33. VITalicious?

“Oh, so you don’t know.”

The man mocked him with an ironic little smile. He was clearly buying the act, or at least enough of it to keep talking.

Misgiver shook his head.

“It’s the main ingredient in a VIT potion, boy. You’re really bad at pretending.”

That caught Alistair off guard. Only recently, he had started seriously wondering whether the rumors were true and whether certain materials could help a weak body increase VIT up to the five-point limit. And now, in the middle of a bloody hallway in Bracken Hollow, the answer had just walked up to him.

He kept the surprise off Misgiver’s face. Mostly. The man noticed something and remained interested, but he was not certain, so Alistair continued playing along and let the man talk.

“If you’re going to lie,” he said, “you should at least make it convincing.”

Misgiver let a beat pass. “Then explain it.”

The man’s smile widened slightly. He clearly enjoyed the audience.

He introduced himself briefly as Karn. Then he explained that the Vitalicious Flowbloom was a rare plant used in VIT potions. Similar to the starbloom, the flower only had value after blooming. Most people would never see such a flower in their lives, and even many potion-related classes would never have the chance to work with one. It was the sort of rare material that only wealthy families, powerful groups, or famous specialists could obtain.

According to Karn, the flower was especially valued by rich families trying to strengthen an heir. In this case, a wealthy father from a larger island had apparently commissioned Karn’s group to pursue the bloom for his youngest daughter, who was expected to attempt ascension in about a year.

His group had been hired because the buyer did not know exactly where the flower was. If the lead had been solid, he would have sent trusted retainers to fetch it. Instead, Karn’s group had to work with a rumor that had already passed through several brokers and middlemen before it found them. By then, the information was no longer a clear location but a trail of uncertain leads.

Someone on Emerier had heard of the flower, or perhaps even seen it, and then sold that information. That explained why Karn was still on the island and why he was willing to lower himself to hiding in Bracken Hollow and using the gang as cover. The village itself was never the true purpose of his stay. It was simply a convenient place to hide, make some shards, keep a low profile, and wait while the trail toward the flower turned into something usable.

Then Karn shifted the conversation.

“You know,” he said, “this can still end well for you.”

Alistair waited before responding. Karn’s eyes moved over the masked clones. It was obvious now that he had taken Misgiver for the leader. That made sense. Misgiver was the one speaking and standing ahead of the others.

Misgiver let the silence stretch, then asked, “Would you let me walk away?”

Karn laughed. “No. But I might let you live.”

Misgiver let himself look around subtly, as though measuring the men beside him, then took one slow step to the side. The movement suggested he might be willing to act selfishly if the price were right.

Alistair knew Karn would notice that.

“What do you bring to the table?” he asked.

“Information.”

“Do you have it?”

“Not on me,” Misgiver said. “But I could get it quickly.”

Karn looked amused by that. Every now and then he flexed his fingers slowly, as though imagining what he might do with them if the talk stopped being entertaining.

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A short, uncomfortable silence followed.

Then Karn said, “I could give you a few shards for good information.”

Misgiver gave him a look meant to seem skeptical and greedy at the same time. “How many?”

Karn raised one finger.

Misgiver widened his eyes just enough. “One core?”

Karn smiled and nodded.

Misgiver let himself seem tempted. “Then I agree. I’ll get the information for you as soon as we leave.”

“Now, now,” Karn said, almost kindly. “There’s no need to rush. Why don’t you think first? Maybe you don’t need to go fetch anything. Maybe you already know enough to be useful.”

Of course Karn would never let Misgiver leave. Alistair was counting on it.

Misgiver pretended to think. “And if I just tell you something, and you decide I’m lying?”

Karn shrugged. “Then you die for lying.”

“That’s not much of a bargain.”

“No,” Karn said. “But it’s still better than what happens if I get bored.”

Misgiver pressed carefully. “Then I really do need to bring back proof. Something you can check.”

Karn nodded as if that were reasonable. “Then one of your men can go fetch it. I’ll send someone with him, and you can stay here as my guest. That way we both feel safer.”

“Who’d be going with him?”

“My associate,” Karn said. “She’ll enjoy the walk.”

“Associate?”