firstofitskind | The Sewers of Baltimore & Back to the Nest, Monday Evening (Reply)

After some perfunctory arguing - Uncle Mike knew they wouldn't listen - they knew he wasn't really trying to convince them to stay, they all knew he had to make the effort if he was going to live with himself - Sarah and Liam were allowed to grab a city spelunking kit from Verity's supplies and head for the nearest concealed manhole. For her part, Sarah left the weapons behind, taking only a flashlight, some rope, and a backpack full of assorted individually wrapped snacks. There was almost nothing that lived in a sewer that would attack a cuckoo who looked like she was just passing through. There's defense of your territory, and then there's being suicidal.

And, in case Liam's weapons and Sarah's species weren't enough, they had Istas. She was shorter than Sarah in her human form, and she'd never met a pair of practical shoes in her life, but she could take on just about anything, possibly before Liam got his gun out. They were an unstoppable team.

Hopefully, anyway.

With Istas' help, they were able to get the manhole levered out of the way - specifically, 'Istas picked up the manhole and tossed it off to one side, because she was not the most subtle brick in the wall' — and descended the ladder to sewer level. Istas skipped the ladder in favor of simply stepping off the edge, landing next to the others without even bending her knees. Even Verity would have crouched to absorb the impact. Istas just dropped.

"Come on," Liam said, and pulled the flashlight from his belt. She followed amiably after the other two as they started walking into the dark.

Sarah	"I don't think there are any alligators down here, you know," Sarah said, the beam from her own flashlight playing over the sewer wall. A rat ran by on urgent rat business. Smalltalk was hard. She didn't have the first clue how to talk to Istas. Verity always made it look so easy, while Sarah found communication with most other cryptids really, really hard. Even when she could read their minds, she couldn't always understand what she found there.
Istas	The waheela minced through the sludge covering the sewer floor like she was strolling down Broadway on a summer afternoon. She had added a parasol and a miniature top hat to her ensemble before they left the Nest; the hat was perched jauntily just above her side-swept ponytail. She was convinced she looked absolutely fabulous, and also anticipating the opportunity to show her fabulousness to anything that might decide to take a shot at eating them. "No, there are not," Istas agreed, watching the rat scurry by, emotional weather briefly shifting to 'hungry' before swinging back to her usual calm contentment. "There used to be, before the bugbears, servitors, and other carnivores removed them. There is, however, always the potential for a pleasant surprise. There have been rumors which indicate that a sewer kraken may be making its home downtown. I would enjoy the opportunity to battle something with that many limbs."
Sarah	Given the way Istas was dressed, the idea of her fighting a sewer kraken was disturbingly like something from the kind of anime Artie liked to pretend he never watched, and Sarah liked to pretend she didn't know about. She gave the waheela a sidelong glance. "Um, Istas, it was nice of you to insist on coming with is and everything, but you do know what we're doing down here, right?"
Istas	"I am not stupid, Sarah Zellaby," she said, in a voice that was much quieter than the one she'd been using only a moment before. "I realize I wear frilly clothing and impractical shoes, and that by many people's standards, I am odd, but I am not stupid. You are here because you want to ask the dragons to assist in recovering your cousin. I am here because Verity is my friend, and would look on me with sadness if I were to allow either of you to come to harm. Friendship is a rare thing among my people. We do not practice it often, and most of us do not practice it very well. I am hoping to be a better friend to Verity than my brothers and sisters were to me."
Sarah	"Oh." Sarah kept walking. Beside her, Istas did the same, spinning her parasol lazily with each step. Finally, Sarah said, "I forget sometimes that I can't treat you like you're human. I mean, I don't forget, exactly, but..." Beat. "...No offense, Liam."
Istas	"Your mannerisms and reactions are human enough, despite the fact that you are biologically even less human than I am, that you sometimes forget not all hominids will follow the same behavioral patterns." Istas shook her head. "It is a common, if unfortunate, trap of the mind. I am sorry you have fallen prey to it. I will not take offense at your ignorance." The worst part was that she meant it: for Istas, the matter was already forgotten. Sarah had made the mistake of treating her like a human being, Istas had corrected her, and as long as she didn't do it again, there was nothing left to discuss. ...She did not bother telling Liam that she meant no offense. He knew that, as he still had all his limbs.
