“Isn’t it obvious?” Monpress said. “I just took a large chunk from my schedule to keep Eli out of trouble. Yet here I am, Eli in jail, and myself trapped in an attic with no treasure at all for compensation. So, I’m going to do the only thing I can do to mitigate my losses. I’m going to spring him.”
“Wait,” Josef said. “Don’t bother. I’m going for the Heart as soon as it’s dark. I’ll just get him then.”
Monpress looked at him skeptically. “You’re going to beat an entire army with one sword?”
“No,” Josef said. “The sword is for the wall. I don’t need the Heart to fight common soldiers.”
“Is that so?” Monpress chuckled. “I hope you don’t mind if I try my way as well? Just for variety’s sake?”
“Do what you want,” Josef said. “Whatever happens, we’re getting out of here tonight.”
“I couldn’t agree more,” Monpress said, pouring himself a glass of wine from the bottle in Josef’s hands. “Drink up; it’s a good bottle. Be a shame to waste it.”
Josef eyed the bottle skeptically. “No, thanks. I’m sure it’s good, but I don’t drink when I have to fight.”
“Wise man,” Monpress said, sipping at his own glass. “I only hope Eli can pick up a little of your forethought.”
“Not a chance,” Josef said. “He’s categorically against considering the consequences of his actions.” He looked at the old thief. “You seem like a cautious man. How did you end up with a son like Eli?”
“Oh, he’s been like that ever since I’ve know him.”
Josef scowled. “That’s an odd thing for a father to say.”
Monpress shrugged. “Well, you need to understand that I’m not actually his father. He showed up on my doorstep ten years ago very much as he is now. Smaller, of course, but every bit as ridiculous. I don’t know how he found me. I make it a point of not being findable—hazard of the business—but there he was, standing in the snow outside my mountain lodge, asking could I teach him to be a thief.”
Monpress took a long drink from his cup. “I turned him away, of course, but he wouldn’t go. I don’t even know how he got up there. I’d bought the lodge for its seclusion, so we were miles up in the mountains, but the boy had no horse or warm clothing. It was like he’d just appeared out of thin air. I turned him away several times, but he was so insistent about learning to be a thief, I realized I might have to kill him to get rid of him. Whatever my faults, I’m not a killer. Besides, there was a storm lurking overhead, and I’m not so heartless as to send a boy out into the weather. So I acquiesced and let him come in, just for the night. He’s been my ward and apprentice ever since, and a sorry one at that.” Monpress smiled, swilling the wine in his glass. “Still, infuriating as he is, one can’t help getting attached to the boy, which is how I’m in the mess I find myself in today.”
He raised his cup in salute and then downed the rest in one gulp. Josef scowled. He knew so little of Eli’s life before they met, but it wasn’t surprising to hear he’d been a thief’s apprentice, and even less surprising to hear he’d sweet-talked his way into it. But who had he been before he’d taken the name Monpress? Just as Josef opened his mouth to ask, a strange, soft sound on the roof drove all talk of the past from his mind.
They all froze, listening. Josef motioned the others to stay quiet before leaning over to peer out the tiny, grimy window. Outside, he saw nothing but the same roofs and eaves he always saw. No strange movements, nothing out of place, just the last glow of the setting sun on the red tile. He was about to pass the sound off as something innocent, a cat maybe, or the house settling below them, when it sounded again, a low creaking, like something large was walking on the tile above them.
Very, very slowly, Josef opened the window and climbed outside. It was a tight fit, but he made it soundlessly, getting both feet on the roof before slowly peeking over the edge at the roof of their hideout.
The moment his eyes cleared the eave, it launched at him.
Josef flew backward, skidding down the tile. His short swords were in his hands before he knew what was happening, and it was a good thing, because the blades were his only protection from the ball of shifting white fur, claws, and teeth on top of him as they both slid down the roof.
“Oh, Powers,” he growled through gritted teeth. “Not you again.”
The ghosthound snarled, and Josef took the initiative, kicking the dog hard on the flat spot between his front legs. Gin yelped and jumped away, landing lightly on the roof’s peak just as Nico winked in from nowhere and grabbed his neck. Gin howled and kicked, tossing her into the air, but she turned in flight, landing neatly beside Josef, who was sheathing his swords.