William woke before dawn to find his mother already in his sitting room, reviewing documents by candlelight. She looked up as he emerged from his bedroom.
"Couldn't sleep either?" she asked.
"It's a habit at this point."
"A good habit to have. The people trying to kill you certainly aren't sleeping peacefully." She set down her papers. "Sit. We need to finalize a few things before you leave."
William sat across from her while a servant appeared with tea and breakfast. His mother waited until they were alone again before continuing.
"The broker Darius in the capital—my investigators have been watching him for the past three days. He's received two visitors since your kidnapping attempt. Both used essence concealment techniques sophisticated enough that we couldn't identify them." She pulled out a sketch. "This is the best our artist could manage from distant observation."
