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“I did see something more about the hummingbirds,” Hamil said. There was the sound
of flipping pages. “Yes. Hummingbirds are warriors for the sun god, whose name you
would find even more unpronounceable than Tlaltecuhtli’s.”
“Huh,” Marla said, and there was a world of interested speculation in that single
syllable.
“Marla,” Hamil said, “I’m sure you’ve stumbled into something fascinating, but
remember—”
“I know. I’m not here to get mixed up in local politics, I’m just here to find that certain
something we need. But somebody killed Lao Tsung, and I have good reason to think
that same somebody also stole a statue of Ms. Toad.”
“Oh, dear,” Hamil said. “I should have known this wouldn’t be a simple shopping trip.”
“Yeah, well, I’m following a lead, and I might be able to get…that item we’re looking
for…tonight. If I can, I’ll forget all this other stuff and come home right away.”
“That’s probably for the best,” Hamil said. “Let the West Coast take care of itself,
hmm? It’s not like they don’t have sorcerers of their own—silicon mages, geomancers,
tidal shamans, jellyfish-witches, I’m sure they can handle whatever’s going on. You just
stumbled into someone else’s fight.”
“Sure,” Marla said. “But it looks like Lao Tsung stumbled into it, too, and if I have the
chance to stomp whoever killed him…”
“Understood,” Hamil said.
“Where do things stand with Susan?”
“Ah,” Hamil said. “Unchanged. I tried to arrange a meeting with her, but she isn’t
taking any visitors, especially not any who are connected with you. I’m afraid she
knows you’re aware of her plans—the way you left town so quickly, it’s a natural
supposition for her to make. And our source in Susan’s organization was found
crawling in the street this afternoon with his hands and feet cut off and his tongue and
eyes removed. We tried to put him out of his misery, but Susan had cast a protective
spell on him, and we can’t hurt him physically at all now. He’ll live for another six
months, at least. I think it’s safe to assume that she discovered he was giving us
information.”
“Shit,” Marla said. “Give the guy a lot of morphine, would you? If needles won’t break
his skin, pour laudanum down his throat. Keep him comfortable. You know, when I find
out one of my employees has betrayed me, I just kill them. Simple, direct, effective.
Why does Susan have to be so fucking dramatic?”
“I’m sure it points to a fundamental sense of insecurity on her part,” Hamil said. “Be
safe, and hurry back.”