Page 33 of The Bone Season

I stepped back as a Reph approached. Thick dark hair spilled over his broad shoulders, and his lower lip was full and petulant. Like the other Rephs, he could have been shaped from dull metal – palest copper, like rose gold. It made him look invulnerable.

‘Just on a walk.’ I kept my composure. ‘Are you Graffias?’

‘Indeed. Graffias Sheratan, the Grey Keeper.’ He stopped on the other side of the gate. ‘And who isyourkeeper, white-jacket?’

‘Arcturus Mesarthim.’

‘I should have known.’ Graffias wrapped a large hand around one of the bars. ‘Perhaps you walked exactly where you pleased in London, but I would not advise straying too far by yourself again. All manner of dangers lurk in this city.’

I believed it. Even with a gate between us, his gaze chilled me to the bone.

‘I can handle myself,’ I said.

‘Can you?’

Rephs’ auras were hard to read, but if I were to take a wild guess, I would have said Graffias was an augur. I reached for the pouch.

‘Look,’ I said, ‘there’s someone in here I want to see. I can pay.’

Before I could think it through, I offered him the numa. Graffias gave me a look of such hatred, such open disgust, that I flinched. I almost preferred the emotionless stares.

‘Fool.’ He drew a spool of spirits. ‘Get out of my sight, before I call your keeper to discipline you. Do not let me see you here again.’

Without protest, I turned and walked away from the gate, my breath darting out in white puffs. I shoved the numa back into my pocket.

That had been a stupid thing to do. Even if Graffiaswasan augur, he would use numa of the finest quality, not fragile rodent bones.

For one dangerous moment, I had forgotten where I was.

Just as I was about to hightail it back to Magdalen, a quiet voice came from somewhere above my head.

‘Paige!’

Above me, a hand reached through a barred window. I released my breath.

‘Seb.’ I kept my voice low. ‘Are you okay?’

‘No.’ He sounded tearful. ‘Please, Paige – please get me out of here. I have to get out of here. I’m sorry I called you unnatural, I’m sorry.’

Graffias had retreated into the building. When I was sure the coast was clear, I climbed up to the window and passed Seb the bread.

‘I’ll let you off the hook.’ I squeezed his icy hand through the bars. ‘I’m going to get us out of here, but you have to give me time.’

‘They’ll kill me.’ He unwrapped the bread. ‘I’ll be dead in a week.’

‘What did they do?’

‘They made me scrub the floors and clean pieces of a smashed mirror,’ he said, biting into the bread. His fingers were cut to ribbons. ‘Tomorrow I’m supposed to start work in the residences.’

‘What sort of work?’

‘I don’t know yet. I’m scared to know.’ His voice was cracking. ‘I want to see my parents. Why did this happen to me, Paige?’

‘I think you were just unlucky,’ I said.

‘Scion was supposed to keep us safe.’

‘Scion lies,’ I told him. ‘Now you know that as well as we do.’ His right eye was swollen and bloodshot. ‘What happened there?’

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