Liam	Liam had spent the first half of his life surrounded by beings who would think nothing of killing someone for making the mistake of ascribing human behavior to them; it was a habit he didn't dare let himself fall into, even if, ironically, he himself preferred to be treated the same as any human. "None taken on my account," he said, giving Sarah a reassuring smile as they trudged deeper into the sewers. Which, strangely seemed to be getting gradually cleaner as they made their way deeper. Or perhaps not so strangely, since dragons didn't like wallowing in filth any more than most other species.
Sarah	Istas looked around as they moved into the final branch of the sewer. This one looked absolutely filthy, and smelled filthy, too, until they were about ten feet from the entrance. Then the smell of sewer was replaced by the smell of bleach and cheap air freshener. "The dragons have a good working relationship with the hidebehinds," Sarah said. "It's a camouflage measure."
Istas	"Clever," allowed Istas. "I have not been here since the snake cult attempted to sacrifice me to wake their sleeping dragon. I have never met William while awake."
Sarah	That explained the little hat: she was trying to make a good impression. "He's nice," Sarah said. "He even beats me at chess sometimes." They kept walking, and the darkness around us abruptly went away, replaced by a pleasant level of soft illumination. Istas jumped, whirling so that her back was pressed against Liam's shoulder while Sarah kept walking. "More hidebehind tricks. They use darks for that part of the passage, so that curious sanitation employees don't wander down here." She personally doubted that anyone would be curious enough about a dark, smelly tunnel that wasn't part of the currently in-use sewer system to wander down it, but Verity swore she should never underestimate human curiosity. Humans were weird. "How about you, Liam? Have you been back to visit William?"
Liam	"A couple times," Liam nodded. "William's a pretty good conversationalist." The tunnel ended at a bare wall eight feet, five inches across. Liam knocked lightly at a point exactly four feet, two and a half inches from either wall, stepped back, and motioned for Istas to wait.
Sarah	A few minutes passed. Then a door - a simple, normal, wooden door - swung open in what had appeared to be solid stone, and a blonde woman in a baggy New York Giants sweatshirt peered out through the opening. Sarah smiled pleasantly, reaching out with her mind just far enough to tap the surface of her thoughts and confirm her identity. "Hi, Priscilla," Sarah said. "Is Candy here? I need to talk to her."
Priscilla	Priscilla's ever-present frown deepened as she looked past Sarah to Istas, who was doing her best to look through the open door into the Nest beyond. "Why did you bring the waheela?" she demanded, ignoring Liam completely.
Sarah	"Because Verity was unavailable, and it's not safe for anyone to go out alone right now." Most of the female dragons picked up shifts at the Freakshow every now and then, and several of them worked there full time. There was no way Priscilla didn't recognize Istas. She was just being prickly, which was something the dragons specialized in. "Now please, can we come in before we attract attention standing here?"
Priscilla	"I suppose the human wants to come in, too?" she demanded. "Did you just decide to throw a party down here? Or are you laying a trail for the Covenant to follow, right to our door?"
Liam	"The longer we stay out here, the more of a danger that becomes," Liam pointed out dryly.
William	Frowning even more, Priscilla said, "Fine," and opened the door the rest of the way, beckoning them inside. Another blonde woman was dispatched to find Candy, while the three of them headed for the far wall of the cavern, where one of the only things that was neither blonde nor covered in gold was waiting. William raised his head as they approached, opening enormous eyes the color of electric jack-o'-lanterns. His lips turned upward in an eerily human smile, considering that he was a giant fire-breathing semi-saurian cryptid. "Sarah! Liam!" he said, his crisp British accent somehow making things all the more incongruous. Even dragons have to come from somewhere. William came from England, back when the United States of America were still the thirteen original Colonies. In a very real way, this country was built on top of him.
