“Who cares?” Variam said. “They’ll show up sooner or later.”

“No, Luna’s right,” I said with a frown. “If I were them and I’d lost the trail at the casino, I’d try to pick us up again here.”

“Luna said their leader was injured in the fight,” Anne said. “They might be waiting for him to recover.”

“Well,” I said, “for now, we wait.”

* * *

Anne, Variam, and Luna all had afternoon classes, but they skipped them and the four of us stayed inside for the day. I ran the three of them through the building’s defences, making sure they knew how to activate them if they were needed and to stay out of the way once they were. If Will and his friends decided they wanted a rematch I was going to be ready for them.

At four o’clock the phone rang. Not my mobile but the landline, which I hardly ever use. I picked it up and spoke. “It’s Alex. We need to meet.”

A woman’s voice spoke from the other end of the line, familiar and cold. “What do you want?”

“I’ve got questions.”

“I don’t care.”

“I have something to trade. Information.”

“And?”

“Have I ever called you before?” I asked. “You think I’d be coming to you if this wasn’t important?”

Silence. “Tonight at ten o’clock,” the voice said at last. “The market at the Old Truman Brewery. Try anything and I’ll kill you.” She hung up before I could answer.

I put the phone down and turned to the others. “Well, it’s a start.”

“Was that Rachel?” Luna said. She and Variam were looking at me, while Anne was looking out the window.

“Call her Deleo,” I said. “For some reason her old name really pisses her off.”

“She’s going to help?” Variam said.

“She’s going to talk.”

“Alex?” Anne said, a warning note in her voice. “We’ve got a problem.”

We all turned to look. “That boy from two nights ago is back,” Anne said. “And he’s not alone.”

Variam and Luna rose, and I started scanning futures. “How many?” Variam said.

“Two that I can see,” Anne said. “Him and another the same age.”

“It’s them,” I said. Looking into the futures in which I left the shop and turned right, I could see myself running straight into them. “Four . . . no, five. Probably more.”

Luna had drawn her whip and was standing by the door. “What’s the plan?”

I thought quickly. Will’s group were down the street and they were coming closer. But there were other people out there too . . . An odd idea occurred to me. “I’m going to open the shop.”

Anne, Variam, and Luna all turned to stare at me.

* * *

“Alex?” Luna said quietly from my left. “What exactly is the plan here?”