“… the Restorers has finally turned their eyes to Chroma. If this is the case, then nothing I can do will save me. I wish you the best. Live long and cultivate knowledge, the knowledge is everything.”

The second part of a reply from Nahar

Harvey Logan

Harvey swallowed when Giliad ordered six bowls of meat and rice. The conman left the inn knowing that Zuma and his bartender had Siddy in their power now. There was nothing Harvey could do without rising suspicion. Zuma was the innkeeper through and through. That man knew how to tease and prod. Harvey wouldn’t get much information from him. He needed someone else but almost all the folks he has passed on his way here were natives. They wouldn’t talk to an outsider. Giliad reminded Harvey of Siddy, careless and easygoing. The conman needed to only take advantage of him. This would be easy, though a little expensive. Six bowls of food weren’t cheap.

“Are you sure you can eat it all?”

Giliad looked his way, tall and muscular, with tattooed forearms and piercing bronze eyes. He wasn’t native. His dark skin was too bright for this region. Giliad was Harvey’s best bet.

“I wouldn’t worry about what I can do with this food but how are you going to pay for it.” He wasn’t one with much polish. Crude like Siddy. Good. I’ll have what I need before he knows.

They picked the table at the far right, closest to the river but farthest to the market behind Harvey’s back. Though no one occupied other tables, Harvey could sense eyes on them. Someone was watching them, which wasn’t unusual. The circumstance of their arrival should land them before the chief or mayor or whatever Cape Town had. The fact that Harvey sat here, unbothered and almost forgotten, made him a little nervous. I’d like to know where Perkins and Emm disappeared. While Harvey Logan was sure of details in his story, his faith in others was weak. They would botch it under pressure. There was a good chance that Siddy has already told too much and upon returning Harvey Logan would be arrested. He had an alibi ready for that case but he would rather avoid going down that road.

“I am a merchant. I wouldn’t offer to pay for you if I didn’t have money.” Or if I knew you’re going to order so much food. Perkins left him some coins, but they wouldn’t do much good if Harvey kept spending them so frivolously. “What do these words mean?” He pointed at Giliad’s forearms.

“You don’t look like a merchant to me,” Giliad replied, ignoring Harvey’s question. “A stranger with two names, offering to pay for my meal? I accepted only because I am hungry but if you’re looking for a friend or someone to talk to, then I advise you to look somewhere else.”

The woman appeared with two bowls, saving Harvey from having to reply. Giliad turned out to be more difficult than Harvey had expected. It’s no issue. I can crack him.

“What kind of business do you have here?” the hunched woman asked, her biceps looked surprisingly ripped. He feared what they could do to him if he displeased her.

“We happened to be in Yucca when bandits came.” This got Giliad’s attention. The woman’s small eyes gleamed with curiosity.

But then she said, “have you spoken to the mayor?”

“No.”

“Then don’t talk to anyone about this.” She pointed at Giliad. “And you, keep your mouth shut. Since Soto, this place hasn’t heard about bandits.” She turned to Harvey. “So you better get what you need, speak only to the mayor if you must and leave as soon as you can.”

She put the bowls with steaming food, grabbed the coins, and left them. Giliad started eating right away. He didn’t inquire or looked like he wanted to. All the signs of attention he’d shown were now gone. Harvey tried to decide what was more accurate – Giliad was strange or it was this place. Something wasn’t right here. I need to find Perkins. None of the villages they’ve visited in the course of the last three weeks had people behaving this way. Most of the villagers in other places showed healthy curiosity and fear of the Imperials. Harvey observed people carefully. Even as a none-imperial official, Harvey hadn’t met this kind of fear. Cape Town had dark secrets. I better get back to the inn and see what damage Siddy did. Giliad won’t speak. Not with that infernal woman watching above his shoulder.

“I wish you well, Giliad. I also gather that you aren’t from around here and so if you thinking about traveling soon, I would be happy to talk.” Harvey Logan said as he stood up. He kept his face friendly and open.

“Listen to what the old woman told you, merchant.”

The conman nodded, leaving the strange man behind. Fifty copper coins less in his pocket stung, but at least he understood his position better. I knew when the innkeeper started fishing for the information. The name of his inn is on point. The Fisherman.

Harvey didn’t make it to the inn though when two guards approached him. He was sure that one of them has been following him since he’d left the inn.

“Yes?”

