62.1

“Thank you.” The ogre helped me exit the Überwald, and I stepped out into the crisp evening, my lungs filling with pristine air.

Griff stepped out behind me and placed a hand on the small of my back. “I’d like to see the Administrator of Bad Debts.”

The ogre’s features fell. “Have you come to settle a balance?”

“That’s a confidential matter,” Griff replied with a bit of bite.

Up ahead, his much larger colleagues turned their attention to where we stood. I placed a hand over the dagger in my thigh, checking that it would be ready if we needed to fight our way out.

The smaller ogre placed a hand on his ear and mumbled something in another language. From the loop hanging down one side of his face, it looked like this was another kind of communication device.

I stood closer to Griff, who remained relaxed and confident, as though he was accustomed to attending gambling establishments.

Beki’s sad bark reminded me of something he’d told me when I’d been Katie. Griff’s father had moved him ar