"Ah, Beth," said Isabelle. "Do come in. Pierre was just telling me about the work he does for the government of Rasin."

"Not so loud – " the man in question hissed, at the same time as Beth said flatly "What."

Beth had only wanted to ask Isabelle a quick question about stirring techniques for the alchemical project she was working on, and now here she was finding out that their new supply administrator was a Rasina spy.

And he'd only been in the post a week – how in stars' names had Isabelle found out? Well, that was Isabelle for you. There was never a dull day with her for a teacher.

"Please explain," said Beth, stepping into the dining room.

"Shut the door behind you, please," Pierre said. There was a wild, panicked look in his eyes, and no wonder if Isabelle was right. Wasn't it dangerous, though, that Isabelle knew a secret that could have Pierre killed or worse? Maybe Isabelle wanted Beth here as backup; she was a magician, after all, if not one of any notable talent. But one well-placed spell could still be the thing that saved them.

Beth shut the door.

"Do you really have to involve someone else?" Pierre asked.

"Don't worry," Isabelle said lazily. She was sprawled back in her armchair, her feet resting on the low table. "I trust my apprentice and her discretion absolutely. Do sit down, Beth."

Isabelle didn't, though. Not absolutely. Oh, she'd told Beth some things, but no more than a sketch of how she'd ended up here, and barely a few sentences about the Alchemists' Guild. And she hadn't come to Beth before doing… this. If Beth hadn't happened to walk in, would she never have known?

Beth took the empty chair, trying to work out what Isabelle wanted from this. She was playing a dangerous game, but she'd done things just as seemingly reckless before and always succeeded. If anyone could do it, it was Isabelle. "Please explain," she repeated, trying to keep the pleading note out of his voice.

Isabelle, thankfully, began to do so. "I discovered an enchanted device under the floorboards in the lab yesterday. So I spent the night there, to see if anyone came to check it. There's only so many people who have access to the lab, after all, and…"

Pierre smiled ruefully. "Which is why I thought no-one would notice. Too risky to have it in my own quarters, and – I thought you – "

"You underestimated me. I suppose I can't complain when I cultivate that impression myself."

"I hardly expected an alchemist to know that much of tradecraft."

"Which goes to show how little you know of alchemists," Isabelle replied.

"I suppose from the fact I'm here, as opposed to in an interrogation cell," Pierre said, trying to recover a little dignity, "that you don't intend to turn me in."

"Why in stars' names would I want to do that?" she asked, laughing. "No, I think you and I have a lot to offer each other."

Pierre flinched. Beth almost pitied him. "This conversation is as dangerous for you as it is for me. You can't imagine what they'd do to you if they found out you'd done anything other than go directly to them with what you heard last night."

Isabelle laughed again, but without any mirth. "Oh, I don't have to imagine. I know."

Beth felt her stomach drop. Was she implying – it occurred to her that there might be a very good reason Isabelle hadn't told the full story of how she ended up here. And that Beth was in the same unspeakable danger just being in this room. Maybe it would have been better if she hadn't happened to poke her head in at the wrong time.

Pierre flinched a second time. "Just tell me what you want."

"So abrupt? If you must. Three favours. First – you're our supply administrator. I want priority for the lab's orders. Rare ingredients delivered as soon as possible – or not."

"You – " Pierre sucked in a breath. "You're stalling. Finding excuses to not produce what they want. I guess you're no more a friend to them than I?"

"You could say that."

"You're asking me to falsify supply records – deliberately delay shipments – the consequences if I get caught could be – "

"Then don't get caught. Or would you rather chance the consequences of refusing me?"

"You can't stall indefinitely," Pierre said.

"I'm quite aware. Hence my second favour: get us out."

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Pierre blinked. "I – you mean – "

"I'm assuming your reports will reach someone in the Rasina government with the power to authorise breaking into this place. I know you can't work miracles with them, I only ask your best effort to convince them it's worthwhile. Which, I assure you, it is. I am a priceless military asset to Sirgal, and I know that alchemy in Rasin is in a dire state – you need someone like me to change that."

"This is a bit above my pay grade," Pierre stuttered.

"All I ask is that my apprentice comes with me, and one other – not an alchemist himself, but important to me. If they want to. Beth?"

"I – " Did she want to flee to Rasin with Isabelle? Never mind that – she was fairly sure that this wasn't what Isabelle wanted. But if she and Jack were going – and Beth would be left here without them and with the wrath of the Administration Department – "I think so? I don't know. Give me time."

"I – I can certainly relay that message, but I can't promise anything – "

"Of course."

"…dare I ask what your third favour is?"

"Oh, nothing so onerous. I just want you to check a file. I'll pass the details of that on later. But I doubt it'll be too difficult."

"I'm not sure I trust your sense of what's too difficult."

