Retribution (Drakenfeld 2) Read Online Free PDF

keep my guest list full of honourable people, sure, but you can never tell, eh? Merchants can be unscrupulous bastards at the best of times. Give me coin that isn’t pure gold or silver. Melted down.’ He paused and shook his head. ‘This prefecture is a respectable place these days. So you are most welcome here, both you and your wife.’
    I smirked knowingly at Jejal’s common assumption, which Leana had long since ceased to find amusing. ‘She’s not my wife.’
    ‘Ah, your lover – don’t worry, I do not ask questions on such matters – I know better! There’s trustworthy and
trustworthy
, eh.’
    ‘No,’ I said as we paused on the corner of the next floor. ‘She’s not my lover either.’
    ‘Your slave?’ He squinted one eye, as if attempting to comprehend a piece of art. ‘Where’s she from?’
    Leana snapped, ‘I am slave to no one.’
    ‘Your bodyguard?’ Jejal asked.
    ‘That’s as close as you’re going to get,’ I replied. ‘And she’s from Atrewe.’
    ‘Good artists from Atrewe, so they say,’ Jejal said. ‘I had a dealer here once trying to make a payment in original paintings and vases, but such things are wasted on me. I enjoy basic necessities – good money, good food, good wine and good . . . Well, bad women. Balance is everything.’
    ‘I’m sure your wife wouldn’t agree,’ I said.
    He stared at me incredulously. ‘How could you know I was married?’
    ‘Your recent guest-house plaque – a local licence of sorts, I suppose – was nailed to the wall downstairs above the door, bearing both your names and last year’s date. You might want to renew it, by the way, if the authorities come to check.’
    Jejal grunted and turned away. He kept on muttering to himself as we walked along the corridor, deciding not to pursue the conversation any further.
    Eventually he stopped at a door and showed us to our room. ‘This is all I have for you,’ he announced. ‘It is, I hope, enough to please such people of high culture, eh? Please, step inside.’
    It was much larger than expected – there was a large four-poster bed, with sumptuous green and red silk cloth, large oil lamps, a desk where I could work, a large couch under a small shelf full of books, and a window overlooking a quiet part of the city. The floorboards were polished and there was a wonderful citrus scent coming from somewhere.
    Jejal was not going to offer this room cheaply, and as soon as he saw my signs of happiness he quoted something a little more than the amount I’d anticipated. But given that I’d recently sold my property in Tryum, I had enough money for now, so I readily accepted. The Sun Chamber would presently forward on my wages and any interim expenses in the form of a credit note, so the situation was comfortable enough for the time being.
    ‘You honour me with your decision to stay in our humble guest house,’ Jejal said, walking to the door. ‘A small deposit of a small gold coin worth seventy kron is all that is required – the rest we can settle upon departure. Food is not included.’
    ‘Thank you.’ Placing my bags down by the window, I casually regarded the wide street below. Seventy kron was about ten pecullas in Detratan money, which wasn’t unreasonable, so I reached into my pocket and handed over the money. Jejal scrutinized the coin in the light of the window.
    After he appeared satisfied, I asked, ‘I don’t suppose you’ve heard of a man called Tahn Valin, have you?’
    ‘The missing bishop?’ Jejal looked up at me without surprise. ‘Yes, who has not heard of him?’
    ‘Who was he exactly?’
    Jejal gave a shrug. ‘I cannot tell you who he was as a person – I don’t know priests in that way. But he was a much admired man. I saw him preach once. He was calm and intelligent and I liked his delivery. Not one of the great orators of our time, but he got inside people’s heads – that’s what a bishop is supposed to do, isn’t it? But he did a lot of work with those