"The Secret" was published in the anthology Blackguards: Tales of Assassins, Mercenaries, and Rogues. About this story, author Mark Lawrence says, "'The Secret' is set in the world where my Broken Empire and Red Queen's War trilogies take place. I've been writing short stories based on the various members of Jorg Ancrath's brotherhood of the road, exploring their origins. When I saw that the Blackguards anthology was seeking tales of assassins, I thought it was time to write about Brother Sim."