[ As she describes some of it, he can feel another bubble of anger. The fact that this had happened at all, unforgivable. It's not useful to simply be angry, though. What this will take is careful planning, plenty of research.
A slaver who smells of fruit wine and cheap tobacco is nothing special. But a connection to Heleen—that he can use. The trafficking routes to Kerch can be sniffed out, especially considering its supposed illegality. And anyone with ties to a brothel that's basically in ruins has got to be looking for other places.
There's also the matter of Heleen herself being so recognizable by description. An image that's going to continue to work against her here. ]
That narrows the field a bit; she was very specific. [ In just about everything: her business, her taste, how she handled people.
He's drawn out of his thoughts at the knock on the door and takes the few moments away to get dinner (nearly forgotten in the midst of their conversation) sorted. Service having gone again and door shut, he comes back over with the tray, settling on the side table. ]
no subject
A slaver who smells of fruit wine and cheap tobacco is nothing special. But a connection to Heleen—that he can use. The trafficking routes to Kerch can be sniffed out, especially considering its supposed illegality. And anyone with ties to a brothel that's basically in ruins has got to be looking for other places.
There's also the matter of Heleen herself being so recognizable by description. An image that's going to continue to work against her here. ]
That narrows the field a bit; she was very specific. [ In just about everything: her business, her taste, how she handled people.
He's drawn out of his thoughts at the knock on the door and takes the few moments away to get dinner (nearly forgotten in the midst of their conversation) sorted. Service having gone again and door shut, he comes back over with the tray, settling on the side table. ]