By the time we got back, Tagashin had disguised herself as Barnes again and was quietly trying to help Tolman. I winced as I looked him over. It hadn't torn skin, somehow. But from the looks of it, the bones were definitely broken. Most people's arms didn't bend halfway between their elbow and wrist.

"Hey Malvia," Tolman said, casually waving with his other arm. "How are you doing?"

I glanced at Tagashin, who smiled.

"I've got his pain blocked, for now," she said as she maneuvered the arm around, straightening it out. The sound of flesh and bone moving made my stomach churn a little bit as I kept my gaze away from it.

Gregory had gone a step further and was heading over to where Melissa sat down across the warehouse from everyone else.

"And when you stop blocking the pain?" I asked her.

"Oh, it'll come back, but reduced," she said, shoving the arm a millimeter more back in place with a small, sickening crack. "He should see an actual doctor after this, since I can't really see inside, I'm just trying to make it straight."

Tolman's casualness vanished in an instant as he yanked his arm out of her grasp. "You said you'd treated wounds like this before!"

"I have," she replied. "I did not say how successful the treatments were. Don't worry, your arm isn't going to explode or anything like that. Unless you got a pocket of diabolic taint in there?"

"No," Tolman said with a scowl. "But maybe I should just wait until an actual doctor-Fuck!"

He suddenly doubled over, and with a shake of her head Tagashin put a hand on his arm again.

"Let me finish my work," she said quickly. "I was mostly joking. I'm good enough, I'm not going to cause any permanent damage. Malvia, do you want to try setting it?"

"You remember how long it took for me to just change my face for Lord Montague's party?" I asked her. "Unless I have it prepared for a person, that's the time scale to change his flesh."

"Rather inconvenient, this biosculpting of yours," Tagashin said as she began moving Tolman's arm again.

"Well, unless you're born with it, the ability to shape flesh isn't particularly easy or fast," I replied. "But I am meticulous in my work."

"I can testify to that," Tolman said. "A week in pain was well worth what I got out of it."

"I'm glad for you on that. Any other damage besides the arm?" I asked Tolman.

"Eh," he said, seemingly unconcerned, but there was pain behind that forced casualness. "Some bruises, minor cuts. Oh, some damnable insect bit me in an unfortunate place that is proving most irritating."

"My heart bleeds for you," I said sardonically.

I was glad for the banter. It kept my mind off of where someone had tried to put the pieces of Marat against a wall. Respect had been intended. Respect had failed in the face of the multiple chunks of flesh and bones the older Infernal woman had been turned into.

"I am sorry," I told Tolman. "Regardless of everything else, I didn't intend for anyone to get hurt."

"I'll be fine," Tolman told me, then winced as Tagashin finished splinting his forearm. His eyes closed, and he shuddered as his arm was realigned. "I insisted on coming along anyway."

"Like I said, magic helps with this, but he should see an actual doctor," she said. "Luckily, there's one at your house right now."

"There is, but no real hospital accommodations," I explained. "We'll have to walk as well."

"The cart?" Tolman asked.

"It survived. Jones didn't. Neither did the mule."

Tolman nodded. "Bad fate?"

"Malachti," I said as an explanation, and he winced.

"Can't imagine his sadism has lessened after having a devil stuck in him."

"No," I said darkly. "This time there's nothing preventing me from putting a pair of well-deserved bullets into his eyeballs."

"They might be counting on that," he told me. "If you need a second pair of hands for that, I'm game."

I considered it. So eager to try and return to what we'd had before. Did he miss it, or was he worming in closer for a Versalicci ordered knife?

Sometimes the world made itself a very lonely place.

"I'll take it under consideration," I said. "Tagashin, I'd appreciate a word when you're done patching him up."

I left them, heading over to the second circle.

I considered the sacrificial device, keeping my hands well away from it. Runes glowed an angry orange, even coated in the gore of diabolist and devil. It thrummed, but there were no whispers and screams with this one. Just blood caking its surface.

That might be why it had stopped, a sacrifice of blood and vitality to appease the angry souls held within. Pain fed to their pain, death fed to their death, a taste to keep them satiated until the time came to reach in and-

I shook my head, forcing those errant thoughts out of my head. I already had one voice too many lurking in there, giving advice, I did not need another. Sh-It wasn't real. Just a failed mask that I had no reason to ever revisit. Only a mask. Easier to think that way, because being inside my head meant not being an issue going forward.

