Caledonia stepped to Gloriana’s side while Pine hurried up the gangway to coordinate topside and Triple followed two of the Bullets on a survey of the ship’s hull. Sledge turned to Bullet Cade, and with a nod of his head encouraged him to lead the way to Barrack D, where he would prepare for the crew’s arrival.

They were splitting up, and Caledonia felt the noose tighten a little bit more.

They know what to do, she reminded herself. Her Blades were once Bullets, and they knew how to play the part even if she didn’t. Sledge wouldn’t have left her in a position she couldn’t handle.

“Bullet Rhona,” Gloriana said in her toneless way.

“Bullet Gloriana,” she returned, hoping there was nothing else she was meant to say in this situation.

“Are you a shiptech?”

Caledonia reached for the right answer. She had no idea. She’d chosen a name, not a designation. What were common Bullet designations?

“I’m whatever they need me to be,” she answered evasively.

That won a curious smile from Bullet Gloriana. She gestured to Caledonia’s cheek where a smear of grease covered her tattoo. “You missed a spot. Wash up when you get to the barracks.”

Caledonia’s hand rose instinctively to cover the spot on her temple. She stopped just short of touching it, letting her hand fall away without disturbing the grease. Gloriana watched her, an eyebrow arching with interest. It was only then that Caledonia realized the gesture was out of place. Someone with nothing to hide might have swiped at the smudge, not carefully avoid touching it.

“Thanks for the warning,” Caledonia said quickly, sweat beginning to prick along her forehead.

Soon, the Blades were marching down the gangway with seabags slung over their shoulders and not a weapon among them. They reported their assumed names, and Gloriana checked each one against her list until all twenty-six Blades left aboard were accounted for and standing on the dock around them. To their credit, they managed to look irritable instead of anxious that their plans had just been blown to rubble.

“Let’s move!” shouted Pine, stepping in close to Caledonia once more. Then, in a voice that was only for her, he added, “They know what to do.”

She knew it was true. They knew how to move within Bullet society better than she did. Yet, as they turned their steps toward the eastern hills, she couldn’t shake the sensation that every step took them closer to the moment their illusion would shatter, leaving them exposed and vulnerable. The sun tucked into the horizon, and the city opened before them like a great maw, sunlight dripping from solar panels like blood from teeth. It was going to devour them whole.