The house was smaller than Kael expected.
Two stories. Guards at the front and back. Lights on the second floor.
Lyra crouched beside him on the rooftop across the street. "Six guards total. Three outside, three inside. Ethan's in the upstairs bedroom, northwest corner."
"How do you know?"
"I bribed the maid. She's loyal to coin, not Julian." Lyra pointed. "The window. That's his room."
"Can we climb up?"
"Too exposed. The back door is our best option. One guard there. We take him quietly, get inside, grab Ethan, leave before anyone knows we were there."
"Simple."
"If everything goes right."
"When does everything go right?"
Lyra smiled grimly. "Never. Which is why I have a backup plan. If it goes wrong, you cause a distraction at the front. I get Ethan out the back."
"I'm the distraction?"
"You're good at it."
Kael couldn't argue with that.
They waited until the guard at the back door stepped away to relieve himself. Quick and quiet, they dropped from the rooftop to the alley below.
Lyra picked the lock. The door opened without a sound.
Inside was a kitchen. Empty. Dark.
They moved through to a hallway. Stairs going up.
A guard sat at the bottom of the stairs. Big man. Half asleep.
Lyra looked at Kael. Pointed at the guard. Made a throat-cutting gesture.
Kael shook his head. Too noisy. Too much blood.
He moved silently behind the guard. Wrapped his arm around the man's throat. Squeezed.
The guard struggled. Kael held tight. After a few seconds, the guard went limp.
Unconscious. Not dead.
"Getting soft," Soulrender whispered in his mind.
"Getting smart," Kael replied silently.
They climbed the stairs. The second floor had three doors. The northwest one was closed.
Lyra tried the handle. Locked.
She pulled out her lockpicks again. This one took longer. Kael kept watch down the hallway.
Click.
The door opened.
Inside was a small bedroom. A boy sat on the bed. Twelve years old. Dark hair. Lyra's eyes.
He looked up. Saw Lyra. His eyes went wide.
"Lyra?" he whispered.
"Shh." Lyra rushed to him. "We're getting you out."
"But the guards—"
"We'll handle them. Can you walk?"
"I think so. They don't hurt me. They just... keep me here."
"Not anymore." Lyra helped him up. "This is Kael. He's a friend."
Ethan looked at Kael. At the black sword on his back. "He looks scary."
"He is. But he's on our side."
Kael moved to the window. Looked down. Guards still at the front. They hadn't noticed anything wrong.
"Clear," he said quietly.
They moved back into the hallway. Down the stairs. The unconscious guard still slumped at the bottom.
Almost to the kitchen—
The front door opened.
A guard walked in. Saw them. His eyes went wide.
"Intruders!" he shouted.
So much for quiet.
"Go!" Kael pushed Lyra and Ethan toward the back door. "I'll hold them!"
"Kael—"
"Go!"
They ran.
Three guards rushed in from the front. More coming from outside.
Kael drew Soulrender.
"Finally," the sword purred. "I was getting bored."
The first guard swung a club. Kael ducked and slashed. The man went down.
The second had a sword. Better trained. He blocked Kael's first strike and countered.
Kael parried. The blades rang together. They traded blows. Fast. Precise.
The guard was good. But not good enough.
Kael found an opening. Soulrender took the man through the ribs.
The sword drank.
Power flowed. Kael's fatigue vanished.
The third guard and two more from outside rushed in together.
"Five on one," Soulrender said. "I like those odds."
Kael moved. The sword guided him. Every strike perfect. Every dodge precise.
One guard fell. Then another.
The remaining three backed away.
"What are you?" one gasped.
"Your mistake."
They broke and ran.
Kael didn't chase them. He had what he came for—a distraction.
He ran out the back door. Lyra and Ethan were already at the end of the alley.
"Move!" Kael shouted.
They ran together through the dark streets. Behind them, whistles and shouts. The city guard responding.
Lyra led them through a maze of alleys. Left, right, through a building, across a rooftop.
Finally, they stopped in a narrow passage between two warehouses.
Ethan was breathing hard. "Are we safe?"
"For now," Lyra said. She hugged him tight. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry it took so long."
"It's okay. I knew you'd come."
Kael watched the entrance to the alley. No pursuers yet. But they would come.
"We need to keep moving," he said. "They'll search the whole district."
"I know a place," Lyra said. "Come on."
She led them deeper into the Black Market. To a building that looked abandoned. Broken windows. Collapsed roof.
Inside, it was surprisingly intact. Hidden rooms. Clean.
"Safe house," Lyra explained. "One of many. Julian doesn't know about this one."
Ethan collapsed onto a bed. "I'm tired."
"Sleep," Lyra said gently. "We're safe now."
The boy was asleep in seconds.
Lyra turned to Kael. "Thank you. For what you did."
"You would've done the same for me."
"Maybe. But you didn't have to. You could've walked away. Left us to handle it alone."
"We're allies. Allies help each other."
"Is that all we are? Allies?"
Kael met her eyes. "I don't know. What do you want us to be?"
Lyra was quiet for a moment. Then she stepped closer. Reached up. Kissed him on the cheek.
"Friends," she said. "At least."
Kael felt his face warm. "I can work with friends."
"Good." Lyra smiled. It was a real smile. Not the calculating one she used for business. "Now get some rest. Tomorrow, Julian will be furious. We need to be ready."
Kael nodded. Found a corner. Sat down with his back against the wall.
Soulrender was quiet. For once, the sword had nothing to say.
Kael watched Lyra sit beside her brother. Watched her brush hair from his face. Saw the relief and love there.
Family matters.
He'd forgotten that for a while. Forgotten that revenge wasn't the only thing worth fighting for.
Maybe Lyra was right. Maybe after Julian fell, there would be something else. Something worth living for.
He closed his eyes.
For the first time in days, he slept without nightmares.
* * *
END OF CHAPTER 11