‘Hey, I’ve led—’

‘You’ve never ruled. Not like this. Not like any of this.’

Rennic’s sharp smile returned. ‘Enjoying your turn at the reins of power?’

Tarfel ran his hands over his face, rubbed at his eyes. The flush had paled, leaving him hollow-eyed and pallid as ever. ‘Do you think she’ll survive?’

Rennic shrugged. ‘I’ve known some survive worse. I’ve known many ride the ferry from far less.’

Foss shifted, his attention lifted from the game pieces on the marble before him. ‘She’s a tough lady, the Keeper. Lem and I found her under that sheet of metal – she crawled behind it before that wagon went up. Wouldn’t have done that if she’d intended to expire on that bridge.’ Beneath his eyeline, Lemon rearranged two of the smooth stones, a look of studious innocence on her face.

‘Aye, Fossy,’ Rennic said, ‘but when’s intention carried the day?’

Foss met his gaze. ‘More times than its lack.’

Lemon blinked, eyes flicking from one to the other. ‘Sometimes I don’t have the first fucken idea what yous two are blathering on about.’

‘Worry ye not, Lemon,’ Rennic grinned. ‘That feeling goes both ways.’

Foss cracked a smile. ‘Evil days, my friends.’

‘Evil days, Fossy.’

‘Well, clearly things here are under control,’ Tarfel said with a huffy smoothing of his collar. Above them, something popped, and one of the great windows of coloured glass shattered, bursting inwards in a rain of rainbow shards. The council fled, squealing, as razor-edged slivers smashed against the marble behind them. Chel and Tarfel ducked behind the pillar with the others.

‘Now if only we could do something about that bombardment, before they level the bloody place!’

Chel’s eyes fell on Kosh, unmoved in the chamber doorway.

‘Soon,’ he murmured. ‘Soon.’

***

They’d relocated from the rotunda, with its tall windows, exposed at the city’s front, to new chambers within the thick walls of the Keeper’s palace. Sacks of sand stood piled in the window arches on the southern side of the rooms, blocking out the sounds of renewed bombardments, reducing the flow of cool night air to a trickle. The atmosphere within was hot and stale, the light from smoking oil lamps flickering against the angled walls.

Lemon laid out their places on the low table, insisting on preserving the same seating arrangement that saw her beside Foss. She set a platter for Kosh, but the engineer had since returned to the workshops after her unhappy visit to Matil’s chambers. Tarfel ate in the council chamber, and Loveless was an empty space.

‘At least the food’s still good, eh?’ Lemon said as she ushered the servants back out of the door. ‘Even in reduced quantities. Perks of being mates with the new Keeper.’

‘Acting Keeper,’ Chel said. ‘Until Matil recovers.’

‘Aye, right. Course.’