I force my voice steady. “One moment.”
The man gestures toward the far end of the platform near a shuttered holo-ad kiosk. Public enough to discourage overt violence. Isolated enough for threats.
Of course.
I lean toward Evie. “Stay here.”
Her brow furrows instantly. “Why?”
“I need to speak with him.”
“About what?”
“Business.”
“You don’t have business.”
That would almost make me smile under different circumstances.
“Please,” I say quietly.
She studies my face too closely. Evie notices tension the way soldiers notice incoming fire. “Kauss.”
“I will explain after.”
Another lie.
Not because I intend cruelty. Because I already know I will not tell her. Organized crime does not remain contained once spoken aloud. Knowledge becomes involvement. Involvement becomes leverage.
I move before she can argue further.
The representative waits near the edge of the platform, hands folded loosely behind his back. The transit rails hum beneath the city, vibrating faintly through the metal floor. A train screams past on the lower level in a wash of blue light and displaced air.
“You approached me publicly,” I say.
“You are difficult to reach privately.”
“That was intentional.”
“Yes.” His gaze flicks briefly toward Evie behind me. “We gathered.”
Ice settles under my scales.
“What do you want?”
“A conversation.”
“With whom?”
“You know the name already.”
I do.
Still, hearing it matters.
“Savio Lenrog requests a meeting.”
The city noise dulls around the edges.
