She hesitated, then waved the rest of them off. They shuffled to the open end of the alley and huddled there. Velvet scowled, shooting dark looks their way.

“What about her?” Cat hissed, nodding at Raisa.

Cuffs gave Raisa a little push toward the closed end of the alley, keeping himself between her and the way out. “Stay there,” he growled, then withdrew a few paces to talk to Cat. Raisa pretended to ignore them, all the while straining to make out their conversation.

“Who is she, and what’s she to you?” Cat tilted her head toward Raisa.

“Just some girlie who happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time,” he said. “I gave my word I’d let her go.”

“Your word?” Cat laughed bitterly. “Good luck to her, then.”

“Cat,” Cuffs said, extending his hands, then dropping them, “I never made any promises.”

“No. You didn’t.” Her expression said promises were implied, if not spoken.

“I had to leave the life. I had no choice. It had nothing to do with you.”

Cat stared at him incredulously. “Had…nothing…to do with me? How do you figure that?”

Cuffs tried to patch it over. “What I mean is, I didn’t leave because of you.”

“You didn’t stay because of me neither,” she spat. “Anyways, what makes you think I care where you go or what you do?” Cat shook her hair back. “The bluejackets pinched three of my runners because of you. They’ll be torturing them now, trying to make ’em tell where you are. They’ll torture them dead, because they got no idea.”

Cuffs stilled and focused. “I heard there was three Raggers taken. Flinn and who else?”

“Jed and Sarie too,” Cat said.

Cuffs glanced toward Raisa, lowered his voice. “Where are they keeping them?”

“Southbridge Guardhouse,” Cat said.

Raisa heard Cuffs’s intake of breath. “Bloody bones. Gillen?”

Cat nodded. “As if you cared.” There was a certain challenge in her stance, an expectation of disappointment. “You know I don’t spill nothing to the bluejackets. But I’d give you up to save them.”

Cuffs stared out into space, a muscle working in his jaw. “First, I need to settle the girlie. Will you let us go then?” Raisa understood the gesture. He was submitting to Cat, recognizing her status as streetlord.

“Fine,” she said, her face expressionless, her voice flat. “Off you go. Just don’t ever—”

“Meet me at the far end of South Bridge tonight,” he interrupted. “I’ll help you spring Sarie and the others.”

Cat studied him appraisingly. “How do I know you won’t bring the Guard with you?” she said. “How do I know you won’t sell us out?”

He gripped her elbows, looking into her face, his voice low and fierce. “Because this time I am promising.”