Page 13 of The Mask Falling

“Of course. No need for a formal request.”

“Says he who talks like he just rolled up in a horse-drawn carriage with Queen Victoria.”

“Touché.”

He left his gloves on the mantelpiece and sat. I slid a glass of wine toward him. Red wine was all he ever drank, even at the crack of dawn. I had tempted him with coffee and tea in vain.

“I’ll cut to the chase,” I said. “I’ve decided to go out.” When he was silent as a church, I clasped my hands on the table. “Nothing strenuous, I promise. I just want to find out where the syndicate is based. If we play our cards right, the voyants of Paris could be valuable allies to the Mime Order, and we need allies now. It’s time to escalate the revolution.”

“And you believe your fatigue no longer presents an issue.”

“I’m fine.”

“The darkness under your eyes serves as compelling evidence of that. As does the full bowl of coffee.”

I cocked my head. “Did you just master sarcasm?”

“Paige.”

“It’s acupof coffee. With . . . no handle.” I rubbed the bridge of my nose. “All right. It’s a bowl, and I’m knackered, but I can handle a couple of hours on the streets. Half a morning.”

“I need not remind you that behind the curtain, you remain the most wanted individual in the Republic of Scion.”

“Most of the Republic of Scion thinks I was shot dead in Edinburgh. I doubt more than a handful of officials know the truth.”

“I cannot stop you from leaving, Paige. Your choices are your own.”

“I’m asking for your blessing. And your help.” He remained impassive. “Look, any day, Scion could shatter the Mime Order,” I pressed on. “All our work and sacrifice from last year will have been for nothing. I won’t hide away when there are things I can do to protect it.”

“You deactivated Senshield.”

“I can do more.”

He studied my face.

“It was not easy for any of us to watch you surrender yourself to Scion.” His voice was low. “The others believed the bullet had killed you. I knew otherwise. I sensed your fear.”

That silenced me for a moment. “Why didn’t you use the golden cord?”

“I did. Every day.”

Not once had I felt him in the darkness. My thoughts had been trained on survival, but I had listened for his voice, or some hint of his presence. It would have helped me to hold on.

“You have not always acted prudently in your desire to move the revolution forward,” he said quietly. “In London, you fell into a trap that resulted in deaths.” I looked away. “I do not remind you of this to be cruel, Paige. Only to point out that it was your hunger for action that blinded you to the peril that night. That, and your exhaustion. If you push yourself too hard now, if you are impatient, you will put both yourself and others at risk.”

“Terebell was pressuring me to score a victory at any cost,” I reminded him. “I shouldn’t have let her turn the screw. Those deaths are on me, but I’ve learned from them. I won’t put anyone else in danger.”

“Except yourself.”

“I know I can survive out there. I plan to find the syndicate, and I’d stand a much better chance if I have your help.”

“Domino ordered us to wait for contact.”

“They won’t know,” I said. “I’d like us to work together. Isn’t that what we’ve always done best?”

He deliberated for some time. If he called my bluff, I would have to accept defeat for the time being. It would be madness to strike out on my own while I was this physically weak.

“I gave you my word that I would stay with you,” he said at last. I looked up. “As you say, we have accomplished a great deal together. Let us see what comes of this.” He picked up the wine. “How shall we find the syndicate?”

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