‘I will demonstrate my feelings to you, madam,’ he said quietly, ‘quite clearly – the moment I am assured that the fires are out, and we are alone again inside. I don’t know what possessed you to act in such a way but, upon my word, you will pay dearly for this, I promise you.’

The little laugh seemed to burst from Rosa quite without her meaning it to and caused Eustace to look at her askance.

‘Have you lost your reason?’ he demanded.

‘I apologise,’ Rosa said. For a moment her voice trembled with the effort of not giving in to more mirth, but she gathered herself and went on. ‘Why, it is just too absurd, you know, to imagine that you might have the power to hurt me any more than you already have. So pray do not talk to me any further in that imbecilic manner. If you had the sense God gave a goat, you’d realise I am not the least afraid of you – or of anything you can do.’

Eustace went red. She could see the veins beneath his skin, bulging like engorged worms, fat from the graveyard. ‘We will see about that,’ he snapped.

She turned her back on him and went into the house. From her bedroom window she watched as they burned the boar on the final remaining fire – the remnants of a supper booth that had been set alight. The boar did not resist when the nervous servants approached it. Rosa hadn’t designed it to attack humans, only peacocks. Much as she had desired to punish Eustace, she did not want or intend anyone to be hurt. So the pig squealed into the dark as its metal body melted, and the fire crackled and spat out molten lumps of iron.

By the time the duke stormed his way up the stairs, he was in the most murderous temper. When he discovered that she had locked him out, his shouts echoed around the house, but Rosa cared not. The blood opal on her finger blazed hotter than ever. One way or another, she knew, he’d eventually find another key from somewhere, or break down the door. And if he wanted to fight, well, so did she. And she was ready for him.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Eustace raged out in the corridor for an hour before finally calming himself enough to go and find a spare key. The door unlocked with a soft click and swung slowly forward. Rosa stood by the window, where she’d been watching the ruins of her clockwork boar smoke in the grey morning air. She turned away from the window now to face Eustace across the room. His eyes were bloodshot and all reason had gone from his face.

‘You should know that we have some new ravens,’ Rosa said. ‘The chimneys are packed full of them.’