The Dream Thief by Kari Kilgore (books for 10th graders txt) 📕

"Where did she come from?"

"Don't worry yourself with such things, and our association will go much more smoothly." Loretta unlocked the door, stepped inside, and held it open.

"Why don't you turn on a light or two before I go in?" he said. "I'd hate to trip and break something else."

Once the room was lit, Karl finally walked inside, his hazel eyes taking in every detail. She had a feeling those eyes didn't miss much.

"If we're to pretend to have a civilized conversation, can I get you something to drink, Karl? Cafei or Thunderclap? Whiskey from the Northlands? Not quite legal, but not poisoned, I promise. I'll even drink first."

"I'll pass, thanks," he said. Both of them sat, Loretta on the sofa and Karl in a chair close to the door. He held the club and the hypodermic across his long legs. "Why did you bring me here, Loretta?"

"Just what I said back there," she said. "We might be able to offer a lot to each other."

"Such as?"

"I might be able to work with someone as strong and smart as you are," she said. "There are far less pleasant characters than me wandering around Alterra. They're in Waldron's Gate more often than I'd like."

"How could that possibly benefit me?" he said. "I don't even live in the Gate anymore."

"The profits of my work are considerable," Loretta said. "Not just in coin. Where do you live?"

"You can find out easily enough. You have my name. I work out at Joffrey Columns with some of those unpleasant characters. That’s where I live."

Loretta sat back, crossing her arms. "Now that is interesting. What do you do there?"

"Not so fast," Karl said. "What is this work of yours?"

"You can find that out easily enough yourself. I locate and sell curios, items that are in high demand in certain circles."

Karl crossed his own arms.

"That might be," he said. "But what were you doing out there tonight? I didn't see any other dealers in antiquities."

"Soon enough," Loretta said. "What do you do at the Columns?"

Karl shook his head. "I changed my mind. I'm not going to sit here all night playing this little game with you. Either you’re willing to tell me, or you’re not. Here's what I've got. I'm a nurse, head nurse in my section. Yes, I work with insane people, for about ten years now. My family is almost all Builders. I'm not. No wife, no kids. I live alone. Not a whole lot more to tell."

Loretta studied Karl, considering. She didn't know any more about Joffrey Columns than most citizens of Alterra. She did know she'd accidentally sent at least one person out there by using her too much. She'd often wondered if the insane Builders could still Build.

If they could, Karl might be able to offer her a lot more than protection. Their mental states could even prove to be a benefit with the things Loretta needed for her clients these days.

And if she needed to, she and Bess could dispose of him together quite easily. It wouldn't be the first time.

"All right, Karl. I was out there tonight because one of my buyers lives in that house. The easiest way to get what these people want is to use them to Build it. I was getting ready to do just that when you showed up."

"Use them?" he said. "Do you mean you force them to Build while they're sleeping? Is that what that thing is, a miniature Blunderbuss?"

He leaned forward, eyes narrowed, one hand gripping the club. That was the first flash of anger she'd seen or heard tonight. It didn't scare her, not with him across the room and a tiny clockwork revolver hidden in the small of her back.

She liked it, though, very much.

"That's the general idea, yes," she said. "I've learned to be careful over the years so I don't cause them too much stress. They're quite pleased with the items. After all, they Build exactly what they ask for."

"So you take their ritterns for what their talent creates." Karl took a deep breath, scrubbing his fingers through his hair. "You either have no idea, or you don't give a shit. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean there's no stress. You're stealing from them. That always shows up somewhere, Loretta."

She shrugged. "We can argue about that another time. I won't be Building again anytime soon. That little tussle back there broke my gyro-compass. Until I can get that repaired or replaced, I'm out of business."

"Good," he said. "The damage you may have done..."

"You're right," Loretta said. "I have no way to know past the trouble I had when I didn't know any better. Maybe you can help me figure out a safer way to do it."

"You could just bloody stop, you know!" Loretta saw the muscles in his jaw flexing. "From the looks of this place, you've made plenty of coin already."

"Could you just stop, Karl? If you had the power to Build? To make something appear, right out of the air? To make something wanted or needed that no one else could?" Loretta hesitated, but she needed to take the chance. She needed to turn him from anger to interest. "Like the rest of your family does?"

Karl scowled, but the risk paid off. His eyes lit up, almost as if he were actually Building.

"Okay, I'll bite," he said. "What kinds of things do you Build? This hypodermic? I've never seen one like this."

He held the glass-and-metal device up, and Loretta noticed he held it at the ready. Fingers through the brass loops, thumb on the plunger. Probably something he used every day in his work. No standard-issue medical hypo had a spring-loaded cap over the needle, though, at least not like hers did.

"I didn't Build that," she said. "You might like it for your job, though. A button just under your thumb activates a burst of steam that numbs the flesh. No one