Page 39 of Warrior's Reign
She let her eyebrows creep up.
He chuckled a little. “I do some administrative work there. Our department is made aware of any personnel changes. In fact, we have a bit of a running wager on how long you’ll last.”
“Really.” She didn’t need to fake the chill in her voice.
The male lifted up a hand. “No offense intended. We all know how FirstAdekhanVykhan is.”
She doubted it.
“Haeemah’s acolytes are known to be inflexible. A human woman, theBdakhun’spet? It must chafe him.”
Sympathy oozed from his voice. He leaned toward her a little, making just enough eye contact for sincerity but not enough to come off as romantic interest.
Reign shrugged. “It’s a job. I’ve had asshole supervisors before. What’s one more? Paid is paid.” She downed a second shot and scowled into the tiny glass. Oh, yeah. Getting into character wouldn’t be hard at all.
“We know what you make, too,” he said. “The discrepancy rankles.”
Reign slowly lowered the third shot glass. “Excuse me?”
He blinked innocently. “Just because you’re human, and only into your third decade—but you’re paid at an entry level clerk’s rate. Staff at your clearance level—”
She slammed her glass down. “I get it.” And that. . .was news. Shealsodidn’t have to pretend to fume. “That bastard.”
Reign doubted Ibukay would know, salary wasn’t the kind of minute theBdakhunwould oversee. There were standard contracts, after all. Was Vykhan short changing her?
“That ratbastard.”
“Apologies,” her companion murmured. “I hope I didn’t just start a fire.”
“No, it’s okay. I’ll take it up through official channels.”
“Very wise.” He hesitated. “You know, if you were looking for additional short-term work with superior compensation, I know a few people always on the lookout for unique individuals with particular skills. I headhunt, so to speak. I’ve been watching how you handle yourself all evening, and I can tell you’re a discreet sort of individual.”
Reign didn’t betray her tension. A junior human with shitty pay would be considered ripe for recruiting.
“Oh?” she said. “Interesting. But my schedule is pretty tight. This is a 24/7 gig, you know? The contract says you get weekly rest time, but the contract is worth the paper it’s printed on.”
He laughed obediently. It was an old, stupid joke. Contracts were never printed on paper. “We can work around your schedule. The kind of jobs we need people for are more of a data gathering type. Console work.”
“Really? I could squeeze something like that between shifts.”
He must think she was a moron. So how would it go? The first few jobs would seem innocent, simple information gathering, work on the datasphere. They’d string her along with easy money, create a trail to blackmail her with. Cause the jobs wouldn’tbeinnocent.
“I’ll put in a word for you, but I know from experience I can get you in.” He gave her a sideways look, a flicker crossing his expression. She was playing this too casual.
She furrowed her brows, looking a little worried. “Hey, it wouldn’t be anything that goes against my contract, right? I have a conflict of interest clause, and I would never put Ibu at risk. It’s Vykhan’s fault my salary sucks.” There. Let him chew on her calling the princess by her diminutive name. “I should just talk to her about it when we have drinks tomorrow night.”
Yes, little fishy, I have theBdakhun’sear.
“Oh, no, we wouldn’t need anything compromising.” He widened his eyes. “It’s all very honorable.”
Ofcourse.Silly human to worry otherwise. Silly human to take him at his word.
He finished the only shot he’d touched and slid out of his stool, giving her a nod. “I’ve got to make an early night of it, first shift in the morning. I’ll be in touch.”
Reign smiled, gave the wrong salute, then turned back to her remaining flight of drinks. She took care to finish them, chat with the bartender a bit, even have an appetizer before leaving. They would be watching.
But then,‘they’d’probably been watching for weeks. Vykhan had guessed.
