Shield's Lady

“I see. Business.”
    Gryph sensed her burning anger and deliberately tried to project a command to control herself. He knew he had been successful when she glanced at him, annoyed, and then went back to her meal.
    “Who ordered my informant killed back in Serendipity?” Gryph demanded softly.
    Rakken made a careless motion with his left hand. “We learned that Brinton had gotten too close to the truth. Targyn said we had to get rid of him. He gave the orders to the same two men who had already secured the cutter.”
    “And then you sent those two men after Sariana.”
    Rakken leaned forward, folding his elbows on the low table. “By then I realized Sariana had not only hired herself a Shield, she had, under local law, managed to get herself married to him. Targyn explained to me just what that meant. I knew by then that I was eventually going to have to get rid of Targyn. You seemed the obvious candidate to replace him.”
    “You figured you could use Sariana to control me,” Gryph concluded.
    Rakken smiled slightly. “She proved difficult to nab. The first try in Serendipity failed miserably. One of Targyn’s men died and the other nearly drowned in wine.”
    Sariana drummed her fingers on the metal table. “Was the second try in Little Chance?”
    Rakken nodded. “Ah, yes. The House of Reflections fiasco. I must admit, that was a last minute plan put together with local talent who proved most unreliable. But we couldn’t just pick you up off the streets of Little Chance in broad daylight. When you headed for the fairgrounds we improvised. The attendant was paid well to look the other way while an elaborate joke was played on a visiting eastern tourist. It was easy to find three young toughs who were more than willing to terrorize said tourist. The goal was to frighten you witless and then drive you to a certain corner of the house. There’s a hidden exit there. I had a man waiting to snatch you and bundle you off through the back gates of the fairgrounds. But once again you slipped through my fingers, Sariana.”
    “By then you knew we were on the trail of the cutter and you reasoned we would head for the gorge,” Gryph said slowly.
    “It was a logical assumption. Targyn and I decided that the easiest thing to do next was sit back and wait until you found us. Which you obligingly did very early this morning.” Rakken peered intently at Gryph. “Tell me the truth. Can you kill Targyn?”
    “Maybe. If I had my weapon kit.”
    Rakken looked thoughtful. “If you fail, he’ll turn on me. Ours is a very precarious partnership, to say the least.”
    “What makes you think I won’t turn on you if I’m successful?”
    Rakken glanced at Sariana. “As long as I have her, you’ll behave yourself.”
    Sariana spoke. “I think I’m getting a bit tired of being used by everyone concerned in this mess.”
    Rakken smiled thinly. “Don’t worry, my dear. I am a reasonable man. Once Targyn is out of the way I will be more than willing to discuss the financial aspects of our new relationship.”
    Sariana tilted her head, her expression intently curious. “You’re willing to cut us in on the prisma deal?”
    “I would much rather do business with you than hold you hostage, Sariana.” Rakken gave her a level glance. “I know you very well. More than that, I know your background. I was raised under similar circumstances. You have been trained to think in terms of finances and good business policy since you were in the cradle. One year of living in Serendipity hasn’t changed you in that regard. I think you will be very interested in negotiating with me for your cut. Am I right?”
    Sariana lifted one shoulder negligently and reached for her wine. “You’re probably right, Etion.”
    Only the restraint of the twist kept Gryph from launching himself across the table at Rakken. The other man wasn’t even bothering to seduce Sariana with promises of love and passion. Rakken was too shrewd for that. He was using the one thing guaranteed to make any easterner pay attention: The promise of big business profits.
    Gryph was so full of anger that couldn’t be released he almost didn’t catch the stray, calming thought that wafted through his brain. Then he recognized the source of the soothing sensation. Sariana was telling him to relax.
    “Well?” Rakken asked with quiet satisfaction as he scanned the faces of his prisoners. “Do we have an understanding? Gryph will take care of poor, unstable Targyn