“If I was alone with Snuff, we wouldn’t have gotten this far. The fact you struck a deal with Blue and there’s some knowledge about it gives us a little bit of protection. Having a lot of deals in play provides more protection. Can’t knock someone off if people will think you kill anyone who you contract with. The protection helps too. Little Midas would sic his people on us and take his chances, and most of the people up on the second floor would side with him. He has too much clout.”

“How many enemies did you make?” I asked.

“Enough,” Tattletale said, her eyes scanning the room.

That was the end of that thread of conversation.

The curious old bartender stayed where he was, and it seemed like Tattletale was very right about movement through the room being a careful thing. When Midas raised a hand and then waved a mostly empty beer glass around, the bartender clanked glasses audibly, and knocked glass audibly against counter. A signal to people that he was coming by. The tone of conversation shifted, people drawing quiet as he passed within earshot.

The beer was delivered, and he took more orders on a clipboard before returning to his station. Tap tap, he knocked clipboard against the edge of the table, before returning.

The silence or adjusted tones that seemed to surround him as he walked by only added to my curiosity about him.

Sveta wasn’t focused on the room, but on the outside, I saw. I nudged her arm, giving her hand the briefest squeeze, and she turned my way to give me a small, sad smile.

“What you’re thinking, I don’t recommend it,” Tattletale said.

“Thinking?” Sveta asked.

“You’re thinking about Bluestocking’s deal with Victoria. That, if someone had to come stay here, it could be you. It would be nice to get away, have a fresh start. Fresh air—”

“No,” Sveta said.

“It crossed your mind.”

“Only barely,” Sveta said. “But being around shitty villains would suck, so my thoughts immediately went to going out on my own, living by the shore. But I can’t do that either. I need sessions to reinforce control, because now that I have it, I can’t give it up. I need technical help. Being disabled doesn’t give me the freedoms everyone else would enjoy. It’s not an option.”

“It’s not an option in the first place. I had teammates do that. It’s lousy. For them and for everyone else. That’s all I wanted to say.”

“Vista says Rachel is doing well where she is,” I noted.

“Her? I suppose,” Tattletale said. “But hush hush. Blue’s due to show up.”

I turned to look at the stairwell. No sound, no sign.