The first part of this story is located here. It had easily been the best evening of Spider’s life.  She had never been in a hansom and was embarrassed when Jax found out, but he made good and had the driver take them around the city.  When Jax wasn’t looking she ran her hand over the plush seat in wonder.  By the time they arrived at the public house for dinner, Spider had quit questioning Jax’s motives.  It no longer mattered what he was after.  It was the first time she could remember having fun since she was a child.  Jax seemed to actually enjoy her company.  He was the…

Originally published in Sojourn: An Anthology of Speculative Fiction (Volume 2), available for purchase here  Spider watched the body hit the cobblestones with a muffled thud.  She recoiled in surprise as it rolled onto the worn toes of her boots.  Death was common in the underground corridors of The Vaults, but bodies usually didn’t fall at Spider’s feet.   She had always found it best to put as much space between her and dead bodies as possible. She darted out from where she was hiding, and blundered into the path of the assailant.  His clean clothes, clean face and hands didn’t belong in these dank corridors.  This young man was a Topsider, but…