'No no. There is to be no fighting. Pay the ransom. That is the only way she will come back unharmed.

'I give you my word I will not endanger her. If it takes the ransom to release her, I will carry it to them for you.

'Wait. You know where she is, don't you?

'I'm not sure.

'My aunt says you do. Wait, I will come with you.

'Oh Lady, Edeard groaned.

'We can be there before he even gets down here, Boyd urged.

'No we can't, Macsen said through gritted teeth.

Edeard looked down, Homelt and a number of guards were standing at the foot of the stairs. 'Does nobody want this girl to live? he growled.

'We do, Edeard, Kanseen assured him.

'Right then. He took the last flight of stairs at a run.

'I have my orders, Homelt said as the squad confronted him. His hand rested on his pistol holster.

'What are they? Edeard asked reasonably.

'Not to let you leave the mansion. It's not just Master Julan. I could maybe ignore that on this day. But Lorin backed him up, and he does have his wits about him. I'll say naught about Mistress Florrel. The guard captain glanced up, several people were on the eighth flight of stairs, making a commotion as they wound their way inexorably down.

'Fair enough, Edeard said. 'Don't let us out.

Homelt flashed him a hugely relieved look. 'You'll wait for the Master?

'Not quite. Edeard leaned forwards. 'She is alive. I know where she is.

'I will come with you, Waterwalker, Homelt said softly.

'No. This is not the help she needs. Already the news is spreading. We have to be quick. You know they'll kill her, and you know why.

Homelt's anguish was visible for all to see. 'What do you want me to do?

'Take us down to your deepest cellar. The one on the north western corner of the mansion. And we'll need your pistols, too. Hurry man, or it'll be too late.

Homelt glanced up the stairwell. Julan was on the seventh flight of stairs. 'Quickly then.

The cellar door was ancient wood, long since blackened so that no grain showed. Nails holding the hinges against the city's original open arch were in need of re-inserting; the city's sub stance had rejected over half of their length. That looseness made the heavy door swing about unsteadily as Homelt drew the bolls back and opened it. Barrels and crates cluttered the small room, caked in decades of dust and fil-rat droppings.

'I don't understand, the guard captain said, peering into the gloomy space. 'What's in here?

'Us, Edeard told him. 'Lock us in here. That way you will have obeyed your orders to the letter.

'What about Mirnatha?

'Trust me.

For a moment Edeard thought he might refuse and march them all upstairs for Julan and Lorin to sort out. But after a moment of hesitation while his mind showed a huge amount of uncertainty, Homelt ushered them all into the cellar, gave them a pistol each, and shut the door.

'Far be it for my humble self to criticise, Macsen said as the bolts were slammed back into place with some force. 'But I don't understand either.

'If we are to rescue Mirnatha alive, it means we won't be able to take prisoners, Edeard told them gravely. He brandished a pistol, examining its mechanism with his farsight. 'Are you still with me?

'We're with you, Kanseen said. 'But will you please tell us what in all of Honious is going on. I thought we'd got past this whole trust thing.

Edeard grinned broadly. 'This'll test your trust as nothing else. Step where I do, one at a time. You will feel like you're falling, but I promise you're not. If you can't do this, I'll think no less of you. He asked a circle of floor to let him though. It changed. Edeard stepped on it, and fell through the blackness into the Great Major Canal tunnel. Once he'd landed on the ledge above the water he moved to one side and waited.

It was Boyd who came through first, yelling in shock the whole way until his feet touched the ledge. 'Fuck the Lady! he bellowed in fright-driven excitement.

Still grinning, Edeard grabbed his friend's shoulder and dragged him aside as Kanseen came through; little whimpering sounds burping out of her throat as her arms windmilled furiously. She looked round in astonishment. 'This is incredible. It's… I had no idea this existed.

Edeard caught her arm and just managed to pull her out of the way of Dinlay's feet. Dinlay's eyes were screwed up shut behind his glasses.

'Waaaahoooo, Macsen yelled wildly as he dropped through the roof of the tunnel.

Edeard faced his friends, still unable to wipe the grin off his face. He'd rarely sensed their minds so unguarded; but surprise had left them too jittery to veil their emotions as usual. 'So, he drawled. 'You must have been keeping these tunnels from me, what with you city natives knowing everything there is to know about your own home.

'You bastard, Macsen said happily. 'What is this?

'This is the tunnel under the Great Major Canal, every canal has one.

'But how…? Dinlay was blinking up at the roof of the tunnel, his farsight probing the substance to try and find where they'd come through.

'I'm the Waterwalker, Edeard told them. 'Remember?

'Seriously, Kanseen asked with a noticeable edge in her voice. 'How did we get here?

'I'm not sure, exactly. I just ask the city, and it lets me through.

'You. Just. Ask. The. City.

'Yep, he said, faintly apologetic.

'After today, you have a lot more explaining to do.

Edeard sobered up. 'Then let's get today over with.

Their mood followed his down to a more sombre level. He started to walk along the tunnel towards Forest Pool. 'The fish smoking business is only one street back from Pink Canal.

'So you do have a plan then? Macsen said.

'Yes. The way we come down reverses. The five of us will slide up into the cellars close to where Mirnatha is being held.

'You said there's ten of them?

'At least. I'm worried the kidnapper is there as well. He can conceal himself, so we'll never know for sure until we're there. The first thing they'll do at any sign of rescue is kill Mirnalha.

It won't matter how clever I've been finding her, or how good we are at sneaking up on them if she's dead at the end of it all.

'Why go up there at all? Kanseen asked. 'Just ask the city to let her fall down here.

'First off, she's shackled to the wall. We'd have to break the chains, and even I can't do that from down here. Secondly, there's no tunnel directly underneath her cellar, not even a drain. We're going to have to come up in the one next to hers.

'Crap, Boyd muttered.

'We go up concealed, Edeard said. 'If I can get into the cellar where they're keeping her, my third hand should be able to protect her from bullets. It's going to be up to you to cover my back.

They splashed across the shallow basin that emulated Forest Pool high above. Edeard could just farsight people gathering along the sides of the canals. Children with their flower boats, eager to launch them. Adults still seething over Mirnatha.

'How many in her cellar? Kanseen asked.

'Two that I can sense. He still wasn't sure about the kidnapper. The cellar had many old crates and lengths of wood as well as a couple of small benches. If anyone with a concealment was sitting on them he couldn't tell. Certainly the cellar floor had no current memory of anyone else standing on it. It would take a long time to filter through the day's memories.

'How are you going to get to her, then?

'Brute force. As soon as we're all up there, I make a run for the door. I can smash through it and get in front of her, where I can protect her. Then I just hang on while you take the others out.

'And if it goes wrong?

'Then we're all dead, and Makkathran has to find someone else to campaign against the gangs.

Kanseen gave him a disapproving grin. 'You're going to make a terrible Chief Constable. Grand Councillors are supposed to be smooth and subtle.