Page 55 of The Dark Mirror

I couldn’t get used to the Venetian waterways. Every so often, I would hear the swash of an oar, or the slap of a wave breaking on stone, and my body would bead into a cold sweat. Still, with Nick at my side and the sun burning down, I found I could stay in the present.

‘I like coming down here at night,’ Nick said. A seagull winged overhead as he spoke. ‘Being able to go out after dark without any fear of Vigiles … I’m going to find it hard to give that up when we go back.’

‘I should take advantage while I’m here. Maybe we could run the slates.’

‘I’d really like that.’ He linked my arm. ‘I still can’t believe we’re outside Scion, Paige.’

‘I remember a time before Scion. It must be even stranger for you.’

Nick had been born under the anchor, in the Swedish village of Mölle. He had spent almost thirty years inside.

‘The first weeks were hard,’ he said. ‘Do you miss London?’

‘I do, though I miss Paris more. It let me breathe again.’

‘How do you mean?’

‘You know I was never meant to sit on a throne. In Paris, I had the same kind of freedom I did as a mollisher, and none of the scrutiny on an Underqueen.’

‘And you had Warden.’

‘Yes.’ I cast my gaze towards the horizon. ‘But I need the Rose Crown. I have to go back.’

‘It will be easier now Senshield is gone, even with martial law. Eliza will have bolstered our numbers, and we’ll have support from Domino. We’ll cross the Alps together,’ he said. ‘We can liaise with the French syndicate, then go straight back to London.’

‘Okay.’ I looked up at him. ‘Where did you get your hair dyed?’

‘Domino has a cosmetician. He covers scars and tattoos, deals with hair, does enamelling, that sort of thing,’ he said. ‘You can make a booking with the concierge.’

‘I might do that.’ I brushed a loose curl back. ‘Let’s get Maria that gelato. Whatever a gelato is.’

It turned out to be something like ice cream. Nick bought us all a cone. I went for chocolate and tried to stop it dripping as we made our way back to the Palazzo del Domino. It reminded me painfully of a conversation I’d had with Liss and Julian, before the end of the Bone Season. We’d discussed what sort of ice cream we would eat when we got out.

We’ll savour the culinary delights of London, and then we’ll save it from the Rephs.

When we reached the Strada Nova, Nick stopped to buy a miniature gondola for Maria. All the way there, I had been evaluating the rooftops. It had been months since we had gone for a run. Venice would be perfect for it, with narrow gaps between many of its buildings.

By the time we returned to the Palazzo del Domino, Maria was dozing in the shade. I woke her so she could eat the gelato, then left to book an appointment with the cosmetician.

Once it was done, I almost went to my room. Using the time before the meeting to rest would be sensible. Instead, I explored the Palazzo del Domino. I visited the courtyards and the terrace, then wandered through the corridors. Finally, I came to a room with a plasterwork ceiling and books lining the walls, where several amaurotics were on computers.

‘Excuse me,’ I said quietly to a woman. She took out an earbud. ‘Can anyone use these?’

‘Yes, of course.’

‘Thanks.’

I took a seat in front of one. Protean was already open, waiting for a query. Unlike the insular Scionet, this network was connected to the whole of the free world. Maria had warned me not to look too far, but I needed to blunt my curiosity. I tapped inScion latest news.

The results numbered in the tens of millions.

Maria hadn’t been joking. A curdling sensation filled my stomach, for no reason I could explain.

A few popular stories had been highlighted. I took a breath to steel myself, skimming the headlines and previews. TheNew York Timesoffered a long read on the situation in Spain and an opinion piece on why Norway had reneged on its historic opposition to Scion.Candid, an entertainment website, had summarised what Scion was and what it wanted – I could only assume its readers had been asleep their whole lives – whilePublishers’ Reviewwas discussing a book deal for a Scion defector.

Each time I went to expand an article, I stopped. I couldn’t even get used to there being more than one news source. In Scion, there was only theDescendant. I needed to narrow this down.

I typedPaige Mahoney.

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