My mouth went dry. The footfalls of Castille, Dugan and Thor came to a stop behind me.

"I... It... Uh…"

Isla stepped into the lantern light. Tears streamed from her bloodshot eyes.

"Why?"

Her question came out in a low hiss.

"I trusted you… And… And you ruined EVERYTHING!"

My stomach sank. To save Isla, I betrayed her. I gave up her secret to Reed, and now her family and all of Luskaine were at risk.

"It was Reed. She tricked me…"

I looked over my shoulder at the grim faces of Castille and Dugan. A realization prickled the hair on the back of my neck.

It was possible I wouldn't leave this corridor alive.

I took a deep breath, turning back to Isla.

"Reed tricked me. She tricked all of us! She's the one who set up your kidnapping. Spirits below! Everything that happened to you was because of her."

I shook my head, forcing the memories of Kateen's estate out of my mind.

"We were trapped! The Lagos Cartel was coming; you were taken by Kateen, and... and I had to get you back. We needed you. I needed you. We couldn't just leave you behind, and Reed would only help if I told her what I knew."

The corridor blurred as warm tears ran down my face.

"I'm sorry, Isla. I am. But if I had to choose again, I would always choose you."

I sniffled.

"My life would be less without you in it."

Steady footsteps padded next to me, and a strong, scarred hand rested on my shoulder.

I turned my head. Castille looked down at me with a slight smile. On my other side, Dugan walked up with Thor, giving me a suspicious squint.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Castille asked.

"I-I don't know. When we left Steeltown everything was a blur. The only thing that mattered was surviving. Then, when I remembered, I was scared… I was afraid… That you would hate me…"

Isla sniffled, wiping away the tears and snot with the back of her hand.

"I don't hate you, Jacob, but that, bitch."

She shook her head, letting out a bitter chuckle.

"I'll never forgive her."

Castille patted me on the shoulder.

"Aye, I've had my fill of crazy women."

I grimaced, my mind flashing to Sin.

Isla sighed.

"There's no putting milk back in the udder. The past is the past…"

"Wait. There's something else."

Isla frowned.

"What?"

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I licked my lips. I was tired of lying—tired of keeping secrets from the people I cared about.

"It's about my mother. It's about Sin."

# # #

I explained the events of last night: the letter on my pillow, my battle with Sin and our conversation after. The slow change in Isla's face filled me with dread. A creeping anger contorted her facial features into something feral. Rage and pain reflected in her blue eyes, and the Castille, Dugan and Thor slowly moved away from me to stand on either side of the corridor.

Through it all, I continued to speak. It was like pulling a cork from an upturned wine bottle—like an invisible weight melting off my shoulders. One reveal led to another.

I didn't tell them everything, only what was relevant. Sin, one of the most dangerous people in the world, was plotting the destruction of Luskaine. She killed High Sanctifier Alden, set Maker's Row on fire and murdered Rugar's mercenaries. She knew about the King's mission to Dahlgesh and wanted me to go. Worst of all, she was involved with the people who murdered Isla's mother.

Isla stared at me with wide, glossy eyes.

"How long did you know?"

Her voice was a low, dangerous whisper. The sound of a dagger unsheathing in an alleyway.

I grimaced.

"Since you told me in the Undertown."

"Jacob-"

Isla raised a finger, cutting off whatever Castille was about to say. Her other fingers uncurled until an open palm was pointing in my direction.

The stream of water shot out faster than I expected.

The force hammered into my chest, knocking me off my feet and smacking my head against the stone floor. If I wasn't wearing my jacket, she would have blown a hole through my torso.

In my daze, I sensed a warm wetness creeping up my neck, slithering into my mouth, nose and ears.

By the time I realized what was happening, it was too late. The watery tendrils were cutting off my air.

I clawed at my face, my fingers raking through the writhing water. My gasps for breath came out in muffled gurgles.

"Isla! Isla, stop!"

Castille's shouts were distorted by the water in my ears. The floor vibrated with the heavy footsteps of guards drawn to the sound of fighting.

Darkness closed in around me and, for a moment, I was at peace. No more fighting. No more struggling to survive. A life free of pain.

It was more than I deserved.

"ISLA!"

The familiar voice boomed down the corridor.

The water in my ears fell away into a small puddle under my head.

I rolled to the side and coughed up water, looking up to my saviour. The King stood at the other end of the corridor, held up by Caf and Angelo. He stared ahead with grim determination.

From the floor, I turned to the subject of his gaze.

Isla stared at her father with wide, fearful eyes.

She blinked, stared down at me and said the words that tore out my heart.

"I don't want you on the mission. I don't want you anywhere near me!"

She spun around and continued marching down the corridor, pushing past confused guards who were drawn by the noise.

"Let her go," the King said.

Alex slipped around Caf and his father to walk up to me.

"I've never seen her that angry. What did you do?"

"I told the truth…"

"Oh, people hate when you do that."

Alex offered a hand. I took it, rising to my feet.

"I trust this is the last time you will make a mess of my hallways," the King said.

"Yes. I'm sorry, my King."

He frowned.

"You look it."

With Caf and Angelo's assistance, he walked away. Seeing the tension pass, the guards on the other end of the corridor went back to their duties.

"I should go too," Alex said. "Try not to get on my sister's bad side."

I touched my tender chest.

"I think it's too late for that."

"Right. Then try not to die."

"That I can do."

Alex flashed one last dazzling smile, nodded to the rest of my party and walked after the King.

Castille walked up to me next, a sour expression on her face.

"Jacob…"

"I know… Can you talk to her? Change her mind?"

Castille sighed, running a hand through her straightened hair.

"I'll try. No promises."

She shook her head.

"You really messed up, Jacob."

"I know..."

"What am I going to do with you?"

"I have an idea," Dugan said, smacking his fist against his meaty palm.

"That's not helping!"

Castille lowered her voice.

"How do you think Sin knew about the mission to Dahlgesh?"

I wiped the water off my face with the sleeve of my jacket.

"A spy in the King's inner circle? Some kind of enchanted listening device? I don't know."

My vision blurred.

"I wanted to tell her. I was going to..."

Castille patted me on the shoulder.

"Didn't you have another debt to repay? How 'bout this? Take a walk, go deal with that and come back later."

I sniffled and nodded at the Northern woman.

Castille grinned.

"Good lad."

"Thank you, Castille."

She smirked.

"You're lucky you remind me of my brother. Dugan, let's go! I can think of a better use for your hands."

Thor let out a disapproving huff in my direction before walking off with the mismatched pair. The trio disappeared around a corner, leaving me soaking wet and alone in the corridor.

I fished a hand into my jacket's interior pocket and pulled out the balance statement for my account.

Something about all those zeros lightened my mood.

Castille was right. She was always right. I needed to pay back Elmer, and I needed to get rid of the tracker sewn into my jacket. But before I could do all that, there was one stop I needed to make.

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