouts, and out from the tunnel mouths spewed filthy figures looking barely human at this distance. Runners raced down the lines. Word was getting out.

'What's this Harllo boy to you, anyway?'

Murillio glanced back to Gorlas. 'You married Estraysian D'Arle's daughter, didn't you? She's made herself very . . . popular, of late, hasn't she? Alas, I am starting to understand why you're not much of a man, are you, Gorlas?'

For all the councillor's previous bravado, he paled in the late afternoon light.

'It's terrible, isn't it,' Murillio went on, 'how every sordid detail, no matter how private and personal, so easily leaves the barricaded world of the wellborn and races like windblown seeds among all us common folk, us lowborn. Why, whatever happened to decency?'

The rapier rasped its way out of the sheath and the point lifted towards Murillio. 'Draw your weapon, old man.'

Krute of Talient stepped inside. He saw Rallick Nom standing by the window, but it was shuttered closed. The man might as well be standing facing a wall. Oh, he was a strange one indeed, stranger now than he'd ever been before. All that silence, all that sense of something being very much . . . wrong. In his head? Maybe. And that was a worrying thought that Rallick Nom might not be right any more.

'It's confirmed,' said Krute, setting down the burlap sack filled with the makings for supper. 'One contract dissolved, a new one accepted. Stinks of desperation, doesn't it? G.o.ds, Seba's even called me back and that's an invitation no sane man would refuse.' He paused, eyeing his friend, and then said, 'So you may not be seeing much of me from now on. From what I've gathered, this new one's pretty straightforward, but it's the kind that'll shake up the precious bloods.'

'Is it now?' Rallick asked, expressionless.

'Listen,' said Krute, knowing he was betraying his nerves, 'I couldn't say no, could I? It's fine enough living off your coin, but that's hard on a man's pride. I've got a chance to get back into the middle of things again. I've got a chance to walk with the Guild again. Rallick, I got to take it, you understand?'

'Is it that important to you, Krute?'

Krute nodded.

'Then,' said Rallick, 'I had best leave your company.'

'I'm sorry about that it's my being . . . what's that word again?'

'Compromised.'

'Exactly. Now, if you'd made your move on Seba, well, we wouldn't be in this situation, would we? It's the waiting that's been so hard.'

'There are no plans to replace Seba Krafar,' said Rallick. 'I am sorry if I have unintentionally misled you on that count. This is not to say we're uninterested in the Guild.' He hesitated. 'Krute, listen carefully. I can leave you some coin enough for a while, a half-year's worth, in fact. Just decline Seba's invitation you don't know what you're getting into-'

'And you do? No, Rallick, the point is, if I don't know it's because I've been pushed out of things.'

'You should be thankful for that.'

'I don't need any patronizing s.h.i.t from you, Rallick Nom. You're all secrets now, nothing but secrets. But you'll live here, with me, and eat what I cook, and what about me? Oh, right, on the outside again, this time with you. Well, I can't live like that, so you'd better go. Don't think ill of me I won't tell Seba about you.'

'Can I not buy your retirement, Krute?'

'No.'

Rallick nodded and then walked to the door. 'Guard yourself well, Krute.'

'You too, Rallick.'

Emerging from the tenement building's narrow back door, Rallick Nom stepped out into the rank, rubbish-filled alley. His last venture into the world had seen him very nearly killed by Crokus Younghand, and of his time spent recovering at the Phoenix Inn, it was clear that no one who'd known of his presence had said a thing not Kruppe, nor Coll, nor Murillio, nor Meese, or Irilta; the Guild had not sniffed out his ignominious return. Even that wayward cousin of his, Torvald, had said nothing although why that man had so vigorously avoided him was both baffling and somewhat hurtful.

Anyway, in a sense, Rallick remained invisible.

He paused in the alley. Still light, a ribbon of brightness directly above. It felt odd, to be outside in the day, and he knew it would not be long before someone caught sight of him, recognizing his face eyes widening with astonishment and word would race back to Seba Krafar. And then?

Well, the Master would probably send one of his lieutenants to sound Rallick out what did he want? What did he expect from the Guild? There might be an invitation as well, the kind that was deadly either way. Accept it and walk into an ambush. Reject it and the hunt would begin. There were few who could take down Rallick one on one, but that wouldn't be the preferred tactic in any case. No, it would be a quarrel to the back.

There were other places he could hide he could probably walk right back into the Finnest House. But then, Krute was not the only one getting impatient. Besides, Rallick had never much liked subterfuge. He'd not used it when he'd been active in the Guild, after all except when he was working, of course.

No, the time had come to stir things awake. And if Seba Krafar's confidence had been rattled by a handful of rancorous Malazans, well, he was about to be sent reeling.

The notion brought a faint smile to Rallick's lips. Yes, I am back. Yes, I am back.

He set out for the Phoenix Inn.

I am back, so let's get this started, shall we?

Echoing alarms at the blurred border between the Daru and Lakefront districts, a half-dozen streets behind them now as Barathol holding Chaur's hand as he would a child's dragged the giant man through the late afternoon crowds. They had pa.s.sed a few patrols, but word had yet to outdistance the two fugitives, although it was likely that this flight would, ultimately, prove anything but surrept.i.tious guards and bystanders both could not help but recall the two huge foreigners, one onyx-skinned, the other the hue of stained rawhide, rushing past.

Barathol had no choice but to dispense with efforts at stealth and subterfuge. Chaur was bawling with all the indignant outrage of a toddler unjustly punished, astonished to discover that not all things were cute and to be indulged by adoring caregivers that, say, shoving a sibling off a cliff was not quite acceptable behaviour.

