“Don’t worry,” Raisa said. “I’ll have my bodyguard with me. Come on, Cat.” Closing her ears to Mick’s mumbled protests, Raisa strode down the corridor.

All the way to the Market Temple, Raisa grappled with the possible meaning of Han’s message. We’ve had it all wrong.

Cat ranged out in front of her, driving a wedge through the crowds of people heading home to hearths and suppers.

When they arrived at the temple square, Cat led Raisa to the east, into a snarl of narrow streets and alleys. The buildings here had not yet been rebuilt or reoccupied, and so the streets were largely deserted, save for those who preferred the dark. The shadows seemed alive with these. More than once, Cat drove off skulking footpads and slide-handers.

Ahead, Raisa could see the second story of the warehouse looming over the ruins of the surrounding buildings. As they drew closer, she could see no signs of activity around it. Above the door was scrawled the staff-and-flash.

Impulsively, Cat reached for Raisa’s hand and squeezed it.

Wolves crowded in front of the doors, whining and snapping their jaws. Their voices clamored in Raisa’s head: Beware, Raisa ana’Marianna.

I know, Raisa growled to herself. We’re in danger, or something bad is about to happen, or something’s about to change. That’s my life, up to now. Get out of the way.

She and Cat each gripped a handle and flung the double doors wide.

Raisa squinted into the darkness. The only light seeped in through soot-filmed, narrow windows. As her eyes adjusted, she could make out the hulking shapes of furniture and equipment, like beasts crouching, ready to spring.

“Han!” Raisa shouted, her voice echoing in the cavernous space. “Dancer!”

No answer.

“Han?” Raisa repeated, and waited. Nothing.

“Where could he be?” Raisa looked at Cat. “We couldn’t have come here any sooner.”

“We don’t know how long it took the note to get to us,” Cat said. “There’s a second floor. Han likes to come in over the rooftops.”

“All right. You search down here, and I’ll look upstairs,” Raisa said. “Shout if you find them.”

Raisa loped up the wide staircase, stumbling as she crossed the splintered landing. The second level wasn’t entirely floored in, consisting of wide planks laid in over the rafters, connected by catwalks. She forced herself to slow down. It wouldn’t do Han any good if she slipped and broke her neck.

“Han?”

Down below, she heard a muffled shout and a thump, as of a body hitting the floor.

The back of her neck prickled. “Cat?” she called down. No answer. “Han!”

No answer. But she heard a floorboard creak at the foot of the stairs. Someone was coming up. And she had a feeling it wasn’t anyone she wanted to see.