“Yes. She is extremely picky, and her father promised me double payment if I found her one within the week.” He tapped his bulging pocket and coins rattled. “He hated to pay, but once again I proved I can find anything in the Citadel.”
I grinned at him.
Fisk held his hands up. “Oh, no, what did I say?”
“Have you found a structure made of glass in the Citadel? Or maybe a building with lots of windows? Perhaps with greenery growing inside it?”
“No, but...” Fisk moved to his desk and dug through the drawers. “Tweet mentioned a green glass roof, but I thought I’d translated his report wrong.”
“I’m amazed you understand him at all.” Tweet’s tongue had been cut out at a very young age, so he communicated with a variety of hoots and whistles. Hence the nickname.
“We both grew up on the streets,” Fisk said, as if that explained everything. He withdrew a notebook and flipped through the pages. “Ah, here it is. Tweet tried to look inside, but a man spotted him and chased him off with threats of harm if he returned. I figured he’d found a skylight and was peering down into someone’s bedroom. People don’t like it when you spy into their private rooms.” His tone made it clear that the very concept amazed him.
I suppressed a smile. “Where was this glass roof?”
“Not far from here. I can have someone take another look.”
“I need to go and see it for myself,” I said.
“But Valek—”
“—said I can get some fresh air. Besides, once he kills The Mosquito, the others will be too frightened to come after me. Plus it’s close, and you’ll be with me. Right?”
“I don’t know.”
I tried another tactic. “We can bring along a couple bodyguards, if that makes you feel better.”
“Bodyguards? You do realize most of my people are underage.”
I stared at him.
He fidgeted under my scrutiny. “Well, I do have a few members who are skilled fighters.”
“Please, Fisk. I’m going crazy in here. Valek was okay with me leaving as long as we stay nearby.”
“If anything happens—”
“It won’t.”
“—Valek’s going to kill me.”
“I’ll kill you if I have to stay inside one more moment.”
“Sorry, but Valek scares me more.”
“That’s ’cause you’ve never seen me cranky.” I stood.
“All right, but we’ll need disguises. And if Valek asks, you forced me at knife point.”
“Chicken.”
“Damn right.”
* * *
Our disguises turned out to be a family. Fisk played the father, I took the role of mother and the bodyguards, Lyle and Natalie, were dressed as our children. The irony was not lost on me. With blond curls and chubby cheeks, Lyle was so adorable, I had to resist picking him up and hugging him.
As Fisk and I strolled hand in hand, I asked, “Are they even armed?”
“To the teeth.”
“Must take after my side of the family.”
Fisk chuckled. “They’ve been bugging Valek for lessons, and he’s been kind enough to work with them when he has time.” He squeezed my hand. “He’s going to make a wonderful father.”
I squeezed back in agreement. We walked for a while in silence. I enjoyed the fresh air and the afternoon sunshine warming my black hair. One of the guild members had pinned it into a sedate bun and used makeup to age my face. My future had stared back at me in the mirror.
Fisk navigated the maze of streets and buildings that comprised the northwest quadrant of the Citadel. Constructed from a variety of building materials, the once-organized grid of residences was now a labyrinth of homes, apartments and shacks.
“Tweet said he’d meet us near there,” Fisk said. “It’s a bit tricky to find.”
“Good. Is anyone following us?”
“No one has taken the least bit of interest in us.”
I considered the speed of his reply. “You have more people shadowing us, don’t you?”
“Of course.”
“How many?” Or rather, just how scared of Valek was he?
“Two scouts and two sweepers.”
“Sweepers?”
“They follow behind and ensure no one is trailing after us.”
“Ah.”
When we drew closer to our destination, Tweet appeared as if from nowhere. He took my other hand and smiled shyly. We strolled another couple blocks in silence.
“Go with Tweet,” Fisk said. “He’ll show you and Lyle where the glass roof is, and the rest of us will meet you on the flip side.”
“All right.”
Fisk released my hand, and I allowed Tweet to lead me. Lyle, the chubby-cheeked blond, trotted at my heels like a lost puppy. We cut through a narrow alley, climbed a rickety series of steps and cat-walked between buildings until we reached a roof. Tweet stopped and pointed to an adjoining roof that was made of glass. Sunlight reflected off the surface, so I was unable to see inside.
Tweet put a finger to his lips and mimed tiptoeing. Understanding the need to be quiet, I crept toward the glass roof. My pulse raced as I drew closer and spotted green shapes. But when I reached the edge, disappointment deflated my excitement.
Algae coated the inside of the glass. All the plants Bavol had been interested in would need sunlight to grow. I peered through a couple clear spots, but dead plants and shriveled leaves occupied most of the room. It appeared nothing but mold and fungus grew inside.