Inej follows Kaz across the rooftops despite Kaz's demand that she stay away. While tracking Kaz toward the Slat, Inej thinks about Kaz's attempt at vulnerability with her, her own stolen past, and the likelihood that Dunyasha will return as a deadly reckoning. Inej's injured thigh begins bleeding again, but Inej keeps her distance because Kaz must face the Dregs alone if Kaz is to retain any authority in the Barrel.

At the Slat, Inej enters through an upper window and hides in the rafters above the entryway. Below, Per Haskell and many Dregs revel in the hunt for Kaz, armed and eager for the reward, though Anika, Pim, Keeg, Roeder, and others seem uneasy. Kaz appears at the top of the stairs in a fresh coat and openly declares that Kaz is done making money for Haskell and taking orders.

Per Haskell urges the Dregs to seize Kaz, and several of Haskell's loyalists rush the stairs. Kaz uses the high ground and his cane to break Seeger's arms, disable Bastian, smash Teapot's jaw, and throw Varian over the banister, but the attackers overwhelm Kaz through numbers. When Kaz loses his cane and is beaten to the floor, Inej nearly intervenes with her knives, but Kaz catches Inej's eye and silently forbids it.

Kaz turns the beating into proof of endurance and viciousness. Kaz cripples Gorka, kills Milo with rusty nails driven into Milo's throat after Milo tries to stab Kaz, and knocks Beatle unconscious against the banister. Bloodied but standing, Kaz challenges the room and shifts the conflict from a brawl into a public trial of Per Haskell's leadership.

Kaz argues that Van Eck framed Kaz over the merch's son, that Per Haskell took Kaz's profits while leaving Kaz to do the dangerous work, and that Haskell has humiliated the Dregs by bowing to Pekka Rollins. Kaz offers the Dregs not friendship or comfort but money, fear, and strength against their enemies. Anika and Pim move to block Haskell's loyalists, the crowd parts for Kaz, and Kaz reclaims his cane before giving Haskell two minutes to leave Kaz's house.