“There is no one else I care for. Save Louis, of course, but you would hardly threaten your own son.” Something in his expression, some minute alteration in his stance, a fleeting fear in his eyes, gives him away. Now I understand. He is not doing this for the promise of riches or glory. He is doing this for Louis. He is acting out of love, just as I did for Freddie.

He sees that I understand, and I fancy it weakens rather than strengthens his resolve. I take a step toward him. He instinctively steps back, holding the cask away from me.

“Don’t do this,” I beg him. “Louis would not want you to. Please, do not do this.”

“You could simply have married him.” The earl shakes his head, blinking away tears. “He loves you. You know that. You’ve admitted as much. If you’d ceased prevaricating and married him, the two of you would have become close. He could have persuaded you to share the Great Secret with him willingly, I’m sure of it.”

“No.”

“Yes! That way, none of this would have been necessary.”

Another bomb falls, very close this time, causing plaster to fall from the north wall and the chalice on the altar to teeter. Iago flattens himself against the cold stone floor.

“I will never let you have the Great Secret for Stricklend. He is a wicked man. He would use it badly. Cruelly. Dreadfully. Without restraint. Without care. Without morality. Such a person must not ever be given such terrible power, surely you see that?”

The earl stands straight now and his eyes harden once more. “I knew you would not tell me what I need to know. I have known you all your life, Lilith. I knew that without the leverage of a loved one I would not be able to pry the secret from you. But Stricklend is different. Stricklend is a Sentinel. He has his own skills. His own strong magic. He will get what he wants from you. Of that there can be no doubt.”

Before I have a chance to ask him how he intends to get me to wherever it is the Sentinels are waiting for me, I hear footsteps on the stairs and two burly men burst into the room. I summon a spell of disturbance, flinging one of the benches across their path. One of the henchmen trips over it, the other continues toward me. I raise my hand and use a spell of small fire to set flames dancing along his sleeve. Alarmed, he stops to beat at them. I seize my moment and run at Lord Harcourt to try to wrest the casket containing the vial of Elixir from him.

He tightens his grasp. “Do not make this any more unpleasant than it need be, Lilith. I must have it.”