“The mayor would like to talk to you.” Garhala take it to the last depth. Harvey murmured in his head. They didn’t give him a chance to find out what happened to Siddy. It wasn’t a coincidence. He soon was about to learn what meant an infernal woman.

*

There was no doubt that the hunched woman from the food place was related to this one. They shared a gaunt shape and expression of a red coyote. A dog-like creature with the ugliest face Harvey has seen amongst the animals. It looked perpetually angry. The red coyote was the symbol of the Red Cities as the animal lived on every street. Despite the effort, the Imperials could never get rid of them. It was also a grave insult to compare someone to the red coyote.

Her office though was something. The wooden interior looked detailed and well-matched with a table and desk. She had real glass in the windows. He saw the sculptures by the wall and smaller ones on the shelves. It cost a heavy coin. Except for them, there was one other man, armored and covered with scars and tattoos, he made his role here crystal clear. A wrong move or word from Harvey and the conman would find himself in an undesirable position. Harvey cursed silently for he knew how dangerous this game was. But unlike prowling the jungle, here he was in his element.

“Explain to me the events that led you here.”

“Starting with Yucca?”

She didn’t respond right away and Harvey hoped he could sit down. The mayor didn’t offer him a seat. She didn’t even introduce herself. But Harvey didn’t blame her. In her eyes, he was only a minor merchant. Someone who usually slides beneath the notice of the officials. That Yucca-stuff must have gotten them riled up pretty nicely.

“For now it will do.”

He told her a story about his fictional archeology service and his lost collection. Most of it was taken by the bandits that appeared in Yucca, the rest was lost to the forest. The bandits had chased them until the night arrived and then it only got worse. She was listening, her face cold and calculating. There was a good chance she bought the lie.

“What kind of name is Harvey Logan?” She asked out of nowhere. She knew it from the innkeeper.

“Logan is my deceased brother’s name.”

“Which bandits attacked Yucca?”

“I … I don’t know. It happened too fast.”

“What kind of antiques do you sell and where was the last site you visited?”

Harvey had all the info ready and he deflected most of the woman’s questions until she asked about Perkins and Emm.

“They work for you but you don’t know where they are?”

Harvey was about to say that natives can be difficult to work with then he remembered that the woman before him was also native. So, he only told her that he would happily hire new personal guards if there were any in Cape Town. Apparently, there weren’t.

“I want your people found,” she said, pointing at Harvey. “They evaded my guards, slipping out of my town. When they’re back, Harvey. I want them brought here.” These idiots couldn’t just wait, could they? Now, this mayor suspects us because of their idiotic stunt. At least, she ignored Siddy and Red Bill. These two wouldn’t last a minute before her. She didn’t need to speak, her manners, her presence alone would push them to reveal the truth.

“I would like to apologize,” Harvey said. “They are my responsibility. Unfortunately, I lost my entire merchandise but I have knowledge and expertise.” And connections. But the last was at best shaky. If he abandoned his mission in Soto, the House of Pacha would put a price for his head. That was for sure.

“I don’t need your archeological knowledge. Spread the bullshit about Aureate City or other legendary ruins of lost civilizations and I would have you whipped. Understood?” Mentioning Aureate City brought unwanted memories. The House of Quilla paid him a hefty sum to find this mythical place. It wasn’t his fault that his expedition was massacred by Butcher’s people. Harvey managed to talk his way into Butcher’s service. His gut feelings warned him to get out of Cape Town. But on the other hand, this village couldn’t be worse than a group of cold-blooded killers he had been forced to stay with. He swiftly abandoned his plans of leaving the village and came up with a new agenda.

“Before I learned archeology, I had done a plethora of other things. I dipped my fingers in economics, affairs, and other matters. I’d gladly stay if—” A knock to the door interrupted him.

“Enter!” the mayor snarled.

A guard stepped inside, he looked uncomfortable.

“We apprehended the two refugees that had sneaked out of the town this morning.”

“Bring them here.”

“Mayor, if I may, we found weapons and a substantial sum of coins with them.”

The mayor looked up to Harvey, her face showed cold satisfaction. She’s never believed me. Now, she thinks she got me.

“Must be the money we lost on our way out of Yucca,” Harvey said with a dose of controlled anger. “It looks like they were trying to rob me.”

“Get them,” she snapped at the guard who left the same second. “And you, Harvey Logan, you’ll stay in the inn until I figure it out. Try anything fishy and a whip would the least of your worries.”