She opened the window, inhaled several deep breaths, then lowered the bag of equipment on a rope. With shaking legs, she climbed down the fire escape ladder, then snatched up the bag of equipment and ran around the back of the factorium, stopping at the front-west corner of the building to check if the coast was clear. There were people everywhere! If she ran now, she’d be seen for sure. What could she do?

Then, operatic singing, as crystalline as ice, rang through the air. Cora was standing near the fountain, singing the anthem of Medlock at the top of her voice.

Every head swung in her direction and people flocked towards her. Cora glanced in her direction and winked.

Agapantha blinked. Cora was helping her! She looked at her watch – nine-thirty.

Without thinking, she dashed towards the tower.

*

The stag-men filed out of the abandoned village and into the night, marching in a uniform beat, feet crunching and pounding the snow of the forgotten streets.

Prue and Edwin told Craftsman Primrose they would follow at the back to make sure that the stag-men stayed in line. Prue hardly took her eyes from Francis. She sidled as close to him as she could and whispered, “It’s going to be all right, I’ll get you home, we’ll fix this.” But he just stared blankly ahead. It felt a punch to her very heart. As they left the building, Prue glanced at her watch: nine thirty.

Primrose ordered the stag-men into ten rows of ten. They were a terrifying sight, standing in the deserted streets, their imposing machine bodies and antlers bathed in the eerie reddish-orange light of the blood moon.

Primrose addressed them. “I am your master and you are here with one purpose: to take the Guild for our own. Without me you are slaves to a system which values only those in their first lives. Those at the Guild bring spirits into this world in order to do their bidding, to serve and exist for the good of those in their first life. You are in your second life, you are the power. They are nothing like you. On my command – forward!”

The stag-men marched, legs and arms in time. Prue glanced at Edwin and they followed.

“Give it a minute,” she said. “As soon as we’re among the dense trees we’ll be able to break away more easily – Primrose will be leading, so hopefully he’ll be too busy looking forward to notice. If we head southwest, we should hit the back of the factorium and be able to get to the tower before they make it through the forest. If we can run fast enough.” She prayed that they could.

Edwin nodded.

After a minute of trudging along, they hung back. Then, with a nod of agreement, they sped away from the group.