“Sir—” one of them began.
“I said lower them!” Sunto had trained with No Peak’s top men and knew what they were capable of. If a gunfight broke out, the Green Bones would throw up a veritable hurricane of combined Deflection and close the gap, cutting down men with blades and knives in seconds. “Think about this,” he said to Kaul. “Do you want to be held responsible for an unprovoked deadly attack on an Espenian company and its employees? Call off your men. We’ll step into my office and talk about this like civilized human beings.”
In all the years that Sunto had known the clan leader, he’d never been sure if the stories he’d heard about Kaul Hilo were true. Now he thought they probably were. He recognized the Fists who accompanied the Pillar—Lott, Vin, Suyo, and Toyi. He’d spent time with all of them, had taught them and learned from them, but they would murder him and all his soldiers at a single word from Kaul. It was no wonder, Sunto thought with resentful abhorrence, that Kekonese people were stereotyped as savage.
Kaul’s eyes narrowed to slits. He turned over his shoulder. “Stay here,” he said to Lott. Sunto let out a silent breath as the tension eased, weapons reluctantly coming down on both sides. Ever since the two men had ended their friendship, Kaul had not once contacted the ex-Angel or been to the GSI training facilities on Euman Island, but now he strode past Sunto and into the building as if he owned the land it was built on.
Sunto followed. Inside, he pushed open the door to his office. Kaul went in but did not sit down. He gave the utilitarian furniture and boxy institutional surroundings a brief, contemptuous glance, clearly every bit as unimpressed as he expected to be. “I warned you to keep your business out of Kekon,” he said, with the cold disappointment of a man about to make good on a threat. “You didn’t listen.”
Sunto walked behind his desk, putting distance between them. “The only thing I’ve done is hold information sessions for prospective hires. That’s not unusual for any company.” He could’ve guessed even that would raise the ire of the clans, but he couldn’t afford to be timid about recruiting. The Operation Firebreak contract depended on GSI being able to field enough soldiers. “We’re interested in hiring ex-military personnel, or those with enough private training. We’ve made no effort to lure Green Bones from the clans, but we’ll talk with any interested and qualified applicants.”
“Whatever agreement you’ve made with Niko, break it,” Kaul demanded. “He won’t be wasting his jade working for your thinblooded private army.”
“Thinblooded,” Sunto intoned. “That’s what you’ve always thought about anyone who doesn’t answer to you or the parochial clan system, isn’t it? Well, thinblooded or not, I’m not one of your underlings, Kaul. And GSI isn’t one of your tribute companies. Your son is an adult. I asked him several times if he was sure of his decision and he assured me he was. He’s already signed the contract and been paid the starting bonus.”
Kaul put his hands on Sunto’s desk and leaned forward across the space between them, lowering his voice. “Behind that Kekonese face, you have a dirty Espenian soul. You understand money, don’t you? I’ll pay you ten times whatever you’ve already paid him if you withdraw the offer.”
Sunto scowled. “Bribing a company executive to fire an employee is illegal.”
“Years ago, you told me you weren’t here to cause trouble, but now your soldiers protect the mining ships that steal Kekonese jade. So don’t bullshit me with moral superiority.” Kaul’s stare was as steady and chilling as his voice. “You knew that by hiring Niko, you would be reaching into No Peak and breaking my family. You did it anyway. Anyone else who tried to do that, I’d kill them. But out of respect for our old friendship, I’m giving you a choice. Take the money or don’t, but I’m asking you to solve this, as a personal favor to me. If that doesn’t move you at all, at least think selfishly about whether you really want me as an enemy.”
Sunto did not. He’d been born in Kekon and had spent the majority of the past fifteen years in the country. He understood how powerful the clans were and how ruthless their leaders could be. He certainly didn’t consider himself a prideful or reckless man who blindly tempted danger.
The hard reality, however, was that only three countries possessed jade-equipped and trained military personnel—the Republic of Espenia, Ygutan, and Kekon. Most of GSI’s employees were formerly ROE special forces, but he still needed more people. Unfortunately, it hadn’t been as easy as he’d hoped to hire current and former soldiers from the Golden Spider Company, some of whom he’d personally trained during his years working with General Ronu to reform the Kekonese military. Green Bones, even those not beholden to the clans, were leery of accepting employment with a foreign company, and strict attitudes about the acceptable jade professions persisted in Kekon.