“I really thought you were onto something there,” Two Teeth Tom told Ellison. “One of the maids saw Gorehair and the other two walking back from this direction. Plus, Gervis is the most antisocial of us all. He could easily be replaced by an impostor and we wouldn’t notice.” “Hey,” said Gervis. “I’m standing right …
“They’re the Gang of Four,” said Matilda. “They’re famous. They case their targets, figure out who has access but doesn’t interact with other people much, and steal their identities while the commit the crime. They usually knock their victims out and tie them up somewhere, but getting Hellcut, Gorehair, and Rainbow Squirtle passed-out drunk was …
It was getting late in the afternoon, but Derek decided he had enough time to walk them down to Lothbury Street. “I haven’t had a chance to visit the wine shop yet,” he said. “I’d like to see how Lucy and Lora are doing.” They walked east along Marylebone to Aldwich, then followed Lothbury Street …
Marylebone Place was a street of ill repute. Not because of its various houses of prostitution but because it was a street that saw a great deal of vehicle traffic but was located far enough from city center that Krim administration kept forgetting to do repairs. The cobblestones surface was torn up, making it a …
Before leaving, Ellison and Matilda had a chat with some of Rodge’s security team. They weren’t happy that Rodge had brought in outsiders to deal with the problem. “It’s almost like he doesn’t trust us to do our jobs,” said Two Teeth Tom, newly back from the dead. “Just because someone got the drop on …
Two weeks later, Ellison and Matilda met up with Simond and the other investors at the docks to see the boat set sail. She’d been renamed the Nina. Ellison had been following the gossip in the bars. After Pompas had been marched through the city, word had spread quickly about what happened, and Krim residents …
Ellison got to the Simond Fine Art Gallery first, even though he made a detour to the Central Plaza so that he could pop back out through the main gate and change into his regular avatar. For a few minutes, he was worried that Pompas had somehow managed to escape again. Then he saw them …
“I’m sure my boyfriend will be back any minute now,” Ellison said. “I’m not in the way, am I?” The sailor grunted and looked up at the setting sun, the same way that someone on a different, more civilized, world might pointedly check their watch. While Ellison had been keeping an eye on Pompas’ boat, …
Ellison deliberately avoided looking at Pompas’ ship as they walked past it, for fear of somehow spooking him. “So, going over the edge of the world, huh!” he said, in a extra-high pitch. “I don’t know, the weather looks a little cloudy,” Matilda said, looking up at the sky. “Right, right. You want to sail …
At the Crow’s Nest Cafe, Ellison and Matilda grabbed beers and a bowl of fried skirrets and sat at one of the two tables on the balcony with a clear view of the docks. They could see Ander’s ship down below them. It looked too small to make a long sea-voyage. “It must be insanely …
