Dauk was silent for a minute. Then he said, “I hope you’ll understand if I can’t agree to such a proposal right away. We’re a small but proud community here in Southtrap, and even though people call me Pillar, it’s only out of respect. Others would have to agree, and no offense, Kaul-jen, but you’re still a stranger to us. We don’t know what will happen after this agreement you’ve made with the Crews, whether it will hold, or whether it’ll only bring more trouble.”
Hilo let go of Dauk’s shoulder and blew into his cupped hands to warm them from the chill. Dauk did not seem bothered by the cold. “I’m not offended by your reluctance at all,” Hilo assured him. “In fact, I would’ve had to reconsider my favorable impression of your judgment if you’d said yes right away without first talking to your wife and friends. I’ll say only one other thing, and then let’s get back to the house where it’s warm. I don’t make promises lightly. You can ask anyone who knows me whether that’s true. Here’s the promise I’m making to you, Dauk-jen. If you’re willing to trust me and to ally with the No Peak clan, in five years, we Kekonese will have more power in this country than any of the Crews.”
The Pillar of Southtrap clasped his hands together and touched them to his forehead, inclining in a salute. “That’s something I’d like to bring about, Kaul-jen.”
CHAPTER 41
Green as Fuck
Anden met with Hilo one last time before the Pillar left to return to Janloon. Hilo came to the Hians’ yellow townhouse on a Sixthday morning, arriving alone in a taxi, wearing slacks that were casual enough for travel, dressed up with a fine new tan sport coat he’d bought from one of the expensive shops near the Crestwood Hotel on Bayliss Street. “Uncle and Auntie Hian,” he said when he came in, “I’m glad to have this chance to tell you in person how grateful I am that my cousin’s being well cared for.” He presented Anden’s hosts with a generous monetary gift and a beautiful rolled silkscreen print from a famous Janloon artist. The elderly couple were intimidated to the point of near speechlessness, murmuring their thanks and saluting repeatedly.
Hilo said, “Let’s go out for breakfast, Andy.”
They went to a Stepenish bakery and coffee house in Lochwood. “There was a place like this next to the hotel where I stayed in Lybon when I went to fetch Niko,” Hilo explained. “I like these little pastries they make. Haven’t found them in Janloon, though. Someone should set up a shop.” The waitress came by and Hilo nodded for Anden to pick whatever he wanted and to place their order. “All this is going to pay off, Andy,” Hilo said when the waitress departed. “Your studies, I mean.”
“What do you think will happen now with the Crews?” Anden asked.
“I made an agreement with Kromner. It’s risky because it means putting some of our jade in the hands of criminals. I’m only doing it because I think it’ll work out for us, but you never know. From now on, I need you to keep your eyes and ears open, to tell us what you see going on, even if it doesn’t seem important. Steer clear of any trouble, though. It’s good that you have friends here, but they’re not family or clan, and No Peak can’t keep you safe when you’re so far away.”
The waitress returned with their order. Anden tried one of the pastries. It was sweet and flaky. Hilo took a sip of coffee, made a face, and looked at Anden sternly. “I worry about you being here. Anywhere people hide their jade isn’t a good place. You know the saying, ‘Too dark to see green’?” Anden nodded; the idiom usually referred to locations or situations so evil and desperate that even Green Bones did not feel safe entering. These days, it was also commonly used to describe books or movies with especially grim themes in which there was no morality and the protagonists died in the end—the opposite of the traditional adventure stories with victorious Green Bone heroes. Anden felt a stab of resentment at the irony: Hilo had banished him from the clan in a rage, had refused to speak to him for so long, but now that that had passed, the Pillar was full of brotherly concern.
“You should phone home more often,” Hilo said. “Call collect; don’t worry about the money.”
“Hilo-jen,” Anden said. He wasn’t sure how to broach the topic that was sitting so heavily on his mind and decided he had no choice but to bring it up directly. “I’ve been working hard and my grades are pretty good. I’ll graduate from the IESOL program next summer with an associate’s degree in communications and a language fluency certificate. Shouldn’t we talk about what happens afterward?”
Hilo was silent for a moment. Then he turned to the window next to them and tapped the glass. “You see that building over there?” Across the street, a new condominium complex was under construction. “We own it, through one of the clan’s Lantern Men. And it’s not the only thing we have. There are a lot of changes going on, Andy. Shae is setting up a branch of the Weather Man’s office here in Port Massy. It’ll manage our interests in this country and help Lantern Men who want to expand into the Espenian market. She’s tapped Hami Tumashon to lead it, but they need more people—people who’re familiar with both cultures. Relationships with the local Kekonese-Espenian community will be important to us; that’s one reason I came here, to make some of those connections in person.” Hilo said, “When you’ve gotten your degree, you’ll work in the new office.”
A dull roaring was building in Anden’s head. “When you sent me to study here, you said that I could come home after two years.”
“I said we’d talk about your options. That’s what we’re doing now,” Hilo said.
“We’re not talking about options. You’re telling me what I’m to do, and that’s to stay put.” Anden’s hands clenched under the table, twisting the cloth napkin in his lap. “How long do you expect me to stay here? Another year? Five years? The rest of my life? You want me to be of use to No Peak but stay in exile, so you don’t have to see or speak to me more than once every couple of years?”
Hilo’s eyes flashed with a sudden, dangerous light, and even from across the small table, Anden felt the hot surge of the Pillar’s jade aura. Anden could not help but flinch, but he did not lower his gaze nor apologize for what he’d said. He’d applied himself diligently during his time here, had done everything that his cousins had asked of him. Hilo had embraced him in the airport and called him cousin, had sat him on the Kaul side of the table in the Dauks’ dining room, had made an effort to spend time with him and shown him pictures of his nephews. All of these things had raised Anden’s expectations, made him anticipate the clan’s forgiveness and a place back in Janloon. Now he did not know what to think.