I sat down, looking at the slowly decaying head. The features had melted away, slowly turning into a fleshy goop that dripped onto the surface of the circle. Chitin armor slowly flaked off, flesh melting into the air. I couldn't do anything to stop it, and short of a priestess of Tildae rushing in here immediately on a carriage, no one could. Or teleportation, I suppose, but that was a costly and rare kind of magic. At the current rate, the entire thing would dissolve before any normal kind of transportation reached here.

What would it make? Some monster out of chunks of rubble? A wandering curse to afflict or kill others? A small portal to the hells allowing little devils through? I remembered one case when Alice and I had gotten a strange flower after spraying an entire street gang down with hellfire. It had later grown to a massive size, starting to sing in some strange language, and tried to strangle Golvar.

Melissa got up from the other side of the warehouse, coming over and sitting down across the circle from me.

"Don't touch it," I warned, a wary eye on her. "It's not a pleasant experience."

"I think I could tell from the runes and the noises and the giant devil head in the middle," she said, eyeing the last. It was two-thirds gone by now.

"So," I said. "You wanna talk about how they abducted you from Tyler's house last night? Or why were you even there?"

Her eyes narrowed, gaze piercing. "How did you know I was there? Or that I was even missing?"

"Our dear, delightful brother told me," I said with sarcastic cheer. "He then made it clear what would happen to my mother if I didn't locate you and bring you to him."

"Oh," she said, frowning. "Why would you need to be pressured?"

"Who knows, maybe he thought I'd kidnap you," I said. "Although he thinks random violence and murder are more my style. Maybe he's right. Either way, feel free to head back there or do whatever you wish instead of that. Personally, I'd recommend not going back."

She eyed me uncertainly. "Didn't you just say he threatened to kill your-"

"My mother is currently in a hospital bed being watched by Imperial Intelligence and my mother's family," I interrupted. "Frankly, he's welcome to try and cross swords with the latter, preferably while I watch from the sidelines, cackling and sipping tea."

She scowled. "Vindictive and blood-hungry, aren't you?"

"He threatened my mother," I said angrily. "Then he sent his two goons after me, and they killed Marat and Jones."

"Who?"

"The bundle of torn-apart body parts at the front of the warehouse used to be a former temporary laborer for Holmsteader named Marat," I barked, pointing at where she'd been piled. "I paid her, but regardless of that, she came to help free you. She made the critical error of shooting the big, scary devil that was rampaging through the warehouse, giving it a wound that didn't even bother it. For that, Mitlau smashed her apart like a grape. Jones was another one like that, except unlike Marat all he was doing was keeping watch on our way to get out of here. Malachti tore off his horns and shoved them into his eyes."

That took the wind out of her sails as her eyes flickered over to the remnants of Marat. "You were close to these two?"

"No, I was not. I've known them for all of two days," I replied resignedly. "I cost them their jobs with Holmsteader when they helped me handle Tyler. I was trying to make it up for them."

Melissa sneered. "Is this just you trying to spread your guilt around then?"

I stared flatly at Melissa, seconds ticking by, and with each one that sneer faltered more until it collapsed in on itself.

"Guilt or not," I said. "There's no reason those two had to die. And Versalicci knows damn well what was likely to happen sending those two out. As he damn well should have deciding to stuff devils inside them. How long have they been possessed?"

"I don't know," she said, and as I continued to stare, flushed. "I really don't. They were like that when I joined two years ago."

So, sometime between when I left and when she joined. And probably before the Black Flame resurfaced after everyone thought them dead.

"And why were you at Tyler's house?"

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"Trying to find his circle," she said. "I found it missing, and I'm not sure who-"

"I have it," I interrupted. "Cut a deal with Holmsteader. Your former Black Flame comrades came after then?"

"Yes," she said curtly, looking about at their bodies strewn around on the ground. "If I promise to come with you, can we discuss that part elsewhere?"

"What are you not telling me, Melissa?" I asked her, and she stared at me defiantly.

"Nothing," she said, and I chuckled.

