The Lies of Locke Lamora

The Gentlemen Bastards put together a small amount of loot to sell at a pawn shop near The Floating Grave, Capa Barsavi’s ship, as well as money to pay Barsavi his weekly tithe. The items are small baubles, and the amount of money is significantly less than what they ought to be paying. The Bastards do this to keep up the appearance of being a small, unskilled gang. They don’t want Barsavi to know about the extent of their crime or their masses of riches.

A poleman takes them down canals to the pawnshop, where they pass through the worst parts of the city. As they pass the Cauldron, where there are “a thousand wasters and cutthroats bickering endlessly and terrorizing their neighbors, accomplishing nothing and getting nowhere” (213), Bug grows silent and withdrawn. Bug came from the Cauldron before joining the Bastards and never speaks of his experience. Locke is relieved when they pass the Cauldron and arrive at the pawn shop. They haggle and sell off their wares, acting much poorer and more desperate than they are. Their success makes them giddy, as “[t]hey emerged from Harza’s shop, giggling to themselves. ‘Chains used to claim that there’s no freedom quite like the freedom of being constantly underestimated,’ said Locke” (219).

The poleman and shopkeeper tell the Bastards that the Gray King has been active again. The night before, he killed Tesso, a member of one of the most important gangs in the city. As the Bastards arrive on the Floating Grave, they discover that it’s entirely locked down. Nazca appears and greets the Bastards, and takes Locke into the ship’s inner chambers. She tells Locke that they’ve been trapped on the ship for two months out of fear, and that her father is terrified and upset. She also warns Locke that Barsavi is going to ask him something, but won’t tell him what it is.

Nazca takes Locke into Barsavi’s room, where he and his torturer are viciously beating two members of Tesso’s gang; Barsavi wants information about what happened, but the gang members don’t know anything. Locke watches this in horror until both men are horrifically killed. Barsavi slumps into his seat, drinks, and addresses Locke. Locke gives him the tithe, and Barsavi asks Locke what he thinks of his two sons, and begins complimenting Locke. As Barsavi continues, he talks about the Gray King’s demise with confidence.

Barsavi tells Locke that he wants him to marry Nazca. Locke is shocked and upset. When he leaves the room, Nazca is waiting for him. They agree: They don’t want to get married. Nazca doesn’t feel that way about Locke, and Locke is in love with Sabetha. Nazca tells Locke to play along for a few days, so that they have time to come up with a scheme. Locke agrees.

Locke rejoins the Bastards and tells them what happened after they’ve left the ship. The Bastards are concerned; Jean and the Sanzas think that Locke should leave the city for a while, or at least plan to do it. Locke refuses and is brazenly confident. Jean is nervous and tries to make Locke think about the situation rationally. Locke instead declares that he’ll go with his gut.

Young Locke learns more under Father Chains’s tutelage. After a year or so of Locke being at the temple, Father Chains gives Locke and the Sanza twins a task: Acquire a fresh corpse for a dark alchemist. Locke establishes himself as the leader of the gang as. “the Sanzas conceded that Locke would be the brains of the operation. The night they were relieved to have him as the brains of their operation” (255).

In disguise as an initiate of Perelandro, Locke goes to the Palace of Patience, the city’s courthouse and prison, and thinks. Though he doesn’t yet know how to describe it, being in disguise in public and coming up with schemes makes him happy and pleased with himself. Eventually, he comes up with a plan.

The three Bastards, dressed as initiates of Perelandro, arrive at a hanging. They claim that the wife of one of the condemned has asked them to take her husband’s body to their temple so that they can offer the body Perelandro’s blessings. They acquire the corpse and take it through the Videnza district, which is populated by merchants and artisans. The Bastards stage a pickpocketing, and out of pity and righteous fury, the citizens of the Videnza donate a great deal of money to the “initiates.” They return to the temple, and Chains is impressed.

Locke, dressed as Fehrwight, leaves the Salvara’s house and is suddenly surrounded by a mysterious, disorienting mist. He faints. When he wakes up, he’s in a tavern, trapped by two men he doesn’t know. They know who he really is: He’s the Thorn of Camorr, he operates out of the Temple of Perelandro, and he has an enormous amount of money. The men reveal themselves to be the Gray King and a Bondsmage of Karthain, which is a class of extraordinarily dangerous magicians. Locke remembers how Father Chains explained the history of the Bondsmagi to him as a child.

The Bondsmage has a scorpion hawk familiar that has been following the Gentleman Bastards throughout the city. The Gray King makes Locke promise that he will disguise himself as the Gray King and meet Capa Barsavi in three days' time, with instructions about what to say.

Locke is released and goes to tell the Gentleman Bastards what’s happened. They prepare to leave Camorr at a moment’s notice and to stick together. As they are about to go to sleep, a gang leader knocks on their door and tells the Bastards that Capa Barsavi wants to see Locke Lamora.