I was forced to draw the pistol I’d just strapped on as I stepped out the door into the dining room the following morning, sliding it into my pocket to keep it out of view.. In the open entryway of the restaurant stood an older man, hands raised in a sign of peace to keep me from firing. Still wholly covered in a long coat and broad hat, the man shifted to look in my direction but kept the brim of his hat tipped to hide his eyes.

  The mysterious man’s sad attempt to hide his athletic form and dozens of hidden weapons beneath baggy clothes was almost insulting. From underneath his hat, the wrinkles of age and scars broke up what had once been a strong jawline. Every inch of his poorly crafted persona revealed even more about the man trying to act like he wasn’t in charge.

  Letting my eyes leave the man’s face, I studied the rest of his attire, looking for anything that might give him away. At a quick glance, his clothes looked like what you would expect on a low-level enforcer. But I could see the silk lining of his jacket and the genuine leather of his belt and gloves that gave away his wealth.

  Despite his gestures of peace, I didn’t dare trust the man. He was old enough to be my father but still dressed like a fancy street thug. Drawing the other pistol I had on me, I placed it on the table in front of me with my hand still wrapped around the grip and waited for the surprise at my brazen threat towards him to appear on his face. He stopped where he was and addressed me with an almost unnerving calm.

  “There’s no need for that, Mr. Shasagit. I’m here for a peaceful resolution to our earlier issues. In fact, I think there is an easy way that we can both come out of this as winners. I’ll gladly explain if you’d be so kind as to holster that and invite me to sit.”

  His wheezing voice was loud enough to be heard as each word sounded like grinding stones. I motioned for him to take a seat and holstered the blaster, leaving the strap undone to make it clear that I was still ready to draw and confident that I would win that fight. Easing himself down into the chair, he continued.

  “Forgive the appearance. I wasn’t sure how you’d receive a former warrior if I showed up in the fancy outfits I have to wear as the face of the city. My name is Iska Gezgeth, head of the Cobalt Skulls and manager of this city. I approved your purchase of this place and apologize for the brash reactions of my lieutenant about the ship. If word had gotten to me sooner, none of the attempted threats would’ve happened.”

  There were as many lies as truths in what he said, and I could see all of them sitting in front of me. He’d once been a skilled raider for the Cobalt Skulls but had proven to be far more useful as the Public Relations man for the gang. He was one of the people who approved my restaurant purchase even though he wasn’t the final approval. A mysterious woman named Ibphira Traphine was the real power in the city and the man in front of me was just the front man.

  “I knew your reputation before you even set foot here, and I want you in this city. A man like you is good for business, and it won’t hurt to have a veteran of your renown and caliber here to back up my boys if they ever need it. I understand you grabbed a ship during your single-handed defeat of the dock raiders. Nice work on that.”

  I sat back and gave him a raised eyebrow in response, remaining silent as I waited. Shifting his position a little so that he could look at me squarely in my dark gray eyes, he continued.

  “I want you to know that the ship is yours, and my men won’t pressure you to give it up. That said, I was told you need a light freighter to make runs to the Ag Belts to get the freshest produce to take this restaurant of yours to the lowest level. If that’s the case, I have a freighter we captured on one of our recent raids on the far side of the planet that would be far more capable of what you need to do. I might be interested in a trade for an assault shuttle.”

  Iska slid a holo pad forward and activated it to display a light freighter that was just small enough to fit on the pad on my roof but big enough to haul everything that I would need and more. I was surprised to see the data beside it displaying the completion date. It was less than six months old. Glancing up with a raised eyebrow, I finally let this gang lord politician hear my voice.

  “I admit, I’m a little surprised by the offer. This ship would fetch a high price at any ship auction. I know assault ships are valuable, but they aren’t anywhere near that valuable. Why trade it for an assault shuttle in good shape but considerably older?”

  Despite my passive question, every mental alarm I’d developed over the last five years went off. I fought down the concern as my mind ran through every variable that it could think of, looking for the motive for this “too good to be true” offer. With an annoyingly friendly smile that seemed to say that Iska knew precisely what I was thinking, he gave me the only answer that could potentially be honest.

  “Well, I’m hoping to play you up in the neighborhood and make it clear that you’re here on my request and with my blessing. We had some stability issues at the ports last year. Having a man of your reputation owning a restaurant here will greatly increase the area’s security without having to fire a shot. I hope this gesture will win me some favor with you.”

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  Glancing away like he was about to give away something he shouldn’t, he dropped his voice a little to match the fake secrecy.

  “This will relieve us of the petty criminals in the area and drive traffic here in droves. It will also be good for your business because being on my good side means that everyone in the city will hear about this place and want to come. In fact, I’d like to be the first person to officially make a reservation for your grand opening to clarify my intent.”

  I let my best “knowing co-conspirator” smile play across my lips as I responded.

