After Isaac and Jeannemary are killed, the Fourth House teenagers are laid in the morgue beside Abigail and Magnus. Gideon remembers the aftermath only in fragments: Teacher praying, Palamedes examining Jeannemary's corpse, and Harrow berating Gideon with old Ninth House contempt before leaving. Overwhelmed by guilt, Gideon ends up in Dulcinea's sickroom, injured and crying.

Dulcinea tries to comfort Gideon by telling Gideon there was nothing she could have done, but Gideon rejects this and obsesses over all the choices that might have saved Jeannemary and Isaac. Dulcinea speaks about death as something beyond control and even calls it a triumph, while Gideon remains unable to accept the deaths of the young cavaliers. Gideon offers to recover Dulcinea's keys from Silas, but Dulcinea says she surrendered them willingly.

Gideon asks why Dulcinea came to Canaan House if Dulcinea is dying. Dulcinea explains that the Seventh House values her illness because it enhances her necromantic power, but she resents being treated as a beautiful dying object and hidden away. Dulcinea came when the Emperor called because she wanted to choose her own end and avoid dying alone, even though she knew Canaan House might be where she died.

When Dulcinea mentions the phrase one flesh, one end, Gideon admits unfamiliarity, and Dulcinea deduces that Gideon was never properly pledged as Harrow's cavalier and was not raised like a real Ninth House nun. Gideon confesses that she is a replacement for Ortus and has been pretending to know cavalier duties. Dulcinea responds with unexpected tenderness, saying Gideon is worthy of a Lyctor, but Palamedes enters and Gideon abruptly leaves rather than face the emotional intimacy or Palamedes' concern.

In the corridor, Gideon encounters Silas and Colum. Silas calls Gideon by name and identifies her as a Ninth House thrall, revealing that he has spoken with Sister Glaurica after Glaurica returned to the Eighth House. Silas claims Gideon is a victim and tool of the Ninth House and invites Gideon to take tea with him and Colum, promising information and a chance to become more than what Gideon is. Gideon rejects him with hostility, though Colum interprets her response as likely agreement.

Afterward, Gideon cannot escape nightmares. Gideon dreams distorted deaths for Magnus, Abigail, Isaac, Jeannemary, and Gideon's mother, all shaped by helplessness and guilt. Gideon may also glimpse Harrow waking her and showing pity, though Gideon is unsure whether this happened or was another hallucination. From then on, Gideon sleeps armed, with her rapier and gauntlet close at hand.