“How much do you know about them?”
Belthas nodded. “As you say, that is the weak point. So far, the cabal have worked hard to keep their identities secret. I’ve only seen them once and they were masked. There were at least two, of which one was a fire mage, but the encounter was too brief for me to learn much of value.”
“Any leads?”
“They would have had some connection to Jadan, but I do not know what. I suspect, to start with, the best avenue of investigation would be the location of the battle. I met with the Dark cabal last Thursday at—”
“—an old factory in Deptford, just south of the river,” I finished.
Meredith started and Belthas raised his eyebrows. It was the first sign of surprise he’d shown. “You’re well informed.”
I just looked at him. I didn’t explain how I knew. Bad for the mystique.
“Meredith.” Belthas turned to her. “I think it would be best if you assisted Verus.”
Meredith’s eyes went wide. “What? No!”
“You have a problem with working together?”
“I don’t want to get anywhere near these guys. It’s too dangerous. I didn’t sign up for this!”
“I believe you agreed to gather information.” Belthas’s voice was mild.
“Not like this. You—” Meredith hesitated, then started again. “You know what I agreed to. This isn’t it.”
I wondered exactly what Meredith had agreed to. The silence stretched out and Meredith shifted uncomfortably. “Well,” Belthas said finally. “If you wish to distance yourself, I will not do anything to stop you. However, I cannot guarantee the same of our opponents.”
Meredith frowned. I wondered what Belthas was getting at; it didn’t sound like a veiled threat unless … oh.
“What do you mean?” Meredith said suspiciously, then suddenly she got it. “Wait! They’re still after me!”
“Then it would seem to be in your best interests to stay with Verus, wouldn’t you say?” Belthas said. He looked at me. “Assuming Verus has no objection.”
After a moment, I shook my head. Meredith stared at Belthas. She wasn’t happy and I could tell she wanted to say more; maybe my presence was stopping her. If nothing else, I was sure by now that Meredith and Belthas weren’t close allies. Unless I missed my guess, Meredith was only still working for him because she couldn’t see any other way out. “Then it’s agreed,” Belthas said. “I’ll see to the arrangements.”
I left Belthas’s office an hour later. As promised, he’d given me a run-through of the other information he had as well as setting up payment into one of my bank accounts. I didn’t have any worries about the money, but the information was another matter. I walked out into the waiting room at exactly the same time that a familiar blond-haired man strolled in the other door.
Garrick was wearing civilian clothes instead of the body armour and fatigues that I’d seen him in on Friday night but he was unmistakable; there was something about the lazy grace with which he moved that made me think of a predator. His eyes registered me without surprise. “Verus.”
“Garrick,” I said. I looked him up and down. “No guns?”
“Off duty.”
“Working hard?”
Garrick smiled slightly. The two of us faced each other across the small reception room. The window to one side gave a spectacular view across London but neither of us paid it any attention. “Up to anything interesting?” I asked.
“Looking to hire me?”
“Depends who you’re working for.”
“Sorry. Confidential.”
I looked at Garrick. He looked back at me. I’d been fired at just a few hours ago by someone involved in mage business who was a very good shot. There wasn’t any proof that that someone had been Garrick … yet. “Funny coincidence you showing up here.”
“Business.”
“What is your business, by the way? You don’t exactly act like Council security.”
“Could say the same for you,” Garrick tilted his head. “So you’re working with Belthas?”
“Business,” I said. Garrick’s mouth twitched.
We stood looking at each other a moment longer. “Want some advice?” Garrick said suddenly.
“Why not?”
“Take a holiday.”
I looked at Garrick with raised eyebrows. “I’m kind of busy.”
“Didn’t say you weren’t.” Garrick studied me. “But if I were you, I’d clear my desk and take a break. Maybe a month.”
I started to answer, then paused. It sounded like a threat, and Garrick was the kind of guy you’d pick to deliver one. But as I looked at him, I got the odd feeling that he was giving me not a threat but a warning.
The door behind me opened and Meredith stepped out. She stopped as she saw Garrick. Garrick gave me a nod and walked past into Belthas’s study. I gave him a last glance, then headed for the elevator. Meredith hurried to catch up. The security guards watched us impassively as we left and I wondered if I’d be seeing them again.
As you’d guess from the name, Canary Wharf wasn’t always a financial district. Only a few decades ago it was a dock, part of the vast wharf network running along both sides of the Thames in what used to be the greatest port in the world. Nowadays it’s steel and glass, skyscrapers rising up past the Docklands Light Railway and mixing with cafés and shopping malls, but the layout is still that of the old Docklands. Channels are carved out of the mud, inlets flowing in from the Thames. It’s gracefully landscaped and framed with stone but there’s no hiding the huge bodies of water, enough to make the skyscrapers feel almost like islands. I walked along one of the old piers, watching the crowds thronging the plazas. The concrete was warm from the late-afternoon sun but the breeze off the water was cold.
Meredith was still with me. She seemed to have come out of herself since meeting Belthas and I could tell she was about to speak. There was a stone bench near the waterside, and I sat down on it. “Thank you,” Meredith said.
“For what?”
“Agreeing to help.” Meredith sat down next to me, close enough that our knees were touching. It might just have been the cold. “I know you didn’t have to.”
Meredith’s dark eyes looked up at me but I avoided meeting them; I probably would have said yes to Belthas even without her, and I felt uncomfortable being thanked for it. “What about you? Why did you sign up with him?”
Meredith’s gaze drifted down and she looked out over the water. “I’m not sure.” Her voice was doubtful. I looked at her as she gazed away, watching her brush her long hair back as she stared over the Thames. “I mean, he offered the same things … favours, credit, you know. It’s been so much harder since last year, since …” She seemed to realise what she was saying and looked back at me. “Do you think I should have said no?”
“I’m not sure.” Meredith was right next to me, looking into my eyes, and it was really difficult to think straight. I forced myself to look away. “It’s your choice to make.”