Free Shadow's Son by Jon Sprunk

streets. Mansions of stone and timber stood silent
behind tall gates. Caim passed a party of nobles attended by linkmen and
bodyguards at an intersection, but they paid him no mind. With his
stooped shoulders and quick steps, he was just another servant attending
to his master's business.
    "Where are we going, anyways?" Kit stopped to tickle the whiskers
of a stray tomcat. The animal followed her, which meant it trailed behind
Caim like a lost child. He resisted the urge to boot it over a fence.
    "Esquiline Hill." He indulged her, hoping some conversation might
make her forget about the stupid cat.
    Instead, she blew in its tufted ears, which made the animal yowl like
a wounded groundhog.
    "You're coming up in the world,
Caim. I hope you were smart enough
to demand a bushel of money. Hey! Maybe we could stay in the house for
a couple days after the job. It would be nice to hang out someplace livable
instead of that shack you call a home."
    "I'm not sticking around afterward," he replied.
    "Spoken like a true man, gone as soon as the deed is done. Why not
stay? I doubt the owner will protest after you cut his throat. If you're
squeamish, we could just avoid the room with the body. We'd have plenty
of space-"
    "You're a nut. You know that?"

    "It was just a suggestion."
    As they started up the long incline of Esquiline Hill, the homes
became larger, each more opulent than the one before. Their walls glistened in ivory and salmon marble, unstained by the city's ordure. Smooth
pavestones replaced the street's cruddy brick.
    Caim went over the job in his head. Two days wasn't much time, but
he had put it to good use. He had located the target's home, a three-story
Graccian-style manse at the apex of Founders Circle, and spent most of
the first night casing the site. The house had a gloomy look. Tall windows
gaped in the dark stone facade like empty eye sockets. A high wall encircled the property. The gate was a gaudy monstrosity of wrought iron.
    "This is nice." Kit floated up to peek over the wall. "A lot nicer than
that old barn you live in."
    "Just get inside and take a look around, will you?"
    With a smirk in his direction, she walked through the stone. Caim
ducked into a spacious alley between the wall and the next property, a similarly impressive mansion. Around back he found a servants' entrance, a
simple wooden gate secured from the inside. In less than a heartbeat, Caim
was over it and crouched on the other side. He listened for signs of alarm,
but the yard was silent. True to the report, there were no sentries and no
dogs, for which he was grateful. Even though his information explicitly
stated the target owned no animals, Caim had brought a pouch of pepperlaced meat just in case. No lights showed in any of the windows.
    Caim darted across the yard. The outer face of the house was stone
brick. His information suggested forcing the rear door and stealing up the
inside of the house. Detailed plans of the building were included in the
packet, with the stairs and entry points clearly marked. The target's
chambers were situated in the northeast corner of the top floor. The only
servant, a middle-aged butler, bunked on the second floor. While it was a
sound plan, Caim had discarded it at once. Forcing doors was a noisy
affair, which meant an added chance of attracting attention. Plus, he
didn't like anyone telling him his business.
    As he crouched in the lee of the house, he reached into his satchel for
a bundle of thin rope. He portioned out a loop and tied a slider knot. A
grappling hook wouldn't bite on the slate shingles and would make an
awful clatter, but like most large homes the roof of this manse sported several chimneys.
Caim hurled the lariat up and over the lip of the roof.
On the third throw it caught on something. Caim tugged several times
and the line held. He had a solid anchor. After one last glance about the
yard, he went up the line hand over hand.

    He found Kit at