If he was so flippant, so open, Alistair Lowry was even more of a monster than she imagined. Was he mocking her?

“Surely as a healer, Ms. Southerland, you can appreciate the beauty of anatomy laid bare,” Lowry continued. “Be honest with me. I can take it.”

“It’s dreadful,” she breathed. “I’ve never seen anything so macabre.”

When Lowry’s face fell, Barrett slammed his fist delightedly on the table. Wine shuddered in the carafes. “At least there’s someone else with some taste in this place.”

Lowry picked up a skull and chuckled to himself when the jaw, bolted at the temporomandibular joint, hinged open as if it had seen something scandalous. “I daresay I’m the only one here who has any fun.”

Wren had never hated him more. But she managed to plaster a smile onto her face and gesture to his empty glass. “How right you are. I’m being so dour, when tonight is for celebration. Another drink?”

“Very well.” Lowry replaced the skull on the table, shaking his head as if recovering from a particularly rich joke. “I do believe I promised Henry a drink to your talents.”

“That’s what I like to hear!” Barrett leaned across the table to fill Lowry’s glass with the last of the wine.

Wren watched Lowry absentmindedly twirl his glass. Wine rolled down the sides like tears. This was her opportunity. All she had to do was distract him long enough to pour the drug in. The vial in her hands was as hot as a lit coal.

But all around her were hungry eyes hidden behind whitewood masks. They raked down her spine. If she hesitated, she would miss her chance. But if she was discovered, it was all too easy to imagine how everything would crash down around her. There would be no justice for her or Hannah or Hal. There would be no peace for Danu.

And she would hang for sabotage.

Wren opened her mouth to get Lowry’s attention, but when Barrett’s booming voice interrupted her, her jaw clacked shut. “Ms. Southerland, I’m so glad you came by tonight. We still haven’t properly met.”

He was too loud for how close they were, and his breath was ripe with alcohol. As friendly as he was, she didn’t have time to engage in idle conversation. “Oh, Your Grace, you’re too kind. I’m afraid I lead a boring life compared to the rest of our sparkling company.”

“On the contrary, I’ve been dying to speak with you since I arrived. I consider myself something of a military scholar.” He puffed out his chest proudly. “I hope you won’t find this prying, but I must ask. You served in the Danu-Vesrian War, correct?”

“In the medical unit, yes.”