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That left Althea as the serpent’s sole target.

She tightened her grip on the gaff and shoved with all her might.

She expected the wooden handle to give way at any moment.

Momentarily, her push and the serpent’s pain turned the creature’s head away from her.

It breathed another rush of spittle that pocked Paragon’s deck.

The liveship shrieked again. Behind her, other voices were raised, Lavoy commanding men to put on sail, men yelling in anger or terror, but above all was the ship’s amazed and furious cry.

‘I know you!’ Paragon roared. ‘I know you!’ Amber shouted a question but Althea could not make it out.

She gripped the hook desperately. The haft was weakening in her hands, but it was the only weapon she had.

She did not know Brashen had joined her until he struck the serpent with an oar.

It was a pitiful weapon against such a creature, but it was all that was close to hand.

Abruptly, her hook came loose from the creature’s nostril.

Unencumbered now, it shook its maned head, spattering the deck with smoking poison.

As the head came towards them, Althea levelled the gaff like a pike and charged.

She was aiming for the great eye, but missed as the serpent swivelled its head towards Brashen.

Instead, the tip of the boat hook struck a colour spot on the creature just behind its jaw hinge.

To her shock, the tip of the hook plunged into the flesh easily, as if she had stabbed a ripe melon.

With all her strength, she shoved it as deep as it would go.

The hook followed the tip into the animal’s flesh. With a jerk, she set it.

In agony, the serpent flung its head back.

‘Get away!’ she cried needlessly to Brashen.

He had already ducked and rolled away. She gave a final jerk on the hook.

It tore flesh, and smoking hot poison ran down the serpent’s own neck.

It shrieked, fountaining poison and blood from its wide-open mouth.

It shook its head wildly, snatching the gaff from her numbed hands.

She sat down hard and stared helplessly up at the thrashing creature.

Some of its poison landed harmlessly in the sea, but some spattered across Paragon’s deck and side.

The ship cried out wordlessly and a tremor ran through his wooden body.

As the serpent fell back and sank beneath the waves, Brashen was already shouting for buckets, seawater and brushes.

‘Get it off the deck! Now!’ He roared from where he crouched on his hands and knees.

His face was scalded scarlet by the serpent’s venom.

He rocked back and forth as if he were trying to rise but could not. She feared he was blinded.

Then from the bow came the wild cry that chilled Althea’s blood. ‘I knew you!’ the Paragon bellowed. ‘And you knew me. By your poisons, I know myself!’ His wild laughter rose on the wind. ‘Blood is memory!’

How much could the world change in one night, Ronica Vestrit wondered?

If one stood on a chair in Althea’s old bedroom and looked out the window, there was a partial view of Bingtown and the harbour over the intervening treetops. Today, peer as she might, all she could see was smoke. Bingtown was burning.

She clambered stiffly down from the chair and picked up the armful of linens from Althea’s bed. She would use it to make bundles for them to carry as they fled.

She remembered far too much of the long walk home in the darkness.

Malta had lurched along between them like a crippled calf.

After a time, Selden had come out of his daze and begun to cry.

He wailed endlessly, demanding to be carried, as he had not been in years.

Neither of them could do it. Ronica had gripped his hand in hers and towed him along, with her other arm about Malta’s waist. Keffria had gripped Malta’s upper arm and helped her along while she carried her own injured hand curled to her chest. The walk had been eternal.

Twice riders had passed them, but despite their cries for help, the horsemen had simply thundered past.

Daybreak came late, for the smoky air extended night’s hold on the land.

Night had been more merciful. Daylight revealed their tattered clothes and scraped flesh.

Keffria was barefoot, her shoes lost in the wreck.

Malta shuffled along in the ragged remnants of slippers never intended for the street.

Selden’s shredded shirt clung to his raw back; he looked as if he had been dragged by a horse.

Malta had struck her forehead and blood had dried in macabre stripes down her face.

Both her eyes were blacked and closed to slits.

Ronica looked at the others and could imagine how she looked.

They spoke hardly at all. Once, Keffria observed, ‘I forgot all about them. The Satrap and his Companion, I mean.’ In a lower voice she asked, ‘Did you see them?’

