"It's in hand, Librarian," I said. "We have people working on it. We never give up on family. You know that."

"Yes, of course," said William. He seemed to suddenly realise he was holding an empty plate, and put it down. He turned away, and headed for the door.

"Come along, Rafe."

Iorith nodded quickly to me, and hurried after the Librarian. And having done my duty, and spoken to all the people I should have, I was now free to join my Molly at the buffet table. She grinned at me, mopping her mouth with a napkin.

"Family… Doesn't it just give you a wonderful sense of security?"

"Don't start," I said. "I can't wait for this nonsense to be over, so I can take you back to my room…"

"You have still got the cuff links, and the ring?"

"Of course. And then afterwards, I think I'd like to just lie down and snooze quietly for several weeks."

"After what I've got in mind, you'll need to."

"Delightful wench. There's still a lot of work to be done, you know. There are still some Immortals out there, hiding in deep cover. We'll never feel properly safe until they've all been found and dealt with. And we still need to find out just how badly this fam ily's been infiltrated. The list we found in the computer said it was complete, but I don't think I trust it."

And that was when the Sanctuary doors burst open, and Isabella Metcalf came storming in.

"Molly! I know who killed our parents! And yours too, Eddie!"

I stepped forward to hear what she had to say, and I was so caught up in the moment I didn't see the knife in her hand until she buried it deep into my chest. I staggered backwards, blood gushing down my front. All the strength went out of my legs, and I sat down suddenly. I hit the floor hard but I didn't feel it. I looked stupidly at the hilt of the knife sticking out of my chest. Blood bubbled around it. I could feel the pain, but it seemed very far away. I couldn't seem to get my breath. I wanted to pull the knife out, but I still had enough sense not to. There was a lot of shouting going on. The Armourer was kneeling beside me, holding my shoulders, talking urgently, but it didn't seem important.

I was looking at the Sarjeant-at-Arms, as he hit Isabella in the head again and again. Her head whipped round, blood flying on the air, and then she slumped to the floor. Harry and Roger were suddenly there. They grabbed an arm each, and hauled her up, and suddenly she wasn't Isabella anymore. A teenage boy struggled in their grip, laughing breathlessly. He saw me looking at him, and laughed even harder.

"I got you! You killed my family, but I got you!"

Molly thrust her face into his. "Speak to me, you bastard Immortal! Where's Isabella? What have you done to her?"

The Immortal laughed in her face. "You'll never know."

He bit down hard, and dark blood frothed around his contorted mouth. He fell backwards, convulsing so hard Harry and Roger couldn't hold on to him. He was dead before he hit the floor.

"Poison tooth," said the Sarjeant. "Hell with him. Where's the doctor?"

Molly came running over to kneel before me. Her face was white with shock, as she made desperate magical gestures over me.

"Must have been poison on the blade too," said the Sarjeant, looking over her shoulder. "He's going fast."

The Armourer was crying, as he held my shoulders gently in his strong engineer's hands. "Hold on, Eddie. Help's coming. Hold on…"

"Get a doctor in here!" screamed Molly.

She gave up on her magics, and held both my hands in hers. I couldn't feel them. It hurt to keep trying to breathe, so I stopped. I looked at Molly. Tears streamed down her face. I tried to say something, but all that came out of my mouth was blood. I tried to smile for her. I felt cold. Colder than I'd ever been in the Antarctic. Darkness closed in, and the last thing I saw was Molly's face.

Voices. I could hear voices.

"I'm sorry, Molly." That was the Armourer. "I'm sorry. He's gone. Eddie's dead."

"He can't be!" That was Molly. "He can't be! Eddie…!"

"I'm sorry. There's no pulse. No heartbeat. He's not breathing. We've lost him."

"Then I'll just have to go after him. And bring him back."

And then-