The answer wasn't immediate, which gave her time to think.

  “Persistent, but no.” Senric shook his head. “Overseers stay out of each other's business. Something you should keep in mind. It's advised that you don't share what type of ledger you have and the benefits it provides. Not unless you can protect yourself.”

  “Benefit?” she asked.

  “The Overseers are all about equivalent exchange. You give something and get something in return.”

  The words shook a memory loose, treads coming together. “When they threw…sacrificed me, the nobles were talking about getting a boon.” Lady Adeline's face filled her with irritation and rage, but the humiliation and loss were a distant echo.

  That box, keeping everything she didn't want to think about, was shrinking.

  “It's not the same, but the concept is similar.” He paused, searching for the right words. “Someone involved in your sacrifice received a boon. That's the price. A person compatible with a ledger equates to one boon. It's usually a boost in mana, a unique skill, or an artifact.”

  “Okay…Okay.” She could live with that. She could live with the people who laughed at her and tried to kill her, benefiting from her. That was the basis of their relationship. She cleaned their houses, cooked their food, and made their clothes. They got the prestige and the compliments. “Okay. What can ledgers do? Mox collects information, but what does he get?” Not that the information he had access to wasn't a boon in itself.

  Other details could be used to identify the country a person was from and at which barrier they were sacrificed.

  She’d deduced that Nessa was from a country that didn't speak Common. That left twenty-five to thirty countries.

  Next, Nessa taught her the names of herbs Mia recognized. The country had flora and fauna that Mia recognized. They were likely from the same continent, further narrowing it to eight countries.

  She pushed the thoughts away, focusing on Senric.

  “That's the question. Simple answer…it can be anything. One of the most famous ledgers is a sacrifice ledger that creates barriers. That's it, but…” Senric’s words trailed off. Warning bells rang; something about his tone and expression was off.

  “I'm Cinderwild, that's one of the most useful abilities.” Battles weren't fought without barriers. A strong hold with a dedicated barrier that didn't use active mages to power it was almost undefeatable. “Sacrifice?” she asked, her mind flashing to the worst possibility.

  “Not lives, though there are some sacrifice ledgers that demand that. He collects others' sacrifices, specifically memories. You can see how that would be a popular service here.” Senric tapped his temple. “Plenty of people want to forget. They also sell their memories to him. It still counts as a sacrifice.” He leaned back in his chair, face dreamy. “When Luther arrived, he joined a small group of seventy to a hundred people, but now they are one of the nine powerhouses in Cinderwild.”

  Flesh Ledger. Information Ledger. Sacrifice Ledger. Hundreds of Overseers with different demands and different ledgers.

  Nine powerhouses.

  Nine continents.

  None of her business.

  “Mox is interested in my ledger." It wasn't a question. He figured out what type of ledger she had and was interested in what it could do.

  “Probably. Some ledgers are rarer and more desirable.” Senric’s eyes stared at nothing. “Lie Ledgers, for instance, are rare, but ridiculously easy to use and sought after. Though they have a glaring limitation.”

  “If there was a Lie Ledger like Luther’s that collected other people’s lies…”

  Senric looked feral, his eyes gleaming. “Yes, wouldn’t that be something? But, it means nothing if the benefit provided is…subpar.”

  “What are other benefits you know of?” Mia asked, fascinated by the concept. She was excited about her ledger. Was it an Information Ledger like Mox? That would explain his interest.

  “The woman we’re about to visit has a Flesh Ledger that answers the question asked. It will only answer one question per person, and in return for a life. Don’t make that expression. This is a service provided by the First Division; we’ll cover the cost.”

  That wasn’t comforting.

  He must have seen her unease. “It’s a life for a life. Someone dies to get you the information you need, or you die.”

  When phrased like that, the answer was easy. She comforted herself. She wasn’t the one ending the life. That person would have died anyway, but it rang hollow. “But, she has a Flesh Ledger…?”

  “Yes, she does. But, she isn’t a prostitute, not anymore. Who she has sex with for her ledger to function isn’t my concern. The service she’s providing has prices; you pay what’s asked. It’s as simple as that. Your secret is Grade 5, and the price for that is a life.”

  “Grade 5 is a big secret?” she asked.

  Senric laughed, his head thrown back. He laughed and laughed, taking minutes to settle, his face red by the end. “It’s right up there with knowing if your husband is unfaithful or if someone cheated you at dice. Death means nothing here, I thought you’d have learned that by now.” His words weren’t unkind.

  They sat, Senric giving her time to digest what she'd heard.

  “I’m ready,” Mia said, feeling grounded enough to approach another subject they were avoiding. “Why can't I hear?”

  If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.

  “Think of it as a warning notice. The last week of the month, if you haven't paid your debt for that month, you experience ill effects. A hand stops functioning. You lose your eyesight or your hearing. You become mute. If you’ve already deposited for the month, but haven't cleared the entire amount, the symptoms are lighter. Your hair falling out, or everything tasting salty. The first of the month is your payment date. If you don't pay, you die.” He nodded as if everything he was saying made perfect sense, was fair and reasonable. “It's a slow and agonizing process. If you don't think you can pay whatever price is required to satisfy the debt, I suggest you end things yourself."

  “Why would someone not pay?” Taking her own life had never crossed her mind.

