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‘Then start thinking of one,’ he says. ‘I’m sure you have more tricks up your sleeve, and I can only get us so far.’
I lapse into silence as Erik drags me through a set of white swinging doors. We’re back in the main hall of the Coventry, and my feet catch on the thick shag carpets as he pulls me along. He leads me away from the meeting rooms, and we walk quickly towards the upper studio’s entrance. Several men in the coal-black uniform of the Guild are blocking the entrance, and as we draw closer, one holds up his hand to stop us.
‘This area is quarantined, sir,’ he states in a voice that’s all business.
‘I know,’ Erik says, pushing me forward. ‘Here’s why.’
‘Um, I need to check with—’
‘Cormac sent me for her,’ Erik informs him, ‘but go ahead and call it in. He loves waiting.’
The guard’s eyes shift from him to me, and a chill ripples through my arms, raising goosebumps. It suddenly occurs to me that Erik might not be my friend; he might be leading me right into Cormac’s hands.
‘Go on up, sir,’ the guard says, stepping aside.
I keep quiet as Erik follows me up the stairs.
‘Any ideas?’ he mutters as we spiral through the tower.
I shake my head, and he moans behind me. If he is playing me, any plans I share with him could be turned against me. Not that I’ve thought of any.
When we reach the final twist in the staircase, Erik grabs my arm and drags me into Loricel’s studio. The walls are empty without the default image shimmering on them. I keep my eyes glued to the floor, but even without looking up, I see several sets of shoes around me: perfectly shined wingtips, red satin heels, and several pairs of thick boots. Between them, knees slump against the floor.
‘Darling,’ Cormac says in an irritated voice. ‘So nice of you to join us.’
I take a deep breath and lift my eyes. In the corner, Jost – fresh blood trickling from a cut near his left eye – is being held down by two burly guards. Not far from him, Maela and Pryana are watching me with looks of triumph on their faces.
‘Speechless!’ Cormac proclaims, stepping into my line of sight and blocking my view of Jost. ‘Never thought I’d see the day. Guess we found her hot button.’
Erik’s grasp on my arm tightens, but I don’t react to Cormac’s taunts.
‘I suppose this changes your ridiculous plan for her,’ Maela sneers. No need to play nice if they’re going to kill me.
‘We’ll proceed with the remap and go from there,’ Cormac says in a quiet but firm voice.
‘She’ll be a better wife then anyway,’ Maela says, but while she looks pleased by this, Pryana’s eyes flash with anger. She must not have heard their whole plan until now. Can it be that she’s actually jealous?
Jost, who hasn’t moved since we entered the room, shifts against his captors and glares at them.
‘Don’t like the sound of that, huh?’ Maela says in a mocking tone.
‘Shut up, Maela,’ Cormac orders.
Her victorious smile fades, and she steps back towards the empty wall.
Cormac turns to Erik, who’s still holding me in place. ‘Where was she?’
‘In the research area, sir,’ he says.
I’d hoped he would rat me out and, at least, confirm my suspicion about him, but Erik’s answer leaves too much room for interpretation, and I still can’t be sure what side he’s on. I was in the research area, but why not tell them I was in the repository? Is he still buying me time?
‘Enough of this,’ Loricel says from across the room, and I turn to look at her. She keeps her gaze on Cormac and doesn’t meet my eyes.
‘We need to find out what she was doing,’ Cormac says, striding to the loom. ‘Pull up the corresponding piece of the weave.’
Loricel moves to the command panel and enters a code. The brilliant weave of the compound glides back onto the loom.
‘Loricel was gracious enough to patch up the little hole you left,’ Cormac tells me. ‘But I’d like you to show me exactly what you did and where you went.’
