No one heard the rest of her suggestion because Fuyin yanked a compact pistol from a concealed waistband holster and began firing.
Tar reacted at once, raising a Deflection in front of the Pillar that sent the small-caliber rounds straight up into the dining room’s ceiling, knocking out two of the hanging lights. Woon seized Shae by the arm and pulled her behind him. Juen and Iyn pushed the other Lantern Men to the ground. Fuyin Kan dropped his gun and hurled himself Light, clearing the span of the dining table in one snarling bound, his drawn talon knife seeking Hilo’s throat.
Hilo met the attack, hopping Light onto the table and catching Fuyin’s elbow, jamming his momentum and the trajectory of his weapon. Shoving back hard into his opponent’s center of gravity, he unbalanced Fuyin as soon as the man’s grip on Lightness faltered and his feet touched the table. The former Fist stumbled, but threw a lethal Channeling strike that narrowly glanced off Hilo’s Steel as the Pillar twisted his torso, pivoting sharply and dragging the other man forward with his rotation. Fuyin’s foot caught a bowl half-full of cooling soup as he went staggering headlong toward the edge of the table. Plates, glasses, and food went flying from under their feet.
Many years ago, when he was a teenager in the Academy, Hilo had done balance and Lightness drills by sparring opponents on thin ledges and wobbly platforms. At the time, he thought the exercises silly. Fights happened on asphalt and concrete, not on logs over waterfalls like one might see in movies. On the dais of the dining table, he entertained a fractional second remembrance of his instructors lecturing him that no Green Bone, no matter how well prepared, is assured of choosing ideal conditions. Tangled close, with both of them tipping forward, Hilo’s left hand darted up and encircled Fuyin’s head from behind as if it were a relayball he were preparing to pass. The talon knife that appeared in his right hand came up in a flash and sank into Fuyin’s throat. Gripping the man’s hair, he pushed Fuyin’s face onto the table and his neck further onto the blade as he landed on his knees with a crash of broken plates. Hilo tore the knife upward with all his Strength, severing the windpipe.
Fuyin thrashed for a second, scattering more objects off the table before he lay still, the pool of blood under his chin spreading in a dark stain across the red tablecloth and mingling with the spilled soup broth and chunks of strewn food. Hilo got down off the dining table. It had all happened in less than a minute, and his hearing was still muffled from the gunshots in the enclosed space. When he spoke to the remaining five Lantern Men, who were picking themselves up off the ground, he couldn’t be sure if he was yelling or talking normally. “Is there anyone else who has a personal grievance, or is so dissatisfied that he wants to take up Fuyin’s demands?”
The Lantern Men climbed to their feet meekly. Mr. Eho looked at Fuyin’s body and swallowed noisily before touching his clasped hands to his forehead and bending in a deep salute to the Pillar. “Kaul-jen, I’m embarrassed to say I went along with Fuyin out of financial selfishness. I knew nothing of his shocking and abhorrent treachery to the clan. I’m grateful and perfectly happy with your suggested compromise on tribute rates.”
“Same with me, Kaul-jen,” said Mr. Tino quickly, brushing off his pants. “Forgive my foolishness. I thought Fuyin was standing up for all of us, but now I see that I was wrong to trust him. We’re fortunate you saw through him right away.” The other Lantern Men nodded shamefacedly, reiterating their steadfast allegiance to the clan.
Hilo stifled a desire to have each of them soundly beaten before demanding they cut off their ears in front of him to retain their patronage. But he didn’t think the businessmen had thick enough blood to handle that, and with Fuyin’s body still on the table, he’d already made his point. There would be little to gain in cowing them further, besides the satisfaction. Hilo turned away in disgust. “Get them out of here,” he said to his Fists.
Iyn Ro escorted the chastised Lantern Men out of the building. They were only too eager to leave, casting brief, nervous glances backward as they departed. A few of them might indeed be repentant or worried enough to come back with their ears in boxes, but Hilo didn’t care. In his opinion, jadeless Lantern Men could never be counted on. Protected by aisho and motivated by money, they expected strength and protection from a patron clan but would switch allegiance for their own benefit and survival. Ayt couldn’t be blamed for trying her best to steal them.
Juen said, “I’d better go talk to Mr. Une and calm everything down.” The sounds of gunshots and violence had surely disrupted the Twice Lucky’s lunch hour and agitated the old restaurateur. After the Horn had left, Tar threw his arm over Hilo’s shoulders and said with mock petulance, “You took him down too quickly, Hilo-jen. I’m your Pillarman, couldn’t you have let me earn even a bit of his green?”