"No one ever tells the entire truth, Melissa," I said flatly. "Everyone wears a mask for the situation they are in, carefully layered on top to protect what's inside from being seen. Baring your soul like that? I've never seen it. Have you?"

"You sound an awful lot like him," she said, and my eye twitched.

"Never say that again. Now. What have you lied about?"

She frowned. "I've not lied to you."

"You've not lied to me that you know of," I corrected. "This isn't something they set up in a couple of days Melissa. Or even a couple of weeks. No one likes living in the Kettle, but it's never been this empty, even right after the battle with the army. This has taken months of work."

She froze, then reluctantly nodded. "Probably. Your point?"

"How do you think they hid it from our brother for so long?" I asked her.

Her eyes narrowed. "You aren't-"

"I don't know what I'm accusing him of," I admitted. "Not enough information to go around on what he might have done. But I do know the odds a group this large, of people he would prize dearly, could have snuck off and arranged this under his nose."

Melissa said something, then apparently thought better of it.

"I'm not going to argue that-"

Because you'll lose

"-especially when there are more important, immediate things to discuss instead."

Because you're not ready to have that kind of conversation.

"Your imprisonment here?" I prompted.

She was eager to change the subject. "I can't tell you too much about it. The room was soundproofed, and I was also unconscious for most of it. Their leaders visited once. Mitchell and Frawks. They aren't here anymore. Mitchell and Frawks aren't here. Calhoun was."

I nodded. "I overheard him. Calhoun has the longer tenure, doesn't he?"

He'd never been a diabolist while I'd been part of the group, but he was the only one who'd been in the gang when I'd been a part of it. Well, excluding No-tail whom I still couldn't remember. Alas for her now fading memory.

"He does but he doesn't have much talent outside rituals and summoning," Melissa said. "Tenure is not the right kind of seniority to have outside the gang."

"Nothing else?" I asked, and she shook her head.

Further discussion could wait until we reached my home, now that I knew she wasn't running straight to Versalicci. Maybe the fact Mitlau and Malachti had done nothing to help her had rattled that faith a little.

She eventually took the hint and left, but that didn't mean I was left in solitude yet.

"The diabolist leader made it out," Tagashin told me, sitting down next to me. "He ran as soon as those two possessed smashed down the door. I tried to keep track, but that centipede devil riding one of those two didn't give me a chance. The trail's dead now, covered up. I'll need to scour the city, hoping to get another whiff of that scent."

I nodded. "The possessed wasn't fooled by your illusions. How?"

She looked at the Infernal artifact, quiet for a little bit before speaking again. "My movements through the air. Whatever devil resides in that one could track them. I got lazy. And overconfident."

I nodded, let her get her breath and composure before speaking again.

"The two possessed," I whispered. "They were the two with her and Versalicci in my shop, weren't they?"

Tagashin nodded slightly. "The same scent, underneath all the diabolism and devil smells. They are well-hidden, though, not a hint when they are kept inside their hosts."

"Malachti had your hat last night," I said. "Then another. How did that-?"

"I was playing a game," Tagashin said quietly. "I thought it was just some gutter thug with delusions of fancy, and decided to play the game. I let him think he stole it, only to find someone returning it to me later. And he…"

She didn't continue that statement.

I hesitated, not sure if now would be the best time to ask about contacting Dr. Dawes or Voltar about the artifact.

"It's unsettling," she said.

"Overconfidence is a quick killer," I said. "At least for you it's not led to your death, more just a..warning of sorts."

"I could do with warnings not as close as that one was," she said.

Silence for a bit, until she spoke up once again.

"Oh, I did find out who was following us yesterday," she told me.

Ah. Hopefully another thread that we could tug on.

"Who was he?" I asked.

"A hired hand. Not really skilled at that kind of work, but when your liege lord asks things of you and follows them up with the most adorable puppy dog eyes even the most inexperience of souls is willing to give stalking a go."

"Liege lord?" I asked, trying to think which, if any, nobles were involved in this case. None so far that I could think of.

"In this case," Tagashin said with a grin, "a young man named Lord Desmond Karsin."

Lady Karsin's adopted son? Why would he target me? The last time I'd heard anything regarding him, it had been about how he would be informed that a shapechanger had killed his mother before we were able to apprehend all of them. What could make him want me followed?

