could, they’d probably open a storefront instead of working
the street.”
“You mean this is it for them? They aren’t distributing
for a larger concern?”
On Deva, most of the street vendors were employees of
larger businesses who picked up their wares in the morning
and returned what was unsold at the end of their shift. Their
specific strategy was to look like a small operation so that
tourists who were afraid of dickering at a storefront or tent
would buy, assuming they knew more and could get better
prices from a lowly street peddler. It never occurred to me
that the street vendors I had been seeing really were small,
one-person operations.
“That’s right,” Kalvin was saying. “What you see is
what you get. Most of those people have their life savings
tied up in … Hey! Where are you going?”
I ignored him, stepping boldly up to one of the vendors
I had noticed the day before. He was in the same spot as
yesterday, squatting behind a blanket full of sunglasses and
cheap bracelets. What had caught my eye yesterday was
that he was young, even younger than I was. Considering
the longevity of Pervects, that made him very young indeed.
“See anything you like?” he said, flashing an expanse
MYTH-NOMERS AND IM-PERVECTIONS 87
of pointed teeth I would have found unnerving if I hadn’t
gotten used to Aahz’s grins.
“Actually, I was hoping you could answer a few questions
for me.”
The smile disappeared.
“What are you? A reporter or something?”
“No. Just curious.”
He scowled and glanced around.
“I suppose it’s all right, as long as it doesn’t interfere