Summary

In Chapter 29: "Nina," the auction is announced and rumors spread quickly. Since the harbor is locked down, no one can get more gold, but the Council still sanctions the auction. Kaz is not surprised, saying rich people always forget how their wealth was mostly obtained through luck, not skill. He points out the junior member of the council, Karl Dryden, who is desperate to prove himself and also represented by Smeet.

Two of Kaz's gang pretend to be Stadwatch and plant a secret message about a jurda farmer that Kaz is certain Dryden will find. Kaz gets Colm to visit lavish dining rooms to spread rumors of his wealth and profession and Nina acts as his assistant. Two days before the auction, Dryden and Van Eck arrive together. He tells them that an unknown buyer had bought the jurda farms around...