Joe bit down his retort, fighting a wave of impatience. They didn’t have time for this! He knew he had to choose his next words carefully.

‘Milla and Thom risked their lives to warn us. We only have a short time left. When the volcano erupts fully, Arcosi will be in great danger. I know it’s hard to believe, so far away, but we need to get everyone into the tunnels, now. Without your help, we’re lost. They’ll listen to you, to the army. If you help us, I think we can do it, we can save every­one. Look, I’ve got maps here.’

The first soldier sped back towards them, skidding in the mud. His face had turned grey and taut with fear.

‘All right,’ Rosa said, before the man even had a chance to speak, ‘we’re in.’

‘The beacons!’ the man yelled. ‘He’s right. Hurry!’

‘And there’s enough room for all the dragons, in these tunnels?’ Rosa demanded. ‘Even ones as big as Ando?’

Joe nodded. ‘Yes, the city people can use any tunnel, but there’s only one entrance big enough for adult dragons. Ando and the others will need to go to the western beach, here’ – he showed her on the map – ‘when everyone else is safe.’ 282

‘What about your sister and the duke? We just leave them here, at the mercy of the Brotherhood?’

‘I’ve got an idea …’ Joe explained it to her.

There was a pause then. Joe watched Rosa flick her eyes back towards the palace, then over the ranks of soldiers. Everyone was listening, without seeming to, and she must know it. How long would they remain obedient if they knew disaster was headed their way?

Rosa sighed, and turned back to Joe. ‘Right, Thornsen,’ she said, ‘we will do as you ask. Give me those maps.’

‘Thank you.’ He tried to show how grateful he was.

Joe was astonished how quickly everything changed then. With Rosa bellowing orders, repeated down the lines, the soldiers organised themselves into small groups. Each was given a map, a tunnel entrance to aim for, a neighbourhood to lead to safety, and a dragonrider to herd the city folk. They beetled off to evacuate the city.

Joe felt as if a weight had been lifted from his shoul­ders, as he and Ren hurried back to the barracks. He found Yannic and the others where he’d left them.

When he explained to Yannic what he wanted him to do, the ex-soldier burst out laughing, rubbing a hand over his badger-stripes of white hair. ‘Oh, Joe,’ he said, wiping his eyes with his knuckles afterwards. ‘I thought you just said you wanted me to walk in there, rejoin the Brotherhood, when there’s only hours before this whole island floods or burns, or whatever your mate said—’

‘Yes,’ Joe said steadily, interrupting, ‘that’s what I want you to do. There’s a whole pile of gold in it for you. That 283villa on Sartola? It’s yours.’ And your revenge, he thought, but didn’t say the words in front of his friends. ‘Look, here’s a little taster for you.’ He dug around in his pockets and brought out all the gold he’d taken the other day, gesturing for his friends to do the same. ‘Hold out your hands?’