I opened the front doors. The Nuan Cee clan had to come from the front, because their quarters opened in the back wall, so I had made a hallway just for that purpose. The doors swung open, revealing Cookie. He was wearing a bright turquoise apron and carrying a basket. A fast intricate melody filled the room. Cookie skipped forward in tune with the music, like a human child on the last day of school, dipped his hand into the basket and tossed a handful of gold and jewels into the air. Behind him four foxes in blue diaphanous veils embroidered with gold danced forward, gold bracelets and loops tinkling on their wrists and ears. Behind them came the older members of the clan, swaying in step to the music: three steps forward, one step back, turn. One carried a glittering cage with a beautiful blue bird in it. The second brandished a jeweled sword as big as himself. The third spun around, revealing spiderweb thin layers of glowing fabric.
Cookie threw gold, hopping back and forth between the lines of otrokar and vampires. One of the otrokars reached for a bright red jewel the size of a walnut by his foot. The older warrior next to him growled and the younger man stopped.
“To take their gold is to become their slave,” Arland said softly.
The foxes kept coming, each display of wealth more ostentatious than the last. The palanquin with Nuan’s Cee grandmother followed, floating in midair all by itself, and finally Nuan Cee himself, sitting cross-legged on a palanquin of the shimmering silk dotted with piles of gems and plush pillows, showing sharp, even teeth in a bright smile.
The procession ended and the merchants formed the third line, closing the square. The music died.
George’s voice rang in the sudden quiet. “Welcome! The summit is now in session.”
He stepped aside, inviting the gathering to the table with an elegant sweep of his hand.”
The leaders of the three factions moved to the long table. George and Jack followed. Everyone took their seats. I raised a transparent soundproof wall, sealing the table and its occupants from the rest of the guests. They were still plainly visible, but not a single sound escaped.
The otrokars, vampires, and the merchants looked at me expectantly.
I raised my hand. The floor opened and Orro and three large tables, already set, rose into the room from below. Each table offered beautifully cut fruit on large white plates, baskets of bread, rice, sliced meat, bowls of soup, and as a centerpiece, a delicate translucent flower the size of a watermelon, made of tiny individual slices of some meat.
The soup smelled heavenly.
“Evening’s refreshments!” Orro called out. “Morean water drake sashimi with fruit and grains!”
Chapter 6
The first session of the peace summit took three hours. The leaders of the three factions sat stone-faced behind the transparent wall the inn and I had made, while their subordinates formed three distinct groups in the ballroom. The merchants chattered with each other, while the otrokari and the vampires proceeded to flex their muscles, lounge about, and give each other the stink eye. There was no point in having them in the ballroom, but as long as their leaders were in each other’s company, nobody would leave on the chance a fight might break out. I would have to figure out some entertainment for them if the summit went on for more than a few days.
I had to split my attention between the ballroom and the stables. The repair of the police cruiser was proceeding well, but keeping an eye on both areas at once tired me out. I would have to practice more. My father could track five or six areas of the inn at once. It was a learned skill that got better with practice and I had been slacking off these past few months.
Finally the Khanum slammed her fist on the table – which looked surprisingly comical without any sound coming through – and George waved the wall down.
I unsealed the side doors that led to the sleeping quarters. The otrokari exited first and the door melted into the wall behind them as if it had never been there. The merchants were next. Nuan Cee paused by me.
I nodded at him. “How did the negotiations go, great Nuan Cee?”
“It is too early to tell.” He pointed to Cookie, who began picking up the gold off the floor, carefully depositing it into a large satchel and smiled. “My thrice removed cousin’s seventh son is working so hard. Such diligence. The blood always shows true in our family.”
“I can have the inn gather the gold and jewels for him,” I offered.