HELA POV:
I walked straight inside to meet Vespa Rollins. He was a good buddy of mine and I needed him to find something for me. I wanted to check in my order.
"Hello, Death-Merchant 74. The Snipheart".
"And hello, my dear customer. Or maybe the richest!".
We laughed hard and hugged each other.
"Good to see you again, Dri".
He was the only one who called me 'Dri', except from my Dad, and well, anyone who dared never survived him.
I looked around in mock surprise.
"A retail store. Really?".
"You like the new look?".
"The cover's perfect. But the owner, not so much".
"Hey, give ol' Alek a break".
"How's your old man?".
"Still kicking, unfortunately!".
We burst out laughing again.
We slowed for a bit and I brought out a package.
As I made to give it to him, he held my hand.
"Tasha, cover my shift, would you?".
"Yes, boss".
He dragged me to the back of the building. He collected the box and examined it.
"I need your assistance to find my son".
His expression creased instantly. He turned back to go inside. I held him back.
"Hela, the boy's dead. He died in your arms".
"I know. I know I sound crazy but I feel he's still alive".
"No kidding. George died in your arms, Hela. I watched him die and buried".
As he turned to go, I decided to let the cat out of the bag.
"Wiccian found him!".
"You said?".
"Wiccian knows where my son is, but wouldn't tell me".
He scoffed unbelievably. He rubbed his jaws and ruffled his hair.
"And you believe him? So that's why you've been supporting him blindly?".
"Listen to me. Wiccian isn't lying. I overheard him talking to Mikhail to secure him".
"He's a blood wizard. He could read you from 20 yards out".
"Not with that".
I laid my hands on the box and spoke some spells. It opened and a silver ring glistened from inside.
He quickly covered the box and leaned over.
He yelled in a conspiratorially low voice.
"The Cloak Ring?! Do you want to get me killed?".
"I know that the...!".
"....Ring is the most sought artefacts after the Cursed Scrolls, by virtually everyone. How did you get it?".
"I stole it from the mage raid".
"You helped in the mage-massacre? What have you done?"
"I was blinded by finding my son".
"And putting your daughter in danger".
"Whatever happens to me, the Arthurian Legacy will protect us".
"Not from every attack. The MRD is on rampage because of your connivance. Every trafficked witch or wizard is being arrested and soon, they'll come for us, the traffickers. If even a whisper of this goes out, you won't be spared by the Death-Merchants or any of the underworld for that matter".
"Will you help me or not?" I yelled.
He breathed heavily and leaned over again.
"You'll be the death of me" he said as he pocketed the box.
Soon, a message appeared from nowhere.
We looked at each other, bewildered.
It was an anagram used by Blood-Merchants.
Rollins read it out loud.
"To who it may concern, I have the pureblood in my gem-box and I have no interest of killing him. I'm willing to trade for the right price.
Trade-Maze at the full moon.
The Expunger".
"The Expunger! The most notorious Death Merchant that eluded the MRD for years?".
"How does the Expunger have the pureblood?".
"Worse still, at Trade-Maze?".
*************************
SLEIGH POV:
I was watching Hela from behind. As I motioned to go in, he stopped me.
"She has the ring! This is a golden opportunity!".
"No. The pureblood is more important to me!".
"To kill him, you still need to find your half brother first".
"And risk him disappearing again? No".
"But...?".
"Just go to the Trade-Maze, avatar!".
"And get a befitting gift for the Expunger".
"Yes, Gartuhk!".
*******************************
INSIDE MRD HEADQUARTERS
WESLEY POV:
Anne barged in after a barely audible knock.
"What the...?".
"Sir, we just got intel that the Expunger has the pureblood".
"What?!".
"And worse, he's gonna sell him at the Trade-Maze".
I sighed heavily. I thought hard and long.
"Abort all current Team Alpha duties. Get all teams working round the clock to find the Trade-Maze. And once we verify it, let's expunge that fucking Expunger!".