‘Well, there haven’t been that many—’
‘Liar.’
Marquis lets out a splutter of laughter that makes Karim wake with a jolt. I cover my grin with my hands as he sits up, bleary-eyed.
‘Was goin’ on?’ he mumbles.
‘Nothing,’ Marquis says, his eyes still laughing. ‘We’re going to bed. Come on.’
He hugs me goodnight and I stare into the fire, reluctant to leave the warmth of the common room. I close my eyes and try to imagine a scenario in which we all walk out of Bletchley Park together.
When I wake, the embers in the grate are cold. The common room is dark and my legs, curled up beneath me, have gone numb. I sit up. Behind me, a floorboard creaks.
‘Who’s there?’ I whisper.
Hands slide round my neck. I gasp as they pull me back against the chair cushions, crushing my throat. I reach for the arms on either side of my head and sink my nails into them, straining my bare feet against the rug and trying totwist round to see who wants to kill me.
Is it Ralph come to finish off what he started? I lift a fist and ram it, hard, into his face. Teeth graze my knuckles and the grip round my neck becomes vice-tight, crushing the ribbon of Atlas’s necklace. I catch a reflection in the metal side of the radio above the fireplace, see my own purple face and, above it, two strong arms, covered in blond hair, and the face of—
‘Gideon,’ I wheeze as my head swims. ‘Please ...’
Beneath the shawl, my hand meets with something hard.
Those shoes are more dangerous than dragonfire.
I grip my fingers round it and ram the heel into Gideon’s cheek. He screams and lets go, and I fall forward on to the rug, choking on air.
Help!I call, but no sound comes out.
Gideon staggers towards me, a deep, bloody hole under his left eye. I lunge for the poker by the fire.
‘Somebody help!’ I manage to shout.
I gasp as he comes towards me, his face contorted, and presses his stomach up against the poker. He seizes the metal rod in both hands and flings it against the wall. I realise with a jolt that the Guardians are all patrolling the North Wing, where the ballroom and the guest suites are. I scrabble backwards, burning my elbows on the rug, but he grabs me by the throat and lifts me to my feet – and the common room fills with light.
‘You bastard!’ Marquis charges at Gideon and aims a blow at his head that knocks him to the floor.
I fall to the ground again, my head spinning, and thenKarim is behind me, grasping me under the arms and pulling me to my feet.
Marquis and Gideon roll across the floor and, as Gideon’s head hits the edge of the fireplace, his hand finds a log. He raises it above Marquis’s head in a shower of wood and ashes, but I kick it from his hand and he lets out a scream.
‘What’s going on?’ Sophie flies into the room, followed by Dodie and Katherine. Marquis has Gideon in a chokehold, his head in the cold ash.
‘If the fire was lit, I think I’d burn your face off,’ Marquis snarls.
‘Marquis, let him go,’ Sophie says sharply.
‘He just tried to kill Viv!’ Marquis shouts. His hands tighten round Gideon’s neck.
‘Well, he’s outnumbered now.’ Serena is perched on the side of an armchair with her hair in a silk wrap, looking vaguely amused. Behind her, Katherine stares at the scene in horror, something silver glinting in her hand.
I rub my throat and look around. Everyone’s here except Atlas. Karim goes to Marquis’s side, whispering something in his ear, and reluctantly he lets go.
‘Are you all right?’ Marquis says, striding towards me.
He’s wearing nothing but a pair of striped pyjama bottoms and there’s a long, bloody scratch across his face.
‘I’m fine,’ I say.
