A throng of hopeful spectators had formed outside the courthouse when we arrived. Aiana managed to slip away from her duties long enough to lead me out of sight and direct me down a small road canopied with oak trees.

   “I arranged for Silas to go with you,” she told me. “I’m sure you’ll say you’d be fine on your own, but a fancy Myrikosi lady wouldn’t be traveling alone.”

   “Silas . . . not Grant?” There’d been no word from Grant, and he’d left almost a week ago.

   Aiana shook her head. “Still not back.”

   My heart heavy, I turned down the rough road and found Silas easily. He wore a wide-brimmed hat, tipped down to shield him from the morning sun, and sat atop a deep brown mare. A gray one stood nearby.

   “A sidesaddle?” I asked, not bothering to hide my disdain.

   He lifted the hat’s brim to examine me. “Only way you’re going to ride in that dress. Or convince whoever it is you’re trying to fool that you’re some aristocrat. Aiana didn’t really give me the whole story.”

   “Do you want to know it?”

   “No.”

   We set off down the quiet road. Sunlight shone through the trees in dappled patterns, already making the heavy riding dress itchy and smothering.

   “Aiana said Grant’s not back.”

   “No, but I did finally receive a message last night. He got what he went after, but it needed some follow-up. He had to chase down a few more people, seize some more evidence. Even had the army arrest a couple of men to question. We’re starting to dismantle this.”

   “And Grant’s okay? Not hurt?”

   Silas shot me a sidelong look. “Yes.”

   We rode in silence until our little road joined a larger one. Unsettled woodland flanked it, but the size and packed dirt suggested it saw a lot of travel. Silas cleared his throat a few times and finally asked, “So. Do you still want to fix the lawlessness in Cape Triumph?”

   For a moment, I thought he knew about my work with Tom, and then I recalled the conversation in which I’d asked about the city’s haphazard justice. “Well, I’d like to see it fixed. I don’t think I said I wanted to do it myself.”

   “You didn’t. I said you should bring it up with the governor. You said he wouldn’t listen to a Sirminican woman.”

   “I still don’t think he would.”

   He shrugged. “Well, he listened to me when I went and talked to him—before this whole Hadisen mess broke out.”

   “I . . . don’t know what you’re getting at.”

   “He agreed the city needs an official watch and went ahead and authorized the formation of one. The paperwork’s back in my office, detailing a few operating procedures, as well as how much money he’ll allot.”

   “That’s wonderful!” It was probably the only purely good news I’d heard in a long time.

   “I’m glad you think so,” Silas said. “Because you’re the one who’s going to put it together.”

   “What?” I repeated his words in my head. “But you just said that you’d talked to him—”

   “I got the paperwork and permission to get it started, but that’s it. You think I want to take that kind of job on, along with everything else I juggle? Organizing patrols? Hiring watchmen? I’m not that crazy. But I think you might be.”

   All those dreams of valor, all the stories I’d idolized . . . even my attempts at justice as Lady Aviel. None of them had anything to do with reality. But this . . .

   The light that had surged in me at his words abruptly darkened. “I can’t do anything like that. I’m still bound to my contract with the Thorns.”

   “Well, that’s the other thing.” Silas scratched one of his ears and stared off down the road. “We’ve got a budget. That’s meant to cover your pay and anyone you hire. Work the numbers, and you could take an advance against your pay. Deal with the fee that way.”

   My head swam with the possibilities—and complications. If this freedom was even possible, it would be hard earned. “But how could I hire anyone? Most would be men. They’d never accept me. They’d never respect me.”

   “Then you make them respect you. You fight and stand strong until you’ve won. You survived through Sirminica, Osfro, here. You think you can’t whip a few patrolmen into shape? Plus, you’d be paying them. Holding the purse strings goes a long way.”

   I swallowed. “Speaking of purse strings . . . could I . . . could I get an advance on a little more than my fee?”

   Silas snorted. “Depends on your definition of ‘a little,’ I suppose. Borrow too much, and you won’t have any watch at all.”

   “I know. But, my brother . . .” I took a deep breath. It still felt strange talking about Lonzo. “My brother’s a bondsman down in—”

   “Yes, yes,” Silas interrupted. “Williamston. I thought that was all taken care of.”

   I gaped. “You . . . know?”

   “Of course. I’m the one who passed the money on to one of our agents headed that way.”

   “What money?”

   “The sixty Grant gave me a couple of weeks ago.” Silas rolled his eyes. “I don’t even want to know how many card games it took to get that. Last I heard, the paperwork’s finalized, but your brother’s been delayed because of some injury.”

   My hand flew to my chest. “What?”

   “Something with his knee, I think. I just heard yesterday that he’ll be okay and should be here within the month.”

   Lonzo. Free. And coming here. Soon. I half expected to wake up in my bed at any moment. It was the only way to explain this increasingly astonishing day.