Page 93 of The Unweaver

“By killing Durbec—strategically.” Bane contemplated the flames in the hearth. “We’ll bring him to us. I’ll invite him to the club on some bullshit pretense of business and handle the rest. For this to work, Cora, you just need to play piano and keep a clear head. Absolutely no drinking, no drugs. Do not engage with Durbec under any circumstances. We can’t reveal our hand until we see his.”

“So, shut up and play piano. That’s the plan?”

“You got a better one?”

Her shoulders sagged. “No.”

“I mean it, Cora. Just follow my lead and—I cannot stress this enough—do not fuck anything up.”

Chapter 25. Threads Unseen

After tossing and turning for hours, Cora abandoned the possibility of sleep. Her body was exhausted, but her mind was wired from the secrets revealed and those still hidden. Her thoughts ran in a tight circle.Marcel Durbec. Specter’s Scourge. Spirit vessel.

While London celebrated the new year, Teddy’s body was back on ice at the Emerald Club. Waiting.Soon. She had a name. A path forward.Soon.

Master Lyter had entertained her questions with flagging enthusiasm as she followed him upstairs. Reuniting the pieces of Teddy’s spirit would be easier on another auspicious date, he told her. The Wolf Moon, the first full moon of the new year.

After several minutes of badgering, Lazlo had gently shut the bedroom door in her face to sleep.

The house was quiet as Cora padded downstairs, spurred on by thoughts of a warm cup of tea. She was almost to the kitchen when the sound of hushed voices stopped her short.

Beyond a cracked open door, she could just make out two silhouettes. She pressed herself against the wall and inched closer to overhear their muffled conversation.

“...especially careful,” Bane said. “The war’s only begun, and I’ve already lost two men.”

“I was sorry to hear of Moriarty’s death,” Lazlo rasped. “I know what a friend he’d been to you.”

“Aye.” Bane’s voice was heavy with sadness. “He grew up in County Cork, a village away from mine. It’s like my own brother has died, and with him, the last thread connecting me to my humanity.”

“Maybe not the last one. The girl—”

“What about her?”

“You are playing a dangerous game, Mal. That girl will be your undoing. You remember well Master Ghose’s prophecy.Twin mages born of death shall bring your death to life.”

The words immobilized Cora. They could fling open the door right now and catch her eavesdropping and she’d be too stunned to move.

Incredulous, her mind reeled in stops and starts. Her nameless mother had died giving birth to the only twin mages she’d ever heard of. But what did it mean to bring Bane’s death to life?

Twin mages, he’d toasted when she first stormed into his office.To fate.

The Realmwalker had seen her coming.

Something inside of Cora shattered. Had the words of a Master she’d never met woven the invisible threads of fate between them? Had her entire life been an illusion of free will while she was pulled by threads unseen on a collision course with Malachy Bane?

“I am well aware of Ghose’s prophecy, Lazlo. The only kind of prophecy is the self-fulfilling kind.”

“It would appear you are self-fulfilling it, old friend.”

Bane made an exasperated sound. “Time is subjective. The future changes. As the Master Chronomancer, Ghose understood the limitations of his own prophecies. Even before he became that… Coal-Eye creature, after Ikelas lured him intothe Profane Arts she’d already succumbed to. Don’t bother denying it, Laz. I know the Tribunal won’t admit that the former Master Oneiromancer was corrupted by the very dark magic they forbid, but you were in Russia. You saw what Ikelas shouldn’t have been capable of. And besides, half of Ghose’s fuckin’ prophecy is still trapped in a spirit vessel.”

“And when he gets out of the vessel?” Master Lyter did not sound convinced.

“If he gets out, there’s only one place he can go.”

“I know that. When are you going to tell her that?”

“I know what I’m doing.”

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