Kesti paces back and forth along the edge of Pier 17, throwing nervous darting glances back towards the city of Iryna. She grips a SmartStone with trembling claws, the light of its screen a bright cyan against the dark abyss of the ocean. Her Stone is open to a message history with an unlisted code.

— u still serious about leaving tonight?
— Yes. Sooner if possible.
— tonight is as soon as i can do
— meet me at pier 17 at midnight
— it should be all quiet by then

Kesti can't believe she's really doing this. Iryna is the only home she's ever known. Even though she's travelled all over the Archipelago, every time she left, she could always be sure she would be back soon. But this time, she doesn't know if she'll ever be back. Everything that Reiner ever told her about himself was a lie, and once she found out the truth, he turned the city against her. Even now, there are Mansion Guards in the streets hunting for her. She doesn't know what they'll do if they catch her. She can't stay to find out.

The soft hum of a magitech motor catches her attention. It's coming from behind her, from the sea. A small boat skims along the waves, pulling up alongside the pier where Kesti stands. In its cabin stands a slender-necked birdfolk man who she's never seen before. He eyes her with cold recognition.

"Kesti Kor'onen."

"Yes," Kesti gasps, stumbling forward. "It's me, but please, I'm not the criminal Reiner says I am."

"I don't care what the Governor says you are," the birdfolk man replies flatly. "If you're paying..."

"I am!" Kesti produces her coin-purse. Most of her money is in the Kor'onen family vault, but she can't rely on that anymore. She'll have to figure that out later, though. She hands the entire purse to him.

"Get on." He cocks his head to the side, and Kesti scrambles to obey. As soon as her feet leave the pier, the boat shoots away from the city. Kesti watches its twinkling lights recede into the distance. She takes big steadying breaths. She's safe now. Behind her, the birdfolk man takes his hands off the wheel.

"So, Kesti... What really happened?"

"Oh, it's awful!" Kesti blinks back tears. "Governor Reiner is a murderer! He killed people, and I caught him in the act! Well, not in the act, but right after, and I always knew something was wrong—"

The birdfolk man interrupts her. "Did you tell anyone?"

"I couldn't!" Kesti protests. "Reiner got to the Mansion Guard before I could, and Gideon wasn't there, and the other guards had to listen to him. I found some of my friends, and asked them for help, but I don't think even they believed me. I couldn't go back to Mom's house, either. I had no idea what I was going to do, until I got a text from you! You said that my friends gave you my number?"

"Yes, they did. And they're the only ones who knew about me. Don't worry about that."

"Knew?" Kesti frowns. The birdfolk man ignores her and continues.

"You said Reiner was a murderer. Do you know anything else?"

Kesti sighs. "No... I wish I did. I have no idea why he would do something like that. Or even how."

The birdfolk man actually laughs at that. Kesti flinches. She'd taken this offer because she had no other options, and she'd ignored how scared she was, but now she wonders if maybe she'd made a mistake.

"The second question is much easier to answer than the first. In fact, I can just show you."

The dagger is in his hand before Kesti can react. Its dark blade, reflecting none of the city's distant light— She'd seen it before, it was—

Kesti dies before the dagger is fully buried in her side. It slides free as her body crumples to the deck.

"Oof, thank the Lord," says Reiner, dropping his disguise. He adjusts the course of the ferry-boat back to the moorings he'd stolen it from. Hopefully its absence hadn't been noticed yet. "That was a close one."