Eider did not actually choke on her wine. More of a gentle gurgle. She set her glass down carefully, quietly cleared her throat, dabbed at her mouth with the corner of a cloth, then looked up at him, eyebrows raised. 'You very well know that no such amount will be forthcoming.'

'I'll settle for whatever you can give me, for now.'

'We'll see. Are your ambitions limited to a mere hundred thousand marks, or is there anything else I can do for you?'

'Actually there is. I need the merchants out of the Temple.'

Eider rubbed gently at her own temples, as though Glokta's demands were giving her a headache. 'He wants the merchants out,' she murmured.

'It was necessary to secure Kahdia's support. With him against us we cannot hope to hold the city for long.'

'I've been telling those arrogant fools the same thing for years, but stamping on the natives has become quite the popular pastime nonetheless. Very well, when do you want them out?'

'Tomorrow. At the latest.'

'And they call you high-handed?' She shook her head. 'Very well. By tomorrow evening I could well be the most unpopular Magister in living memory, if I still have my post at all, but I'll try and sell it to the Guild.'

Glokta grinned. 'I feel confident that you could sell anything.'

'You're a tough negotiator, Superior. If you ever get tired of asking questions, I have no doubt you've a bright future as a merchant.'

'A merchant? Oh, I'm not that ruthless.' Glokta placed his spoon in the empty bowl and licked at his gums. 'I mean no disrespect, but how does a woman come to head the most powerful Guild in the Union?'

Eider paused, as though wondering whether to answer or not. Or judging how much truth to tell when she does. She looked down at her glass, turned the stem slowly round and round. 'My husband was Magister before me. When we married I was twenty-two years old, he was near sixty. My father owed him a great deal of money, and offered my hand as payment for the debt.' Ah, so we all have our sufferings. Her lip twisted in a faint scowl. 'My husband always had a good nose for a bargain. His health began to decline soon after we married, and I took a more and more active role in the management of his affairs, and those of the Guild. By the time he died I was Magister in all but name, and my colleagues were sensible enough to formalise the arrangement. The Spicers have always been more concerned for profit than propriety.' Her eyes flicked up to look at Glokta. 'I mean no disrespect, but how does a war hero come to be a torturer?'