The wooden ladder narrowed above us, disappearing into darkness before it reached the bells. Mara, already wearing a helmet, placed one hand on the first rung but did not move. “It looked shorter from the courtyard,” she said. She tested the rung with her toe and began climbing, stopping whenever the timber creaked. Halfway up, she looked down only once. By the time she reached the platform, she was calling back measurements in a clear voice. On the descent, she moved steadily, pausing to point out masons’ marks I had missed. At the bottom, she glanced towards a second ladder. “We should inspect that level as well,” she said, reaching for the clipboard.