Ress insisted he be the one to take the documents to the Denmother to complete the mark, but only after he made sure Maize was settled in the bath he drew for her within their small one-bedroom apartment on the upper floor of the Den's residential quarters. He filled it with enough warm water and rose oil to keep her submerged to her neck, and he placed a kiss on her brow before he murmured promises of returning soon.

Only after she heard the door to the apartment latch closed did she submerge herself completely, allowing the warmth of the scent of rose to ease the lingering pounding of her head. Counting to ten, she let the breath slowly rush out of her lungs until she could hold her breath no longer and brought her head back to the surface where she gasped for breath once, twice, thrice before submerging again.

She continued to routine two more times, and only on the third submersion did the ache finally seem to dissipate. She brought her head back to the surface, and closing her eyes, she leaned it back against the edge of the clawfoot tub while she tried to piece together the day's unexpected events.

A lesser advisor wanted her, of all people, to infiltrate the palace on Remembrance Day, where she'll undoubtedly be surrounded by guards and partygoers alike, and expected her to steal the nondescript Lusciana's Legacy, never before seen by the public eye, and therefore unknown to even the most skilled infiltrator.

It was a fool's errand— getting caught even thinking about stealing anything on Remembrance Day could get her killed.

But the gold...

I hear the healers in Xelthan are exceptional, Forge had said. But how did he know?

Maize had done a very fine job of hiding her ailment from those around her, and had been doing so for the last three years. Even the Denmother didn't know, and she would be the last one Maize would want to find out. Knowing one of her best thieves could easily give herself up because of an unknown voice tormenting her from the inside out, any and all prime marks would pass right over her and Ress, and they'd never get out of Dreduor.

Leaving the Den behind had been her prime objective for the last three years, and they were finally so close...

She must have fallen asleep in the middle of her thoughts because the next thing she knew, Ress was shaking her shoulder and the bathwater was cold.

"As comfortable as you look, I promise I can offer you a much better alternative in the bedroom."

Maize gave him a sleepy smile from where she lay in the tub. "But will it smell as good?"

"If you asked me to douse myself in it, I would for you."

"Liar," she purred but sat up all the same. He handed her a plush towel without request and left her to stepping out and drying off before she wrapped the towel around her to emerge into the apartment.

Ress stood in their small kitchen, stirring what looked to be a pot of stew at the heated stovetop. Only when the aroma of freshly cooking food hit her senses did she realize how hungry she was, and Maize's stomach groaned as she walked past.

"Get dressed quick," he said over his shoulder. "It'll be ready soon."

He didn't have to tell her twice. She moved towards their shared bedroom, simply furnished with a bed big enough for two, a dresser, and a vanity. Various weapons and gear lay strewn across the floor, and Maize didn't remember which was there because they were too lazy to put them away, or because they were in too much of a hurry to tear them off.

She threw on a simple pair of leggings and a soft oversized sweater before she padded back out to the main room where Ress was already sitting with a bowl in his hands and hers waiting on the low table between them.

Next to the bowl, however, was a small though familiar envelope.

She glanced at him and he nodded.

"How?" she breathed.

"I was able to find Josue before the market closed."

She grabbed the small packet between her hands. "How many?"

"Only two."

She frowned as she turned the envelope over in her hands, calculating. "I'll take one tonight, and that will leave one more before the market reopens— plenty of time before Remembrance Day."

"You're still thinking about Forge's offer?"

She glanced at Ress at that, and the look he gave her was nothing short of concerned.

"It's off the books," he reminded her. "And he wants you to go alone."

"Well, he can jump off the roof he climbed up on if he thinks that's ever going to happen."

"Alright," Ress said, and she could see his shoulders drop as if they carried a great weight. "And what about the mission?"

"We can tell Celese you have an ailing aunt."

"She's not going to believe that."

"Well I certainly can't say it's my aunt."

"But if we're caught, we're done. We're out."

"If we're caught, we'll already have more money than we'd ever earn doing off jobs here, with more on the way once we're done."

"We could just take the money and run," he offered, shifting on the chaise to face her. "Tell him we'll accept his offer, get the first half he promised, and then disappear like we've always wanted to."

"That goes against the code," she said, brows furrowed at his outward disregard for honor.