Oh. No, I knew who could. Assuming he'd wormed his way in based on how he'd been trying to align their families together.

"Montague," I said darkly.

"Don't glower at that wall, Malvia, it didn't do anything to you," Tagashin said teasingly. "But yes, from the conversation between the young lordling and his loyal gardener he decided to have follow us, Lord Montague has perhaps not told him the entire story, but enough that he's convinced his mother was slain by the nefarious blue-skinned devil-woman. Well, that and a few other things you don't need to hear?"

I stared at the smirking Tagashin, who gave me a wink. So, this was clearly bait of some kind, one I should not give in to. Avoid the trap. Of course, if there was anything actually relevant hidden inside

"What other things?" I said, giving in.

"Oh, well you see, young Lord Karsin was despairing at the news of whose company you're keeping," Tagashin said teasingly. "See, Lord Montague had talked about how you had ensnared both his son and daughter with your honeyed words and seductive charms, and seeing Gregory back in your company-"

I took a deep breath, resisting the urge to yell. This should not be shocking. This was to be expected from that perverted, foul, malignant cancer on reality.

"Enough of that," I said with a scowl. "Is there anything else relevant?"

"Well, apparently, he was going to spread that information to the local newspapers, and Desmond expected a split once Gregory saw a headline calling out your sordid and vile nature. He's convinced the power of the free press shall 'tear a good soul like Gregory away from that tumultuous she-devil and her-'"

"Do not finish that sentence," I snarled at her, and she held her hands up innocently while everyone else in the warehouse looked at me.

"Don't worry, everyone," Tagashin called out. "Malvia is just considering killing Gregory's father again."

All three of the others were silent for a moment, then Gregory shrugged.

"For a good reason, I assume?"

"Yes," I said simply, giving Tagashin a warning glare. If she even started to suggest what she'd been saying.

She just winked, and I could not tell if that was meant to be reassuring or teasing.

I took some breaths, got myself as calm as I could manage. "This could be an issue going forward."

Tagashin shrugged dismissively. "Not to be too condescending to the young man, no, really a boy in all honesty, but this is very…amateur. Again. The Gardener. Mostly because said gardener is one of the few servants loyal enough and without enough smarts to realize what a horrible idea this is."

"Good but not good enough," I said with a scowl. "Even an inexperienced, foolish opponent can cause damage. Sometimes even worse than a competent one because they do things no one would expect, and by accident, take actions destructive to everyone caught in it."

"I think you are worrying about this far, far too much still."

"Tagashin," I said. "I've almost died….three times in the last day? And each time I'd say they all got very close to doing it. Walston probably could have done it. Would have done it, if it didn't mean being set alight and charred to a crisp."

"Really?" Tagashin said, and some of that cheer in her voice had leeched out. "The Watch Captain? How so?"

"Not much story to tell," I said. "After I was near-dead following the fight between the hired killers and Slayer Derrick, she came to take me to the next crime scene. Along the way, she decides to take the opportunity to try and take me somewhere else to execute me. She takes offense at me not being dead or in the Coffin. The point is, not being cautious is gonna end up with one of us dead if we don't keep ahead of all these problems, and as the person who has come the closest so far, I would appreciate us nipping this one in the bud."

She nodded quickly. "More than fair. Sorry, I..should be more considerate considering my own brush with death."

"It's alright," I said, before hesitating. "If you don't mind me asking, you seem pretty well for someone who just took a gunshot?"

She grimaced, patting the side of her chest, then winced in pain.

"Lots of magic," she said quietly. "Being partially fey magic helps too. But mostly I got very lucky. Managed to avoid most of the organs. Bleeding doesn't look too bad, and-"

"We will stop by my shop and see what Dr. Dawes and I can do," I interrupted. "I don't care how much fey magic is inside you, I'm not having you die because you decided to suck it up and pretend the wound isn't serious."

"Aww. It's appreciated. But someone needs to go tell our bosses about this, don't they?" She said, inclining her head at the circle.

"Yes," I agreed, glad that I didn't have to bring it up. "And they'll have to come here. Preferably with the tools to contain it. And a place to store it that isn't my basement."

