He could almost have held both of hers in his fist. She closed her eyes and took a long deep breath. 'Pure dreamstone,' she said.

'That was my surmise,' he said.

'Wherever it is they want to go, they are prepared to pay you well. I could dispose of this for… a considerable sum.'

'Such was my hope. How much?'

'Five thousand ducats. Possibly more.'

'Knowing you I will double that and double it again,' he said, his old mercantile reflexes taking over automatically. Negotiation was something he had mastered long ago.

'You know I would not cheat you,' she said coquettishly

'Certainly,' he said. 'But I must make sure you are aware of the real worth of this treasure.'

It was a joke. No one would be better placed to appraise the worth of this stuff than she. She smiled appreciatively, but there was something sinister about her smile. 'I do not believe you can be truly aware of its value,' she said.

'What do you mean?'

She giggled. 'These are said to be used by… sorcerers for…' she paused and he could almost see her changing her mind about what she was going to say.

'…for certain arcane rituals.'

It was not the first time Justina had hinted about knowledge of the arcane. He sometimes wondered if she were trying to lead him on to ask about it. There were rumours about certain proscribed cults that she had alluded to. Most people would not even dare mention them. It was not something he wanted to think about.

'This may be the first of many.'

Now she did look a little shocked. Her eyes widened slightly. 'That is not likely. Dreamstones of this purity are very rare, and they come only from the eldar themselves.'

He told her of his suspicions concerning the strangers. She smiled more, showing small, sharp teeth that reminded him of a predatory animal at the moment, a think or a devilcat. 'I am serious now, Janus,' she said. 'Upon my life I am. You must tell me all you know about these strangers, and tell me everything they said. Everything. I will not help you otherwise.'

This was a side of her Janus had never seen before. She sounded completely sincere and utterly serious. And unless he was a much poorer judge of character than he thought himself to be, she was masking a deeper excitement. He paused for a moment to consider his position. The merchant in him wanted to examine this from all angles, to see what he could find out before proceeding. He wanted to make sure he was giving nothing away, and see if there was any way to take advantage of what she had.

It never did to give in to threats in a negotiation.