“Yes. If the navy has Abdumasi Abd … perhaps he was given to the Burner of Souls.”

“Oh no.” Iraji leapt up in dismay. “Oh, principles help us all. If the Burner of Souls has him, he must have broken by now. He must have admitted his sponsors—”

Tau-indi closed their eyes in fear and sorrow as Baru looked between them, trying desperately to figure out who, precisely who, was the Burner of Souls?

“But it may be worse yet if my friend hasn’t broken,” Tau said. “There are powers he might have called upon to sustain himself … powers which would shield him from the Mask, at the cost of all he was to me.”

“What powers?” Iraji began to tremble. “Surely you don’t mean—not the same power you implied—”

“Yes. The same power that attacked my ship.” Tau’s neck bobbed as they swallowed. Again they smoothed their khanga around wide hips. “It is here, upon this ocean. It has left its ancient safeness. You know its name?”

“I know its name,” Iraji croaked.

And he toppled in a faint.

Baru caught him. “Sorry,” she said, very worried now, and trying to hide it, “he’s excitable.”

Tau-indi stared at Iraji with an expression of majestic royal concern, a face much larger than life. The golden chains in their nose and ears rustled softly.

“I’ll be damned,” they said. “The things that trim brings to my door.” And then, shaking themselves, “I’ll fetch the salts.”

“This Burner of Souls.” Baru checked Iraji’s pupil response. “Who is she?”

“A gruesome sort of Masquerade artifact. An orphaned Segu girl raised by the Masquerade as a weapon against her own home. She was trained to deceive and compromise the most defiant subjects by Mister Cairdine Farrier.”

Baru looked up with a thrill of horror. “Do you know her real name?”

“Yes. She is a woman from the isiSegu.” Tau came back with salts. “Terrible, isn’t it? If the navy has poor Abdu, I’m afraid they’ve given him to Aminata.”

*   *   *

CHEETAH’S bell tolled out its dying song: let me go, let me go, let me go.

Inch by inch, gallon by gallon, the clipper foundered.

“I’m getting us out of here.” Baru ripped cloth and cutlery out of the sunroom closet. “I can’t believe how stupid you are!”

“You know the torturer Aminata,” Tau said, staring in fascination. “O principles, it’s working! I can hardly believe it! All these connections between us are becoming clear!”