“A blessing’s seen as a really serious thing to ask for, so probably not that many people will go up,” explained Alex. “But for the ones who do, the preacher will hold their hands, maybe for as long as a minute. So Seb could try to get the information psychically first.” Even though Seb had said he didn’t always get specific details, it was definitely worth a shot. Not that this option was without risk, either; the angels might decide to make an appearance and sense something amiss. But at least in the main cathedral, the team could provide Seb with cover.

“Will we be able to get in?” he asked Kara. “Every devout in the city’s going to want to go to this service.”

She nodded. “It’s a ticketed event. They’re on sale from tomorrow; I’ll go down there first thing.”

“Listen, are you sure we can trust that guy?” put in Sam, leaning on his forearms. “What if he gets in there and starts talking or something?”

“He wouldn’t,” said Alex. He was sure of that much, at least; Willow would never speak to Seb again if he betrayed them. He drained his beer. “Come on, we’d better get back so I can talk to him.”

They left the cafe and started walking towards the Metro station. It was coming up to rush hour, with a steady flow of people all heading in the same direction. Far across the square was a pair of circling angels. Though the AKs couldn’t bring them down in daylight with such a crowd around, Alex saw several of the team glance at them speculatively. Good – they were doing scans now without being told.

He hung back a little, walking with Kara. “Can I ask you a favour?” he asked.

She glanced at him in surprise. “Sure.”

Alex cleared his throat, wondering how to phrase this. “Well...you know Willow and I don’t get much time alone together. So I thought I’d take her out for the night on Friday. Would you be in charge while I’m gone? We’ll just be at that hotel on Alfredo Chavero; if anything comes up I could be home in five minutes.”

Though he knew Kara still had reservations about him and Willow, she smiled. “No problem – I’ll babysit the troops.” She gave him a thoughtful look. “Planning a romantic evening, huh?”

Alex’s ears reddened; he jammed his hands in his back pockets as they started down the station stairs. “Yeah, sort of.” He’d booked one of the hotel’s nicest rooms, and arranged for flowers and chocolates to be put in it, plus ordered a special dinner to be delivered by room service. It had pretty much cleaned out his personal funds, but he wanted it all to be so completely perfect.