the chair opposite him.
“Randolph’s leash is shorter than you realized, eh?” He sounded amused.
I bristled. “I thought I’d give you another chance. Tell me about the Free Walkers.”
He scrutinized me, but I kept my face impassive.
“I’ve told you everything you need to know. You too,” he added, tipping his head back to address the camera.
“Tell me again,” I said. “I’ll get you started. You were a Free Walker.”
He hummed lightly, as if he didn’t hear me.
“You’ve already confessed,” I pointed out. “Seventeen years ago. It’s not news to anyone.”
“Then don’t waste my time asking about it,” he snapped. “What other questions does he have?”
The earpiece stayed silent.
“Are you in contact with any Free Walkers now?”
His eyes gleamed. “The only person I’m in contact with is you.”
Guilt by association, Eliot had said.
I pressed my fingers against the tabletop to keep them from trembling. “The Consort thinks you had help during the anomaly. That you couldn’t have done it on your own.”
“Hard to believe, isn’t it?” He grinned, letting me sweat. Payback for the last visit, for turning him in, for failing to find Rose. He lifted a shoulder. “How many times have I told you? Anything is possible.”
I exhaled in a rush of relief. “You haven’t had any contact with the Free Walkers?”
“One,” he said. “An old friend, but according to Randolph, he’s already been seen to. The rest want nothing to do with me.
“I’m tainted,” he continued, and for the first time I saw real sorrow cross his face. “Don’t you think if I could have gotten back to them, I would have? Avoided everything you went through?”
“You don’t have any way to find them?” I tapped the table lightly, emphasizing the next question. “Not even a map?”
The tiniest of smiles, the faintest of nods. “If I knew where to find them, the last person I’d share it with is Randolph.” His eyes flickered to the ceiling, then returned to me. “Why did you come back? It’s not as if you need my help. Isn’t that what you said last time?”
I didn’t reply.
He shook his head. “I’ve told you everything you need to know.”
“Not everything. Not about the weapon, or where it’s hidden.”
“In plain sight, I’d imagine. You’d be amazed at what people overlook, Delancey, even when it’s right under their noses. Even you.” His gaze turned distant, his face went slack.
I didn’t buy his performance for a second, but I played along, gentling my tone.
“They wouldn’t keep it in the Key World.” I touched his sleeve. “Grandpa, even part of a frequency would help.”
“And what do I get?” he asked, quarrelsome and deceptively old. “I’ve lost everything, Del. My Rose, my family, my home.” He rattled his chains, the sound almost merry. “My freedom.”
“Your grandfather will never see daylight again,” Lattimer snarled. “Make that absolutely clear.”
“The Consort’s already cut you a break, letting me visit. They’re not going to let you out.”
“I’m not asking about them,” he said. “If I’m to betray a great cause, I need an incentive. What do I get from you?”
Son of a bitch. He wanted me to help him escape. If he thought I could break him out of an oubliette, he really was crazy. There’s impossible and there’s impossible, and this fell into the second camp.
“I don’t have anything to give,” I said quietly.
“Then you’re no good to me,” he said. “Come back when you’ve got something I want, and we’ll make a trade, Delancey. Until then, I’ve nothing more to say.”
• • •
Lattimer met me at the door. “That was a shorter visit than I’d anticipated.”
“He wasn’t in great shape today. It’s hard to know how much to believe him, when he’s in and out like this.”
“Perhaps he’ll be more forthcoming on your next visit,” Lattimer said.
“He doesn’t want to see me again. You heard him—he wants more, whatever more is.”
My freedom. Come back when you’ve got something I want. I might as well help him fly to Mars, or sprout gills and ferry him to Atlantis.
“The Tacet will begin in mere weeks. If you fail to glean any useful information from these sessions, we’ll have no use for him. Be more persuasive next time.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
Days to Tacet: 20
WALKERS ARE USED TO KEEPING secrets. We go through our days knowing the world we inhabit is one of many, the lives we see are only one possibility, and reality is more complicated and entangled than anything Originals could imagine. We know all of this, and we keep it to ourselves. Most days the