“Zilfium explodes too?” Lovisa had said, and Benni had waved a dismissive hand. “I don’t know anything about it,” he’d said, but he must know something about Linta and her work if she was living here in the Cavenda house, giving orders to the Cavenda guards as if she were the queen. Linta had disappeared from Ledran society after the shame of leaving the academy. No one talked about her anymore. But she had to be the LM who’d written a warning letter to Benni.

Lovisa needed to get to the storehouse.

She heard a sound in a nearby room. Before someone stumbled upon her, she slipped through a narrow doorway that looked like a cupboard but was really a back stairway down to the kitchen.

—

From her position behind the kitchen door at the bottom of the steps, Lovisa could hear someone doing something with broken pieces of ceramic and glass. Sweeping them, possibly, across the slate floor? And someone else was hammering, and a woman who sounded like the cook, Liv, was yelling that it was nice to have a chat with new people.

Davvi’s voice responded to Liv. Then a third voice, sweet and female, said, “The water’s almost boiled.”

Nev’s voice responded. “I’m grateful.”

“Is it a bad blockage?” said the sweet voice.

“I don’t know yet,” said Nev, “but these things can be quite straightforward, once you’ve got your hand in the right place.”

“Poor thing’s been off her food for days.”

Liv said, “Here, Ella, you run this water upstairs to the sitting room and I’ll bring Linta Massera her tea.”

“Yes, ma’am,” said the sweet voice. Footsteps shuffled away; doors opened and closed.

“What’ve you learned, Nev?” Davvi asked in a low, urgent voice.

“The white-haired woman works in the storehouse,” said Nev. “I’m dealing with a constipated cow and I can see her marching to and from that building. I’m sure Hava’s somewhere, but I haven’t spotted her. How many people have you seen?”

“The white-haired woman,” said Davvi. “Liv, Ella, and a man who seems like the housekeeper. There were two guards at the gate when I arrived this morning.”

“Yes, me too,” Nev said. “One of them’s now watching me in the barn and at least four others have walked by the barn windows. Seems like they’re doing some kind of regular patrol.”

Lovisa pushed the door open. Both Davvi and Nev started in alarm, Nev joggling the cauldron-sized kettle she held with both hands.

“So, at least six guards total,” said Lovisa. “That’s a lot of guards for a mostly empty house. Have fun sticking your arm up a horse’s butt,” she added to Nev, who was carrying her kettle toward the outer door.

“It’s a cow,” said Nev, “don’t you listen?” Then, with half a grin, she strode outside.