Ronica shook her head slowly. ‘I wonder what happened to them,’ she had replied, although in truth she did not. She did not wonder anything about anybody except her own just now.

Malta spoke thickly through her puffed mouth. ‘The horsemen took them away. They looked for the other Companion, and when they found that I was not her, they just left me there. One of them said I was nearly dead anyway.’

She fell silent again. The silence lasted the rest of the way home.

Like a string of battered beggars, they limped up the unkempt drive to Vestrit Manor, only to find the door latched and barred to them.

Keffria had given way to tears then, pounding weakly on the door as she sobbed.

When Rache came to let them in at last, she carried a stick of kindling in her hand as a makeshift club.

Somehow, half the morning had passed since then.

Wounds had been bathed and dressed. Their fine and bloodied ball clothes were heaped in the hallway.

Both the youngsters were in bed, sleeping heavily.

With Rache’s aid, both Ronica and Keffria had bathed and changed their clothes, but as yet there was no rest for them.

Keffria’s fingers had swollen to agony. That left Ronica and Rache to gather provisions and spare clothes for all of them.

Ronica was not sure what was going on in Bingtown below, but armed horsemen had taken the Satrap and his Companion from the coach last night and left the rest of them to die.

The town was burning. The haze was too thick to see what was taking place in the harbour.

She would not wait for the chaos to reach her door.

They had her old saddle mare and Selden’s fat pony.

They could not take much with them, but, she reflected bitterly, there was precious little of value left.

They’d go with their lives. Ingleby Farm had been part of her bridal portion.

It would take them at least two days to get there.

She wondered what old Tetna, the caretaker, would think of her.

She had not seen her ancient nursemaid in years.

She tried to pretend she looked forward to it.

When the pounding came at the door, she dropped the linens in the hallway.

She wanted to run away but could not. She stood alone between whatever was at the door and the children of her family.

She saw Rache venture out from the kitchen, kindling in hand.

Ronica stepped briefly into the study. It had been Captain Vestrit’s conceit to keep a marlinespike on the corner of his desk.

It was still there. She had it in her hand as she stood inside the door and demanded, ‘Who’s there? ’

‘Reyn Khuprus! Please. Let me in!’

Ronica nodded at Rache, but did not put down the marlinespike. The serving woman undid the latch and bolt. As the door swung open, Reyn recoiled in horror at the sight of the battered old woman.

‘By my honour, I prayed it was not true!’ he cried. ‘And Malta?’

Ronica stared at the young Rain Wild man. He was still dressed in his elegant eveningwear, but the smells of dust and smoke clung to him. He had been in the thick of it. ‘She’s alive,’ Ronica said flatly. ‘Davad Restart is dead. As is the coachman.’

He did not seem to hear her words. ‘I swear, I did not know. She came in a hired coach, they told me you all arrived in a hired coach. I expected her to leave that way. Please, please. Is Malta all right?’

Ronica made the connection. Cold enveloped her. ‘Your men left her to die. In fact, they told her she was dying. That should tell you something of her condition. Good day, Reyn Khuprus.’ She motioned to Rache, who began to close the door.

Reyn flung himself bodily against it. Rache could not hold it against him.

He stumbled into the hall, then straightened and faced them.

‘Please, please. There is so little time. We’ve driven the galleys from the harbour mouth.

I came to get Malta, to get all of you. I can get you out now, and up the Rain Wild River.

You’ll be safe up there. But there isn’t much time.

The Kendry will sail soon, with or without us.

The galleys could return and close the harbour at any time. We have to go now.’

‘No,’ Ronica said flatly. ‘I think we’ll take care of our own, Reyn Khuprus.’

He spun away from her abruptly. ‘Malta!’ he cried. He sprinted down the hallway towards the wing of bedchambers. Ronica started after him, only to suddenly grasp at the wall, her head reeling. Her body would betray her now? Rache took her arm and helped her follow Reyn.

The young Rain Wilder had gone mad. He roared Malta’s name as he raced down the hall, flinging doors open. He reached Malta’s room just as Keffria came flying out of hers at the end of the hall. He looked inside, gave a cry of anguish, and flung himself into the room.