Sarah	"Hey, Billy," Sarah said, waving. "You remember Istas? She was here when you woke up."
William	"But she was unconscious at the time, as I recall." William lowered his head, putting Istas at eye level. That wasn't necessarily a comfortable place to be; his head, after all, was the size of a VW bus. "A pleasure to properly make your acquaintance, Miss Istas. I truly do appreciate your efforts on my behalf."
Istas	Undaunted, Istas looked him in the eye. Then, solemnly, she curtsied. "It is very nice to meet you."
Liam	Despite the seriousness of the situation, Liam's lips twitched with a hint of a smile as he watched Istas introduce herself. "Unfortunately," he said after a moment, "This isn't actually a social visit. Something's happened to Verity, and we're here to ask you- and Candy- for help."
William	William's smile faded, replaced by an expression of profound concern. "Oh, dear. Has Miss Verity's unsuitable companion finally turned against you?"
Sarah	"Not that I'm aware of, thankfully, but that's sort of the problem." Sarah could hear Candy's thoughts clearly enough to know that she was pissed about them being here. Also that she was coming up behind them. She turned. "Hi, Candy."
Candy	The current Nest-mother stopped and folded her arms over her chest, glaring so hard that even Sarah could recognize it. "What are you doing here?" she demanded, turning her glare from Sarah to Liam to Istas, who looked impassively back. "What if you were followed?" "We weren't followed," Sarah said. "What if you were?"
Istas	"I would have ripped and torn and broken the bodies of our pursuers, and it would have been glorious," said Istas. She sounded so calm that everyone turned to look at her, even William. Heedless, Istas gave her parasol a spin, and added, "I would have brought you their heads. I think it would have made a suitable subterranean cavern-warming present."
Sarah	The silence that followed this announcement lasted for several seconds. Sarah was the one to break it, turning to Candy and saying, "We're here because we need your help."
Candy	"Did Verity send you because she knew I'd tell her no?" asked Candy. "She already has our slaughterhouse. She doesn't need any more help from us."
Liam	"Verity didn't send us," Liam said, his voice flat. "Verity's gone."
William	Candy paused. William snorted out a small puff of smoke. "Gone?" he asked.
Sarah	"Gone," Sarah confirmed. "Something knocked her out about an hour ago. It hurt like hell, and I haven't been able to reach her since."
Candy	Candy's expression turned alarmed. "Oh, God, what if she's not dead?" "Candice," said William chidingly. "That isn't a nice thing to say in front of her family." "But it's true! What if she's not dead? What if the Covenant has her? She knows where we are! We can't move you!" Candy put her hands protectively over her belly, starting to cry. "We can't lose you. I can't leave you."
Liam	"We don't think she's dead, but we don't think she's told them anything, either," Liam said. Seeing Candy cry was strange, almost as if she were expressing the emotions Liam was currently not letting himself feel. "They haven't had her long enough, and I don't think there's any torture they could subject her to that would make her give you up in less than a day."
Candy	"If they have telepaths--"
Sarah	"They're using anti-telepathy charms. If they had a telepath, they'd have to remove those charms from Verity in order to get any kind of information out of her, and I'd know where she was," Sarah said with devastating logic. "Since she hasn't been appearing and disappearing from my radar, they aren't removing the charms, and they don't have a telepath. Human methods of getting information aren't good, but they're not going to break Verity Price in less than a day. We have time to find her if we start moving now."
William	"We can't--" Candy began. "Anything you need," said William. Candy stopped, turning to look at him. Her eyes were wide, and her confusion was a raw wound on her emotional landscape. He blew a puff of flame in her face, sending it dancing along her hair. It wasn't the aggressive gesture it would have been with anything but another dragon: Candy was fireproof. For her, that was an affectionate peck on the cheek. "I would not be with you now if not for Verity. We owe it to her family to do what we can to bring her home. Moreover, you're correct: she knows where I am. If the Covenant has her, she has to be taken from them, or you'll lose me again." He ducked his head enough to nudge her belly, ever so gently, with the tip of his snout. "I want to meet our baby. I want to see how many of you are carrying fine, strong sons to bring joy to the other golden ones waiting lonely around this world. How can we deny these people the aid they need?"
