Page 6 of House of Crimson Cloak and Silver Teeth

She and Shade are the only ones who call Shepherd by his first name so casually. Everyone else calls him Master Rowan or Shepherd with the kind of fear and respect an Arbiter demands.

He’s too soft on the three of us. I’ve always thought so. We get away with things that would see other assassins in the crypts.

I stand slowly, reading the tension in every line of her face. “Tell me what?”

“Shade’s mission in Aelfheim.” Her hands twist together, a nervous gesture I’ve never seen from her before. “It’s not just any protection detail. He’s guarding the Wiolants.”

The leather armor slips from my hands.

“What?”

“Queen Rhianelle Wiolant. A hundred days keeping her safe.” Kitty’s voice cracks. “They’re putting him in the same court as the family who destroyed his.”

Horror crawls up my spine. “He’ll kill her. The first chance he gets, he’ll—”

“I know.” She crosses to me and grabs my arm with both hands. “Wolf, I’m terrified. If Shade breaks, he will kill her and they’ll execute him.”

I’ve never seen Kitty as shaken as this. In all our years together, through every contract and close call, she’s never let the mask slip this far.

“What do you want me to do?”

She searches my face. “You’re going to Aelfheim too. If he starts to spiral, you have to pull him back.”

“I don’t know if he’ll listen to me—”

“I’m coming too.” Her grip becomes tight enough to bruise. “I took a contract in Aelfheim. It pays enough to buy my freedom from the Gilded Lily for a full year. Between the two of us, maybe we can keep him alive.”

Before the guild bought her contract, Kitty was property of the Gilded Lily. They still own part of her. If she can’t pay her monthly fees to the guild, she goes back. Every coin she earns from her missions goes toward buying herself free.

“What’s your contract?” I ask.

She hesitates and releases my arm. “Assassination. Someone high up. They’re paying guild rates plus a bonus.”

“Kitty—”

“It’s enough. That’s all that matters.” Her voice hardens, that familiar wall slamming back into place.

I study her face, searching for clues. There’s something she’s not telling me. But Kitty shares what she wants when she wants. Her eyes drift to the scroll lying on my cot. She goes very still.

“I knew you were going to Aelfheim, but I didn’t know who you’d be protecting.” The words come out soft, almost breathless. She reads the parchment silently, then looks up at me.

“You know Gerailt Clayborne?” I ask.

She sets the scroll down carefully like it might burn her. “I’ve heard things about him at the Gilded Lily.”

A long pause. When she looks back at me, something dark shadows her expression. “The young lordling is not what he seems. Be careful, Wolf.”

The warning sits cold in my chest. Before I can push for details, she moves back into my space and catches both my arms.

“Promise me you’ll keep Shade safe.” Her voice shakes.

I’ve never heard Kitty beg before. “I promise.”

The tension drains from her shoulders like water. She pulls me into a quick, fierce embrace.

“Don’t run,” she whispers against my shoulder. “I know you’ve thought about it.”

The thought did cross my mind. Every failed assassin thinks about running. But the guild always finds you. The Blood Compass hunts down deserters without mercy. Scissor Jack fled to the Northern Wastes and lived under a different name for three years. The hunters found him and sent him back in small jars.