Ithan accompanies Tharion and mer investigators to a wooded stretch of the Istros, where a selkie female has been found murdered. Tharion identifies signs of torture and an execution-style killing: a gorsian bullet in the thigh prevented shifting, and repeated cuts to the femoral artery kept her bleeding. Using his heightened sense of smell, Ithan detects two human scents on the victim and suspects the murder was not random, but part of the search for Emile.

Once they are alone in Tharion’s office beneath the river, Ithan explains his reasoning. He believes the selkie helped Emile continue toward Lunathion, and that a human woman later captured and tortured her for information about the boy’s location. Based on what they already know, Ithan and Tharion suspect Pippa Spetsos. Ithan also notes that Emile’s scent on the selkie’s clothes predates her death by only a few hours, which suggests Emile is close to the city and that Pippa may be close behind.

Tharion treats the situation as highly dangerous, warning Ithan not to underestimate Pippa simply because she is human. When Ithan insists he can go after her alone, Tharion refuses and effectively keeps him beneath the river for his own safety and to avoid Bryce’s anger if Ithan gets himself killed. Their conversation also returns to the mystery of where Emile might be heading and whether Danika’s clues point to a specific destination in Lunathion.

Meanwhile, Bryce and Ruhn walk to their scheduled training session, joking about the heat, their weapons, and Bryce’s mother. Bryce explains the postcard ritual she and Ember use to reconnect after fights, then impulsively invites Ruhn to spend the Winter Solstice with her family in Nidaros, which deeply moves him. While sheltering from a sudden storm, they argue about who should wield the Starsword, touch on the Starborn prophecy, and speculate that larger divine or interworld forces may be guiding events. The moment ends violently when Bryce looks up to find a Reaper dragging an unconscious Ruhn across the rain-soaked street and down into a sewer, forcing her into immediate pursuit.