I didn’t answer.
“The Council are still worried about the possibility of an attack on the War Rooms,” Rain said. “They’ve set up some new security systems, but they’re in the preliminary phase. A diviner would be useful.”
I didn’t turn around.
“Verus?”
“The last time I checked, the Council thought that the one who was supposed to be behind this attack on the War Rooms was Morden,” I said. “So why would they want me of all people messing with their security systems?”
“Not everyone thinks that way.”
“This isn’t their idea, is it? It’s yours.”
“I don’t think you’re a traitor,” Rain said. “No, the Council didn’t ask for you, not specifically. But they assigned me the job, and you’re the person I’d pick for it. You’ve been wanting to get on the duty roster—well, this is a way to do it.”
I still didn’t answer. “Well?” Rain asked.
“Morden isn’t going to attack the War Rooms,” I said.
“How do you know?”
“It’s not because he tells me his plans,” I said. “I just know he won’t. You know why?”
Rain shook his head.
“Because he doesn’t need to,” I said. “If Morden really does want to bring the Council down, then attacking them directly would be the worst thing he could do. It’d unify them, give them an external threat. You know the real reason the Council are so weak nowadays? It’s shit like this. Lightbringer and Zilean just kidnapped Anne in broad daylight and tortured her for information, and everyone knows they tortured her for information, and you know what’s going to happen to them? Nothing. We’ll give evidence, and there’ll be interviews, and reports. And then something will go wrong. The paperwork will get held up, or your superior won’t authorise it, and a year from now Lightbringer and Zilean will still be around. Maybe their freedom to act will be curtailed a bit, but that’s all. What message do you think that sends? All the other mages who aren’t in tight with the Council look at this, and they think: ‘That could be me, that could happen to me.’ Every time that happens, it chips a little bit away at the Council’s base of support. Out of all the mages in Britain—Light, Dark, and independent—how many are really loyal to the Council anymore? One in ten? The only reason the Council works at all is because of mages like you. And there are fewer of you than there used to be.” I shook my head. “Morden doesn’t need to destroy the Council. He just needs to wait for it to destroy itself.”
Rain was silent for a moment. “Do you want the job?”
“No,” I told him, and walked out.
chapter 13
OCTOBER
“So what have you got for me?” I asked.
I was sitting in a small café on Upper Street, Islington. The table was round, a waiter had just brought over two cups of tea, and the air was filled with the buzz of conversation. Outside, buses and cars crept up and down the road.
The woman sitting opposite me stirring her masala chai was Indian, with small, neat features and wearing a coat and skirt which blended in with the people around us. Her name was Chalice, and she was a Dark chance mage and one of Luna’s teachers. Since Luna’s graduation, Chalice had stopped giving her regular lessons, although I knew Luna still went back to her from time to time for help with something difficult. But that wasn’t why I was meeting her today.
“Straight to business?” Chalice said with a smile. She tapped her spoon on the side of her cup, then laid it in the saucer. “I’d thought you might want to catch up.”
“I’ve been busy.”
“So I’ve heard.”
My relationship with Chalice was originally a business one, favour for favour. She’d provide Luna with lessons, and I’d provide her with information. This time, though, I was the one looking for information. Chalice is still a Dark mage and I still wouldn’t exactly call us friends, but she’d dealt fairly with me so far and there were very good reasons that I didn’t want to approach someone on the Light side of the fence for this one.
“So, with regards to the two individuals in question, I’ve managed to pick up some bits and pieces,” Chalice said. “It turns out they have something of a reputation among Dark mages over here. However, most of what’s available is personal information and history.”
“I’ll take what I can get.”
Chalice withdrew a small red folder from her bag and laid it on the table. Some mages, like Talisid, are paranoid to the extreme about being seen with me in public, but that’s not Chalice’s way. Every time we’ve met, it’s been openly. “Lightbringer and Zilean,” Chalice murmured. “Light mages do like their poetic names, don’t they?” She glanced at me. “I understand they’re currently under investigation for an attack on another mage.”
I met Chalice’s gaze, my expression neutral. “We all have our reasons.”
“True.” Chalice slid the folder across the table. “There you go. I suspect it won’t be what you’re looking for.”
I opened the folder. It contained four typed sheets of paper, and I scanned them one at a time. “And what would I be looking for?”
“Most of the information there is historical,” Chalice said. “Their masters, events they’ve been involved in, details on their capabilities and allies. I suspect you were looking for something more geographical.”
I turned a page. “By geographical, you mean where they can be found.”
“Which is somewhat more difficult,” Chalice said. “Both Lightbringer and Zilean own London town houses, but they don’t live in them for most of the year. I rather suspect they don’t live in them at all. Their activities have not made them terribly popular in the Dark community, and they haven’t lived this long by presenting easy targets. They most likely sleep in some fortified base. A little inconvenient if you’re planning a . . . shall we say, surprise visit?”
“I have no idea what you mean.”
“Of course,” Chalice said. “In any case, your suspicion that they report directly to Jarnaff may be correct. Whenever they’re deployed, it seems to be reactively.”
“Reactively?”
“If you really want to find them, your best bet seems to be to hang around something or someone that the Crusaders care about. They’ll show up soon enough.”
I looked up to see that Chalice was studying me. “Might I make a suggestion?” Chalice said.
“Go ahead.”
“Lightbringer and Zilean report to Jarnaff,” Chalice said. “Jarnaff is aide to Councilman Sal Sarque. One of the two Guardians on the Council, and according to most opinions, the de facto head of the Crusaders. A very short chain.”
“Your point?”
“These are heavy hitters,” Chalice said. “I’d advise caution.”
They didn’t do so well against us, I wanted to say, but I knew better. It was probably years since the Crusaders had had a safe house attacked, and they’d grown complacent. Next time wouldn’t be so easy. “I’ll bear it in mind. Anything else?”
“As a matter of fact, yes,” Chalice said. “What can you tell me about Richard Drakh’s magic type?”
“Why are you asking about that of all things?”
“Our deal still applies, yes?”
“I’m not arguing. It’s just . . . why do you want to know?”
“As you said, we all have our reasons.”
I sat back, frowning. The question Chalice was asking was one that we’d spent plenty of time batting around ourselves, so it wasn’t as though I didn’t have an answer, but it wasn’t something I’d expected from her. Still, a deal was a deal. “Conventional wisdom is that he’s from the mental branch of the living family,” I said. “Either an enchanter or a mind mage.”