Roman wakes in the under realm as Lieutenant Shane unlocks his chains and forces him to move. Shane admits he stole Captain Landis’s key because he is part of the Graveyard, and he explains that the group wants the under realm’s power and access to Dacre’s doorways. Shane also reveals that Val is presumed dead, Dacre has been beheaded by Iris, and the spell controlling Dacre’s soldiers is breaking, which means many of them are now becoming visibly ill. When Roman confronts Shane about betraying him, Shane says he exposed Roman to save himself after stealing the key, then claims he is rescuing Roman now to repay that debt.

Aboveground, Iris walks through devastated Oath and sees that the Oath Gazette has been destroyed. She cannot find Forest, Sarah, or Roman, and although people are celebrating Dacre’s death at Gould’s Café, Iris feels hollow rather than triumphant. She reaches the Inkridden Tribune and finds Helena alive. Helena confirms Attie is safe and warns Iris that the streets are becoming dangerous because the Graveyard has emerged and is executing Dacre’s soldiers now that both the chancellor and Dacre are gone.

Roman and Shane emerge into a wealthy house that is being used by Dacre’s remaining soldiers as a refuge. The atmosphere is frantic because the soldiers know the Graveyard is coming. Shane tries to flee, but Roman stops when he sees a soldier coughing blood, recognizing that the man is another victim of Dacre’s magic rather than a willing follower. Roman refuses to abandon him, but before they can escape, masked Graveyard fighters attack the house with gunfire and a grenade. Roman is blasted off his feet and then seized by a Graveyard member wearing a red anemone, who orders survivors rounded up so the people of Oath can witness “justice.”

As evening falls, Iris heads toward her flat, hoping to find Forest. A masked man chases her through the rubble, and she prepares to fight until he identifies himself as Mr. Kitt’s associate, the same man who had previously tried to separate her from Roman. He tells Iris that Roman has been taken with Dacre’s soldiers and will be executed unless someone can prove his innocence. Realizing Roman’s letters could save him, Iris rushes with the associate to her apartment building, finds Val’s corpse still on the floor, and retrieves the Hawk Shire letter from the box beneath her bed.

Roman is bound against a brick wall with fifty-one other prisoners as a crowd gathers for the execution. Some spectators cheer while others are uneasy, and Roman, dizzy and terrified, sees Iris forcing her way forward with the letter in her hand. As the firing squad prepares to shoot, Roman silently begs Iris to stop, knowing she is placing herself in mortal danger. Instead, Iris runs past the crowd and steps between Roman and the rifles at the exact moment the order to fire is given.