Page 90 of The Dark Mirror

Arcturus looked at him. He looked at Terebell, who had been stricken into silence. He looked at his own scarred hands, at the salt on the floor and at me, scrunched up in the corner. Before either of us could say a word, the other Ranthen reached the cellar, Maria in tow.

‘What?’ she said in astonishment. ‘Warden!’

Errai just stood there, while Lucida went to Arcturus and framed his face, pressing their foreheads together, the way Rephs seemed to express deep affection. Lesath went to one knee and raised a fist to his chest. Arcturus took all of them in – his old friends, his allies.

‘Where is this?’ He sounded like he had lived through a severe drought. ‘How long has passed?’

‘It’s October, and you’re in Italy,’ Maria said. ‘Welcome to the free world.’

‘Italy.’

His gaze returned to me, the needle of a compass settling on north. I tried to iron out my breathing.

‘Your glow is looking faint, big man,’ Maria said, her brow furrowed. ‘Do you need aura?’

‘Yes.’ Terebell spoke at last. ‘He does.’

Arcturus shook his head.

‘It’s all right. Have a hit of mine,’ Maria said gently. ‘I need to do something useful tonight.’ She shot me a worried look. ‘Nick, why don’t you take Paige upstairs for some fresh air?’

Nick held out a hand. I convinced myself to take it. It was only Nick. I trusted Nick. As he guided me from the cellar, I glanced back at Arcturus. He watched me like I was a sunrise.

As soon as we were back under the stars, the terror and relief overwhelmed me. Nick held me close as sobs racked my frame.Thank you, Liss. I willed her to hear, wherever the æther had taken her.Thank you.

The abandoned house was overgrown, with an olive grove behind it. Nick had walked through that grove to check for cold spots, finding none. Now we sat in the parlour, far enough apart that I could breathe.

‘How did you do it?’ Nick said.

‘I dreamwalked into him,’ I said hoarsely. ‘I touched his spirit.’ My eyes felt raw. ‘Liss did a reading for me. The fifth card was Death, inverted. If I hadn’t remembered—’

I couldn’t even say it.

‘He’s okay,’ Nick said. ‘He’s okay, Paige.’

Liss Rymore was in the outer darkness, where no one could spool or bind or disturb her. I wished I could see her once more, to thank her for sharing her gift; for giving me the knowledge that had let me save Arcturus. Every one of her predictions had been right.

‘I thought he was going to kill you,’ Nick said. ‘I don’t think I could have stopped him.’

‘He didn’t know who I was.’

‘Have you had this since the waterboard?’ he asked me. ‘This fear of being touched?’

I nodded. Nick hadn’t been there for those early days, when I hadn’t been able to bear my reflection, or the feel of my own human skin.

‘It was a lot worse in Paris.’ I traced the thin scar on my wrist, where the manacle had cut into me. ‘I’m handling it better now, but I couldn’t stand being held down like that.’

‘Of course not.’

Maria came into the parlour. ‘I’m absolutely fine,’ she said, brushing off our concern before we could voice it. ‘Nothing a nap and a stiff drink won’t solve.’

‘Thank you for doing that,’ I said.

‘I wasn’t going to leave you to do it, not in your state. Nick already used his aura to heal Lesath,’ Maria said. ‘One of the Buzzers clawed him.’

That explained why Nick looked peaky.

‘How is Warden?’ I asked Maria.

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