Candy	Candy sniffled. Then she sighed, turning back to Liam and Sarah, and asked, "What is it you want from us?” Candy listened attentively as they explained their plan. She even suggested a few things they hadn't considered, like using the kids - in a swarm, and with the help of some of the adults - to canvas parks and playgrounds, since they'd be able to ask really blatant questions without anyone thinking it was strange. Little girls can get away with a lot just by looking cute and clueless when they’re doing it. When they were done talking, William and Candy had promised to dispatch every available female dragon - omitting the pregnant ones, the ones assigned to tend the eggs that had already been laid, the ones under five years of age, and the babysitters — to start searching the city for Verity. They'd phone the Nest if they found anything, and then Candy, who was staying put because of her pregnancy, would call Liam or Sarah. If they actually found Verity, as opposed to just finding information that might lead to her, they'd bring her back to the old Nest.
Liam	"Thank you," Liam said, for what between him and Sarah was probably around the twelfth time, as Candy walked them to the door.
Candy	"Thank my husband," Candy said shortly. "I understand why he wants us to help you, but if we didn't have to stay here and protect him, we'd be gone."
Istas	"You have a lovely home," said Istas amiably as they walked out the door. Spinning her parasol, she added, "I think that went quite well, despite the lack of carnage."
Sarah	"I hope so." Sarah said as they made their way back to the manhole cover. "There are a lot of dragons. They can cover a lot of ground. I just hope none of them get hurt."
Istas	"If they do, we will avenge them," said Istas placidly, waiting at the foot of the ladder for the other two to climb up.
Liam	Liam was nearly at the top of the ladder when a figure loomed above the opening and a hand was thrust down into the darkness, grabbing his forearm. He tensed, and was about to yank his arm out of the figure's grip when he realized just who had hold of him. He could probably fight them off, but he wanted answers. So he let himself be pulled up in to the light.
Istas	Dominic released Liam as soon as he was on solid ground. They both stepped back to let Sarah and Istas out of the hole. Istas looked at Dominic, sniffed the air, and frowned. "You are unwell," she informed him. "I will end you if you have harmed Verity."
Dominic	"I know," said Dominic quietly. He wasn't looking good. His hair was uncombed, and there were dark circles around his eyes. He looked like a man who'd just realized he was in the middle of fighting a war. "I need your help."
Liam	Well, at least he'd finally gotten the memo that that's what was going on. "Is Verity alive?" Liam asked, the question out of his mouth before he even had time to think about it. Right now, it was the only question that mattered.
Dominic	"Yes." He nodded. "But I don't know how long she will be. We need to move."
Liam	"Except," Liam hesitated. "I don't know if we can trust you," he admitted.
Dominic	"Yes, you can." He held out his arm to Sarah in silent invitation.
Sarah	Sarah didn't say anything. Dominic knew what he was offering her, and how much stronger she would be if she did it touching him. Before either of them could change their minds, Sarah reached out and grabbed his wrist, diving into his psyche as hard and deep as she could without pausing to make the process easy on either one of them. This wasn't the time to be gentle. Dominic gritted his teeth, and he didn't pull away. Telepathy - cuckoo telepathy, anyway - was usually a passive thing, polite and noninvasive. Sure, Sarah might learn a person's deepest, darkest secrets, but it didn't hurt them, and it didn't hurt her. This...wasn't like that. This was a home invasion of the soul, and it made her feel dirty even as she was doing it.
Dominic	Dominic's mind was filled with cluttered rooms packed with thoughts and memories even he wasn't fully aware of anymore. He didn't think he remembered what his mother looked like. He did; he just had the memory walled off by so many other things that it only came to the surface when he slept or, oddly, when he ate German chocolate. He had feelings for Verity. He hated the smell of violets in the rain; that was connected to his mother's death, and was part of the wall between him and the memory of her face. He also had feelings for Liam. He wasn't a part of the plan that captured Verity; the rest of the Covenant agents in town hadn't even told him they suspected she existed. He thought they suspected him of being a traitor. He didn't care. After they got Verity back, he was done with the Covenant of St. George. Dominic de Luca was finally picking a side, and it wasn't theirs.
