“I’m not sure about anything,” Jason admitted. “But I think he’s sincere. If we’ve drawn unwanted attention, slipping out of town after dark probably makes the most sense.”

“Unless people come for us before then,” Rachel pointed out.

“You have your explosive crystal ball?” Jason asked.

“Yes.”

“Keep it handy.”

She nodded. “I’m going to find Kerny’s mother. Maybe she can go buy us some provisions.”

“Not a bad idea,” Jason said. “We’re running low. And we might want to think twice before hanging around another town.”

“I’ll need to give her money,” Rachel prompted.

Jason got out the little bag with the pellets. “How much?”

“Fifteen should buy a lot. I got the feeling those puckerlies were pricey.”

Jason handed over three bronze pellets. “She may keep the money and betray us.”

“It beats openly roaming the town, trying to buy provisions ourselves,” Rachel said. “I’ll pay attention. If she stays away too long, we can make a run for it.”

“Tell her to keep a drooma for her trouble,” Jason said.

“I was thinking two.”

“Whatever.”

“Can I borrow the satchel?”

“Sure.”

“You should probably keep the door locked.”

“I will.”

After Rachel left, Jason practiced drawing his knife. Pulling it out still in the sheath had failed to intimidate Ned. He rehearsed until he could slip a hand into his cloak and swiftly produce a naked blade.

It was well into the afternoon. If they were going to sneak away in the night, Jason realized he should probably sleep. It took some time to calm his mind, but eventually he dozed.

All was dark when Jason woke. He could barely make out the shape of the trunk on the floor. He had no idea how late it was, but the night was quiet. He wondered if Rachel was all right. If there had been commotion, he supposed he would have awakened.

Jason got out of his hammock and stood at the window. He saw no stars. Where was Ned? Should they wait for him? What if he failed to come?

After gathering his belongings from the trunk, Jason tiptoed to the door. A tap on the window startled him. Whirling, he saw Ned’s face beyond the warped glass, upside down. Jason undid the latch, and Ned swung nimbly from the roof through the open window.

“Come with me,” Ned whispered.

“What?”

“Listen.”

Jason held still and focused on his hearing. After a tense moment a faint creak reached his ears. “That? What is it?”

Ned’s breath was in his ear. “Somebody failing to move silently.”

Panic jolted through Jason. “What about Rachel?”

“Already on the roof,” Ned whispered. “Follow quietly.”

Without awaiting a reply, Ned smoothly boosted himself onto the windowsill and disappeared onto the roof. Momentarily stunned, Jason again heard the creak of stealthy footsteps in the hall, this time just outside his door. The handle turned gently. It was locked.

Jason ducked under his hammock and climbed stealthily onto the windowsill, glancing at the fifteen-foot drop to the dim ground. Why did the little inn have to be on stilts? Standing awkwardly, Jason reached up for the eaves above his window. Ned caught hold of him and helped pull him onto the roof, where Rachel sat waiting, as promised.

Following Ned’s example, they lay flat, listening. A gentle scrape of metal against metal suggested someone picking a lock. Jason heard a door creak open, followed by hurried footsteps.

“He’s not here,” a man exclaimed in a loud whisper.

“Maybe he escaped this way,” a different voice said, right below Jason, at the open window.

“And flew out to sea,” the first man spat sarcastically. “Come along.”

They clomped out of the room, and Jason heard the door to Rachel’s room crash open. Footsteps shuffled noisily, all pretense at stealth gone.

“Nothing,” a voice said.

“What did you expect?” the other voice chided.

Heavy feet clomped hurriedly away.

Ned held a finger to his lips. The three of them waited in silence. Finally, Ned spoke. “You have a friend.”

“What do you mean?” Jason asked.

“A riderless horse wandered into town this evening. I went up the Overland Loop, found a conscriptor facedown on the roadside. Stab wounds in the back. Dead mangler not far off. Such a thing has not been seen in some time. I dragged the corpses deep into the woods. You have a friend out there. Strange folk in town tonight. Leave by the main road. That way may be clear a while. You never knew me.”

Ned crept across the roof in a crouch. Nothing creaked. He dropped out of sight.

“How late is it?” Jason asked.

“Maybe an hour past nightfall,” Rachel answered. “When Ned showed up at my window, he almost gave me a heart attack.”

“We should take his advice and get out of town,” Jason whispered. “That was way too close. Do you have the new provisions?”

“In the satchel,” Rachel said. “I’m ready.”

“I think Ned dropped onto the porch. That’s probably the only decent way down.”

Jason and Rachel slunk along the roof to the front of the house, cringing as shingles creaked. By the time they got there, Ned was no longer in view—not on the porch, not down on the street. Jason saw no sign of anyone else, either.

“It looks clear,” Rachel whispered. “We should move.”

Jason slid into position to drop from the roof to the porch. Suddenly several of the wooden shingles overhanging the eaves of the house snapped, and he crashed to the porch on his back.

Lying stunned on the splintery planks, Jason tried to breathe. His lungs refused to function. All he could think was that his back was broken. He rolled onto his side. A feeble croak escaped his lips, then abruptly he was breathing again. Never had the wind been so brutally knocked out of him.

He sat up, holding still and listening to ascertain if his clumsiness had attracted attention. Both the house and street remained quiet.

Rachel dropped down lightly beside him. “Good thing I’m carrying the explosives,” she whispered.

Jason drew a shuddering breath. “No kidding. Let’s get off this porch before somebody comes.”

They hurried down the rope ladder. The night was overcast. They moved quickly along dark streets, light bleeding through a few shuttered windows. Jason stayed a step ahead of Rachel, one hand inside his cloak, fingering his knife. The moving windows of the Tavern-Go-Round flashed from the slope above the town.