That’s the difference between a real magician and a beginner like me—experience. And the ability to do a whole heap of things all at the same time. If I’d sent someone off to do a job, and then been keeping close tabs on the action, I could probably have sensed that he was hurrying back with something important to report. Only I would have had to do that deliberately. But Gesar seemed simply to have sensed my approach in between doing everything else—and he felt so concerned that he’d come out to meet me.

“Tell me,” he ordered curtly as I started clambering out of the car. “And quick!”

All right, then, quick it is . . . I looked into his eyes and played back the conversation with Pastukhov and the visit to Iskenderov.

“Let’s go to my office,” said Gesar, and swung round. Putting up a portal from that distance would simply have looked flashy. “Call Svetlana.”

“What for?” I asked, taking out my mobile.

“I’ll open a portal to your flat. Tell her to come here and bring Nadya.”

A repulsive, chilly tremor of fear ran down my spine.

“No, I don’t see any immediate threat,” said Gesar, without turning round. “But I don’t like what’s happening one little bit. And I need all the Higher Ones in Moscow.”

As he walked along, Gesar seemed to falter every now and then, not stopping completely but slowing down for an instant. It looked to me as if he was communicating with the other Higher Ones.

But then—what others? I was calling Svetlana . . . why wasn’t she answering? . . . there was Olga, too . . . and that was the entire complement of the Night Watch’s “Magicians Beyond Classification.” The Day Watch only had Zabulon on active service now—they had lots of First- and Second-Level Magicians, but recently things hadn’t gone so well for them with Higher Ones . . .

“And what shall I do?” Las shouted after us resentfully.

“Call into the science department and have them send Innokentii to me!” Gesar told him. He liked everyone around him to have some task to perform.

Svetlana finally answered.

“Anton?”

“Sveta, Gesar’s going to put up a portal to our flat . . .”

“It’s already up,” Svetlana answered calmly.

“Grab Nadka and get over here, quick.”

“Is there some kind of rush?” asked Sveta.

“Say they can bring things for a day or two,” Gesar responded briskly. “But they mustn’t dawdle.”