They all crouched in the shadows beneath Jupiter’s robes. The Forum beyond was busy, which was a gift; Jess sent a silent prayer up to his Christian god, who must have called in a favor or two for this small miracle in a land loyal to other deities. The Library hadn’t sent the word out yet to clear the Forum.

“How far behind us are they, sir?” Glain asked Santi. He was still breathing raggedly and favoring his side, but he seemed better. Functional, at least.

He was checking over his weapon, and didn’t look up as he replied, “Fifteen minutes until they’re in the tunnels, if we’re lucky, and I wouldn’t count on luck.”

“We have to get back to the Translation Chamber in the basilica,” Morgan said. “It’s our only way out. It’s how we planned to leave!”

“The devil of battle is that plans change,” Santi said. “And if we go that way, we’ll have to go to ground somewhere and let the beehive settle before we try anything. Either that or risk the public exits.”

“They’ll be waiting at every one,” Wolfe said. “Rome isn’t an easy city to enter or leave. They can make sure we don’t slip away. Morgan’s right: Translation is our only way out.”

“Then we use the High Garda chamber, where I arrived.”

“Nic. It’ll be guarded and on high alert, and you know it. We must go back into the basilica.”

“I’d far rather deal with High Garda than a pack of automaton lions hunting just for us, with orders to rip us apart.”

“I’d rather not die,” Dario said flatly. “So perhaps we should think on it.”

“If the problem is with the automata . . .” Thomas’s voice came quietly, tentatively, and they all hushed to look at him. He almost seemed to flinch from the sudden attention and looked away. “If that’s what you need to fight, I might have a way. There’s an inventor in Rome, Glaudino. I visited his store on Via Baccina a time or two when I was younger. We should go there.”

“Do you think you can trust him?” Wolfe asked, and Thomas shook his head.

“No, of course not,” he said. “He’s very loyal to the Library. He’d never help us.”

“Then I don’t see how this helps—”

“Because he works with the lions,” Thomas said. “I’ll need Morgan with me. And Jess.”

“Why?” Santi demanded. He caught and held his gaze, and Jess saw a visible tremor run through his friend. Santi must have seen it, too, because he paused and softened his tone. “I’m sorry, Schreiber. We’re all on edge. What will you do there to help us?”

“I can make one work for us.”

“One what?”

It was Morgan who answered for Thomas. She’d gotten it far quicker than Jess. “An automaton lion,” she said. “Oh, Thomas, brilliant. Brilliant. Do you think we can do it?”

“Glaudino’s workshop repairs the Library’s automata,” Thomas said. “We should be able to fix one and make it work for us instead.”