“So,” Tar said, cleaning his teeth with a toothpick, “are you going to tell us the real plan now?”
“What we agreed to in Gohei is the real plan,” Hilo said firmly, “to everyone in the clan except those at this table. I want you to make it clear all the way down the ranks. We’ll hold to the borders we’ve agreed to. No more raids or attacks on their territory, no more taking Mountain blood or jade without family approval.” Gods in Heaven, I sound just like Lan, Hilo thought unhappily.
“We’ll stick to our part of the bargain,” Hilo said, in response to Tar’s skeptical face, “because we need the Mountain to do their part in going after the smuggling. One clan can’t protect the country’s mine sites and coastline. So we have to do this; we have to make peace for now. Because it’s obvious from what happened on Tialuhiya that Zapunyo has every intention of reaching into Kekon, and that uwie midget is ambitious enough to think he can take on Green Bones. He’ll hide inside his mansion and use others—cops, crooks, addicts, anyone he can pay or intimidate—to do his work. That means he’ll have rats all over Janloon, if he doesn’t already.”
“We’ve got rats of our own,” Tar reminded the Pillar.
“Not enough of them.” Hilo directed his words to both of the Maik brothers. “We need White Rats wherever our enemies are, and that’s not just on the streets here in Janloon. We have to be watching every which way for the Mountain’s next move—Ayt will try something clever, come after us in some way we don’t expect and that doesn’t make her look bad for sitting next to me, smiling on camera. And we need people we trust or own in the Uwiwa Islands, close to or inside Ti Pasuiga, feeding us information about Zapunyo’s business so we can take it apart.”
The Maik brothers nodded. Shae said, “Zapunyo’s hardly the only one who’s interested in the country’s jade mines. And some of the other interested parties have armies. We ought to be more worried about the Ygutanians and the Espenians than about Zapunyo.”
Kehn leaned his crossed arms on the table. “The Ygutanians wouldn’t dare come after Kekon, not with the Espenians camped out on Euman Island.”
“That’s not stopping them from buying jade off the black market from dealers like Zapunyo, or under the table from Ayt Mada, who’s already established shine factories inside Ygutan to support her secret contracts,” Shae pointed out. “The Espenians think of Kekon as their jade source, and it’ll be a problem for us if they decide their wartime supplier isn’t secure or reliable enough.”
“The Espenians are full of shit,” Tar exclaimed. “They can’t handle the jade they already have. Look at what’s going on over there. They’re going to ban jade outside of military use. Even the ROE special ops guys aren’t allowed to wear it for more than three years of service, because of what being addicted to shine does to you—fucks you up, gives you cancer or something, I don’t know. There’s more jade around this dinner table than in one of their platoons.” Tar began to pull out a cigarette, but Hilo took it from him. He wanted to have one too, but Wen said smoky air wasn’t good for the baby. He poured Tar a glass of hoji instead.
“Anyway,” Tar said, grudgingly accepting the drink, “if those thin bloods tried to occupy Kekon, they’d never hold it. It’d be too costly for them, and the spennies are all about money.”
“They’re our largest trading partner and military ally,” Shae said. “If we intend to grow the business side of the clan, we need access to that market. There’re ways they can pressure or control us without resorting to invasion. They’re already trying.”
“Then it’s a good thing I have a Weather Man who speaks Espenian and stays on top of it,” Hilo said. “The Espenians can be placated or bought, like what you did last year.”
Shae snorted. “You make it sound so simple.” To Hilo’s amusement, she and Wen exchanged a glance that might’ve been commiseration. “That’s what I get for being the Weather Man at a family dinner table full of former Fists.”
“Come on, Shae, don’t be like that.” Hilo prodded her arm. “You could balance things, bring someone into the family from the Ship Street side of the clan. I’m sure Ma would like it if you brought Woon Papi home for dinner. He comes from a good Green Bone family, doesn’t he? And with business sense too.”
To Hilo’s delight, his sister blinked. Color began to rise in her face. “Woon-jen is the Weather Man’s Shadow,” she said stiffly. “Our relationship is entirely professional.”
Hilo chuckled and the Maiks hid smiles. “I’m sure it is for you,” he agreed. “Ah, Shae, how can you be so smart in some ways, and so dense in others? I’m guessing it’s because you’ve already got someone else in mind. Have any of the clan’s families succeeded in pitching an eligible son at you?” He could tell that his wide, teasing grin was starting to embarrass and infuriate her, and it improved his mood considerably—not because he wanted to get into a fight, but because it made him feel oddly nostalgic for their many childhood battles. Besides, she had acted so superior with him earlier.
Hilo stacked the empty dessert bowls. Kyanla came from the kitchen to clear them and brought out a pot of tea. As Wen poured for everyone at the table, Hilo leaned back in his chair. “Enough of that fun stuff,” he said. “We made peace with the Mountain today, like I said.” The smirk vanished from Hilo’s face and he spoke in a voice of complete seriousness. “So when we make our move, we can’t do it halfway. We can’t injure them and start another bloody war. We have to cut the tree down all at once. That means we have to figure out how to do it. When we act, we have to be strong—in our people, our businesses, everything. Ayt was plotting for years before she showed her hand. That was good for her; she almost got what she wanted and she hurt us badly, but we’re still here and now it’s our turn. Everyone here is kin, so we all know what happened on that stage today was for show.”
Hilo paused and looked around the table. No one said anything. Their gazes remained on him and their jade auras hummed evenly and without surprise. “The Mountain has weaknesses we don’t know about,” he said. “Otherwise, they would never have agreed to a truce. We have to find out what those weaknesses are. Even if it takes time. Then we’ll plan how to kill Ayt Madashi and her followers and destroy her clan.”
Hilo awoke rested but vaguely anxious the following morning. The conversation at the dinner table last night had tumbled about in his mind before he’d fallen asleep. Perhaps other people in Janloon would go about more happily today, knowing the clans were officially at peace, but Hilo felt no different. As Horn, he’d seen Fists duel for jade, pimps and drug dealers knife each other for the best street corners, dogs and vagrants fight over food. One thing he knew for certain was that stalemates and compromises always broke down. Lasting peace came from unequivocal victory.
Even as he thought about how to eventually bring down the Mountain for good, he had no doubt that on the other side of town, Ayt Mada was likewise scheming to do the same to him. He did not yet know how to go about crippling the Mountain so thoroughly that he could be sure it would never again threaten his family. It seemed an insurmountable task, one he wasn’t certain even his grandfather or Lan would’ve known how to achieve, and yet No Peak’s ultimate survival depended on it entirely. On top of that, now there were other adversaries and threats for him to think about as well. Too many pieces—all of them shadowy, instead of out in the open.