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He nodded.

‘Nashira told the truth about the two of you,’ Terebell said. ‘Did she not?’

When I realised what she meant, I turned cold. I waited for Arcturus to contradict her.

‘You do not deny it,’ Terebell observed, when neither of us spoke. ‘I have suspected for some time. When we found Arcturus, I knew from the way you grieved, Underqueen.’

Arcturus watched her. Terebell looked at him, her expression as inscrutable as ever.

‘It is not only the folly of it,’ she said, ‘but the fact that you lied to me, Arcturus. It was before our eyes, and you thought usblind, insulting me as you desecrated your sarx. Errai and Pleione both shared my suspicions, but we had faith in your word. You are Ranthen.’

‘He would have told you,’ I said. ‘He was trying to protect the Mime Order. And me.’

‘I had reason to fear your wrath.’ Arcturus spoke in a low voice. ‘You know this, Terebell.’

I had no idea what he meant, but that was the least of my concerns. Terebell had been with Arcturus during the civil war. She was his closest friend, his sovereign, the person who understood him best. I didn’t want to be the cause of any discord between them.

‘You are very fortunate that I am in chains, dreamwalker,’ Terebell said, her eyes blazing.

‘Yes.’ I slid into the far corner of my cell. ‘I’m sure I am.’

‘I should have you spurned,’ she said to Arcturus, ‘for endangering our return to power.’ She must be using English for my sake, so I could grasp what a mess I had made. ‘We are finally convincing our former allies to return to us, and you risk our standing for a mortal.’

‘It is their doctrine, not ours,’ Arcturus said. ‘The Sargas do not rule us, Terebell. It is time we stepped away from their laws, as we did in Oxford. Regardless of my personal feelings for Paige, we are in open league with her. It ill behoves us to degrade our human allies.’

‘So we lower ourselves to their level?’

‘We raise them to ours,’ he said. ‘Paige is my equal. I see no reason not to take her as my partner.’

Terebell ignored him. Her face chilled me to the bone.

‘Do not insult me further by cowering,’ she said. ‘I will not kill you. In any case, Arcturus is right. I have thrown in my lot with you, and you with me, for better or worse. If I were to reveal what is between you, I would look a fool. But the two of you must end this.’

‘We already tried,’ I said. ‘It’s not happening, Terebell.’

Terebell slashed her gaze between us.

‘I will not pretend I understand it,’ she said. ‘I must inform some of the others. Pleione has never cared overmuch for doctrine, and Errai is too devoted to our cause to damage it. They will keep the secret. But if you cannot stop this, youwillcontinue to conceal it. Your liking for their music is one thing, but this is too far, Arcturus. It is desecration.’

‘Terebell, think for yourself,’ I said, frustrated. ‘We first touched a year ago, and nothing has changed.’

‘The veils are thinning. How can you be certain your transgression is not the cause?’

‘Oh, come on. I don’t flatter myself by thinking that the entireuniversehinges on my dating life.’

‘None of us can be certain,’ Arcturus said, giving me a look. ‘But we cannot live in fear of all things.’

Terebell didn’t reply. In fact, she acted as if he wasn’t there.

He spoke to her in Gloss. Wanting to give them some privacy, I turned my back and curled up on the floor, wondering if I would be given a bed. Somehow I doubted it.

After a long time, Terebell answered Arcturus. Their conversation lulled me, despite what they must be talking about. Gloss was becoming a balm to my spirit.

I must have slept. The two Rephs were dead silent in the other cell.

And then I woke, my body cold, a vision filling my sight to the edges.

Nick usually sent me static pictures, easy to fashion and project – but ever since I had joined the gang, he had been working on crafting more complex ones. At some point, he must have got the hang of it. This wasn’t a snapshot, but a living scene, unspooling as if it was taking place before my eyes. I was seeing exactly what Nick was seeing.