Sarah	Sarah let go of his wrist, breaking the telepathic contact at the same time. He gasped, and she realized just how pale he'd gotten. Sorry, she said mentally. I know that can be rough.
Dominic	"It's all right," he said. Then he paused. "You...didn't speak."
Sarah	Sarah smiled a little. "I didn't have to. After that kind of excavation, we're attuned. Welcome to the family. Now let's go and get my cousin back from your ex-allies."

Istas	Istas walked into the warehouse ahead of the rest of the group, her parasol resting against her shoulder. She looked utterly relaxed, which might have been the only reason no one attacked Dominic on sight. They were too busy staring at the muck-encrusted waheela. "Dominic is not responsible for Verity's disappearance, and is no longer affiliated with the Covenant of St. George," she announced. "The telepathic girl without a proper circulatory system says so, and as she has no reason to lie, I am choosing to believe the story which presents the highest odds of future carnage."
Ryan	"That's my girl," said Ryan - but his voice was several octaves lower than normal, and he seemed taller as he got up from his seat. Uncle Mike didn't bother standing. He just produced a gun from somewhere inside his jacket and raised it to shoulder level, the muzzle trained on Dominic’s throat.
Sarah	"I admire the efficiency, but can you at least try not to get arterial spray in my hair?" Sarah asked.
Dominic	"Hello, sir," said Dominic. "I assume you're Verity's...family? I wish we were meeting under better circumstances."
Liam	"Dominic, this is Verity and Sarah's uncle, Mike Gucciard." Telling him Mike's last name was a warning that the choice Dominic was making was irrevocable: if Dominic so much as twitched in the direction of the Covenant after this, he'd find himself stuffed into a dumpster somewhere in midtown. There were things one didn't screw around with as a member of an underground operation, and that included the covers of one's friends and allies. "Mike, this is our friend, Dominic De Luca. He's here to tell us how to get Verity back, and to discuss the many advantages to defecting to the side with the sense of humor."
Uncle Mike	"The sense of humor, and the many, many unmarked body disposal sites," said Uncle Mike. His voice was utterly devoid of warmth.
Sarah	"Please go easy on him," Sarah said quietly. "He's our best shot at finding Verity."
Uncle Mike	"Or he's lying to you," Uncle Mike shot back. "Did you consider that?"
Sarah	Sarah sighed heavily. "Okay, so is it time to have the talk about lying to the telepath again? I say 'don't lie to the telepath, it never works,' and you all say you won't. And then I point out that the corollary to this is that when the telepath says someone isn't lying, she's probably right. That's when you look sheepish and say you're sorry and hey, look, I just shortcut about ten minutes of awkward conversation, go me. Now can we get on with saving Verity from the Covenant, or do I have to get annoyed?"
Istas	There was a moment of silence before Istas said, "I was unaware the telepathic girl possessed a temper. This is pleasing. Temperamental people are more likely to participate in carnage."
Ryan	"Sweetie, what have we talked about?" asked Ryan.
Istas	Now it was Istas' turn to sigh. "Humans are discomforted by excessive discussion of their squishy interiors." "Which means...?" "No referencing carnage more than once in a single conversation."
Uncle Mike	"As the dominant human in the room, that rule is hereby suspended until we get my niece back," announced Uncle Mike. Now he stood, stalking toward Dominic with the calm, predatory assurance of a man who knew damn well that he was armed to the teeth and ready to kill anything standing in his way. Uncle Mike kept walking until the two of them were almost nose-to-nose, lowering his gun at the last minute as he looked the younger man square in the eye. To Dominic's credit, he stood his ground. Then again, maybe that was a sign that he was too stupid to live. "Sarah's vouching for you, and that would normally be good enough for me, but my niece's life is on the line," said Uncle Mike. His tone was absolutely level. That was another warning sign, and Sarah took a step away from them. "If you're lying to us - if I find out you're using some Covenant trick to lie to us - I won't just kill you, I'll hurt you. I'll make you sorry that you ever came to America, and then I'll make you even sorrier to have tangled with my family. Do I make myself clear?"
