I listened with half an ear, taking out my lock-picks. I pulled one from its case – and fumbled it, dropping it to the concrete, as I seemed to hear something in the distance, a far-off cry. Anne?
Richard was still speaking. ‘The decisions of the Light Council determine every aspect of your lives. Where you can go; what is permitted; even whether you live or die. They have decreed that you should follow the Concord, yet the Concord grants you no protection …’
There was no answer. I reached out, suddenly afraid, groping for Anne’s presence and finding nothing. Anne! I called into the void. Where are you?
Then suddenly Anne was there. Right here. Quit panicking.
Jesus. I felt my insides unknot. Don’t scare me like that.
Like what? I’m fine.
I knelt down and grabbed my pick from where it had fallen, inserting it into the lock. What happened?
Guard got too close, Anne said. But then he turned around and started hurrying back. Something happen in there?
Yeah, you might say that. My communicator chimed. Hold on. ‘Vari?’ I said under my breath.
‘We’re moving,’ Variam said without preamble. ‘Gate’s hot. Don’t get in the middle when the shooting starts.’
‘No, wait! There’s a—’ I realised I was talking to a dead line and swore.
‘Alex?’ Luna murmured under her breath. ‘You’re not invisible.’
Looking around, I realised that people were giving us distracted glances. Most of them looked as though they’d rather be listening to Richard, but one guy in particular was staring and frowning.
‘Over the past year, I have met with you and listened to your stories,’ Richard said. ‘Over and over again I have heard talk about taking action. But when your leaders finally took action last year, it was to launch a protest. You gathered using only words, and brought signs and placards as though you were dissatisfied students. You know full well how that ended.’
My pick slipped and I hissed under my breath. The lock on the door wasn’t an especially good one, but lock-picking is a tricky business and I was short on time. Luna? Could use some help.
Luna lifted a finger and a wisp of her curse drifted out, twining itself around the lock and my picks. In my magesight, I saw the silver mist turn to gold. I tried again and this time, the futures opened up, the actions leading to success multiplying. The lock clicked and the door opened.
I pulled the door open and Luna and I disappeared through before anyone could stop us. Richard was still talking. ‘… violence not because of what you were doing, but because of your potential. They feared what you might—’ The door shut, cutting off his voice.
We were in an unlit room that smelled of metal. I pulled out a tiny pocket torch and switched it on, the bright beam picking out machinery. There was no visible exit except for where we’d come in, but I knew there would be a door hidden in the back. I started walking, and as I did I felt something in the distance. It was far away and hard to pin down, but I had the feeling that it was gate magic. Anne, I said. Any news?
Nothing much, Anne said instantly. Oh. Except for all the Council people gating in. Did you mean them?
Yes, yes, I did. The door at the back was locked too. I bent down and got to work on it. Can you stay out of their way?
Kind of working on that at the moment.
I switched out my hook pick for a half diamond and carried on working. Back off and keep your distance, I told Anne. They’re looking for people trying to break out, not people coming in. If you stay away they aren’t going to chase you.
You really don’t need to worry about me.
Anne! Don’t come in. Okay?
Fine, whatever. Staying outside. Happy?
Good. We’ll see you soon.
‘Were you talking to Anne?’ Luna asked.
‘Yeah. Can you tell?’
‘No. Can anyone else?’
‘Hope not,’ I said. It was one of the reasons I’d been trying to shift over to using the dreamstone where possible. Council communicators were supposed to be secure, but they were also supposed to always work, and they’d failed at that too many times for me to be comfortable with the things. As far as I could tell, the dreamstone worked no matter the range and it was impossible for anyone else to detect. ‘Sounds like the Keepers are coming in numbers.’
‘What are they going to do?’
‘Standard Order of the Star doctrine is to surround the building and establish a perimeter. They’ll put up an interdiction field to stop anyone escaping, then they’ll move in.’
The lock clicked and we stepped out into a corridor. I could still hear Richard’s voice, muffled through the bricks and concrete, and I could still feel the faint tug of the enchantment trying to make me stop and listen. ‘What’s the plan?’ Luna whispered.
I turned left, heading for the stairs. The interior of the Tiger’s Palace was a maze, but I had my divination to guide me and we traced a route through the corridors that would take us up to the mezzanine level without meeting any more guards. A set of fire stairs led us up to a balcony and back to the club floor, almost exactly above where I’d picked the lock.
Richard was still talking. It was hard not to stop and listen but I forced myself to shut the words out. Odd phrases filtered through – he was talking about the history of adepts in Britain, and at other times, I’d have wanted to know more – but I made myself concentrate on finding the source of the magic. Unfortunately, this was one time my magesight was failing me. There were hundreds of magical auras, and I couldn’t tell which was the right one.
Which way? Luna asked.
Working on it, I said. Richard was saying something about the Hermetic Accords … no. Focus.
What?
Look for some kind of magic source, I said. Wide-area effect. Something this powerful should be easy to see.
I thought enchantment magic was impossible to spot? Luna said. Anyway, with this much noise I’d have more luck trying to find a dropped contact lens.
Well, it’s not like we have another way to spot them.
Who says we have to spot them?
I felt a shift in the magic around Luna and looked at her to see the mists of her curse swirl, forming spiralling patterns. Luna gazed into the distance for a moment, as though she were watching something fascinating but very far away, then seemed to snap back to the immediate present. She took a step back and pointed. ‘This way.’
I frowned. ‘That’s the way we came.’
‘No, I’ve got a good feeling about this way.’
Luna started walking and I followed. She turned right, then up a small staircase that I hadn’t noticed. We went up, left and left again. I had no idea where we were going and I could hear movement around us, but somehow we didn’t bump into anyone. Luna led us into a narrow, dark corridor. Light and the sound of Richard’s voice spilled from an open doorway.