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The strap slipped promptly out of Tes’s hand, and the bag landed on the stone with a crack-thud. As planned, she froze, staring down at the shadowy outline of the sack. Her friend’s groan sounded authentic enough that Tes actually winced.

“I’m sorry, Mistress.” She twisted her fingers together. “I’ll stay up late fixing what was broken.”

Behind her, one of the guards beside the entrance let out a soft sound born of either sympathy or amusement. Good. They needed rumors of her clumsiness to start now, or her dismissal might be too abrupt.

Cairi lifted her hand as though she was about to strike. “I should beat the cost out of you.” Then her arm dropped. “Be grateful I’m not as hard on apprentices as some. But one more broken globe this week, and I’ll consider throwing you out.”

“I’ll be more careful,” Tes insisted, swooping up the bag with more verve than one should use on something containing glass. “I promise.”

Her friend muttered something unsavory beneath her breath, and Tes stifled a grin as she struggled to keep up withthe woman’s clipped march to the gate. As they cleared the final set of guards, words like “useless apprentice” trailed back to her—and to the warriors standing at attention, too. It made for a surprisingly amusing exit, considering the insult.

But when next she returned, her only pleasure would be in revenge.

Chapter 7

Beginning the End

It was midmorning when Senna ducked her head in the workshop door, and the worried bend to her brow made Tes’s heart thump harder in reaction. Had something gone wrong the night before? She’d been careful not to be seen entering the secret tunnels, but perhaps her very presence had caused questions. Cairi hadn’t had an apprentice in decades, after all.

“What is it?” the globemaker asked, a thread of tension in her voice.

Senna didn’t seem to notice. “Lord Vulwin’s servants are here for his order, but it wasn’t due to be completed for a couple of days.”

“Oh, that,” Cairi replied. “I finished those early, so when he asked me about his order last night at the palace, I let him know his servants could retrieve it early. We’ll bring the chests out in a moment.”

The shopkeeper released a relieved breath. “Thank you. I’ll let them know.”

As soon as the door closed, Tes allowed her smile to emerge. This was perfect. Lord Vulwin was one of the biggest gossips in the entire court—or perhaps it was more accurate to saythe biggest complainer. If something wasn’t to his exacting standards, no one would escape hearing about it. His servants were scrupulous when it came to reporting potential issues with the shops he patronized, lest they end up being blamed for another’s error.

“This is my best chance,” Tes said.

Cairi lifted one of the chests of globes and waited for Tes to pick up the second. “So long as you donotbreak one of Lord Vulwin’s lights. You can ruin the entire front shop so long as you don’t mess up one of these.”

Tes chuckled. “Don’t worry. I wouldn’t do that to you.”

She followed her friend all the way into the shop without incident and safely placed the trunk at the feet of one of the servants. As haughty as their lord, they paid her little mind—at least until she stepped back into one of the displays. She made certain her hip nudged the shelf hard enough to overturn it entirely as their attention swung her way.

An ominous, hollow rolling sound preceded the fall, the globes spinning inevitably toward their doom. There were a few gasps from the onlookers—then a deafening torrent of tinkling crashes and dull thuds as heavy glass met stone floor. Stunned silence followed. Though she’d meant to cause it, Ria could only stare at the wreckage for a moment herself.

The more decorative, delicate spheres had cracked into countless, scattered fragments, a fine layer of dust like a backdrop beneath them. But not all of the orbs had shattered. The denser ones were veined with tiny crackles, lacey little webs of potential disaster. Fortunately, Cairi was good at her job. Light glowed and sizzled from the cracks for only the briefest moment before the imbued safety spells snuffed the magic out.

In a lesser shop, there could have been an explosion.

Unexpected dread froze Tes to the spot. Butwhywas she so afraid? This was no true accident. It was part of the plan, oneher friend had agreed to despite the destruction. No true harm would befall Tes because of it.

Still, it took her a solid minute to pull her attention from the floor to the others in the room. Senna and the servants all stared at her in horror, and pure rage flashed in Cairi’s eyes. Tes shivered. Was it part of the show, or had her friend been suppressing anger over the situation? Foolish though it seemed, Tes couldn’t shake the fear that the fury was real.

“That. Is. It,” Cairi snapped. “I told you just last night that I would dismiss you if you broke one more globe. So instead of showing more care, you destroy awhole shelf?Get out of here and don’t dare to return.”

Tes’s gut clenched, but as planned, she stood her ground. “That’s not fair. I fixed the last one, and I can repair these, too. It was an honest mistake.”

Cairi sucked in an audible breath. “You think you can fix—” Her hand waved over the shattered mess. “This disaster? You don’t have the skill. Leave now, and I’ll send your things after you. Otherwise, I’ll be tossing them out on the street.”

“But—” Tes started.

Her friend grabbed her arm in a decidedly unfriendly manner. “I warned you.”

Then Cairi hauled her to the door, giving her a little shake when Tes made another noise of protest. Both actions would have earned her friend imprisonment if not execution had Tes not been in disguise, which was why Tes had insisted on the rough handling. If her deception were discovered, it would be easy for people to believe that Cairi hadn’t known her true identity. Her friend was a savvy woman who would never risk her life by mishandling a princess.