  “I’m glad you were honest with me. This could become a fruitful relationship. Honestly, I hoped for that. I’ve had far too many run-ins with petty street managers that want to abuse the new people. I’ve learned that the best way to avoid this is to make enough waves to get the attention of anyone who can cut deals. I’m glad we have found one mutually beneficial for both of us.”

  It was my turn to put on an act, hopefully baiting him into clarifying his plan. I glanced down at the table, taking a second to think as I spoke cautiously.

  “Perhaps we could take this a little further. This ship will require a decent amount of fuel and supplies to make the trips that I’ll need. Would you be willing to barter a deal so I can access the city’s fuel reserves?”

  Mirroring my relaxed body language, Iska smiled back at me, clearly pleased at the direction of the conversation.

  “I can agree to that without issue. I also know many good pilots who would love a calm run to retire if you’re interested. Most are vets from my crew with a lot of combat flight experience that has reached the point where they are ready to back down from combat ops and transition to civilian work like you are.”

  I gave him a forced smile at the apparent attempt to get multiple spies into my household, and shook my head apologetically as I answered.

  “Unfortunately, I have a pilot and a navigator already. They’re old friends of mine that served with me in the Nameless. Even considering replacing them would be the death of me. How about you give us a time and place, and we will be there to swap out the ships? If that suits you, I would love to have this new ship make the first produce run tomorrow morning. Also, just send word how many seats you would like, and the reservation is yours.”

  Nodding in false disappointment, Iska rose and offered his hand in friendship before giving his answer.

  “If you can have your pilots ready by this afternoon, we can meet at the docks an hour before dusk so that there is good light for the change out. We can then get everything ready for you to open. Regarding the reservation, I noticed a private party room on the other side of the dining area. Would it be possible to rent that from you and bring my entire management team and their families in for dinner on your opening night?”

  Standing to take the man’s hand, I forced myself to act like an excited business partner despite my disgust at having to deal with this face of the local gang.

  “The room is yours for opening night. It will be an honor to have your team here with us, and we will do our best to make it worthwhile for you all. My pilots are here waiting for a call, so we will happily make the exchange as you suggest. Thank you for coming to meet with me personally. It saved us both a lot of headaches and trouble.”

  As I walked Iska to the door, Stesa appeared from the street traffic, quickly crossing the street to begin working on the restaurant and organizing the delivery of everything for my apartment. Despite the bass drum beating in my chest from the adrenaline, I smiled and waved at her as Iska climbed into the only hover car in the neighborhood that had been waiting out front for him while we met. Giving him a slight bow before his car sped away, I turned to find Stesa watching me from a few feet away, one eyebrow cocked in confusion. “Was that Iska Gezgeth? You know who that is, right?”

  Chuckling softly as I stepped forward and offered a hand in greeting, she instead stepped in for a hug. I froze for a moment, caught off guard for the first time since arriving in Lamim. I returned the longer-than-expected embrace, not sure how else to respond before leading her into the restaurant.

  “Yes, I know who that was. A few days ago, I had a run-in with some of Iska’s guys that didn’t go well for them. Mr. Gezgeth wanted to make sure that I understood that his men’s actions were not indicative of his entire organization. On opening night, he decided to reserve our party room for his entire management team.”

  Seeing the mix of concern and mistrust of this city on her face, I continued a little more seriously. “I’m not going to go into business with the man, but being on his good side can’t hurt any of us. We also worked out a deal with me to trade for a ship so that I could get my produce from the farm platforms instead of waiting for the middlemen to deliver two-day-old food. It’ll be good for all of us to make this happen, so I’m relieved that he was open enough to come to visit me peacefully.”

  Smiling up at me in relief, Stesa stayed close as we stepped into the restaurant to begin the next phase of my design plan. After seeing what she was working on for my place, I had easily convinced Oclorth to let her work her magic in the restaurant. Motioning to the spartan dining area, I began the tour of her next project.

  “So, in the main seating area, you can see that we are a little further ahead on the design with the main furniture, but we need a lot of help with everything beyond the basics. We have the flamewood chairs, tables, and moss silk tablecloths. We also have bronze cutlery and snow cedar dishware to go along with it.”

  I walked over to the hidden servers’ work area and pulled out a silvery-white plate, cups made from ornately carved black gourds, and a cutlery set. With a trained hand I laid them out on the nearest table in a traditional setting so she could get a good picture of what we wanted.

  “The color palette we’ve established here is very similar to the one you and I decided on upstairs. The restaurant has a themed menu and ambiance to make you feel like you are down on the surface, so we need a lot of plant life and wood to give the jungle feel. I did manage to get a long recording of the jungle from my homeland, so we can open for all three meals and give our diners a natural experience. Now your job is to help the dining room match the rest of the plan.”