Lupi 04 - Night Season

called someone on her cell phone —Gan wanted one of those—and a bunch of cops had come, and things were dull for a while. But now they were leaving.
    â€œWhere are we going?” Gan asked as she climbed into the back of the police van with Lily Yu and Cynna Weaver and the delegation from Edge. There were benches along the sides, and the delegation from Edge sat on one bench while Gan sat between the two humans on the other. A metal wall divided their sitting place from the driving place.
    â€œTo see my leader,” Lily Yu said. The other female, Cynna Weaver, snickered.
    â€œNot Rule Turner, though,” Gan said. She did not like the wolf. “ He’s not your leader.”
    â€œWe’re going to see a man called Ruben Brooks.” Lily looked at the three beings opposite them. “If I understood you correctly, sir, you’re from another realm.”
    The councilor smiled. “Is so. The our home…English word for realm is Edge. Edge is close many realms, is for trade many realms. Is hub. Many gates in Edge. Many trade.”
    â€œYou’re here for trade?”
    â€œIs for trade, yes. We very good with gates, with the making and maintaining. This for your leader and we to talk of. Many details to agree with, yes? We is also here for the Lily Yu and the Cynna Weaver.”
    â€œM-me?” Cynna Weaver stuttered. “You’re here for me and Lily?”
    The councilor nodded, smiling that stupid smile. He probably wasn’t stupid, though. Gan wondered if she should warn Lily Yu about that.
    Maybe later. “We don’t have any windows,” Gan said, frowning as they jolted into motion. The cars she had been in before were called taxis , and they hadn’t gone very fast. She’d hoped the police van would go faster, but even if it did, it wouldn’t be much fun without windows. “Do we have a siren?”
    â€œWe don’t want to draw attention,” Lily Yu said.
    â€œWhy not?”
    â€œIn Dis you knew the dangers and I listened to you. Here, I know the dangers. Drawing attention would be bad.” She turned toward the councilor. “Sir—”
    â€œBut this is made of metal. Even a Claw would have trouble opening it up, I bet. At least for a minute or two. Not that you have any Claws here.”
    Lily Yu glanced at Gan. “People can be dangerous, too, especially if they have weapons.”
    That made sense. Gan had seen some of the human weapons on television, though not lately, because the elders didn’t allow television in the underways. “Do you have a television?”
    Lily Yu gave her one of those thinking looks, but before she could answer, the councilor spoke. He told Gan to be quiet or he would have the half-half squeeze Gan’s throat until her eyes exploded. He used the trade tongue, so Gan understood him but the humans didn’t. He smiled the whole time.
    Gan stuck her tongue out at him. Humans thought that was very rude, but he might not know that.
    â€œSo what did he say?”
    That was Cynna Weaver asking, not Lily Yu. Lily Yu was asking the councilor questions, like what his name was. Which was rude, but she didn’t know about gnomes. Gan would tell her…oh, the councilor was explaining now. Harazeed gnomes didn’t even use call-names except with family. The others did, though, so he introduced them: Wen of Ekiba and Tash.
    Then Lily wanted to know how he’d found her and Cynna Weaver at the mall, which was a very good question, but she should have asked Gan. The councilor just talked nothing-stuff back at her about that.
    Gan turned to look at the woman who’d gone to Dis to find Rule Turner but hadn’t gotten to keep him or even do sex with him. For some reason lots of human females wanted to do sex with Rule Turner. Gan didn’t get it.
    Cynna Weaver was interesting to look at with all those patterns on her skin. She wasn’t as dense to Gan’s üther sense as Lily Yu, but she wasn’t thin, either. In fact, now that she looked closely…“Hey, you’re pr—”
    A flat, human hand clamped Gan’s mouth shut. “I’d rather you didn’t mention that.”
    Gan perked up. Secrets were almost always useful. She nodded, and Cynna Weaver removed her hand. “It’s secret?”
    â€œFor now. Are you going to answer my question?”
    Gan shrugged. “He told me to shut up or the half-half would choke