“And we found the staff there.” Pellen pointed at a rubbish pile behind the Temple. It was mostly food scraps decomposing into fertilizer for the gardens.

  Alyx’s hand clenched around her sword hilt.

  She, Pellen, Telis, and Marco stood in the temple’s shadow by one of the back service doors.

  Cass was still missing.

  They’d asked inside. The priests all shook their heads, claiming no one had seen Cass. It had been hours already since Pellen had seen Cass this morning. The priests she had spoken to then had probably already ended their shift in the main hall, returning to more intimate duties to their specific gods or goddesses in their private halls.

  Pellen had led them outside, to where she’d found Cass’s staff.

  Alyx stared at the pile. Why was Cass’s staff here? How did it break?

  Was it broken before or after it was thrown away? What did either option say about Cass’s fate?

  “Sir Daidyn very graciously searched the rest of the pile for me,” the little mage continued. “He didn’t—” She faltered. She took a deep breath. “He didn’t find a body. And my spell can’t find her anymore.”

  Pellen squeezed the edge of her tome, the vast majority of her gaze dropping to the gravel-covered ground.

  “But you’re sure she was inside the temple?” Alyx asked.

  Pellen nodded.

  Alyx’s stomach dropped. That had been the answer she’d expected. But she had wanted Pellen to say anything else.

  “What exactly is the plan?” Telis asked.

  Alyx rubbed her face. Wasn’t that the question?

  “You don’t have any authority to search the Temple.” Telis crossed her arms over her chest. “And they will not take kindly to you breaking in to do so.”

  That was an understatement if Alyx had ever heard one.

  On either side of the river, within the city of Velillia and quite a ways beyond, the word of the Grand Duchess was absolute and, by extension, even the word of a disgraced bastard carried weight.

  But here, over the river’s waters, on the Temple Spire, even the Grand Duchess bowed her head to the gods and their speakers. Not much, but even the respectful nod was a lot coming from a woman like her.

  If Alyx provoked the Temple, her grandmother would not rescue her from their ire. Poke her nose in the wrong place and they would have her executed for sacrilege. Even simple trespassing could be met with serious consequences.

  And, if Cass were held against her will, they would have to do much more than trespassing to get Cass out.

  “Why would the temple imprison Cass, anyway?” Marco asked. He scratched his chin. “Not to doubt your magics, miss mage.”

  Pellen shook her head. “No, I agree. It doesn’t make sense.”

  “Why indeed?” Telis asked, her eyes meeting Alyx’s with a single raised eyebrow.

  Alyx’s skin crawled. Abyss. Telis knew.

  Telis definitely knew.

  There was only one answer to the question of why. It had to be Salos. Someone must have discovered his nature.

  Which meant rescuing Cass would mean rescuing a demon-conspirator.

  And Telis knew.

  “You should forget all this,” Telis said. “Return to the coliseum. It would be irregular, but you are the Major Blessing holder. I am sure we could convince the duchess to give you another chance to present yourself to the dragonlings. Even with this delay, as long as you go back now, you could still win one of them.” Unspoken, her eyes added, ‘You need not throw everything away for a demon.’

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  That was the correct course of action. Alyx knew it.

  For so many reasons, that was correct.

  It put herself first. Her future first.

  Becoming a dragon knight would make her a figure of import in Vaisom. On the Content. It would absolve her mother’s failings in the eyes of society. It would honor her family’s name.

  And Cass had made her decisions. She had chosen to harbor a demon. Alyx had tried to talk her out of it. Gods, she had tried.

  She turned the words of their last fight over and over in her mind. Other things she could have argued. Other ways she could have convinced Cass about Salos’s danger.

  And none of it made a difference.

  Was Alyx really going to throw away her future for a criminal?

  “Lady Alyx?” Pellen looked up at her, her eyes huge in her face.

  Alyx closed her eyes. Why did it have to be the temple? This would have been easy if Cass had gotten herself scooped up by bandits or had fallen into a monster lair.

  “You ignored her for days,” Telis pressed. “She ran off on you.”

  “Her efforts got us the Major Blessing,” Marco said.

  “And that’s worth antagonizing the temple?” Telis snapped at him.

  He shrugged. Telis rang her hands at him.

  Pellen was still staring.

  Alyx shook her head. “Tell me she’s somewhere else, Telis.”

  Telis looked away. “What will you do if she truly is held by the temple?”

  “Is she?”

  Telis scowled. “I’m not omniscient.”

  “But you could find her if she was somewhere else in this city?”

  “In an hour. Maybe, two.” The admission came out grudgingly. Unwillingly.

  Because they both knew that wasn’t fast enough this time.

  Alyx needed to know now. Every minute she waited was another in which Cass might be in mortal danger or torturous pain.

  She turned away from Telis. She stepped toward the temple’s back door.

  “Please don’t do this,” Telis whispered.

  Alyx hesitated. But, “She saved my life. She granted me the Lord of the Deep’s kill and the Major Blessing. I will repay that.”

  But those were just words. The debt was just an excuse.

  “I’m breaking in,” Alyx declared.

  Telis’s shoulders slumped. Marco nodded in approval. Pellen bounced on her toes.

  “I’m finding Cass, no matter what trouble she’s gotten herself into.” Whether Cass wanted to see her or not. “But you all do not need to come with me. This will not go over well with the temple. There will be consequences. I owe her, but the rest of you cannot say the same.”

  “I’m coming!” Pellen jumped to Alyx’s side. “I owe her too. I don’t know what trouble she’s in, but I won’t let you two face it alone. I can do this much.”

  “Thank you,” Alyx said. Would the little mage’s determination change if she knew about Salos or would that faith crumble? Could she support Cass just as emphatically?

  “I’m not lettin’ yah out of my sight,” Marco said. “You think I’m gonna’ let you face these consequences alone?”

  Alyx smiled softly. She should turn him away. His loyalty to her was because of her mother. It was one thing when she was striving to reclaim her mother’s glory, but he shouldn’t risk himself when she was actively discarding her chance to recover that legacy.

  But she couldn’t make the words of dismissal come. She nodded in thanks instead.

  “Let’s go,” Alyx said.

  The back door was a simple service entrance. It wasn’t locked. People came and went through it too often for that. It swung open without difficulty. Inside, the halls were more of the blue glass.

  “Wait!” Telis called.

  Alyx looked over her shoulder.

  The butler strode forward, her head high, her back stiff. “How are you going to find Cass on your own?”

  Alyx glanced at Pellen.

  The little mage flushed. She flipped open her book, thumbing through the pages quickly.

  Marco just shrugged. “It can’t be that hard?”

  Telis shook her head, a hand resting on her forehead in exasperation. “And you planned on just walking in? Like this? Fully armed?”

  “Cass is in trouble. Trouble means weapons.” Marco slapped his buckler strapped arm against his chest.

  “You will be caught in minutes,” Telis said. “Honestly. Group up around me. Quickly now.”

  Marco snorted and stepped beside the butler. His form shifted, like a mirage in the distance, as he drew close. Alyx’s eyes slipped off the pair of them.

  “All of you now,” Telis snapped. “If you are going to do this, we are doing it right.”

  Alyx took her place on the opposite side of Telis, Pellen falling in behind them.

  “Thank you,” Alyx whispered.

  Telis’s nose lifted, but she otherwise acted like she hadn’t heard her.

  That was fine. This was already more than Alyx deserved.

  She stared down the hall. She was coming, Cass. Just wait a little longer.