Ivy was better now that most of her drink was inside her and her head was down over the museum blueprints, but if my evening with Felix and Cormel had been disturbing, hers spent getting Nina into a safe house had devolved into terror. As Ivy had expected, Nina had gotten angry at the mere suggestion, and without Felix to steady the overwhelming sensations, clarity of perception, and power that he’d gifted her with, she’d quickly spiraled out of control. Ivy had gotten her to the safe house just in time.

The morning was bright and chill, and Jenks was warming himself on the light fixture. It was just us three, the way I liked it, and I had a suspicion that we were at the very same booth where we had made our agreement to go into business together. I wondered at all the changes in our lives since then. We were all better, weren’t we? I wasn’t so sure anymore. I’d loved and lost. So had Ivy. So had Jenks. There was good stuff too, wasn’t there?

Ivy checked her watch, folded up the map, and shoved it away.

“Is she here?” Jenks asked, his dust an odd light blue edged in gold. I’d never seen that before, and I wondered if his extended life span was giving him a wider repertoire.

Ivy shook her head, casually pulling her coffee to her with long, pale fingers. Silent, she stared out over the patrons at nothing as she tried to put her night in perspective. Her hair was perfectly arranged, and her short jacket made her look like a model. People were eyeing her in envy. She looked like she had everything. Looked was the keyword. Her eyes were red with worry, and fatigue pulled at her like a cur.

“I would rather have done this at night,” I said, thinking that the idea to just walk in, grab the rings, and walk out was great if you were fourteen and trying to steal a candy bar, but not twenty-seven and aiming for a piece of irreplaceable elven heritage. Then again, the oldest tricks worked the best.

“Security is impossible at night,” she murmured.

“Ana ’eesides, ’ache,” Jenks said as he dropped down, his words slurred as he chewed one of the nectar and pollen balls Belle had made for him. “Ee don’t ’ave time to plan ah ’eel job. Ou’ll ’e great!” He swallowed a chunk. “It’s not that much different from legit work. You get busted for doing that, too, half the time.”