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None of us said much on the journey. I dozed against Arcturus in the back, with Verca on his other side. The others had joined us for the ride, craving the peace and quiet of Venice.

Verca had been the one to activate the retracting floor of the Colosseum. Once she had shown the Rephs into the hypogeum, she had realised they might need a second way out, broken into the control room, and waited for a chance to isolate Cade. She had mistimed the trap by a second, resulting in my fall – days later, she was still apologising – but I was glad she had done it. Maria was right. She had proven invaluable to the team.

At some point, Ducos turned on the radio. Verca leaned in to listen.

‘Sala is saying that she intends to make a presidential address on the fifth of November.’

I shook my head. ‘What the hell is she planning to say?’

‘I really don’t know.’

‘Neither do we,’ Ducos said. ‘Let us hope she’s found a middle ground between telling the truth and sounding relatively sane.’ She lit a cigarette. ‘There is irrefutable proof, at least.’

Maria frowned. ‘What sort of proof?’

‘The remains of the Buzzers.’

We all exchanged glances.

‘Yes,’ Maria said. ‘That sounds like proof enough.’

Venice was swathed in fog again, and cold rain flecked our faces as Noemi took us along the Grand Canal. It was almost dusk by the time we disembarked at the Palazzo del Domino.

Nick went up for his debriefing, the first of several Pivot would hold. Maria and Verca headed into the warmth of the bar, wanting to enjoy their last few days together. Ducos led Eliza to the concierge, while I took Arcturus to my room, which had been left untouched.

‘I am glad to be here again,’ Arcturus said. ‘I hoped to see more of this city.’

‘I can show you around, if you have time.’ I shut the door. ‘What will the Ranthen do now?’

‘We must elect a new sovereign. It may take several weeks, if not longer.’

‘You should put yourself forward. Terebell would have wanted you to be her successor.’

‘I cannot lead the Ranthen.’

‘Why not?’

‘If I did, I would always have to be with them. I would never be able to see you, Paige.’

That sent me into a long silence. I wished I was unselfish enough to tell him it didn’t matter, that he should sacrifice me for the cause. But we had played that game before.

‘It has to be someone who cares about humans,’ I eventually said. ‘Does anyone spring to mind?’

‘Personally, I would favour Adhara Sarin or Marsic Sheratan.’ He sat on the bed. ‘I will return to Scion to confer with the others. Do you plan to remain in the free world?’

‘I need to talk to you about that.’ I joined him. ‘I got two offers yesterday. One was from the Atlantic Intelligence Bureau. They want me to help investigate a circle of suspected Grapevine agents. The pay will be handsome, and they’ll cover surgery on my wrist.’

‘Do you mean to accept?’

‘I was going to tell them where to shove it, but then I found out Nadine would be my associate. She did some big interview after she got back to Canada, and Tinman employed her. I owe her for standing up for you in London. For keeping the Mime Order in place.’

‘Would Nick take over as interim Underlord?’

‘That’s … the other thing.’ I took a deep breath. ‘Will you promise to hear this out?’

‘Yes.’

‘The Council of Kassandra wants me to rule with Jaxon, as Underlord and Underqueen. It’s never been done, but I think it’s legal, provided both participants consent to a joint rule.’