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"He will die by my hand," said Shiraz.
"You do realize that he was only carrying out orders from the Council?" asked Ava. "I doubt it was ever personal."
"The circle must be closed," said Shiraz. "It is the only way to restore the honor of my family. I must be the one to kill him."
"The question now becomes: can I trust you?" Ava eyed Shiraz. "Because frankly, it's fairly miraculous that I've let you live to this point. My instincts are all telling me to kill you and be done with it."
Shiraz grinned. "But you need someone to remove Lawson for you. If you do it yourself, there will be too many questions, you'll be too exposed, and your plans will be revealed. But if I do it, then you will remain safely obscured. You can continue to plan your grand schemes without worry of discovery or of Lawson interfering."
Ava said nothing, but continued to look at Shiraz.
Shiraz allowed his smile to widen. "My question to you is this: what do I get out of it if I agree to help you?"
Ava raised an eyebrow. "Did I give you the impression that this was a negotiation?"
"Everything is negotiation," said Shiraz. "It's just a matter of finding out what terms we will both find agreeable so that we can work together."
"That implies a partnership," said Ava.
Shiraz shrugged as much as he was able to do being bound to the chair. "Call it whatever you wish. I want to kill Lawson. And honestly, I would like to know what you plan to do with the relic and what you are planning to do to our people."
"Not what I will do 'to' our people, but what I will do 'for' our people. It's a very important distinction. One I would hope you would recognize."
Shiraz nodded. "Fair enough. So, what will you give me in exchange for killing Lawson?"
"The honor, as you said, of closing the circle for your family."
Shiraz shook his head. "That's not enough. I need something more."
Ava stood and placed the chair back against the wall. "You'll still have your life as well. I imagine that counts for a great deal."
Shiraz smiled. "I'm doing your dirty work, Ava. I deserve something for that. A piece of the pie, so to speak."
Ava sighed. "I suppose you're right." She moved closer to Shiraz, bringing her face inches away from his.
Shiraz watched her approach. There was no denying her beauty. Her power radiated out from her pores, intoxicating the air and making him heady.
"We could figure out a way to seal the deal," said Ava as her lips brushed across Shiraz's.
"We could," said Shiraz thickly. He swallowed and watched as Ava's lips brushed his cheek and then continued toward his ear.
She licked at his lobe. He could feel her hot breath against his skin.
And then he felt the most indescribably poignant sensation, like a searing heat in his chest. He looked down as Ava moved away and saw something that didn't seem to jibe with his expectations: a slim shaft of wood jutted from just below his sternum.
Shiraz felt his breath coming in spurts as blood spilled from where the shaft had pierced his heart. He looked up at Ava.
"Why?"
Ava shook her head. "You're too much of a liability to me. And you'd have leverage over me if I did choose to keep you around."
"But . . . I can kill Lawson . . . for you."
Ava laughed. "My dear fool, after everything you've witnessed here today, do you really think I need your help to take out one Fixer?"
Shiraz felt his breathing coming slower now. His incisors had lengthened as well.
Death was . . . close.
