Page 177 of The Mask Falling

He moved to stand by the door. Zeke lowered his scarf.

“I need you to go back to London,” I said. “To take a message to the Mime Order. Warden has betrayed the revolution. He knows of three major clairvoyant organizations in Britain. All of them need to be aware of the danger.” They exchanged a baffled look. “Léandre has secured a place for you on a train to Inquisitors Cross.”

“We don’t have papers anymore,” Zeke pointed out. “What if there’s a spot check?”

“It’s a cargo train. Someone will see you onto it. Someone else will meet you on the other side.” As I spoke, I glanced at the transmission screen above the serving counter. “This leak is my fault—I should be the one risking the journey—but I need to stay here, to consolidate our alliance with Le Vieux Orphelin. We’ll need him in the weeks to come. I trust only the two of you and Ivy to do this for me. To make sure London gets this message.”

“How can you be sure Warden betrayed us?” Nadine asked under her breath. “What did he say?”

“Enough.”

“No way. You didn’t see how he was in Passy. He did not leave your sideoncewhile you were sick—”

“And you didn’t see him today. He was playing a long game, Nadine,” I said quietly. “I have to safeguard the syndicate. That is my duty as Underqueen.”

Nadine gave her brother a frustrated look. Zeke bit the inside of his cheek.

“Your syndicate thinks we’re traitors,” he said. “They watched us walk away from your side.”

“Eliza will hear you out. Ivy knows the way to her,” I said. “Once you find Eliza and Glym, tell them to warn the communities of Edinburgh and Manchester that their hideouts may be compromised. And tell them to move the London voyants to the shadow houses.”

Nadine frowned. “What?”

“Glym knows about them,” I said. “A few safe havens I kept from the Ranthen. Our voyants will be pressed for space, but they’ll be safe.”

“You had a contingency plan,” Zeke murmured. “In case the Ranthen ever betrayed you.”

“Yes.”

I reached into my coat and removed a thick brown envelope—the one I had inadvertently carried from the safe house, full of Ranthen money. The blood-consort must have left it in my coat, trying to convince me he was on my side. Buying my trust however he could.

“I know what a risk this is. And I don’t expect you to do it for nothing.” I slid the envelope across the table. “For your ship home. I presume the smugglers you know are in London.”

Nadine took the envelope, feeling its thickness. “You need this,” she said. “For the revolution.”

“Not that money. I don’t want it anymore.”

“Come with us,” Nadine pressed, voice low. I shook my head. “Dreamer, I lived with you for two years. I can tell you’re not in a good place. Come home to London, just for a few weeks.”

“Nick would not want us to leave you behind,” Zeke agreed. “You shouldn’t be here alone.”

“I can’t go off course at such a crucial moment. Not when I’m so close. And I have the perdues now.” I looked back up at them. “There’s one more thing. Eliza and Glym need to make it their priority to destroy the Senshield scanners. If Scion ever captures me again, or finds another dreamwalker, they could be reactivated very quickly. Work out a way to get those things off our streets.”

“Should we tell the Ranthen?” Zeke looked nauseous at the prospect. “About Warden, I mean.”

Terebell. It felt like so long since I had last seen her, even though it had only been a couple of months. I hadn’t thought of how she would react when she heard the news.

“Yes,” I said.

Léandre returned and leaned into the booth. “Time to go,” he said, ignoring the bitter look he got from Zeke. No reconciliation there. “A friend is waiting in the station.”

I got up. Léandre reached for his cup, downed the last of his coffee, and shuffled a few notes onto the table.

We crossed the street and walked toward the well-lit building. Gare du Nord was the largest station in Paris, its primary link to the Scion Citadel of London. Ivy waited by an entrance, so bundled up against the snow that she was little more than a dark pair of eyes, recognizable only by her dreamscape. I peeled off my dissimulator and pressed it into her hand.

“Open it and hold it onto your face until it sticks,” I said under my breath. “Hurry.”

“No,” she husked. “Paige, you need it—”

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