As the waiter brought more coffees, Gwen reached into her bag and set something on the table in front of Rory and Arthur. “This is where our seller wants to meet.”

She’d brought a flyer, with a picture of a hot air balloon and the words spectacle de magie. “A magic show?” Rory guessed.

Arthur raised an eyebrow. “No one could possibly be that unsubtle, could they?”

“He’s actually picked a perfect cover,” Jade said, as Ellis blew a stream of smoke away from the table. “The seller can hide in plain sight. And if anyone notices anything odd, they can claim it was part of the show.”

Three more tables were filling up around them, fashionably dressed couples and a woman with a fluffy white dog on a leash. A new waiter arrived, carrying a tray with a china cup of tea for Gwen and more pastries for everyone. Jade spoke with him in French for a moment, looking and sounding very at home on the pretty Paris street.

Rory helped himself to another croissant as Gwen tapped the flyer, her eyes on Arthur. “The show is black tie, limited seating.” She picked up her tea. “You’ll need tickets for the seller’s private box.”

“I can arrange that,” said Arthur. “How many?”

“Just you,” Gwen said, looking like she disapproved. “The seller agreed to make the trade at the show itself. He’ll hand the siphon over to Arthur if the meeting goes satisfactorily. But he insists you come alone or he’ll dismiss your bid.”

Arthur furrowed his brow and looked over at Jade. “I don’t care for this plan either,” she said grimly. “But if we don’t buy the siphon, someone else will. And we haven’t found any other leads to get the pomander out of action.”

Rory didn’t like it at all. “But how do we keep Ace safe?”

“I can follow him on the astral plane,” Zhang offered. “The magic show is in a performance hall near the exhibitions, an area full of pavilions and tents. If Arthur is willing, I can be his shadow while he runs distraction, giving the rest of you a chance to search and see if you can find the siphon before the seller takes most of Arthur’s trust fund.”

“I will gladly part with all of my money to make the world a better, safer place,” Arthur said. “You don’t have to steal the siphon when I can buy it outright.”

“We’re not stealing anything, we’re recovering stolen goods.” Ellis ground out the cigarette in the table’s ashtray. “Someone stole it from Sebastian’s family first. This dick’s a thief and that siphon isn’t his to sell.”