Dominic	"Yes, sir," said Dominic. "And if I may be blunt, sir, I'm already sorry to have encountered your family."
Uncle Mike	Uncle Mike's eyebrows shot up. Then they lowered again, coming together as he scowled. "What is that supposed to mean?"
Dominic	"Before I met your niece, before I met Liam, I was content to be ignorant of the true nature of this war, and my place in it," Dominic said softly. "Without her influence, I might have been able to spend my entire life believing 'monster' was the word for cryptid, and 'traitor' was the word for Price. I would have been unaware of how incomplete my understanding was. I would have continued to think that I was happy." Dominic gave a small shake of his head. "I want to find Verity more than anything else. I want to learn everything there is to know about this maddened mirror image of the world where I grew up. But here and now, I am frightened, and she is missing, and part of me is sorry I ever got involved."
Sarah	"He's telling the truth," Sarah said. "In case anyone cares."
Uncle Mike	Once again, every head turned toward her. Uncle Mike radiated disapproval. "I didn't expect you to take his side, Sarah. Do I need to remind you of what his kind does to yours?"
Sarah	"Uncle Mike, I love you, and I know what you're trying to say, but I'm a cuckoo," Sarah said with a snort. "Killing cuckoos isn’t a sign of evil, it's a sign of sanity. Killing other sapient cryptids is another matter - and that's something I've never seen Dominic do. Plus he - cares about Verity. A lot. Liam, too. That sort of puts him in my good graces."
Liam	Everyone turned to look at Liam, who in turn was looking at Dominic, his expression thoughtful. "'Cares'?" he echoed. The way Sarah hesitated before choosing that particular word had him curious.
Dominic	Dominic flushed but continued to look as stoic as he could. "You and Verity have done the heavy lifting to convince me of the error of my previous ways," he said stiffly. "Surely it makes sense that you've both become...important...to me."
Liam	Liam nodded. "When I thought- when it seemed like you had betrayed us, it felt... personal," he admitted.
Dominic	"I didn't though," Dominic said. "I care about her, like Sarah said, and would prefer she remain among the living. Please believe me. I don't know what I can possibly do to prove myself to you, and I doubt that we have time for anything that you might name. Verity is alive, but that doesn't mean she's not in danger. Time is short. I need your help."
Uncle Mike	"Goddamn kids," muttered Uncle Mike, rubbing his head. Then he stepped away from Dominic, moving out of the other man's personal space. "Okay, Covenant boy. Tell us what you know."
Dominic	"Margaret Healy loves her duty and hates your branch of the family in equal measure," said Dominic, apparently counting Sarah, Liam and Uncle Mike as official members of the Price-Healy clan for purposes of this debriefing. It made sense. Even if they weren't related by blood, they were all tainted by the ideology that led her actual relatives astray. "I was honestly surprised to see her with the review team. The last time we spoke, she was still barred from activities in North America." "Why?" asked Ryan. "Margaret never believed that the Michigan incident had truly eliminated all survivors of the family on this continent. She wanted to investigate in person. Our superiors felt this was a personal vendetta with no immediate benefit to the Covenant."
Liam	"Which translates to they were worried she could be right," reasoned Liam. "And if she started digging, she might set off a war."
Dominic	Dominic nodded. "I think that was a factor in their decision, yes. If she was wrong, she would be wasting her time and the Covenant's resources on a wild goose chase. If she was right, and she was unable to eliminate or capture all hostiles in her first attack, she could very easily have caused the remaining members of the family to turn their efforts against the Covenant."
Ryan	"But there are like, eight of them,” said Ryan, sounding confused. "I don't know how many, since Very was always pretty cagey about that, but I know they all live in the same house when they're at home."
