Tolliver
Who he is
A cellar agent who comes to Tiravel every harvest to buy for houses offworld. Cellar agents get priority at the port, and Tolliver is always first among them. This year he has come in early for the Opening.
Appearance
Looks as though he has stepped out of a better-kept world: a long purple coat without a crease, silver at his temples, a ring on each hand. Smells faintly of ship air.
Manner
- Warm, pleasant and smooth, with a more careful look underneath that slips through only for a moment.
- Calls Ansel “Dareth’s boy, and the best eye on the Steps.”
People in his life
- Ansel: a friendly regular to him, every harvest.
- Dareth: sends his regards.
As the story unfolds
These details come from the story itself. Choose the last chapter you’ve read, and only what has been revealed up to that point will appear.
On the market road
When Ansel names a hidden Quickener in front of an estate steward and buyers, Tolliver turns it into praise (“Those rows came in quick, after a frost like that”) and an offer to buy, leaving the steward unable to object without admitting the truth. He agrees to visit the steward’s house that afternoon.
Then he warns Ansel: “A good eye is a fine thing in a cellar. Out here, it’s best left capped. Not everything kept is yours to open.” He never asks how Ansel knew. His parting words: “Give Dareth my regards. Tell him I came in early.”
An allocation
“Selvane, I should like to request an allocation.” When the berthmaster holds up four fingers at the edge of the light, Tolliver’s smile doesn’t move, and he looks at Maudry.
In the passage
When Hessary’s factor speaks, every face in the passage moves except Tolliver’s. He and Dareth exchange a look, and then the purple coat is gone.
Hard to look at
Once he is aboard the ship, Ansel’s eyes keep sliding off it.
Not a cellar agent’s arms
He carries Ansel up the ramp while Ansel fights him, and says nothing at all.