"So does this mission. Besides, being the advisor he is—"

"Lesser advisor."

Ress smirked. "He won't be able to do anything about it without getting caught himself."

Maize contemplated that for a moment. "But still, if that's the case, why bother with us at all?"

"You said it yourself— he doesn't want to get his hands dirty."

"Or he truly doesn't know what the Legacy looks like and knows he can't remain unseen long enough to figure it out for himself."

"Either way— he's making a stupid decision to give us that amount without even knowing us."

Maize's attention returned to the packet between her fingers. "He seems to know enough."

"Hey."

He brought a hand beneath her chin and lifted her head so that her gaze could meet his.

"Xelthan is known for its healers. For all we know, he saw you slip, watched me glove your hand—"

She glanced down to the hands in question, but he took them both between his and leaned in close to regain her attention.

"Don't let him get into your head."

"Because it's too crowded already?"

Ress frowned. "That's not what I meant."

Maize sighed. "I know. I'm sorry. I just..."

"You don't need to prove anything to anyone."

"That's so easy for you to say," she muttered, pulling her hands away from his.

"Maize..."

She just shook her head and stood, the package of pills in one hand and her dinner remaining untouched on the table before her.

"Thanks," she said softly, holding up the hand with the pills before she returned to the bedroom.

Ress didn't follow— she knew he wouldn't until much later— which would give Maize more than enough time to calm her nerves and fall asleep before he even came to bed.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, she tore open the envelope and gently poured its contents into her palm. Two small green pills stared back at her like beady serpentine eyes, and their effects were just as alluring. She returned one to the envelope and tossed the other into her mouth, forcing herself to swallow it without water before she lay back on the bed and closed her eyes.

I hear the healers in Xelthan are exceptional.

Exceptional they may be, but could they remove the revenant from her mind?

Maize felt the bed shift at the same time Ress' arm wrapped around her stomach and his lips found the skin behind her ear.

"Are you asleep?" he whispered, knowing full well he just woke her up.

She groaned in response, causing him to drag his lips to her neck. "Thought so."

"I'm still mad at you," she lied, her throat dry from sleep.

"I know," he murmured against her skin, the hand that rested on her stomach slowly making its way beneath her sweater and towards her chest.

"It's going to take a lot of effort to make it up to me," she breathed, shifting against the warmth of his body behind her.

His hand found her breast, his finger pinching her nipple. "I plan on it."

Her breath hitched and she finally turned her head to attention to look at him.

He let her roll over and braced his arms above her, his features shadowed in the dim light of the candle resting on the bedside table that he must have brought in with him.

"You can't always fix everything with sex," she informed him, though her tone remained soft, and not just because she remained half asleep.

"I know because if I could, we'd be in Xelthan by now."

"Ress," she sighed, ready to roll back over the moment he decided to move.

"C'mon, Maize, I'm trying."

"Try harder."

"Fine." He leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. It took all she had to not wrap her arms around is and pull him close— she was mad at him, after all. "Tomorrow we can go meet Lawson Forge, hear him out about the details of his secret mission, and then take his money to the bank where it will sit until it's doubled with the money you're going to earn us once it's over."

"We are going to earn it."

"We'll see," he said with a small smile and another kiss.

"And then what?" she asked softly.

"And then we'll take all that money," he said before giving her another kiss. "We'll board the next boat to Xelthan." Another kiss. "We'll finally buy that cottage and I'll buy you that ring." he said with one more kiss, "And we'll live an honest life away from this deathtrap of a kingdom."

She smiled against his lips. "You make it sound so attainable."

"Together we can do anything," he said, this time giving her a deeper, more suggestive kiss. "Even if that means risking our asses to find some unattainable Legacy."

"And we'll have three weeks to prepare," she reminded him with a grin.

"But before all that, you have a meeting with Celese in the morning."

"What?" she asked, leaning up on her elbows. "Why didn't you say something earlier?"

"You were mad earlier."

"I'm mad again now."

"No you're not," he purred, coaxing her to lie back down on the pillows. "Right now you want to strip me naked and have your way with me, and eventually you'll fall asleep, and you'll worry about visiting the Denmother in the morning."

She was going to protest, but the effort was lost when he crashed his lips into hers.

Ress was many things, but he was never wrong.