The soft glow of the tiny power bank attached to the flash gun shimmered as it twirled through the air. It was a pistol of some kind, Ruth didn't know anything more than that about it. But that was all she needed to know, anything involving flash guns was a hard pass.

  Ruth moved to usher Ezra back out the door, but he was pushing in at the same time. He bumped the door and it creaked loudly. Ruth quickly shot her brother a glare, her eyes only darting away from the girl for a moment. But when she looked back, the girl had stashed the gun somewhere and was staring at them.

  "Hello? Are you two...the ones I'm supposed to meet?"

  Of course this girl had a flash gun, her dad was a Thrall for crying out loud. It was a wonder she wasn't surrounded by thugs and guards. But she had seen them now, it was too late to run and make some excuse to Johnny and Richard.

  There was no way this wasn't the girl they were supposed to meet, but Ruth initiated the passphrase anyway. "Melodious music makes me melancholy," she called out into the warehouse.

  The girl hopped off the crate. "Daring drumming drags doggedly." Ruth hated the stupid passcode system, but at least no one would be able to guess the phrases Richard made up.

  Ruth reluctantly stepped into the building, Ezra trailing behind, still looking guilty for causing the door to creak. "I'm Ruth, and this is my brother, Ezra." She walked closer to the girl who simply waited for them to draw close.

  "Jessica. Nice to meet you." The girl actually stuck her hand out and smiled, as if she were trying to make friends or something. Ruth just looked at the outstretched hand with disbelief. Did this girl actually think that Ruth would shake it?

  They stood there for an awkward moment before Ezra reached out and shook Jessica's hand. He smiled softly, "Nice to meet you too, Jessica."

  As Jessica turned her attention to Ezra, Ruth took a moment to study her. Everything about the girl practically screamed that she came from money. She'd had the sense to wear simple clothes, but they were form-fitting and clean. Her hair looked like it had been washed recently, and her nails were nearly manicured for crying out loud! What made it worse was the stark contrast between her and Ruth. Two girls of the same age, but they couldn't look more different if they tried.

  Ruth silently lamented her life, having to take a spoiled princess out on a job like this. She collected herself, then spoke up, trying not to sound annoyed. "So, Jessica. You're coming with us on the job?"

  Jessica turned her gaze to Ruth, a look of curiosity present. "That's right! Daddy wants me to get some experience with the organization, so he asked for our best Dhampirs to take me out on some jobs."

  She wasn't hiding her relationship to the Thrall, but that wasn't info Ruth should technically have. She decided to play dumb, "Daddy?" Is he someone important?"

  The girl seemed a bit surprised. "Yeah, Joseph Archold. The Thrall who runs this part of town?"

  Well, that confirmed that this girl was an idiot. Giving away info like that to street rats was basically the same as someone asking to get kidnapped. A few minor gangs would probably pay handsomely to get their hands on this girl. Not that Ruth would do it, of course. She needed the jobs the Nosferatu gang offered more than a quick cash grab, besides, she wasn't a monster who would hand a young girl to a rival gang.

  Ezra played right into the role of an ignorant kid, "Your dad is a Thrall? Wow, you must be rich!"

  The girl smiled brightly and giggled, and Ruth had to suppress an eye roll. "I don't know about rich, but he's a very important person. So you two will have to take good care of me, okay?" Her tone was honey-sweet, almost condescending in how simple she phrased everything.

  Ruth took a deep, long breath. It took all her effort to not sneer. "Sure, we can do that. Do you know where the packs are?"

  Jessica turned and pointed behind the crate, "These?"

  Ruth knelt by the packs, opening them to inspect the gear. To her surprise, they still had the high-quality stuff. Ruth had expected a bump down to smaller banks and worse panels with the newbie in tow. She hefted one of the packs, then glanced up at Jessica. "Did you bring extra clothes?"

  Jessica looked confused. "Umm, no? Should I have?"

  Ruth had to calm herself down. It was an easy mistake for a beginner to make, Ruth having done it herself at first, but this girl was really setting her off.. "No, it's fine this time. If you come out again, you'll need extra layers for when we're near the edges of the shade."

  Jessica's expression grew very serious as she nodded...or at least Ruth assumed she was trying to make a serious face. She looked more angry than anything with furrowed brows and her lips in a line. Ruth stood, suppressing yet another sigh. "Okay, Jessica. Let's lay down some ground rules."

  Not waiting for a response, Ruth began belting off rules, "You do exactly what I say at all times. You stay quiet at all times. If I'm busy, listen to Ezra. If the constables come after us, run like the sun is on your heels. Got it?"

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  Jessica gave a mock salute, and it was all Ruth could do to simply turn away from the girl in annoyance. This was such a bad idea, they were going to get caught, beat, and then probably murdered by an angry Thrall whose daughter would probably get off without a scratch.

  The group made their way out of the warehouse with Ruth in front. Ezra urged Jessica to stay between the siblings where he could corral her. Ruth hadn't been able to warn her brother about the flash gun yet, but hopefully she would be able to warn him soon.

  Ruth quickly picked out a way up to the city ceiling but had to revise it when she glanced back at Jessica. The girl likely wouldn't be able to climb the buildings as well as Ezra, let alone herself. In the end, she decided that they would risk a tram closer to the ceiling before attempting a climb.

