“Well. Somebody had to give him the tip,” Cat said, unapologetically. She searched Raisa’s face as if she didn’t quite trust that her queen didn’t have Han locked up somewhere. “Was he…was he all right when he left?”

“Yes. He…we…had a long talk.” Raisa cleared her throat, feeling her cheeks burn. “And we—uh—reached an understanding.”

Cat’s eyes narrowed. “A talk?”

Raisa nodded, biting her lip.

Cat’s lips twitched, almost all the way to a smile. “Hah! He’s a good talker, that one. All the girlies say so.”

“Really?” Raisa said, not smiling back. “Well, I don’t know where he went after he left. He said he’d be back three days ago, but he never came.”

“I don’t like it,” Cat said. “There’s too many people got his name down.”

Watching Cat, Raisa said, “He said he was going to look for the Armory of the Gifted Kings.”

“The what?” Cat frowned.

“He hasn’t mentioned it to you? You don’t know where it is?”

Cat shook her head. “Nuh-uh. I never heard of it.”

Han Alister was still keeping secrets.

“Where’s Fire Dancer?” Raisa asked. “Could they be together?”

“I just left Dancer,” Cat said. “Cuffs wasn’t at Marisa Pines, and he wasn’t at the crib in Ragmarket, neither.”

Raisa’s heart stuttered. “If he’d been arrested, I would know. But, Cat—is it possible that the Demonai or the Bayars found him first?”

And just like that, the tears came, and Cat had her arms around Raisa, patting her on the back.

“Never fall for a streetlord,” Cat murmured. “That’s what my mama used to say. There’s no future in it. But did I listen?”

“Cat, if anything’s happened to him, I don’t know what I’ll do.” Raisa swiped at her eyes. “Whatever happens, it will be my fault. I should have either gone away with him or sent him away entirely. I shouldn’t have encouraged him to…to—”

“Cuffs never needed encouragement when it came to taking risks,” Cat said. “You’re a good pair that way, at least.”

A knock at the door interrupted them.

Cat looked at Raisa inquiringly.

“See who it is,” Raisa said.

Cat stalked to the door, muttering.

“Your Majesty?” Amon Byrne said, through the door. “We had an appointment?”

Bloody, bloody, bloody bones, Raisa thought. I don’t want to be queen right now.

“Give me a minute,” Raisa said. Fleeing into her bedchamber, she powdered her reddened nose and blotted her damp eyes. Fluffing up her hair, she put her shoulders back and returned to the outer room. Trader face, she thought.

Cat blinked at the transformation. Raisa nodded, and Cat opened the door.

Amon Byrne and Char Dunedain stood there, both grim-faced and pressed perfect despite the sultry day. They bowed to Raisa.