A Malazan Book of the Fallen Collection 4

once judged a decent duellist.' He scanned the
track to either side. 'This place seems well suited. Now, a
miserable enough audience, granted, but—'
    'Excuse me,' cut in the foreman, 'but the day's shift bell
is about to sound. The crews can get a perfect view, what
with you two on the ridgeline – if you'd like.'
    Gorlas winked over at Murillio as he said, 'By all means
we shall wait, then.'
    The foreman trundled down the path into the pit, to
ensure that the crew captains were told what was going
on. They'd enjoy the treat after a long day's work in the
tunnels.
    As soon as the foreman was out of earshot, Gorlas
grinned at Murillio. 'Now, anything more we should talk
about, now that we've got no witness?'
    'Thank you for the invitation,' Murillio said, tightening
the straps of his glove. 'Turban Orr didn't deserve an
honourable death. Hanut is your friend? Tell me, do you
enjoy sleeping with vipers, or are you just stupid?'
    'If that was an attempt to bring me to a boil, it was
pathetic. You truly think I don't know all the tricks leading
up to a duel? Gods below, old man. Still, I am pleased by
your admission – Hanut will be delighted to hear that his
suspicions were accurate. More important, he will find
himself in my debt.' And then he cocked his head. 'Of
course, the debt will be all the greater if I let you live. A
duel unto wounding – leaving your fate in Hanut's hands.
Yes, that would be perfect. Well, Murillio, shall it be
wounding?'
    'If you like,' Murillio said.
    'Are your boots pinching?'
    'No.'
    'You seem in discomfort, Murillio, or is that just
nerves?'
    Bells clanged in the pit below. Distant shouts, and out
from the tunnel mouths spewed filthy figures looking
barely human at this distance. Runners raced down the
lines. Word was getting out.
    'What's this Harllo boy to you, anyway?'
    Murillio glanced back to Gorlas. 'You married Estraysian
D'Arle's daughter, didn't you? She's made herself very . . .
popular, of late, hasn't she? Alas, I am starting to understand
why – you're not much of a man, are you, Gorlas?'
    For all the councillor's previous bravado, he paled in the
late afternoon light.
    'It's terrible, isn't it,' Murillio went on, 'how every sordid
detail, no matter how private and personal, so easily leaves
the barricaded world of the wellborn and races like windblown
seeds among all us common folk, us lowborn. Why,
whatever happened to decency?'
    The rapier rasped its way out of the sheath and the point
lifted towards Murillio. 'Draw your weapon, old man.'
    Krute of Talient stepped inside. He saw Rallick Nom
standing by the window, but it was shuttered closed. The
man might as well be standing facing a wall. Oh, he was
a strange one indeed, stranger now than he'd ever been
before. All that silence, all that sense of something being
very much . . . wrong. In his head? Maybe. And that was a
worrying thought – that Rallick Nom might not be right
any more.
    'It's confirmed,' said Krute, setting down the burlap sack
filled with the makings for supper. 'One contract dissolved,
a new one accepted. Stinks of desperation, doesn't it? Gods,
Seba's even called me back and that's an invitation no sane
man would refuse.' He paused, eyeing his friend, and then
said, 'So you may not be seeing much of me from now on.
From what I've gathered, this new one's pretty straightforward,
but it's the kind that'll shake up the precious
bloods.'
    'Is it now?' Rallick asked, expressionless.
    'Listen,' said Krute, knowing he was betraying his nerves,
'I couldn't say no, could I? It's fine enough living off your
coin, but that's hard on a man's pride. I've got a chance to
get back into the middle of things again. I've got a chance
to walk with the Guild again. Rallick, I got to take it, you
understand?'
    'Is it that important to you, Krute?'
    Krute nodded.
    'Then,' said Rallick, 'I had best leave your company.'
    'I'm sorry about that – it's my being . . . what's that word
again?'
    'Compromised.'
    'Exactly. Now, if you'd made your move on Seba, well,
we wouldn't be in this situation, would we? It's the waiting
that's been so hard.'
    'There are no plans to replace Seba Krafar,' said Rallick.
'I am sorry if I have unintentionally misled you on that
count. This is not to say we're uninterested in the Guild.'
He hesitated. 'Krute, listen carefully. I can leave you some
coin – enough for a while, a half-year's worth, in fact. Just
decline Seba's invitation – you don't know what you're
getting into—'
    'And you