“They’re down now,” Sonder said. “They’re not down then. Anything past about nine years just blanks out. And it’s at the edge of my range anyway.”

I nodded, hiding my disappointment. I hadn’t really been expecting it to be that easy but it had been worth a try. “I guess we keep looking.”

Caldera came back a few minutes later. “Anything?” I asked as she walked in.

“Waste of time,” Caldera said. “This place hasn’t been used in years.”

“Deleo was here,” Sonder said. “She killed three men who tried to loot this room five months ago.”

“Dark-style home defence, huh?” Caldera glanced at the ruined sofa. “A couple of the other rooms have been trashed too.”

“Should I check them?” Sonder asked.

Caldera shook her head. “No, it’s Richard I want. Deleo’s only important if she can lead us to him.”

“So we’re going?” I said.

Caldera raised an eyebrow. “In a hurry to leave?”

“I’m in a hurry not to run into Deleo.”

“So watch for her.”

“I’ve been watching for her nonstop since we gated in,” I said. “You know the best way of making sure we don’t run into her? Not sticking around any longer than we have to.”

“I’m a Keeper, Verus,” Caldera said. “If we ran scared every time we had to deal with a Dark mage, we wouldn’t be much good at our jobs.” She looked at Sonder. “Can you follow where Deleo went?”

“I don’t think she came in the front door,” Sonder said.

“She wouldn’t have to,” I said. “She knows the whole mansion and there are no gate wards. She can gate into any part she likes.”

“Then let’s check the basement,” Caldera said.

I sighed and started towards the doorway. “I knew you were going to say that.”

* * *

“It’s warded,” I said.

We were at the end of the main hallway on the ground floor. The entrance to the lower levels was a simple arch in the wall, and the glow from Caldera’s light illuminated stone steps leading down into shadow. “It’s another alarm ward, right?” Sonder said, concentrating on the archway. “It looks the same as the first.”

“It is.”

“Right,” Caldera said, walking to the wall. “Same again, then.”

“Don’t!” I said sharply. “It’s a trap.”

Caldera frowned at me. “I can’t see anything.”

“The alarm ward is just a cover,” I said. “It’s meant to make you think that you can get past it the same way you did the first. The real defence is there.” I pointed down into the darkness. “Anything that goes down there is going to summon a nocturne.”

“What the hell is that?”

“Darkness elemental. They hunt by sound. You don’t want to meet one.”

“So what’s the trigger?” Caldera said. “How do we get around it?”