  She had Jessica take the lead at the tram station. The girl had money and seemed sociable enough, which was more than Ruth had. Jessica bought them some tickets, and she and the seller parted with a smile. Ezra seemed to look at Jessica with more respect after that, but Ruth didn't really care. Anyone could buy tickets, but she had to admit that Jessica's airheaded nature meant no one would examine the group too closely.

  The tram was mostly empty, the people in this part of town were either at work or home. Fortunately, there weren't any constables on board and the next stop would be their last. The enclosed car slowly started to slide up the metal rail it was attached to, taking them on a winding way up toward the upper part of the city. Ezra was looking out the windows, peering over the lamp-lit city while Ruth and Jessica sat patiently.

  Ruth could see the monolithic power plant a few blocks away, a massive concrete wall that extended higher and higher the closer it got to the center of the city. More solar panels than Ruth could possibly count were busy soaking up sunlight on the opposite side of the wall, providing power to the whole city. The plant divided the whole city in half, a giant ravine in the middle where all the solar panels emerged during the day. Ruth didn't like crossing to the other side of the city, so she had never taken Ezra to see it.

  Arriving at the station on the upper level of the city, the group of three quickly walked away from the tram. Ruth wanted to make extra sure that there would be no chance of constables stopping them for a 'random search.' Large walkways sprung out from the sides of buildings this high up, nearly fifteen stories into the air. The walkways closest to the power plant basically became roads in the sky, though most homes were located further down. The city ceiling was only about three or four more stories above their head.

  Ruth spotted a fire escape leading up to the rooftops above, and began leading the group in that direction. Jessica, for her part, didn't gawk or even chatter like Ruth had expected. The tagalong seemed to be doing her best to remain a quiet follower, which Ruth begrudgingly appreciated.

  When they reached the fire escape, Ruth led them past it, quickly glancing around for any signs that someone might catch them as they climbed. When she confirmed that the coast seemed clean, they quickly doubled back to the fire escape.

  Ruth looked at Jessica pointedly, "We won't be able to lower the ladder for you, it'll make too much noise. I'll climb up, then reach down and help you up, okay?"

  Ruth expected Jessica to be indignant, or counteract the suggestion. Instead, the girl simply eyed the structure before nodding.

  Ruth turned her attention to the fire escape, setting her pack down. The ladder up was hanging about eight feet into the air, and she was only around five feet tall. The buildings in this part of town weren't as nicely put together as the ones down below. The higher up you got, the more construction seemed to be about function over form, which meant buildings often only had basic lights hanging on the outside instead of any kind of decoration. Several bricks weren't flush with the wall, and Ruth was barely able to use them as hand and footholds to make her way up to the fire escape.

  Once she made it up, Ezra tossed the packs up to her. After all their baggage was on the landing, Ruth tested the sides of the fire escape to make sure they wouldn't break as she hauled two people up. Satisfied that the railing could take the weight, Ruth leaned out over the edge, letting her body dangle downward.

  Jessica had to jump a bit to grab Ruth's hand, and Ruth grunted with the effort. Jessica was heavier than she looked. Ruth pulled her up slowly, grunting with exertion. Jessica used the wall to help her gain height, walking up it as Ruth pulled. After a minute, both girls were up on the fire escape, breathing heavily.

  After catching her breath, Ruth leaned back out over the edge, and Ezra expertly ran up to the wall, jumped, then kicked off the bricks to gain more height. He was lighter than Jessica, but still heavy, and Ruth grunted with exertion as she hauled him up. Her arms burned with effort, and she could feel her face grow hot as she strained.

  After what felt like an eternity of pulling, Ezra grabbed onto the landing and lifted himself up the rest of the way. Ruth caught her breath as the other two picked up the packs. Ezra instructed Jessica to remove her shoes, in order to make as little noise as possible. Jessica complied, stuffing the shoes in her pockets. As a group, they all made their way up to the roof of this building, treading silently over the metal grating.

  Once they reached the top, Ruth was relieved to see that the ceiling panel she had been aiming for was set just above this building, only about five feet up. She walked under the ceiling panel, then set her pack down, turning to Jessica. "Okay, time for the boring part. We are going to climb up there, and you and Ezra will be on lookout while I charge the battery pack."

  "What? You mean I won't get to see the sky at all?" Jessica looked suddenly distraught, as if she expected to be out near the sun no matter what.

  Ruth tried to resist, but felt herself give in to rolling her eyes. "There's nothing to see, the ceiling panel above this one blocks out pretty much any angle. Besides, you didn't bring extra clothes. If I bring you back sunburned, it's me and Ezra who will get in trouble." Sunburn was a dead giveaway that someone had been power siphoning. Exposure to sunlight meant you would burn in minutes, and even minor exposure was risky.

  Jessica stood firm, a pout on her face. "I didn't come all this way just to play lookout. I'm going to see the sky and that's final." Jessica lightly stomped her foot for emphasis, and Ruth had to repress a laugh. This girl was nuts. Ruth's hand twitched, her urge to slap the girl only outweighed by her desire to get paid.

  "If you don't let me out toward the edge, I'll get you in trouble with my daddy." And there it was. Hiding behind her likely murderous father the moment things didn't go her way. Ruth had half a mind to ignore the threat, but she wasn't suicidal. Especially not with Ezra in tow.

  Ruth let out a long, exasperated sigh. "Fine. Let's see if we can use Ezra's extra clothes as wrapping. Then you can see the stupid sky."