  “If you had a flesh debt, could you pay the price?” he asked.

  An image of her mother, beautiful, thin, and haunted, sitting on their windowsill, watching the dark alleys below, flashed through her mind.

  “I don’t know.” Mia had discovered that she was very, very attached to life. She didn’t know where she’d draw the line to survive. “What about the debt I owe to Ashfall? What happens to it if I die?”

  “You? All ledger holders are Vessels and become Imbued after their death. They'll make more of your corpse than if you were alive.” Senric laughed, shaking his head at a joke only he understood. “Others? Non-ledger holders? Necromancers. Black mages. Pig farmers. There’s always a demand for something.”

  That made sense in an awful, twisted way she was becoming accustomed to.

  Mia observed Senric with his kind eyes and easy laugh. She'd thought him the most normal person she'd met since coming here, but now she realized he was the most peculiar.

  “Anything else before we go see the secret keeper?” Senric asked.

  “Secret Keeper?” she asked.

  “That’s what she’s called, a Secret Keeper.”

  “That sounds religious,” Mia said.

  “It is. Some believe the Overseers are gods. And to answer your next question, they aren’t. But they are godlike enough that it doesn’t matter. They have devoted believers. The members belong to a religious order, the Oath Keepers, that believes you should faithfully use your ledger as intended, for the benefit of the Overseers. Nonsense, the lot of it, but you’ll run into them once you reach the stronghold.”

  She’d thought he was a believer. The way he talked about ledgers and their holders, but his fascination appeared to lie elsewhere. She wanted to ask more questions, but it felt like a long conversation, better suited to when her problem was fixed. “Why can I hear you, but nothing else?” Mia touched her ear, pulling on the lobe.

  “That's a function of my innate healing spell.”

  “Which is?” Mia asked.

  “Not something I'm willing to share. I can't reveal the details of our conversation, but the same rules don’t apply to you. Would you like a general healing while you're here?” He pushed away from the table, clearing their tea cups.

  “Is it free?”

  He looked over his shoulder, an eyebrow raised.

  “Right.” She stood. “How much?”

  “Five hundred points.”

  Mia had a feeling he knew that was exactly how many points she had. “I’ll pass.”

  “Suit yourself.” Senric shrugged. “Follow me.”

  The camp was empty when they left the medic tent.

  Mia tried to be discreet as she looked around.

  “There’s nothing to find. This is the First Division; if any layman walking through could collect information, they’d be doing a poor job at defence. Not to mention you're deaf, no chance to eavesdrop.”

  “You’re odd,” Mia said, half afraid she’d offend him, but far more interested in conversing with someone who wasn’t a child or noticeably unhinged. Bright was great, but she could only handle his drug-induced enthusiasm in small doses.

  “I get that often, but honestly, I don’t see it.” Senri’s pace was slow, deliberate. The few people in camp gave him a wide berth.

  “What do you think of me?” she asked.

  “You’ll burn. Whether as a guiding light or a dying ember is the question. It’ll be interesting to watch at the very least.”

  Mia felt stupid. It was so obvious. “You and Mox are friends.”

  “Cousins,” he said, his smile softening, clearly fond. “Don’t get me wrong, we are friends, and I find him obnoxious on his best days, but he’s probably harmless.”

  Mia picked her nail. “That’s not reassuring.”

  “I didn’t mean for it to be.”

  They both left it at that.

  They talked: scavenging and his job as a medic.

  It was a long walk to a black tent. The front flap had a face painted on it. A woman with her eyes and mouth sewn shut, and a snake crawling through her ears.

  Senric stopped and turned to face her. “Enter, have the question you want answered in mind. Put your hand on the ledger, read the information, close the ledger, then leave. Don’t speak or touch anything.” His hand rested on her shoulder. “Repeat what I said?”

  “Enter. Have the question I want answered in mind. Put my hand on the ledger. Read the information. Close the ledger. Leave. I’m not supposed to speak or touch anything.” She glanced at the painting on the tent. Fear spiked through her.

  “Ensure you close the ledger and that you don’t touch it after. I’m sure you know why.”

  Mia’s hand touched her neck. “Mox has access to the information I see.” She said, instead of answering.

  “That’s because the ledger you’re carrying is a paired copy. You’re basically borrowing the ability of his ledger.”

  “Why does the ledger specify race as human? It seemed odd, well, odder than usual.”

  He rolled his eyes. “You don't have the clearance level to access that information.”

  “Yeah. That wasn't worrying at all.” Humans. It seemed so final. Was there anything other than human? The tooth fairy, perhaps, from children's stories, who'd poke holes in your teeth when you were sleeping. “Are you messing with me?” She asked when she saw his grin.

  He rocked back on his heels. “Maybe.” He gave a half wave. “Stop distracting me, afraid or not, you know what you have to do.”

  Mia stepped into the tent.

  It was hot.

  Smoke from the hanging incense burners filled the space. Citrus and cinnamon assaulted her nose.

  In the center of the tent, a book sat on a low table. Several candles illuminated it, but did nothing to light the rest of the space.

  To her left, hidden in shadows, a woman sat, her face covered in a veil. It was the only fabric on her body.

  What do I owe?

  She walked further into the tent, heart pounding.

  Question: What do I owe?

  Answer:

  Lives.

  Five to start.

  Tithe of five after.