He had tried calming Chaur down, but simple as Chaur was, he was quick to sense disapproval, and Barathol had been unthinking and careless in expressing that disapproval well, rather, he had been shocked into carelessness and now the huge child would wail unto eventual exhaustion, and that exhaustion was still a long way off.

Two streets away from the harbour, three guards thirty paces behind them suddenly raised shouts, and now the chase was on for real.

To Barathol's surprise, Chaur fell silent, and the smith pulled him up alongside him as they hurried along. 'Chaur, listen to me. Get back to the ship do you understand? Back to the ship, to the lady, yes? Back to Spite she'll hide you. To the ship, Chaur, understand?'

A tear-streaked face, cheeks blotchy, eyes red, Chaur nodded.

Barathol pushed him ahead. 'Go. On your own I'll catch up with you. Go!'

And Chaur went, lumbering, knocking people off their feet until a path miraculously opened before him.

Barathol turned about to give the three guards some trouble. Enough to purchase Chaur the time he needed, at least.

He managed that well enough, with fists and feet, with knees and elbows, and if not for the arrival of reinforcements, he might even have won clear. Six more guards, however, proved about five too many, and he was wrestled to the ground and beaten half senseless.

The occasional thought filtered weakly through the miasma of pain and confusion as he was roughly carried to the nearest gaol. He'd known a cell before. It wasn't so bad, so long as the gaolers weren't into torture. Yes, he could make a tour of gaol cells, country to country, continent to continent. All he needed to do was start up a smithy without the local Guild's approval.

Simple enough.

Then these fragmented notions went away, and the bliss of unconsciousness was unbroken, for a time.

''Tis the grand stupidity of our kind, dear Cutter, to see all the errors of our ways, yet find in ourselves the inability to do anything about them. We sit, dumbfounded by despair, and for all our ingenuity, our perceptivity, for all our extraordinary capacity to see the truth of things, we hunker down like snails in a flood, sucked tight to our precious pebble, fearing the moment it is dislodged beneath us. Until that terrible calamity, we do nothing but cling.

'Can you even imagine a world where all crimes are punished, where justice is truly blind and holds out no hands happy to yield to the weight of coin and influence? Where one takes responsibility for his or her mistakes, acts of negligence, the deadly consequences of indifference or laziness? Nay, instead we slip and duck, dance and dodge, dance the dodge slip duck dance, feet ablur! Our selves transformed into shadows that flit in chaotic discord. We are indeed masters of evasion no doubt originally a survival trait, at least in the physical sense, but to have such instincts applied to the soul is perhaps our most egregious crime against morality. What we will do so that we may continue living with ourselves. In this we might a.s.sert that a survival trait can ultimately prove its own ant.i.thesis, and in the cancelling out thereof, why, we are left with the blank, dull, vacuous expression that Kruppe now sees before him.'

'Sorry, what?'

'Dear Cutter, this is a grave day, I am saying. A day of the misguided and the misapprehended, a day of mischance and misery. A day in which to grieve the unantic.i.p.ated, this yawning stretch of too-late that follows fell decisions, and the stars will plummet and if we truly possessed courage we would ease ourselves with great temerity into that high, tottering footwear of the G.o.ds, and in seeing what they see, in knowing what they have come to know, we would at last comprehend the madness of struggle, the absurdity of hope, and off we would stumble, wailing our way into the dark future. We would weep, my friend, we would weep.'

'Maybe I have learned all about killing,' Cutter said in a mumble, his glazy eyes seemingly fixed on the tankard in his hand. 'And maybe a.s.sa.s.sins don't spare a thought as to who deserves what, or even motivations. Coin in hand, or love in the heart reward has so many . . . flavours. But is this what she really wants? Or was that some kind of careless . . . burst, like a flask never meant to be opened shatters, everything pours out staining your hands, staining . . . everything.'

'Cutter,' said Kruppe in a low, soft but determined tone. 'Cutter. 'Cutter. You must listen to Kruppe, now. You must listen he is done with rambling, with his own bout of terrible, grievous helplessness. Listen! Cutter, there are paths that must not be walked. Paths where going back is impossible no matter how deeply you would wish it, no matter how loud the cry in your soul. Dearest friend, you must-' You must listen to Kruppe, now. You must listen he is done with rambling, with his own bout of terrible, grievous helplessness. Listen! Cutter, there are paths that must not be walked. Paths where going back is impossible no matter how deeply you would wish it, no matter how loud the cry in your soul. Dearest friend, you must-'

Shaking himself, Cutter rose suddenly. 'I need a walk,' he said. 'She couldn't have meant it. That future she paints . . . it's a fairy tale. Of course it is. Has to be. No, and no, and no. But . . .'

Kruppe watched as the young man walked away, watched as Cutter slipped through the doorway of the Phoenix Inn, and was gone from sight.

'Sad truth,' Kruppe said his audience of none sighing in agreement 'that a tendency towards verbal excess can so defeat the precision of meaning. That intent can be so well disguised in majestic plethora of nuance, of rhythm both serious and mocking, of this penchant for self-referential slyness, that the unwitting simply skip on past imagining their time to be so precious, imagining themselves above all manner of conviction, save that of their own witty perfection. Sigh and sigh again.

'See Kruppe totter in these high shoes nay, even his balance is not always precise, no matter how condign he may be in so many things. Totter, I say, as down fall the stars and off wail the G.o.ds and helplessness is an ocean in flood, ever rising but we shall not drown alone, shall we? No, we shall have plenty of company in this chill comfort. The guilty and the innocent, the quick and the thick, the wise and the dumb, the righteous and the wicked the flood levels all, faces down in the swells, oh my.

'Oh my . . .'