Ziphras gestures casually to one of his nearby men. "Fetch Jenner. Your guide will meet you outside," he goes on, addressing the party. "I look forward to hearing from Shorafa, when the unpleasantness is over." He nods a dismissal.
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"Excellent!" Ziphras gloats. "I'd ask you to join me in a drink to celebrate successful negotiations, but ...." He glances at Tendal's empty goblet. "Are you ready to be shown to the tunnel at once, or do you need to make prior arrangements?"
"So," he says expectantly, "are we in agreement?"
Ziphras raises an amused eyebrow at Braddon. "There've been many men who have wanted to kill Lil. They end up killing for her. You'd be better off petitioning Shorafa for redress. The woman comes up with some ingenious schemes for revenge." Ziphras's nearest man takes the shortsword from Braddon, turning it in his hand and running his eyes over it. He offers Ziphras a shrug, and the guild leader nods. "The ridge is honeycombed with smuggler's tunnels," he relates, "ways to get goods or people in and out of Riddleport without official notice. You'd never find it on your own, but one of my men can show you which one she uses to come and go from her assignations with the Teeth. But you tell Lil one of the pirates betrayed her. There's one, Scabb, with a black beard. Shorafa you tell I pointed you toward her lost sheep."
Ziphras's knuckles whiten as his fists clench monetarily on the arms of his chair; then, with an effort, he calms himself. "Go ahead," he offers nonchalantly. "But you'll not find Lil without my help, and when you return, my price will be higher. Or perhaps," he smiles coldly at Phil, "I'll cut out the middleman and deal directly with Shorafa. Go-betweens like you merely slow the pace of negotiations."
"You misunderstand me, friend," Ziphras grins. "I'm no tourist, and while I think Shorafa would be willing to pay handsomely for information leading to the restoration of her little lost lamb to the fold, I'm not interested in taking it out in trade." "Here's what I want. First, Lil never knows I tipped you off. There's a ship she uses, the Teeth of Araska. As far as she's concerned, you pin the leak on one of those sailors; I can provide you with some names." "Second, Shorafa is explicitly informed of my helpfulness in this matter. You say I agreed to this as a sign of respect to her -- and, of course, out of sincere concern for Lil's well-being. After the wayward girl has returned and all is smoothed over, I want a personal meeting with Shorafa to discuss her support for the inclusion of my little operation here in future discussions of civic affairs in Riddleport, right alongside Croat's protection racket and Zincher's staffing service."
"Indeed? Do tell," Ziphras steeples his fingers and fixes his attention on the halfling. Phillip: Ziphras seems to have a healthy respect for the high priestess. Whether this respect is religious in basis or has merely to do with her high position in Riddleport politics is unclear, but it would appear that the head of the ratcatcher's guild isn't unamenable to the concept of putting Shorafa Pamodae even slightly in his debt.
Ziphras shrugs. "It seems you're asking me to take a gamble, Mr. Deverin. Clearly, the information I have is of benefit to you, but it remains to be seen if this name you're offering is of any interest to me at all. I am," he gives Phillip a sharp glare, "in a position to reveal some little-known details about Lil Scarlet's comings and goings." He leans back into his chair. "With that in the balance, perhaps you could sweeten your side of the deal."
A slight crease appears between Ziphras's brows. "And this name ... this is what you have to offer?"
"One of mine?" Ziphras questions. "In Roderic's Cove?"
"Oh," Ziphras replies a little flatly, wrenching his eyes from Phillip's holy symbol back to Tendal. "I see. This is about.... All right, what is this information you have to offer, and why will I find it valuable enough to exchange for the information you're here for?"
"Who didn't think I'd know what?" Ziphras asks sharply.
"A... a dwarf?" Ziphras appears surprised. He waves to his minion to allow Tendal to pass. "What makes you think I can be of assistance?"
As Tendal advances into the compartment, the three men triangulate on him, not physically crowding him but making their protective presence known. "'Recently' of the Gold Goblin?" Ziphras asks. "Yes, I heard that Old Stumpy did a runner. Cleaned out the contents of the vault and disappeared, they say. So what sort of business do you have with me, Mr. Deverin?"
"Gentlemen!" the man in the chair greets the group cordially. "I'm embarrassed -- really, I am. Is that what the bosses do in Riddleport: make you fight a pet monster to get an audience? That's right up Zincher's alley, but you have to realize he has an arena so he has a stable of exotica ready at hand. If you wouldn't mind spreading the rumor I have a monster back in town? Feel free to say you vanquished it easily, of course."
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