Xio nearly ground her teeth to powder. She could almost taste blood. "Talk."
"There is an Extraordinary organisation known as the Witch Sect. They've been actively recruiting men, providing them with potions free of charge and assigning them tasks in exchange for the next Sequence's potion." He paused. "That said, the Witch Sect is essentially a cult. Extremely dangerous. You can pass this directly to Sherlock."
"A cult?!"
Xio's face changed. Then she frowned. "Why do they specifically recruit men?"
"That I genuinely don't know."
And that was the truth — though Vincent vaguely recalled a speculation from the original story that the Witch deity might have once been male herself, and that the psychological distortion of that transformation had led her to want others to share the same fate.
"Oh, one more thing."
He smiled again. "Miss Xio is an Arbitrator, if I'm not mistaken? As it happens, I also know of a place where you can obtain the subsequent formulas and materials for that Pathway — free of charge."
Xio's eyes lit up again. "Really?"
Then she watched the woman extend her hand for a third time. "Five hundred pounds."
"I—"
A blur burst from the shadows. Fors clamped both hands over Xio's mouth and hissed urgently into her ear, "You cannot agree to this one. At this rate she'll have you sold before the night's out."
With Fors's interruption, Xio managed to cool down. She took a breath and asked, "How do you know all of this?"
Vincent shrugged. "As I said — I'm a broker. Having a thorough intelligence network is the bare minimum of the profession." He smiled. "Besides, getting knowledge and information from me doesn't always have to cost money."
If anything, that made Xio more wary. "Then what other forms of payment do you accept?"
"If you have information or knowledge I need, we can trade straight across. Or you can run a tab — when I need a favour, we settle it then. Frankly, for a broker, money isn't the point. Building a web of relationships is the whole game. That way, whatever trouble I run into down the line, I can always find someone to help — at no charge."
Xio said flatly, "I'd rather just pay."
"Fair enough. Three hundred pounds, all told."
Swallowing down the ache in her chest, Xio pulled a thick fold of banknotes from inside her coat. It was the money she'd scraped together bit by bit, earmarked for buying a Sequence 8 formula. Now it was gone after a few minutes of conversation.
Money goes out like water. So that's what that feels like.
Vincent pocketed the notes, then glanced at the woman who'd come flying out of the shadows. "And this is…?"
"My friend. Fors."
Fors leaned close to Xio's ear and murmured, "We need to leave soon or we'll miss the gathering."
"Right."
Xio looked utterly bereft — her money was practically gone. What was even the point of going to a gathering now?
Sherlock, you'd better know I'm doing all of this for you!!
She raked a hand through her tangled hair, then glanced at Vincent on a sudden impulse. "Ms. Natasha — since you're an Extraordinary, would you like to come with us to an Extraordinary gathering?"
Fors turned to look at her with an expression of quiet disbelief. She opened her mouth, then closed it again without a word.
An Extraordinary gathering.
So Xio meant Mr. A's gathering — and Vincent realised with some amusement that he and this wonderfully chaotic young woman seemed to keep crossing paths.
But the gathering itself gave him pause.
He was counting on his own hosted gathering to grow — more participants, more deals, more transactions feeding grey crystals onto the Scales. Every other Extraordinary gathering in Backlund was, by definition, a competitor.
What was the saying? No honour among rivals.
He turned the thought over, rubbing the line of his jaw, and then felt a spark of something. If the other gatherings all disappeared… wouldn't Extraordinaries have nowhere to go but mine?
His eyes lit up. I think I just had a very good idea.
"Well?" Xio pressed. "Are you interested?"
"Absolutely."
Xio immediately stuck out her hand. "One hundred pounds!"
Oh, so that's how it is. Paying me back in kind, are we.
Vincent looked at her with an amused smile, then peeled a single ten-pound note from the stack she'd just handed him and held it out. "Ten pounds. Best I can do."
"Grrrk."
Xio snatched the note with gritted teeth. "Fine. Follow me."
"Just a moment — I need to visit the powder room first."
The side entrance of Viscount Glaint's villa.
A plain, unassuming carriage waited by the kerb. Vincent, Xio, and Fors stood nearby in the evening chill.
Four or five minutes later, a man in a hooded cloak and a girl with her hood pulled low — face further concealed behind a fine black veil — came walking toward them.
Fors stepped forward. "Good evening, Audrey."
She turned and gestured to Xio. "This is the friend I mentioned — Xio Deracha. She's an excellent Justiciar; she can help you get what you're looking for."
After a brief pause, she also introduced Vincent. "And this is… Ms. Natasha. She's a broker — extensive knowledge of the Extraordinary world, wide intelligence network, and an Extraordinary herself. Oh, and it was largely thanks to her that Xio was able to get out of custody early."
As Fors made the introductions, Audrey observed both women. Xio was small in stature, but she carried herself with a quiet credibility, every gesture unhurried and precise. She seemed reliable.
As for Ms. Natasha?
Wait — isn't this the woman who was looking at me earlier?
The question rose before Audrey could stop it. "Ms. Natasha — do you know me?"
Vincent met her eyes. "Of course. Miss Audrey Hall — the brightest jewel in Backlund."
"Oh!" Audrey let out a small, flustered sound. She heard that sort of thing from admirers at parties all the time and could take it in her stride — but hearing it said plainly, in private, in the dark, by someone she'd never met, was another matter entirely.
Noticing everyone else suppressing a smile, Audrey quickly collected herself. "Well then — shall we get moving? This is my first time attending this sort of gathering. I'm rather excited."
Fors lit a cigarette with a small smile. "If you enjoy it, you can come back every week or two. It's not going anywhere — it'll always be there."
Vincent's lips curved. "Don't be so sure."
"???"
Fors looked at him. "Sorry?"
"Nothing. Let's go."
Vincent lifted a white mask and settled it over his face.
The five of them boarded the carriage. A short ten-minute drive brought them to an unremarkable building, outside which a quiet stream of arrivals was already coming and going — knocking in a particular rhythm before being admitted into the dimly lit interior.
"Here we are." Fors stepped down from the carriage and said with a smile, "Miss Audrey. Viscount Glaint. Congratulations — you're about to take your first step into the world of Extraordinaries."
Glaint laughed heartily. "I can't wait."
"Nor can I."
Fors added, "Tonight's gathering is convened by a powerful Extraordinary who goes by Mr. A."
Xio supplemented, "He is not someone to take lightly. A number of people have broken the rules of his gatherings over the years. They were never seen again. A truly formidable Extraordinary."
"Wow!"
Audrey's expression was suitably impressed — but privately, she was rather unmoved. Powerful? You haven't seen truly powerful and mysterious. You haven't stood in the presence of the great Mr. Fool.
He could crush this Mr. A with a single finger.
To be continued…