Dominic	"If there's one thing you should know about the Prices, it's that odds rarely work the way they should once the family decides to get involved." Dominic smiled. "The Covenant had them outnumbered ten to one in Buckley, and they survived. Margaret could easily have triggered a chain reaction no one was prepared for."
Uncle Mike	"Maybe she just did that anyway," said Uncle Mike. "Verity dies, I can guarantee you that the Covenant of St. George isn't going to like what comes next."
Liam	Liam could feel the destructive energy of the shaqarava aching to break free, an instinctive response to the emotions Mike's words brought forth. He curled his hands in to fists as much to ground himself as to hide the glow of the shaqarava if he couldn't. "We won't even need to wait for the rest of her family to show up," Liam promised, his voice cold. "They'll regret it long before then."
Sarah	"We get it," Sarah said, laying a calming hand on Liam's arm. Over his sleeve, of course. "If Verity dies, everybody's sorry. You know who's probably going to be sorriest? Verity. If this Margaret person wasn't allowed to be in North America, why is she here now?
Dominic	"I was told that it was a test for her, to see whether she could focus on the mission at the exclusion of her personal vendettas," said Dominic. A sudden wave of regret, blame, and self-loathing rushed off him like it was trying to fill the entire room, enough to make Sarah take a sudden step back. She was pretty sure that even the non-telepaths in the room could sense what he was feeling. He was practically screaming his pain. "Please forgive me. I believed them."
Uncle Mike	"There was no reason for you not to," said Uncle Mike. From his tone, it was clear he'd picked up on the same emotional weather Sarah had. "Whatever lies the Covenant may have told you about the cryptids, they raised you. They trained you. Did they ever lie to you about anything but dogma before?" "I don't know," said Dominic. "I hate the Covenant as much as anybody, but I'm willing to bet they didn't, because truth is the best way to guarantee obedience. The more lies you're told, the harder it gets to keep the stories straight. When your bosses told you Margaret was here to test her obedience, you had absolutely no reason to think that they were lying to you. You got me? You warned Verity as soon as you had the chance. You did everything you could."
Dominic	"I didn't do enough."
Istas	Istas yawned more widely than a strictly human jaw would have been able to support. There was an audible cracking noise as the bones shifted to accommodate the gesture. Dominic went very still, and Sarah had the brief impression from his thoughts that he had managed, temporarily, to forget that humans were the minority in this room. "This is dull," Istas announced. "Are we going to stand here and debate blame while Verity is slaughtered? Vengeance carnage is often satisfying, but it takes longer to perform properly than the kind which does not require a death to begin."
Ryan	"That's my girl," said Ryan. "A delicate flower." Istas snorted.
Dominic	Dominic took a breath, seeming to center himself. "Margaret Healy hates Verity's bloodline for daring to leave the Covenant," he said, returning to his original conversational thread like a smart boy. "She didn't accompany the investigative team because they thought her hatred might have dimmed."
Liam	"No," Liam said. Sarah's touch had worked as a reminder to re-center his emotions, and his tone was gentle as he continued: "They sent her because somebody suspected you'd been compromised, didn't they?" Liam wasn't a telepath, but he didn't need to be one, not the way distress was radiating from Dominic like a beacon.
Dominic	"Yes." Dominic looked at Liam, utterly hangdog. "I don't know how. I don't know what I did, or didn't do, or said, or didn't say. I was so careful..."
Uncle Mike	"Kiddo, they've got charms and telepathy barriers on these people. They're loaded for metaphysical bear. For all we know, they've got a witch or something back at headquarters who did some remote viewing on you when you didn't even realize you were being watched," Mike said, thinking aloud. "That would explain why they were able to drop Margaret at Sarah's hotel. But just because they got suspicious, that doesn't mean you did anything wrong." Beyond joining their goddamn cult in the first place.
Sarah	Sarah tried not to eavesdrop on other people's minds most of the time; it made her feel a little sleazy, like she was living down to their expectations of her species. Still, that thought was loud enough that there was no way she could miss it. "Uncle Mike, he didn't join," she said. "He was born into the Covenant, the same way all of us were born into our lives. Please don't take that out on him. Not right now."
