"Let him suspect. By the time he figures out the codex won't work for him, we'll be ready to set off. We'll grab it and go." Cypher turned to me. "First priority—get your father out of the Dredge. How quickly can you hire a lawyer?"
"I know one. Marcellus Finn. He's expensive but excellent. If I go to him today, he might be able to start proceedings tomorrow."
"I'll come with you."
"No. I need to do this myself. It's my father, my responsibility. If I walk in there with you being—" I gestured vaguely from his toes to his head, "—well,you, then I won't be taken seriously and he'll see it as intimidation."
Cypher's brow furrowed, mouth opening to object, but Kora cut him off. "She needs to do this without you brooding over her."
He exhaled sharply through his nose. "Vic accompanies you. That's my condition."
I arched a brow up at him. "Condition? As of the handoff, I'm no longer part of your crew, and therefore—" I measured the steel in his eyes as he turned to face me fully, against the energy it would take to fight him on this. Not worth it. "Vic it is, then." My sigh could have been heard across the city.
Marcellus Finn'soffice occupied the top floor of a building in the legal district. It was all dark wood and leather chairs, filled with law books and certificates of commendation. The man was older, maybe sixty, with cunning, intelligent eyes.
"Miss Farren," he said when his secretary showed us in. "I've been expecting you."
That brought me up short. "You have?"
He gestured to a pair of chairs. "Please, sit. Tell me what you need."
I laid out the situation. Father's arrest for illegal distribution of anchor crystals, his incarceration in the Dredge, my need to secure his release.
When I finished, Marcellus steepled his fingers. "The charge is serious. The Assembly doesn't look kindly on unsanctioned anchor distribution. However, there are mitigating factors. Your father has no prior offenses. He's well-respected in the community. And if we can argue that his clients had legitimate need..." He trailed off, thinking. "I can do this. But it will take time and money."
"How much money?"
"My retainer is two thousand sovereigns. The total cost, including bribes and administrative fees, will likely run to four thousand."
I had six thousand. Enough for the lawyer and my mom's medicine for several months. It would work.
"I can pay that."
"Excellent. I'll begin proceedings immediately. With luck, we can have him before a tribunal within two weeks. Actual release..." He spread his hands. "A month, perhaps. Maybe less if we're fortunate."
A month. My father would spend another month in the Dredge. But then he'd be free.
I paid Marcellus's retainer and left his office feeling lighter than I had in weeks. Vic walked beside me in companionable silence until we were halfway back to the docks.
"You did good," he said. "Your father's lucky to have you."
"I'm lucky to havehim." I clutched the remaining coin purse. "I need to stop at the apothecary. Get more medicine for my mom."
We made the detour, and I bought six months' worth of lung tonics. Pia packed them carefully and gave me a sympathetic smile. "Your mom is fortunate to have such a devoted daughter."
I wasn't sure about that. A truly devoted daughter wouldn't be planning to leave.
We left the apothecary, with the tonics, and something in me settled now that they were in my hands. Vic walked beside me, his eyes thoughtful as we navigated the crowded streets.
"Your mother's condition," he said suddenly. "What exactly is it? I've heard you mention tonics, but never the illness itself."
I hesitated. My mother's illness wasn't something I discussed often, partly because it hurt to talk about, partly because there was so little to say.
"We don't know what it is," I admitted. "That's the worst part. It started years ago when I was young. Her lungs began filling with this dark fluid. At first, we thought it would pass with rest, but it never went away. It just kept getting worse."
Vic's brow furrowed. "Dark fluid? What color exactly?"
"Almost black. She chokes on it sometimes." My breath caught, remembering the sounds of her late night gasping. "We have to give her this tonic that opens her airways and dissolves the fluid enough for her to breathe again. But it's just managing symptoms, not curing anything."