Back at the penthouse, the world did its best to be ordinary. The tower still split the horizon like a stake driven through the clouds, but the streets below had chosen a deliberate, weaponized calm. Tea carts were stationed at corners, their steam curling into the cool air. Quiet inspectors with actual clipboards were checking municipal codes. The city was putting on a masterclass in being boring.
Valeria stirred as soon as I stepped into my room, her presence a cool, steady line under my skin. 'Frame check,' she murmured in my head. 'Plates firm. Flex points live. The edge is clean.'
'Good,' I answered. 'Stay light unless I call for you.'
Erebus uncoiled from the shadow by the dresser, a whisper of cold in the warm room. 'Ledger is open,' he clicked along our private line. 'No singing unless you are already bleeding.'
'I prefer not to bleed,' I thought back.