Uncle Mike	Uncle Mike flinched a little, glancing in her direction. There was a brief flicker of apology in his emotional state. Then he focused back on Dominic, and said, "What matters now is that you're here with us, not there with them, and you're going to help us get her back. As far as I'm concerned, if you're on the up and up, we're cool, you and me." Other people - particularly Liam and other members of the family - might not see it so simply, but that was between them and Dominic and for a later time.
Mouse Priest	A small throat was cleared from the center of the folding table, audible only because it was timed to come at the exact end of Uncle Mike's statement. One of the Aeslin mice standing there, waiting to be noticed. It was the one Verity referred to as the Head Priest. He was wearing a sequin-spangled cape that used to be part of one of her dance costumes, and his whiskers were as white as if they'd been baby powdered. They hadn't been. This was a very old mouse. Two other mice, younger, wearing unspangled capes, crouched a foot away from him. They must have been sent to assist him on what would be, to a mouse, a very dangerous journey. "I come to speak the Will of the Colony," announced the mouse priest. "Hello, mouse," said Istas calmly, looking entirely unsurprised by the sudden intrusion of talking rodents on the conversation. "Hello, carnivore," said the mouse priest. He turned and bowed to Uncle Mike and Liam. "Hail to the High Priest of Goddammit Eat Something Already, and to the God of Distant Stars."
Sarah	Ryan blinked. "What?" "It's a mouse thing, just roll with it, you'll be happier that way," Sarah advised. "Hail," she added, to the mouse.
Mouse Priest	"Hail, Heartless One," The priest said politely. He sat up a little straighter, wrapping his pink thread of a tail around his feet, and adjusted his grip on the carved pencil he was using as a staff. "The Colony has discussed the disappearance of the Arboreal Priestess," he said. "We have further discussed the words of the Priestess before she was Taken from us, and have decided that we will Abide by her Wisdom."
Liam	"Are you sure?" Liam said. He'd agreed with the idea of using them as spies when it had been just that, an idea; but now? Willing or not, in Verity's absence, the mice were his responsibility, and not one that he took lightly.
Mouse Priest	"We do not wish to leave our Priestess in the grip of the false Priestess who has taken her," said the mouse priest. "We understand that it will be dangerous. We do not mind the risk."
Ryan	"None of us do," added Ryan. "Verity's not my family, but she's my friend. Whatever has to be done, I'm going to do it." He shrugged and looked at the rest of them. "She said that they were pretty good at it. Being mice means they can get into a lot of small spaces."
Dominic	Dominic nodded. "Then perhaps there is a chance after all. But we need to move, and we need to move quickly." Nobody interrupted Dominic after that - even the mice were quiet - as he shared what he knew. Margaret had been working on her own when she set the trap that eventually snared Verity: the anti-telepathy charm they'd took off her unconscious body was laced with a compulsion spell that forced Verity right back into her nasty little clutches. Dominic only knew that Verity had been taken because he'd been with one of the other Covenant agents - Peter Brandt - when Margaret called and asked for backup. Peter had gone without him, and Dominic had followed at what he guessed would be a safe distance. "Thanks to Verity and her maddening insistence on taking the rooftops whenever possible, I had a whole set of routes open to me that they barely realized existed. I was not seen."
Liam	"Where's Verity being held?" asked Liam, the question on everybody's mind.
Dominic	"An old warehouse that the Covenant purchased during the last purge. Much like this locale," Dominic indicated the Nest, "it has been in private hands for so long that most have ceased viewing it as a building. It has become a part of the landscape."
Uncle Mike	"Well, then, I guess we're landscapers," said Uncle Mike. "We're going to need some muscle for this."
Istas	Slowly, Ryan smiled. "I think I can help you with that." Istas looked up at him, her thoughts turning quizzical. Then she smiled as well. "Oh, lovely," she said. "I do so enjoy spending time with my coworkers in a social setting."