Chapter 8

“You have blocks,” she said.

“What does that mean?”

She dropped her hand and peered up at him. She was at least six inches shorter. “The capacity is there. The channels are plugged. Think clogged sink.”

“Um, that doesn’t sound very good. Can it be fixed?”

“Anything can be fixed with sufficient effort.” She blew out a faint cloud of smoke.

“Maybe we should get back to the payment issue. I’m not sure I should agree to much of anything without knowing what you want. I’m assuming money is not something you need.”

She laughed, then her expression was more solemn. “I want a favor.”

“What kind of a favor?”

“Unconditional, unbound by time, just a favor.”

“That’s awfully vague. You might decide you want me to kill some enemy of yours.”

She laughed again. “Unlikely. Not impossible but rather unlikely.”

“I need more information.”

“Nope, but I will agree to your limit that it won’t involve you relinquishing Riadh in any way.”