“You’ve got quite a way with a blade, and I think you’ll find this one fits you perfectly.”

“I can’t wait to try it.”

Both of them turned and stepped back into the hallway, and Embla pulled her door shut behind her. I exhaled and lay in place, relishing the relief that flooded through me. With my composure restored, I rolled out from under the bed, pressed my ear to Embla’s door, and then slipped out into the hallway, closing her door behind me. Val met me at the landing to the stairway.

“What the hell happened?” he whispered when I drew up to his side.

“They came back too soon.”

“I know.” Val brushed my shoulders and back, shooing away dirt and dust bunnies. “Skyla came into the room and freaked when I told her you were still putting the key back in place.”

“I heard them coming and hid under the bed—classic espionage technique. Maybe I should work for the CIA after all.” I told him about the conversation I had overheard and gave him the picture of teenaged Skyla.

Val looked at it, and his brows drew together. “What’s this?”

“I found it in a box in Embla’s room. There were stacks of them, mostly of Skyla growing up, but there were pictures of a woman who must be Skyla’s mother and a boy who must be her brother.”

Val’s blue eyes flicked up to mine and held my gaze with a hard look. “Are you going to tell her?”

“Of course. She’s been dying to know the truth of who she is. This might be the proof she needs.”

“If she tells Embla, she’ll know someone’s been in her room.”

“I trust Skyla knows how to be discreet. But even if Embla knows our scheme, I think it’ll be worth it.”

Val and I went to the kitchen in search of coffee. A headache was already worrying my temples, punishing me for engaging in early-morning, clandestine activities without sufficient doses of caffeine. Amala and Naomi were there, finishing their bowls of oatmeal. I poured a big mug of coffee and doctored it with cream and sugar. Val settled into a chair at the kitchen table, clutching his own cup, filled to the brim. For the gods, coffee must have been one of those things of pleasure rather than necessity, and Val never denied an opportunity to indulge in the things he liked.

Amala frowned at me. “I had hoped you might make more goodies for us like you did yesterday, but I only found oatmeal and cereal.”

“Maybe I can make up for it by lunchtime. How about brownies?”

Amala sighed, but a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. “I guess… if that’s the best you can do.”

I laughed and went to the Aerie’s massive pantry to sort out the necessary ingredients while Val went in search of other occupations. Brownie baking started my second day of keeping busy in the kitchen while the household buzzed around me. Just before noon, Skyla strolled into the kitchen and sniffed at my plate of double-fudge brownies.

When she reached for one, I smacked her hand. “Save them for lunch.”

“But I missed breakfast.”

“Have a banana.” I pointed toward a bowl of fruit on the kitchen table.

Skyla set her jaw and went for the brownies again, snagging one away before I caught her. “Ha!” She shoved it into her mouth, making her cheeks bulge. “God,” she mumbled, “these are like chocolate orgasms.”

“Do you think I should put those on the order form for the bakery? Chocolate orgasms, eight ninety-nine a dozen?”

“I’d buy them,” she said with a sigh. “I’d buy any kind of orgasm I could get.”

“I don’t know why you and Val hate each other so much. You’re both so much alike on this subject.”

Skyla shrugged, swallowed, and stuffed another brownie in her mouth. I shook my head and went back to stirring a giant pot of vegetable soup. Although a baker by trade, I was a monkey with more than one trick when it came to the kitchen. “How did your workout go?”

“Embla gave me a new blade to try.”

“I heard.”

“Right. I wondered where you were hiding.”

“Under the bed.”

“I almost died when Val said you were in Embla’s room when we came back. What were you doing in there?”

I gave her a rundown of our morning’s activities and finished by pulling the photo from my pocket. “I found something else you’re going to be interested in.”

Skyla took the photo and looked at the image. She gasped and slapped her hand over her mouth. While she struggled for composure, I told her about Embla’s box and the other photos I found in it.

“My mother and my brother?” Skyla said, breathless. “What does she know about my family?”

“I guess you’ll have to ask her, but you can’t tell her how you know. If she knows we were in her room, it puts everything at risk. You’re right not to trust anyone here.” I motioned to the photo. “You have proof you’ve been lied to, but don’t let your indignation interfere with our plans.”

Skyla’s face reddened, and she gritted her teeth. “Are you insinuating I don’t know how to handle myself?”

I raised my hands in a defensive pose. “I didn’t say that to offend you. I can only imagine your outrage. But above all else, we’ve got to find out what happened to Tori and that sword.”

“I know that.” Skyla slapped the tabletop. “I know my mission, and I won’t jeopardize it for personal issues. I mean, if you of all people can keep your head on straight, don’t you think I can do the same?”

“Me of all people? What’s that supposed to mean?”

Skyla’s shoulders slumped. “I meant it as a compliment. I meant a relatively naive small-town girl got thrown into this big, steaming pile of crap, and she’s handled it with decorum. You’ve had every right to have a meltdown and fly off the handle, but you’ve held it together.”

“I don’t know if you were paying attention, but I have had a meltdown. And it lasted for a month.”

“Oh, I was paying attention,” she said. “That wasn’t a meltdown.”

“What was it then?”

“A flare-up.”

I snorted and grinned. “Are you calling me a hemorrhoid?”

Skyla barked a sharp laugh that dissolved into a fit of quivering giggles. “Sh-should I start carrying around some of that cream?”

“Sure,” I said, hiccupping with laughter. “But only if you think it would help.”

I rubbed my hands over my face, clearing away the last of my mirth. Then I sighed and leaned against the kitchen counter. “I need to call Thorin and give him an update. I promised to stay in touch, but I haven’t had a chance. Things around here have been… distracting, to say the least.”

“You two seem to be getting along better than before,” Skyla said. “There’s still tension between you, but it’s a different kind.”

I pressed my lips together and avoided her gaze. “Maybe we understand each other a little better than we used to.”