For the first time in my life, Dad had a partner of his own—but that hardly helped me to feel any safer. Lanky, taciturn deliveryman Uriah had to keep their relationship a secret from his fanatical Purifier of a younger brother, who just happened to be the mayor of our nearest town. Uriah and my father might gain more privacy if I moved all of my possessions out completely...but how could I possibly feel safe in leaving when I knew Dad would still be alone most of the time—and even his own partner’s visits would only bring more danger into his life?

Mayor Hall already hated our rogue community for the audacity of our unnatural existence just outside his perfectly Pure and respectable little town. Together, Leander and I had fought off his first attempt at an attack, but if he ever found out that his own brother had found true love within our territory, I couldn’t imagine what he’d try next.

I’d bought my and Dad’s cottage in the countryside as a shelter to keep us safe, after our last house had been burned down by our old neighbors and left Dad with injuries that would never heal. I’d built invention after invention in its workshop with one driving goal in mind. Every carefully chosen detail in that room was a symbol of the vow I’d made last year: I would never abandon my father to be hurt again.

Of course, we had a real community now at last, with neighbors who would warn us if any new attack arrived. I’d built a dozen new devices to keep the cottage safe even when I was gone. Moving just down the road shouldn’t make any real difference, which was why I’d moved almost all of my clothing already...

But when had I ever cared about clothes? My workshop was different. It was me.

I slid off the big bed so quickly that I stumbled, bare feet skidding on the polished wooden floor as if it, too, were moving too quickly for me to keep up. “I should go. I need to work. Now.”

I needed to think in a place where I could be focused and cool again, not hopelessly distracted and overwhelmed by everything around me.

Leander didn’t reply, but I barely even noticed as I fought through ash-scented panic and memories of leaping flames to yank my underclothes and my heavy working coveralls back on, ignoring the everyday bumps of whatever random small tools had last been forgotten in my pockets. I still had to hunt down my shoes from wherever I’d kicked them earlier. As usual, I’d been so excited and impatient to be with Leander again that I hadn’t taken the time to be neat about undressing or…