GHOST IN THE INFERNO short excerpt

It’s been a while since I posted any excerpts from GHOST IN THE INFERNO, so let’s start today with a longer one:

“She is,” said Agabyzus. “This is Moryzai, the finest forger in all of Istarinmul. He can create a fake writ and proclamation so detailed that not even the Padishah’s own scribes can detect the forgery. I have employed his services for our business on your behalf many times.”

 “Bah,” said Moryzai, gesturing with his fork. “The Padishah’s own scribes are imbecilic lummoxes. The great danger of my work is that I shall create a forgery so perfect that the lack of incompetence shall immediately proclaim it as a fake.” He speared a bit of lamb upon his fork, swallowed it with a sigh of pleasure, and then pointed the utensil at Caina. “Just as you, my dear, are obviously a fake.”

“Oh?” said Caina.

This ought to be amusing.

“Our mutual acquaintance,” Moryzai nodded at Agabyzus, “does not share the details of his business with me, but it is quite clearly illegal, and I have no wish to speculate upon it further, lest I be overburdened with dangerous knowledge and become a liability to your organization. But such an organization as yours, whatever it is, is almost always governed by a hard and ruthless man. The thought that a pretty young woman in her twenties is ruling a criminal organization is, frankly, too ludicrous to believe. You ought to be on the arm of some fat merchant or dancing for the pleasure of an emir.”

“That’s very sweet,” said Caina. She glanced at Agabyzus. “You didn’t tell me that he was a charmer.”

-JM