She paused, a grin creeping onto her face that immediately made me tense. No, why was she smiling?

"You do know that since they likely don't have a place inside the quarter to safely keep this besides your store, they'll probably keep it there temporarily?" She said. "Until they arrange transport to an actual safe place outside the Quarter?"

"The basement of my shop isn't 'safe'," I protested. "And will also be the first place any interested party looks."

Tagashin shrugged. "They might see that as an advantage."

Oh Hells, they might. A beacon for any diabolist involved in this to go after. Even better from their point of view, in the Quarter where diabolism is going off and violence would be less remarked on than in a proper district.

"Look at it this way," Tagashin told me. "The sooner they all throw themselves at you, the sooner this will be over."

"Or they kill me," I said through gritted teeth. "And burn down my shop. And send my soul to the Hells."

"I have the utmost confidence that you'll emerge on the other side battered, bloodied, but alive and with a whole host of deaths associated with you," Tagashin said brightly.

Of course I would, I thought with resignation, and it must have shown on my face because Tagashin's cheer faded.

"Did I-"

"If you're about to ask if you offended me, no," I said. "Not that you've ever had an issue causing offense before now."

"Malvia, I didn't mean to imply-" She stopped herself, letting out a pained sigh that might be real. "I am sorry. About the incident with the cows."

Sure, she was. I'd fed her a mouthful of iron afterwards and made it clear where the line stood. She was sorry because she'd gotten burned. Being helpful now was just trying to avoid more iron flakes in her tea.

"Just ignore it," I said. "We'll need to figure something out for transportation. In order to move the circle. You are going to wait here and not run off to find someone to transport it. Leave it to me and Gregory."

She hesitated. "Malvia, I didn't realize it would-"

"It did," I snapped. "Stop picking at it. Please."

"Why?" Tagashin snarled back just as fiercely, "So you can retreat into a comfortable blanket of thinking every open hand has daggers lurking inside it? I'm not going to deny I did you wrong, but I can't apologize because you're convinced any attempt to make amends for what's been done is false. Do you believe anyone tells the truth, Malvia?"

"I believe people tell the truth when it makes sense for them to do so, and based on previous behavior," I replied harshly. "Ask yourself Tagashin, what about our previous interactions, outside of a couple of days ago, should have me believing otherwise?"

"So that is to be it then?" Tagashin asked. "You would judge me based on a week of behavior? How then should you be judged, who has spent years wallowing in blood? How should I treat you then?"

I paused. I..that was different. Immediately, I knew that was wrong, it in fact was not different and was much worse, but…. admitting that would mean…my brother's words still echoed inside my head. My eagerness for the knife, my lack of care for others, he…he was likely right, and I knew it and…

"The same," I admitted, shuddering. "Worse even. It's your right and I won't begrudge you-"

"Oh, be quiet," Tagashin snapped, then in a softer tone. "I'm not doing that."

Before I realized what she was doing, Tagashin had her arms wrapped around me, the cold chill of the air replaced by a comforting warmth as she embraced me.

"What are you doing?" I asked her nervously.

"I'm giving you a friendly, warm hug," she told me. "Don't read anything too much into it. I get the feeling it's been a long time for you?"

I shuddered. This was…comfortable. Too comfortable. I should get out. Especially before the three on the other side noticed. I should want nothing more than to escape.

"Do you want me to let go?" She asked me.

"No," I said, voice raw. How long had it been? Alice. It had to have been Alice. A shudder ripped through me, and something ugly emerged from my throat.

"It's okay," Tagashin comforted me. "You're safe here. It's okay."

"We're sitting in front of a dissolving devil head on a sacrificial circle," I said, getting some strength back into my voice.

"Neither of them will hurt us. Let go of the excuses, Malvia. Now. I'm sorry. You might not accept that, as is your right, but I apologize for it all. And if you want me to do something to prove it? Ask. And then, if you still don't want to forgive me? Fine, but all I want, all that both of us want, is a chance, isn't it?"

Ugly choking sobs emerged from me, slowly trailing off. Two others joined in, arms wrapped around me, warmth suffusing me. I felt something uncoil inside me. I was slipping. It was slipping, falling, tumbling. Cracking apart as I fell asleep.

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