“Hey, Akton! Long time, no see!”

“Oh, hi Cullan! You’ve been away a while – lots of loot?”

Cullan dismounted. “Nah, not really. Picked up a few guys to help collect it, though.”

“So I see.” The guard had a look at the Burning Rose. “Nice collection of thugs I see. You should get along famously.”

Some minutes later, they arrived outside a tall, narrow house in a not-totally salubrious area of the city. Cullan paused in the act of dismounting, and after a few seconds perplexity, climbed back up.

Alys looked up at him. “Forgotten something?”

“I forgot we don’t have stables.”

“Who’s a good monster, then? Have you been a good monster? Goooood monster, monster monster monstermonstermonster!”

“My name’s Brakka. I’m Akton’s evil twin brother.”

“Why do they allow so many of you pen-pushers to breed?” Cullan sneered, back at normal volume.

“Because without us, none of you agents would know who to kill next.”

“Hah! I can out-ride any stupid bandit that tries to come after me. Might leave you behind, even!”

“Really? How will you find where to get a remount if you leave me behind?”

Verendt furrowed his brows and tried to work out a reply. Cullan didn’t bother watching the man’s lips move as he did so, and just walked off. “See you in the morning!” he called over his shoulder.

“The baker came back before I could get away. Dalian had to pretend he had a woman in with him to get him to go away.”

There was a brief silence.

“That never … That still shouldn’t ....” Cullan tried to think of a way of saying what he meant without causing too obvious a double entendre. “Why have you been gone nearly an hour?” he settled on.

“Well, Dalian reckoned he’d be listening, so we had to give him something to listen to.”

This time the silence was stunned.

“And did you?”

“Did we what?” Morgan asked innocently.

“Give the baker something to listen to?” asked Alys. “Or did he just screw you?”

Morgan blushed. “That is something I do not intend to reveal,” she said primly.

“Of course, watching a demon disembowel someone with their own severed arm would cure just about anyone of squeamishness.”