“My wife broke her leg a few days ago,” he explained. “An accident while she was trying to retrieve some spices in the attic. She’s not in much condition to travel, and we thought – we should be far enough from the fighting, and if we barricade ourselves inside we can stay safe.”

No one was safe. I’d seen the size of the construct army. “Our Emperor has some tricks up her sleeve,” I said, raising the mug of mulled wine. I hid my involuntary grimace by drinking a sip. Too many tricks, by my liking. I tried to put more cheer into my voice. “Constructs are no match for the men and women of Gaelung.” And I’d told myself I was done with lying. Old habits died hard.

He gave me a quick, tight smile before returning to his kitchen.

I let out a breath and handed a piece of smoked fish to Mephi. This, it seemed, was enough for him to finally forgive me. The wine slid past the hollow in my throat, warming my belly if not my heart. What would this man think when he saw me leave and I did not return in the direction of the palace but instead fled toward the harbor with the rest of the citizens? I wasn’t one of them, much as I might sometimes wish I was.

He might not know that Lin had Ragan – a replacement Jovis, as it were. Another Alanga with skills more refined than my own. Ragan’s memories clicked against something else in my satchel. At the time, I’d condemned Lin’s actions because I knew where they might lead. She might decide to mine my memories, to see what secrets lay in my past, to see if I’d hidden anything from her.

I hadn’t cared as much about protecting Ragan from intrusion. I’d wanted to protect myself.

Mephi was chewing the smoked fish thoughtfully, without his usual vigor. “None of this is right,” he said.

I pulled the flask from my bag, setting it on the table next to my mulled wine. If I’d been righteous, I would have destroyed it as soon as it left Mephi’s mouth. Maybe I didn’t want to be a liar anymore, but I certainly didn’t want to be a righteous man either. I’d leave that to men like Gio, so convinced of their morality that they’d sail straight into a reef if their heart told them it was ethical.

But did I really want to know what was going on in Ragan’s head? Did it matter? He’d had more than one chance to turn on Lin, to turn on me – yet he’d helped both of us. But then, there was the matter of his ossalen. The way he treated the beast never sat right with me.