“You’ll get no argument from me there,” says Palamedes, taking his mug and following her back into the other room. What would it be like, he wonders, doing something like that without entirely knowing if you could rely on the person you needed most? Pal had blown himself up knowing that Cam would do everything in power to bring him back to his body. Even now, he remains certain that if there is a way to reach him in Darrow, she will not rest until she finds it.

He sits in an overstuffed chair across from Gideon and sips his tea. It’s bright and grassy, one of the more comforting things he’s experienced in a while. For the first time in days, he feels some of the tension leave his body.