For people like me. It was him. The whole time. And the shock of it chilled me. Who the hellswasthe Ripper?
“How long?” My voice came out quieter than I intended.
Wickett turned to face me, and the vulnerability in his eyes was stark, unguarded. “Long enough. I couldn’t tell you. Couldn’t risk it.” He paused, jaw working. “But now you know.”
The weight of his trust settled over me.
Still, I took a step back, wondering what else he might be hiding. Because I hadn’t seenthiscoming at all. But there was only one question that came to mind. One question that I knew he would expect me to ask, even if I already knew the answer. I’d been performing my whole life too. “Did you help Vitoria? Did you help her escape?”
His expression hardened immediately, the vulnerability slamming shut behind walls of ice. “Even I have my limits. A dead Phoenix saves the world from burning.”
I nodded, forcing myself to look relieved. Theater and all that.
He’d kill her on sight. No, he’d killmeon sight. No questions, no trial, no chance to prove innocence. Just death, because that’s what I deserved in his mind.
“No sign of the Phoenix,” Jorn confirmed, oblivious to the tension crackling between us. He was checking weapons now, sliding knives into sheaths with care. “All my contacts are onhigh alert. Trust me, if she came anywhere near my operation, I’d know about it. I smuggle mothers and daughters, innocent people trying to survive Tiberius’s regime. People who never asked for magic, never wanted attention, who just want to live.” He met my eyes. “Not apocalypses. If she showed up at my docks, I’d put her down myself and sleep just fine after.”
Sickness churned in my stomach. These were the good guys. The ones risking everything to save people. And they’d murder me without hesitation.
Because that’s what they did with monsters.
“Speaking of saving people...” Jorn moved toward a small desk tucked against the far wall, pulling out a rolled parchment. “The docks are shut down, but I’ve got thirty-six names on tonight’s list. Families, mostly. A few solitaries who finally got smart and asked for help before your guys came knocking. Raids have been up since the Mortalis.”
Wickett shook his head. “That’s too many for one ship. Split them between two vessels or the weight distribution alone will raise questions.”
“No time for that.” Jorn unrolled the parchment, revealing names written in careful script. Each one a life, a story, a person desperately hoping for escape. “Your father knows something’s happening. I don’t know how much, but hunters have been crawling all over the docks this week. Questions about manifests, cargo weights, passenger lists, destinations.” He looked up, meeting Wickett’s eyes. “I’m shutting down our operation until things cool off.”
“Jorn—”
“I’m not discussing it.” His voice went hard. “I won’t risk my crew for this. We’ve been lucky so far, but luck runs out. Always does.”
A sound outside made us all freeze. Footsteps. Multiple pairs.
A young man burst through the side door, breathing hard, evidently one of Jorn’s crew by the lack of alarm. “Hunters. Coming from the east dock. Maybe ten minutes away.”
“Fuck.” Jorn tucked the list into his pocket. “How many?”
“Six I saw. Could be more.”
He turned to Wickett. “You know what we have to do. The plan we talked about. It’s time.”
“Not yet—” Wickett started, the command in his narrowed eyes unmistakable.
“Now.” Jorn’s voice was absolute.
“What plan?” I looked between them, dread coiling in my stomach.
Wickett’s jaw tightened, muscles jumping beneath skin. His eyes found mine, pleading. “I need you to trust me and not ask any questions about what we’re going to do.”
“That’s not how trust works.”
“That’sexactlyhow trust works.” His voice was rough. “It’s also how survival works. You either trust me or?—”
“OrIhandle you the way I handle witnesses,” Jorn finished, his hand moving to rest casually on his blade. Not threatening. Just... making the options clear.
The warehouse went very quiet.
Then Silas stepped from the shadows.
