to follow you but put his finger on the map a centimeter or two further west.”
“And where is he now?”
“As I said, he’s safe.” Ledger looks me in the eye again and says, “I’ve no reason to lie. He’ll join us soon enough.” And I know all I can do is trust that Ledger is telling me the truth.
Ledger makes the coffee and puts it on the table and gets milk and sugar. And then sits down opposite me.
I remember the tokens and fish them out of my backpack. “Umm . . . I’ve brought some things for you. Tokens of friendship. The map was Mercury’s; it shows where your map room is, and there’s a couple of her diaries that record her meeting you and talking about you. They helped Van find the way here, and helped me too. We, I mean, me and Gabriel thought you might . . . anyway, they’re for you.” I lay them on the table as I say this.
Ledger says, “Thank you,” but makes no move to take the map or diaries or even to look at them. He pours his coffee, adds milk and then sugar.
I say, “Van told me about you. Well, she didn’t say much but she did say that I should come to see you.” I hesitate and then add, “She was killed a couple of weeks ago. Killed by Hunters. They were sent by Soul, the leader of the White Witches in Britain. They wiped out the Alliance camp she was in.”
I watch Ledger to see what effect this news has, but he shows no reaction. He watches me too and I feel like everything I do and say is being assessed.
I continue. “Van said you had half of the Vardian amulet and that she’d given you her half. She thought that the amulet would protect me when I fight Soul and the Hunters. She said that you’d give it to the right person.”
Ledger doesn’t react to that either but just sips his coffee, his eyes not leaving mine. He says, “You don’t believe in small talk, it seems.”
I hesitate. “Do you?”
“Well, at some stage I’m sure it will be useful to get to know each other.” He takes another sip of his coffee. “But let’s stay on the subject you’ve raised for now. You want to kill Soul . . . Put an end to his terrible reign.” And he looks at me now, right in the eyes, and it’s as if he’s reading my mind. “Do you believe it’s right to kill people?”
“Killing Soul is the right thing to do.”
“I can understand your reason for thinking that, for believing that. But as someone wise once said, ‘There’s no truth, only perspective.’”
I try to work that out and say, “I don’t . . .”
“It means that I’m entitled to have a different view and it’s equally valid.”
“And what is your view?”
“My view about Soul is that he’s a man . . . out of balance. My view on killing him, on killing anyone, is that I don’t approve of it. I’m not a great believer in killing people at all, and if I was to help you I’d be helping you kill. Not just Soul, I think, but many more besides.”
“You’d be helping me survive. And by helping me you’d be saving the many people Soul is killing.”
“So, to save some people I don’t know, I have to kill some other people I don’t know?”
“You don’t have to kill anyone. And I intend to kill them all one way or the other.”
“All?”
I hesitate, thinking of my dream and the never-ending line of Hunters kneeling on the floor.
Ledger looks at me and I get the feeling he’s seen inside my head, seen my thoughts. He says, “And you’re OK with that, Nathan? Killing all those people?”
“They’re evil.”
“So you say. But isn’t life sacred?”
“Life is life, death is death. Don’t make it what it isn’t. We all die. Some people live lives that cause harm.”
“Including you perhaps.” And I feel his eyes on me still.
I shrug and look away and then look back at him and meet his gaze and say, “I’m not a hero but I can end the war. And the Alliance, if they win, can maybe bring some stability, maybe allow White Witches and Black Witches to live together peacefully.”
“And do you think it’s possible for Black Witches and White Witches to live together in peace and harmony?”
“I’m not sure. But it has to be worth