‘We will be returning to the cathedral for a little while,’ Alberich informed them. ‘I trust you will find something to read while you’re waiting.’

‘Wait,’ Irene objected. ‘I’d prefer it if Vale and Catherine came with us.’

‘Overruled,’ Alberich told her, with an air that suggested he’d been looking forward to saying that. ‘For the moment they’re my hostages.’

Which was exactly what Irene had expected. Now she had to pull off the second part of her manoeuvre and get the person she really wanted. ‘I’m willing to cooperate,’ she said stubbornly, ‘but Vale’s health and sanity are part of the deal. If she stays here with him,’ and she nodded to Lady Guantes, ‘I’m not sure who I’ll find in his body when I get back.’

A little smirk curved Lady Guantes’ lips. ‘You underrate my patience,’ she informed Irene.

‘Nevertheless, you may be useful.’ Alberich turned to Irene. ‘She’ll return to the cathedral with us – and assist in the operation. Are you satisfied?’ He was humouring her, indulging her like a child, as if he genuinely believed she was about to betray Shan Yuan.

Irene allowed herself to look faintly relieved. ‘Yes. That’ll do.’ In the back of her mind she ticked off one more item on her threadbare checklist. ‘So how do we get back? Or if we’re already there as well as here, how do we get to be more there?’

Alberich smiled like a lecturer who’d been asked his favourite question. ‘All those who have a certain level of chaos in their nature have been raised into my world. Basically, I pulled and you responded. The Fae, the human with more of a taint than he’d care to admit, the Librarian . . .’

‘As a Librarian, I’m not chaos-contaminated,’ Irene pointed out.

‘How little you know.’ He reached into the sleeve of his robe, and brought out a pendant, which he offered to Irene. It was the same as the one she’d removed earlier: a black metal teardrop on a leather thong, interlaced with circuitry almost too tiny to see. ‘Take this. Put it on.’

Irene knew what a dangerous game she was playing, as she took the pendant hesitantly. Perhaps this token signals my allegiance? Or is this the crucial element he needs to possess me . . .

‘I’m waiting,’ Alberich said.

She could feel her pulse hammering as she met his eyes, knowing he’d see her reluctance. He’s enjoying this. Jerkily she slid the thong over her head, feeling the pendant come to rest against her bare skin.

‘I have one myself,’ Lady Guantes said, touching her bodice. ‘A necessity, if Alberich is to move us between worlds or enable us to use his doors.’

‘Ah yes, the doors.’ Alberich gestured again – far too dramatically, Irene thought – and another bookshelf slid back. This revealed a door, standing by itself in its frame. It was marked with the Language, the words a perfect match to those on the one beneath the Sagrada Familia. Irene wondered if this was the other side of that door. ‘Walk through. I’ll meet you on the other side – in my virtual form.’

‘We need to wait for the chaos levels to stabilize,’ Lady Guantes volunteered sweetly, flaunting her superior knowledge.

‘Correct,’ Alberich said with a smile. ‘It’s something like a canal lock – the chaos levels on each side have to equalize for us to pass through. The Language creates a solid connection between the worlds, while the computing power sustains my manifestation. But we still have to wait until the chaos levels stop fluctuating before we can pass.’

Irene’s heart sank. Kai and Shan Yuan were badly incapacitated within high-chaos worlds, and fluctuating levels of the stuff would make its effects even worse. This made it even less likely that they could help her with any plan she might have in mind – and Alberich knew it. He nodded her towards the door.

‘Interesting,’ Vale said, breaking the tense silence. ‘So you require a link to move your projection to another world – and without that you’re trapped here?’

‘I’m a solitary and retiring man,’ Alberich said smoothly. ‘I don’t like to go where I’m not invited.’

‘Isn’t that vampires?’ Catherine asked. She set her jaw mutinously when Alberich turned to look at her with a vivisectionist’s eye. ‘Don’t tell me. You’re the origin of all vampire stories.’

‘Oh, it’s worse than that,’ Alberich said. ‘Much worse. Now, Ray. Prove you mean what you say. Go through that door – and get things ready for me. I’ll allow your friends through when I’m . . . satisfied.’

Irene didn’t give herself time to hesitate, or to look at Vale and Catherine. She set her hand on the door and pushed.

It swung open into the room they’d left just a few minutes ago, though it felt like hours: the dark archive with its empty experimental table and shadowy pillars. Kai and Shan Yuan lay crumpled on the floor, shuddering as if stricken with an ague. The light itself seemed to have dimmed and become somehow less wholesome. Whether or not it was still midnight, the bell was still ringing far above.

Tablet screens glowed and then suddenly jumped to brilliant life as the door closed behind Irene and Lady Guantes. Irene caught images and lines of text flickering across their surfaces in columns and helixes. Other screens, deeper within the archive, lit up like distant polluted fires – flashing their own workings into the darkness. A singing hum rose in the background, as if some distant storm was coming ever closer.

Please, Irene thought, not sure who or what she was petitioning, or if this was an appeal to her own courage. Let Alberich be distracted for one moment. Just half a moment, just long enough . . .

Irene grabbed Lady Guantes by the arm and pulled her close. As the other woman blinked at her, taken aback by the sudden aggression, Irene leaned forward and breathed into her ear, ‘You perceive that Alberich has utterly betrayed you and destroyed your husband, and that you must take immediate steps to stop him.’

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

Lady Guantes pulled away, her face tight with anger and horror, but she also looked far from surprised at this news of betrayal. Most importantly, she still looked in control – like a woman with a plan. A Fae couldn’t knowingly break her given word. However, if Lady Guantes honestly believed her bargain with Alberich was already broken, she could do whatever she wanted. And if she thought he’d destroyed what was left of her husband . . .

The Fae woman plucked the pendant from her neck, dropping it and kicking it into the shadows. Then she withdrew an exquisite mobile phone from her jacket and began tapping in commands.

Irene desperately wished she could remove her own pendant – but that would alert Alberich. He’d be watching her more closely than his ally. Trying to ignore the pulsing lights, she moved towards Shan Yuan and looked for Alberich’s projection. ‘Alberich?’ she called. ‘Are you there?’

The screen lights settled to a regular glow and Alberich’s shadow coalesced in the centre of the room. More shadows seeped into being around him, hinting at towering bookshelves and ruined flooring. It was as though the two worlds grew closer with every second. ‘I’m most assuredly here,’ he answered her.