Navihm had found Mr. Black's office with very little trouble. All he had needed to do was question a few of the less honorable looking men hanging around the docks and they were happy to direct him where he wanted to go. It took less than a minute of holding one such man over the edge of the roof of the building he had just robbed before the thief gave Navihm very detailed directions.

Navihm was sitting at Mr. Black’s desk, waiting for him to return. He spent the time rifling through the papers in the draw. His written Pershus was a little out of practice, but they looked like selling records for women and children as well as details of black market tradings.

“You have a very extensive operation here, Mr. Black,” said Navihm, not looking up from the papers. The man in question had just entered the office flanked by two guards. “I wonder why you don't put more effort into keeping these documents hidden. You’ve grown a bit too comfortable here I think.”

Mr. Black did, in fact, usually keep his private files in a more secure place. It was bad timing that his office just happened to be broken into when he’d stepped out to deal with a security issue and had only bothered to place the papers in a locked draw. This stranger was right, he was growing too comfortable. The local law didn't even constitute a threat anymore and there was little competition.

“What do you want?” said Mr. Black. “Who are you?”

“I’m here on behalf of my employer,” said the tall native. “I’m enquiring into whether his contract has been carried out against Regina Kaia of the First and Prophet Healani of the First. You’ve had ample time to perform the hit, yet no confirmation of completion was received.”

Navihm wanted to be sure he had the right man. Not that he would feel terribly bad putting scum like this out of his misery, but he needed to make sure his family was safe.

“You can tell your employer that this contract will be completed, on my terms.” Mr. Black went slighted red. “I was given no timeframe, nor any other directions. There is no reason for you to be here questioning my methods.”

Navihm stood and circled the desk so it wouldn't be in his way.

“You are telling me that hit on my mother and my wife has yet to be completed?” he said, tucking the papers into a pocket.

“What are you doing with those?” It took a moment for Mr. Black to stop fixating on his papers and realise what Navihm had said. “Wait, what?”

Navihm was already on top of them, launching himself off the desk, straight at one of Mr. Black’s guards. He punched him right in the throat then was forced to duck the other guard’s flailing arms. Navihm twisted out of the way, lashing out with a kick that drove his heel into the side of the second guard’s knee. While the two hulking men were distracted, Navihm grabbed Mr. Black by the shirtfront and hurled him into the desk, knocking it over.

The second guard had recovered enough to grab Navihm by his shoulder from behind. Navihm drove an elbow into his gut, twisted around and punched him in the nose. He kicked his other knee for good measure.

The first guard stumbled towards him, still clutching his throat. Navihm could see that Mr. Black was starting to get up from the wreckage of the desk so he took the final guard out quickly with another jab to the throat and an elbow to the temple.

Mr. Black had recovered enough to make a mad dash for the door. Navihm caught him around the waist and dragged him back into the room like he might do with a mischievous child. Navihm righted a chair that had been knocked over and deposited the small man in it.

“Now that it’s just the two of us, Mr. Black, perhaps we can get down to business.” Navihm braced himself using the chair’s armrests and leaned in so their noses were almost touching. “Tell me, how many girls do you have waiting to be sold?”

“I don't know what you are talking about,” said Mr. Black, sweating slightly.

“Now, now, Mr. Black. There is no need to lie to me.” Navihm tapped him on the cheek firmly. “I thought I had handled that nasty little operation last summer, but according to these,” he pulled out the papers, “it was you behind those abductions, not that poor sod that had his hands separated from his wrists when he interfered with my rescue operation. I’m sure you were quite happy to let him take the fall, but somehow I don't think you will be so lucky this time.

“Where are the girls?”

“I don't have any girls,” said Mr. Black. “I haven't had another shipment come through.” Mr. Black’s pulse increased sharply at his words.

“You should know, I don't like liars very much.” Navihm pulled out his dagger and pressed the flat of the blade against Black’s cheek. “Are they in this building?”

“No. There are no girls here, I told you.” Navihm was monitoring his pulse carefully, looking for any sign of a lie. He found none.

“That’s much better, Mr. Black,” he said cheerfully, withdrawing his dagger. “Let's try and keep up with that honesty. So, they aren’t here. Are they close?”

Mr. Black didn’t say anything.

“I’ll take that as a yes. Are they on the docks, or further into the city?”

“There is no girls!” Black spat at Navihm’s feet. Navihm glared at the other man.

“I warned you, Mr. Black.” Navihm grabbed him by the shirt and hauled him out of the chair. “I don't like liers. We are going to take a little walk and you and I are going to have an honest little conversation.”

At the same time this conversation was occurring inside Mr. Black’s office, a man was walking hurriedly through the docks on his way home. Haco knew the docks were a dangerous place at night so he was walking quickly with his head down. He shouldn’t have stayed for that last drink with his friends. Haco had no idea what was going on inside the unobtrusive little building across the road. That is, he had no idea until a small man with dark skin and dark, lank hair was hurled out of the second story window to land in a heap at his feet.

Haco stared at the groaning man, bewildered. The height he fell from wasn't so severe that he was seriously injured, but he was clutching his shoulder and moaning in pain.

Another man, this one very tall with menacing dark eyes, exited the building.

“Are we feeling a bit more cooperative now, Mr. Black?” the Genti man said, lifting the groaning man to his feet by his hair. Haco blinked. This was Mr. Black? The man everyone in the Tenth feared?

“I’m sorry you had to see this friend,” the tall man said to Haco. “It would be a great help to me if you could send the guard. I have a delivery for them.” He hitched Mr. Black up a little higher, showing Haco his bleeding face.

Haco nodded and hurried off, eager to be away from this intimidating Genti.

“Now, let's take a wander around and see if we can find our friends.” He heard him say to Mr. Black as he ran down the street.

Navihm isn't taking anyone's crap =)

Shout out to AntKiller and Diddley_squat who have commented on almost every one of my chapters! Thanks for your review Diddley_squat and bharg7, your encouragement means a lot and I love finding out how you feel about the chapter/characters.