Isabelle laughed. "Well – you are free to refuse if you do think it too difficult when you know what it is. But I don't think you will. In principle, then: is this arrangement satisfactory?"

"…yes."

"Then I look forward to working with you. I'll pass on the details of what I'm looking for in the file shortly."

Pierre rose to his feet with stiff self-control. "My report will be read by Lord Blackthorn himself. And when he reads it… you are going to become most interesting to him, Isabelle Froment. I hope for your sake you're ready for that."

Lord Blackthorn. Rasin's infamous spymaster. Villain of a thousand children's games of war. Stars. Beth certainly was not ready for him. She watched Pierre go.

"I don't suppose you've studied wardwork?" Isabelle asked once he'd left the room.

"No. Why?"

"Because it occurs to me that now we have a spy in the building, it would be very useful to be assured of privacy in our discussions."

"Yeah. Sorry."

"Don't be. Hardly your fault he was sent here, or that I decided to do… this. We'll talk later."

She meant that they'd discuss what had just happened at some future point, once Pierre was less likely to be eavesdropping. Beth didn't know if she could hold back the questions burning in her mind for that long. "Mind if I ask what I was planning to before I walked into this, then?"

"Go ahead."

Later ended up being around the dinner table. Isabelle filled Jack in as she dished up the soup she'd made them.

"Isabelle," he said. "How likely is this latest scheme of yours to get us all killed or worse?"

She shrugged. "Compared to the chances that we get killed or worse for what we're already doing? Fairly low. Though actually you're probably okay in most scenarios, Beth. Just deny all knowledge. They need an alchemist."

There was far more meaning unspoken than spoken in those sentences. Beth grimaced. "Is – is part of the reason I'm here – so that that alchemist doesn't have to be you?"

"Oh, absolutely. It won't be a problem though. It would take… at least five years for you to be good enough to replace me. They'd probably think it shorter, though, not knowing anything about alchemy. But even so, it won't come into play until I'm gone."

How casual Isabelle was about contemplating these things. "Are you actually going to go to Rasin?"

"Not if I have a better option. But – it's bound to be better than this. If only as a way of buying time."

"I don't want to go to Rasin," Jack said. "The only thing that makes this bearable is that Sirgal pay my family a stipend. And somehow I doubt Rasin will do the same."

"I could negotiate something for you," Isabelle said. "A better life. Education. Money. Whatever you wanted."

"…I don't know if I can take that risk. Not knowing how badly they need that money."

Isabelle sighed. "…I suppose you both already know enough that there isn't much point keeping this secret. Jack, if I go to Rasin without you, you will die."

"You mean I'll be reassigned elsewhere. To someone who doesn't care as much about keeping their test subjects alive as you do. That's fine."

Isabelle shook her head. "No. You die. If I escape. If they find out just how much I've been stalling. If – "

"They told you that? You've known that all along?"

"Yes."

"You've been gambling with my life all this time and you never even had the decency to tell me?" Beth had never seen Jack angry before. But he was furious with Isabelle now, and quite rightly so.

"It's the least awful of my selection of awful options," Isabelle said. "And as for not telling you – are you happy, now you know? Because you're not going to change my mind."

"It would have been nice if you gave me some say in my own fate. Or at least knowledge of it. But why would you bother with that?"

Isabelle stood. She picked up her bowl of soup and cradled it to her chest. "Enjoy your meal. I'll see you both tomorrow."

"You can't just leave," Beth found herself saying. "Not after… that."

"I can't find anything to say that won't make this worse. So best that I say nothing and give you time and space." She left the room without another word.

"…stars," said Jack.

"Yeah," said Beth. "I – I don't know what I should say. I didn't know – how bad all this was."

"She didn't tell you anything?"

Beth shook her head numbly.

"I suppose at least – that's something. It would have hurt a lot more if you'd kept this from me."

Was Beth imagining the feeling behind those words? "…what do we do now?" she asked.

"As far as I can tell? Nothing other than what we were already doing. Hoping that Isabelle can work another miracle and get us out of here."

"I guess so."

"If anyone can do the impossible…" Jack said bitterly.

"Do you know anything about her plan?"

"No. You're her apprentice. I thought you'd know."

"She doesn't tell me things."

"Of course. Why would she do that?"

"I'm starting to think it's to protect us," Beth said.

Jack blinked at her. "You might well be right. And stars, it's hard to hate her for that."

"I don't hate her," Beth replied. "I'm not going to pretend what she's doing now isn't – frustrating, at best – but… she's doing the best she can in an impossible situation."

"And we just have to trust her," Jack said, that same bitterness in his voice. "Because there's nothing we can do. And if she makes one mistake…"

He didn't finish the sentence. Beth mentally completed it. Jack would die. Isabelle might die, or worse. And Beth? If she followed Isabelle's advice, denied everything, abandoned her two best friends to their fates? Well, then she'd be alone here. Working to produce deadly weapons for monsters.

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