Kateen's estate was a sprawling compound on the edge of Town. Knowing her, she built it as far from the poor Residential Quarter as possible. The structure reminded me of mansions in the capital, with tall spires and arched windows decorating its three stories.

Some things were different.

Tall watchtowers jut out of two corners of the mansion like tusks in a mouth of serrated teeth. Guards silhouetted by the sun leaned on the tower railings, looking down at the barren field closed off by a tall black iron fence.

They were not alone.

Patrols walked the perimeter of the fence while other guards stood at the gates. Kateen was taking no chances, but she hadn't anticipated Shay.

He deflated, draping his body over mine like a lavender cloak. I pushed down a spike of fear from having the Silk Garrote so close to my neck.

"Nervous?" Shay asked.

Very.

"What's the plan, Shay?"

"Despite the increased security, there's a weakness in their defences on the right side of the mansion. I'll lead you there."

I nodded.

I pulled back around the corner and circled to the right side of the estate. With Shay's instruction, I slinked around the edges of the guards' vision, dropping on my belly and crawling the last length to the black iron bars of the fence. A patrol of guards had just walked past us. Another patrol walked closer to the building in a lazy march.

"What now?" I asked in a whisper.

A slender brown hand sprouted from my right shoulder.

"On my signal, you'll run for that spot between the windows. I'll climb us to the roof, and we'll eliminate the watchtower guards as silently as possible. Do you understand?"

My eyes followed to where Shay pointed. That section of the mansion wall was a natural blind spot between the two watchtowers. It was a good plan, excluding the fence and the several feet of open field between us and the wall. In most cases, I would have been spotted immediately, but with the jacket, I had a chance.

"Shay, this jacket I'm wearing... When did you make it?"

He paused, considering my question.

"After my Apprentice told me you would be coming to Steeltown. It was one of the first things she asked me to do when she arrived."

I sighed.

"Reed's been planning this from the start."

"Assassinating Lady Kateen?"

"No, using me as a weapon."

"Oh, that. Of course. You became Sanctifier property the moment you signed our contract."

I grimaced.

My indentured servitude to the Sanctifiers had already begun. I helped them clean up the mess they created with Nostrand Del, and now, I was about to kill another one of their enemies at Reed's command. I thought I had outsmarted them, but they found a way to own me before the blood on my contract dried.

"Are you ready, child?"

"Jacob. It's Jacob," I said, unable to keep the anger out of my voice.

Shay let out an amused hum.

"OK, Jacob. When that patrol passes, we make our move."

"I'm going to win, Shay."

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"Of course, you are. You're with me."

"I'm not talking about Kateen. I'm going to get out of this. No one owns me."

He laughed, his right hand patting my head.

"From one piece of property to another, I wish you luck."

I scowled.

"Stop creating like a-"

"Now! Ventus."

The lavender cloak billowed, and a gust of wind sent me flying over the fence. I hit the ground hard, stumbling into a run. The jacket would stop the guards from looking in my direction, but the more eyes that turned our way, the more will Shay would burn. He needed to conserve his energy. I doubted that he had fully recovered from yesterday's battle, and who knows what was waiting for us in the mansion.

Shay grunted.

Someone was trying to look in our direction. It was my fault. I had kicked up a cloud of dust where I landed. I turned my head to the side. Shay was fluttering behind me. The patrol close to the building had turned around a corner. Our observer must have been the guard in the closest watchtower.

I tucked into a forward roll, slipping into the shadow of the estate and exhaling when the soles of my black boots touched the wall.

"The roll was a bit much," Shay said.

He slithered from under me, reknitting to his human form and pressing his hands against the wall.

"Wrap your arms around my neck. Quickly."

I nodded, getting to my feet and jumping on his back. With a whisper, his fingertips sunk into the stone. My feet dangled as the revenant scaled the wall. He put one hand over the other, muttering under his breath with each movement. He was using the First Magic to create handholds, changing the shape of the stone with a word I recognized.

Forma.

I am tempted to say it. Shay had taught me the basics, and the First Magic was my birthright. The Sanctifier Guild and their Revisionist ideology had stolen it from me. And yet, it also scared me. Was it because of Nostrand Del, or had my orphanage's Revisionist indoctrination left permanent scars? I didn't know. Maybe there was another reason. Maybe I was terrified of realizing how powerful I could become.

Shay's hands grabbed the low railing that wrapped around the sloped roof and pulled us up onto a narrow walkway. On either side of us, an attic window protruded from the steep slope, blocking us from the guards' view.

I pressed my back against the dark blue tiles while Shay leaned forward on his belly.

"The fabric is cut. Now we sew," Shay said. "Did you see the guard in the left watchtower?"

I nodded.

"That's the one that almost saw us."

"Yes… You take that one. I'll take the one on the right. Remember, no sound."

I nodded, and in a moment, Shay was slithering up the roof tiles.

How was I supposed to compete with that? Oh… right.

I poured will into my jacket and crawled up the roof on my hands and feet. The blue slate tiles were almost too hot to touch. I ignored the pain and fixed my eyes on my target.

The guard manning the watchtower was a middle-aged man with grey in his cropped beard. He was leaning on the railing of the watchtower, staring at the place where I was flown over the fence.

I crept forward in a crouch on the left of his cone of vision. My right hand brushed the top of the slope, putting me a few feet under the watchtower's railing.

If I could get closer… climb over the railing, and get behind him…

A tile crunched under my foot, sending a loose piece skittering down the slope.

The guard jolted upright and turned his head. Muscles in his neck bunched as he tried and failed to look in my direction.

My will consumption spiked. My legs turned into jelly. And, in my black-rimmed vision, I saw him reach from a bell hanging above him.

Shit.

I willed my dagger into my hand and tossed it in the air. The blade sank into the middle of his neck. He swayed, taking a step forward as if he was about to topple over the railing.

"Statua."

The guard froze. He stood dead on his feet, his face contorted in a silent scream.

Shay fluttered to my side, his eyes on the guard.

"You can stop now."

Right.

I dropped the enchantment, blinking the dark spots out of my eyes. My breath came out in ragged rasps of air.

"That took a lot out of me."

"Of course, it did. You used two enchanted items at the same time. You're also still weak from resisting my Apprentice's charms."

I grimaced.

"Don't remind me."

"Come. We've delayed enough."

Shay crouched, pressing his slender hand on the roof.

"Foris."

The tiles beside his hand warped into a perfect, circular hole.

"This will take us to the attic. Step lightly."

Shay disappeared head-first through the hole in a flurry of fabric.

I took a moment to gather my will.

Remember why you're here.

"Isla."

I swung myself through the hole, landing in a low crouch without making a sound. Sunlight shined above me and through the attic windows at the sides of the large room. Dolls stared at me through half-open boxes. A layer of dust covered children's dresses laid out on the floor. Shay sat at the other end of the room, staring at the floor in deep concentration.

"Shay?" I asked in a whisper.

He glanced at me.

"Totum."

The hole above my head snapped shut. I padded over to him.

"What now?"

"Now, we gamble. If I'm right, below us is the Dormitory where Kateen keeps her adopted daughters. If the girl was taken, that's where she would be."

"And if you're wrong?"

"It will be very hard to escape the mansion without leaving witnesses."

Shay met my eyes.

"Are you ready?"

I nodded.

"I'm ready."

"Then we roll the dice."

He placed his hand on the floor.

"Foris."

The wood warped and creaked into another perfect, round hole. This time, Shay jumped through the portal legs first. I jumped after him, and a collective gasp rang out around us.

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