Under the old stone bridge, Mireille reads deaths for spare coppers, and her cards never lie. Tonight the river fog smells like iron. When she deals her own hand, the Drowned Queen stares up at her, the card that means your hour is near. Then the painted woman lifts her chin and steps right off the card. Wet hair, cold eyes, a real woman now. 'You dealt me,' she says. 'So sit. We play until dawn. Win, and you live.'

Mireille sits. Her hands shake, but she shuffles. 'Fine. We play,' she says. 'What are the stakes?' The Queen smiles, water dripping from her sleeve. 'Each hand you lose, I take a year from you. Each hand you win, you take one from me. Reach dawn ahead, and you walk free.'

Mireille refuses to bet years. 'New deal,' she says. 'We play for the truth. Tell me how you got stuck in that card, and I'll tell you how to get out.' The Queen goes still. For the first time, she looks afraid. Then, slowly, she nods.