"I have a way to deal with them."
Velin looked at the slightly weary young woman before him.
The journey from Tarry Port to the Royal Capital, even by the fastest ship and then the finest horse, takes several days.
'She must have set out the moment the news that I'd rented the Flower Hall got out.'
'This woman… she never believed in my plan from the start.'
"I've spent ten years in Tarry Port dealing with the guilds at the docks and markets."
"So, I knew you would hit a wall."
Velin admitted his misjudgment.
"I underestimated the control the guilds have over the lives of their rank-and-file members."
He didn't hide his original intentions.
"This recruitment fair wasn't meant for them in the first place. It was bait, meant to attract someone else—someone far more important."
Caroline paused in the act of swirling her wine glass. The deep red liquid traced an arc on the glass. She looked up, her expression curious.
