Now that she had the dates of the supposed imports, Mikandra went to the imported goods counter at the Exchange after work and tried to get a list of approved imports for that day. She told the man behind the counter a story about lost data from her merchant family.
“The data were destroyed in a fire,” she said, and even the lie made her see flames in the snow and that image made her shiver.
The man gave her a sympathetic smile. “I’m sorry, but I can’t give out these data to everyone. Only if you have authorisation.”
“But we have nothing left, and we need the information.”
“I’m sorry. Really, I am. Look, why don’t I help you fill in the application? There’s not much to it. We only need your ID. Then they can process it overnight, and you can have your list tomorrow.” He smiled.
She si
