It came from nowhere and everywhere. It rippled the lagoon waters. It shook the jeweled lanterns hovering above the streets and sent the Forged platters of food and merchant wares crashing to the ground.
Filippo gasped, pointing to the Forged platters holding up loaves of bread now falling and shattering hardly three meters from where they hid. Luca lunged forward, taking advantage of the distractedpoliziaas he stuffed the bread loaves under his jacket and grabbed his brother.
They took off at a run… the strange song nipping at their heels, tugging at their hearts. Luca knew, deep in his bones, that the world was about to change, though he could not say why. Away from the loud, crashing sounds, the brothers tore into their stolen food.
Maybe, thought Luca, as he ripped the bread… maybe the world would change enough that he might finally take a bite of it.
New York, 1890
A group of collectors were lounging in a smoke-choked room at the weekly meeting of the New York Historical Society of Forged Artifacts when it happened.
One moment, the auctioneer held up a gold and lapis-lazuli boxthe size of a snuffcase. A hippopotamus of carved jade appeared to lift its head and then partially disappear into the blue surface, as if it were a true creature reclining in the waters of the Nile. Thousands of years ago, the shining object had been the beloved toy of a young prince, so dear that it had been placed beside his tomb so that he might continue to play even in the afterlife.
The auctioneer cleared his throat. “This particular piece is rumored to have been the favorite toy of Akhenaton’s son and is a donation from our wonderful friends in the Order of Babel—”
“Friends?” One of the members laughed loudly. “Some friends if all they give us are some useless toys!”
A small knot of members seated at the man’s table began to agree loudly.
“It’s true!” said another. “Why should they have all the glorious treasure for themselves—”
“I say we try to take something else—”
But perhaps the object was done being taken.
For the next moment, it burst apart, showering the room in shards of blue and gold so that it seemed as if the morning sky had crashed around them.
Manila, Philippines, 1890
Esmerelda was hiding outside of her father’s study when it happened. Clutched in her hands was a stolen copy ofLa Correspondencia de Manila. Her parents refused to let her read the newspaper, but Esmerelda hungered for proof that the world was larger than she imagined.
At fourteen years old, Esmerelda had become convinced that her parents would prefer it if she spent the rest of her days withher hair neatly pinned back, her hands neatly folded in her lap, and everything so neat and dainty and orderly that a stray wind would send her into hysterics.
“What’s next?” she heard her father scoff in his study. “Did you see the petition from the women of Malolos?”
“They want to go tonight school,” said one of his friends, laughing.
“Have they forgotten their place so completely?” asked another.
From behind the closed door, Esmerelda scowled. She had read all about the women who had delivered a petition to allow them to study. They’d delivered it straight to Governor-General Valeriano Weyler himself. She wished she could have walked alongside them, inked her name, and watched it dry on the paper. She wished she could follow in the footsteps of her brothers and cousins and learn.
And that was when it came.
Years later, Esmerelda secretly imagined that the angels above had heard her that day. That perhaps the sound that ripped through her home was the celestial trumpeting of a thousand horns, the kinds that she saw painted on the inside of cathedrals… the kinds that signaled that God was on her side.
37
SÉVERIN
It had happened.
SÉVERIN STANDS ATthe top of the ziggurat.
A short distance away lies a jewel-encrusted platform draped in translucent silks. It is surrounded by the melting stubs of candles that flicker like so many caught stars. An attar of roses fill the air, and a hum of distant lutes and chiming bells adorns the evening sky like precious ornaments.
This, Séverin understands, is hallowed ground.
But why is he here?
