My grumbling doesn't seem to have soured Verdandi's mood any. In fact, when I nod towards Anushka's grave I feel her step close and slip her arms around me. "Yes, I've been here a few times and once, I found a pair of shoes. It wasn't long after she died and I think someone left them for her, to honor her."

"Might have been the Bakeneko," I mutter. "They got along, after they got past the part where it tried to kill me." I remember smelling it around the manor grounds. It didn't bother me overmuch, so long as it didn't cross my path again.

"Another time, I met the Djinn here. He doesn't like you at all."

"The feeling is very much mutual." I growl. "Thankfully I haven't seen him around much lately. And what the fuck was he doing here, anyway? The last time I saw him in this place he tried to kill us both."