The bell finally fell silent, no longer tolling out those deep notes that throbbed in her chest and throat. Instead, speakers formed Alberich’s words; she could hear other computers echoing them in distant whispers throughout the room. She shivered at this, imagining a shadowy choir of lost souls. The air tasted ripe with chaos and the Library brand on Irene’s back burned with it.

‘This is Shan Yuan,’ she said to him. She considered prodding the sprawling dragon with her foot, but decided that would be overdoing it. ‘As I promised.’

Shan Yuan glared up at Irene. His eyes could barely focus in the rush of chaotic power that swelled around them. And she was about to make things worse for him, as her betrayal would – had to – seem genuine. Yet if she didn’t distract Alberich, and he noticed Lady Guantes plotting, they were all dead.

‘You did indeed promise,’ Alberich replied. ‘Very well. This confirms our bargain – this dragon’s life for yours. Render him helpless for me.’

Kai lifted his head to look at Irene, trying to struggle to his knees but unable to raise himself from the floor. ‘Irene?’ he gasped, his voice uncertain as he tried to understand what was going on.

Lady Guantes was still typing, gloved fingers sliding across her phone’s surface in a paroxysm of fury.

‘Trust me,’ Irene said, desperation seeping into her voice, ‘trust me, Kai, everything’s under control, just relax for a moment.’ She could see Alberich smiling. Yes, smile, enjoy it, gorge yourself on my despair, but don’t look round . . .

‘I think I’ve changed my mind,’ Alberich said.

‘Oh?’ Irene said without much hope. There were still two other possible hosts in the room, her – and Kai.

‘Yes. I’ll take your lover instead.’ The pendant on her neck flared, hot enough to make her wince. ‘Or you. Your choice, Ray.’

In the mix of emotions that followed, relief won. Alberich could be distracted by his own sadism. But how much time did she have? ‘Fine!’ she snapped, playing for even a few more seconds – she was relying on Lady Guantes to get them out of this. ‘Take him, then. Better him than me. I’m like you, Alberich. I want to live – and I’ll sacrifice whoever it takes to stay alive.’

Kai was still watching her, his eyes full of a trust she felt she didn’t deserve. Her heart clenched. He thinks I’m faking it, that I have a plan in mind. But if it doesn’t work, this is the last thing he’ll remember me saying . . .

‘Perfect,’ Alberich said with amusement. ‘I wondered how far you’d go for just a little bit of hope.’ Distant computers continued to whisper his words. ‘Humanity is so adaptable. Now how far can I push you, before you reach your limits? Perhaps you should dispose of this one’s brother first, to get rid of witnesses? If I give you a knife, will you cut his throat with your own hands . . .’

Lady Guantes made a final, abrupt motion over her phone and slid it back into her jacket, vengeful satisfaction on her face. Then, almost in slow motion, a horrified realization took its place. The Language’s effect had worn off. The Fae reached for her phone again.

Then the archive’s lights flicked from dim to blinding, and the ambient whispering and humming of computers rose to a piercing shriek. It drilled into Irene’s head and she pressed her hands against her ears. The books and papers lining the shelves shivered and trembled, stray pages floating out and down. Alberich’s simulacrum froze, its colour draining to black and white like an old film.

Irene body-tackled Lady Guantes before she could reverse whatever she’d just done. The two of them went rolling across the floor, Irene’s long skirts tangling both their legs. Lady Guantes tried to struggle free at first, then attempted to incapacitate Irene by any means possible. She didn’t waste her breath on cursing or calling for help. Instead she brought her knee up viciously, before elbowing Irene in the side of the head.

The blow wasn’t enough to knock Irene out, but it made her dizzy. She clawed at Lady Guantes’ eyes in desperation – and when the other woman pulled away, she thrust her forearm across the Fae’s throat to pin her down. Lady Guantes slammed her right fist into Irene’s side and, as she retaliated, Irene felt the bandage on her wrist give way and her wound start to bleed again.

Abruptly the floor rose in a long ridge between them, forcibly separating them and throwing them to either side. Irene tried to stagger to her feet, but her head was spinning too badly and she only managed to get to her knees. Lady Guantes straightened, coughing and clutching at her throat where Irene had hit her.

Lady Guantes was closer to the painted door than Irene – but she couldn’t silence her. ‘Door, open!’ Irene shouted, her voice cracking as she struggled to be heard over the scream of the computers.

Other doors within earshot flew open, booming as they wrenched themselves free of their locks and slammed into walls. But this one, the closest one, the most important one of all, tried to resist her. Even frozen by whatever Lady Guantes had done, Alberich’s will was still set against hers.

And the pendant at her throat was burning into her skin.

She managed to stand and ran for the painted door, but Lady Guantes moved to intercept her – and fell with a crash, as Kai caught her ankle. As she passed, Irene kicked her in the ribs to keep her down and grabbed the door’s handle with one bloody hand. ‘Open!’ she screamed, yanking at it.

It swung open – and to Irene’s vast relief, Vale and Catherine were just a few steps away on the other side. Beyond them, she could see the towering lines of bookshelves were shaking. The air was now full of dust, falling books and churning swarms of flies – but her friends were there. Alberich hadn’t killed them or imprisoned them somewhere, miles away. She allowed herself a moment of hope that they might escape this nightmare after all.

Vale and Catherine had clearly been waiting for any opportunity to get out of there. They both surged for the door and stumbled into the archive together, while the door strained in Irene’s hands.

She let it go, and it slammed back into position. The ambient chaos was beginning to ebb within the archive, now the door was closed. As the two worlds slid apart again, it was as if a tidal wave had started to recede, running back down the beach.

Throughout the archive, computers were shutting down, their blazing screens darkening to black and their whirring fans falling silent. The image of Alberich greyed out even further, blurring to static and then – finally – to nothingness.

‘Are you all right?’ Irene began to say to Catherine, drawing a deep breath, but then there was a clanging in her head. It was louder and more discordant even than the cathedral bells, and she found herself on her knees, clutching at the pendant around her neck. It wouldn’t move. It was fixed to her flesh. She found herself unable to form words – for all languages, even the Language, were beyond her grasp. And she could sense something, something horrifying, settling into her head like a maggot. She wanted to scream as she felt it worming its way into position and making itself comfortable. Lady Guantes had broken Alberich’s other links to this world by shutting down his computers. Now he was clinging to the only link he had left – the pendant – and through it, her.

She tried to fight back, but she had no idea how. She could only watch in terror as the horror spread. The thing inside her swept through her mind like decay, its spores corrupting every helpful thought or idea into colonies of itself.