“Miss Grimes,” Waxillium said, “are there other matters that will need my attention today?”
“You wish to hear of them now?” she asked, frowning as she bustled to keep up.
“Anything to keep my mind occupied, dear woman,” Waxillium said. Rust and Ruin . . . he was so nervous that he caught himself reaching inside his jacket to finger the grip of his Immerling 44-S.
It was a fine weapon; not as good as one of Ranette’s make, but a proper, and small, sidearm for a gentleman. He’d decided he would be a lord, and not a lawman, but that didn’t mean he was going to go about unarmed. That . . . well, that would just be plain insane. . .
“There is one matter,” Miss Grimes said, grimacing. She was the Ladrian house steward, and had been for the last twenty years. “We lost another shipment of steel last night.”
