Quen frowned at him. “We. It was her I was interested in. Not we. She failed.”

“So I guess that means you’ll be leaving,” I said, knowing I wouldn’t be that lucky. I took in his subdued attire and sighed. It was just after noon. Elves slept when the sun was high and in the middle of the night, just like pixies. Quen was here without Trent’s knowledge.

Feeling more sure of myself, I pulled out a chair and sat down before Quen could see my legs trembling. “Trent doesn’t know you’re here,” I said, and he nodded solemnly.

“It’s my problem, not his,” Quen said. “I’m paying you, not him.”

I blinked, trying to disguise my unease. Trent didn’t know. Interesting. “You have a job for me that he doesn’t know about,” I said. “What is it?”

Quen’s gaze went to Ivy and Jenks.

Peeved, I crossed my legs and shook my head. “We’re a team. I’m not asking them to leave so you can tell me of whatever piss-poor problem you’ve landed yourself in.”

The older elf’s brow wrinkled. He took an angry breath.

“Look,” I said, my finger jabbing out to point at him. “I don’t like you. Jenks doesn’t like you. And Ivy wants to eat you. Start talking.”

He went motionless. It was then I saw his desperation, shimmering behind his eyes like light on water. “I have a problem,” he said, fear the thinnest ribbon in his low, controlled voice.

I glanced at Ivy. Her breath had quickened and she stood with her arms wrapped about herself, holding her robe closed. She looked upset, her pale face even more white than usual.

“Mr. Kalamack is going to a social gathering and—”

My lips pursed. “I already turned down one whoring offer today.”

Quen’s eyes flashed. “Shut up,” he said coldly. “Someone is interfering in Mr. Kalamack’s secondary business ventures. The meeting is to try to come to a mutual understanding. I want you to be there to be sure that’s all it is.”

Mutual understanding? It was an I’m-tougher-than-you-so-get-out-of-my-city party. “Saladan?” I guessed.

Genuine surprise washed over him. “You know him?”

Jenks was flitting over Quen, trying to figure out what he was. The pixy was getting more and more frustrated, his shifts of direction becoming jerky and accented with sharp snaps of his dragonfly wings. “I’ve heard of him,” I said, thinking of Takata. My eyes narrowed. “Why should I care if he assumes Trent’s secondary business ventures? This is about Brimstone, isn’t it?” I said. “Well, you can take a leap of faith and burn in hell. Trent is killing people, not that he hasn’t done it before, but now he’s killing them for no reason.” Outrage pulled me to my feet. “Your boss is moth crap. I ought to bring him in, not protect him. And you,” I said, louder, pointing, “are lower than moth crap for doing nothing while he does it!”

Quen flushed, making me feel vastly better about myself. “Are you that stupid?” he said, and I stiffened. “The bad Brimstone isn’t from Mr. Kalamack; it’s from Saladan. That’s what this meeting is about. Mr. Kalamack is trying to get it off the streets, and unless you want Saladan taking over the city, you’d better start trying to keep Mr. Kalamack alive like the rest of us. Are you going to take the run or not? It pays ten thousand.”