Chapter 11 · Buy The Street

“You’re bleeding on my boots, Quinn. It’s a bad look.”

Varric Hale didn’t even look down. He stood there, arms crossed, watching the chaos of the Sunken District unfold like a choreographed riot. His voice sounded like sliding gravel.

I spat a mouthful of copper onto the cobblestones. My ribs felt like they’d been through a meat grinder. Against my thigh, the Obsidian Edge hummed—a low, hungry vibration that set my teeth on edge.

“I’m not done,” I wheezed, clutching the Ledger to my chest. The book was warm. Pulsing. Like a heart.

Kaela stepped in front of me, blade out. The tip hovered an inch from Varric’s throat. Her breathing was ragged. She wouldn't look at me. Not after what I’d sold.

“Step aside, little blade,” Varric sneered. “The boy is out of his depth. He’s playing with a god’s ledger and he doesn't even know how to balance the books. Give it to me, Silas. I’ll let you live long enough to regret it.”

“I don't take orders from men who dress like peacocks,” I snapped.

I forced myself up. Vision swimming. The Ledger was reacting to the filth around us—