Chapter 31 · Her Mother's Order

The ledger sits open on the counter.

Leah's hands won't stop shaking. Blood—Aiden's blood—is still wet on her fingers. She barely got the worst wounds closed before he passed out. Now he's breathing, shallow and ragged, propped against the espresso machine with Ink perched on his chest like a feathered guard dog.

Vera's leaning over the ledger, flipping pages. Her translucent fingers leave no prints. "1974," she says again. "My mother's entry. Look."

Leah forces herself to look. The ink is old, brown at the edges. Her own handwriting—no, her mother's handwriting. She'd know it anywhere. The loops on the capital letters. The way the 't' crosses slant left.

*Maria Vaughn. Debt transferred upon death to heir. Outstanding balance: one life saved, two lives owed.*

Underneath, in different ink: *Assigned to Aiden Crow per Council mandate 3.7.1824.*

"That's not how it works," Leah says. Her voice sounds wrong. Too high. "Debts don't transfer. They dissolve at death. That's the law."

"That's what they tell you." Vera flips another page. Then another. The ledger is thick, hundreds of pages, and every single one has the same pattern. Original entries. Then notes in different handwriting. Amendments. Transfers.