Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare
Author:Cassandra Clare
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Published: 2021-03-02T00:00:00+00:00
16 DARK BREAKS TO DAWN
And here, as lamps across the bridge turn pale
In Londonâs smokeless resurrection-light,
Dark breaks to dawn.
âDante Gabriel Rossetti, âFoundâ
âThis is absolutely madness, James,â said Anna, slamming her teacup down on the saucer with enough force to send a crack spidering through the china. She must be quite upset, James thought: her appreciation for fine china was well honed. âHow could you even think such a thing?â
James looked around the drawing room. His friends were staring at him from chairs pulled close to the cozy fire. Annaâdapper in a blue waistcoat and black spatsâChristopher, wide-eyed, and Thomas, his mouth set in a grim line. Lucie, her hands in her lap, clearly struggling with her emotions and determined not to show it.
âI hadnât planned to tell you at all,â James said. He had sat in an armchair on the theory that one might as well be comfortable when telling oneâs friends one might be engaged in murdering people in oneâs sleep. âIf there hadnât been that mark on my windowsillââ
âIs that supposed to make us feel better?â demanded Thomas.
âYou didnât want to tell us because you knew that we would say it was ridiculous,â said Lucie. âYou and Cordelia already rid us of Belial.â
âBut a Prince of Hell cannot be killed,â James said wearily. He was exhausted down to his bones: he had barely slept the night before, barely eaten, and Graceâs visit had shaken him. He pushed away from thoughts of her now, returning determinedly to the matter at hand. âWe all know it. Belial may be much diminished after being wounded by Cortana, but that does not mean his sphere of influence has ended. Something made that mark on my windowsill this morning.â
âYou mentioned the mark before,â said Christopher. âWhat was it? What makes you so sure it has to do with Belial?â
James rose and took the Monarchia Daemonium from where he had placed it on the piano bench. It was a tall volume, bound in dark purple leather. âThis is where I first read about Belial and the other eight Princes of Hell,â he said. âEach has a sigil, a sign by which he is known.â He sat down and opened the book to the two-page section on Belial. âThis is the symbol I saw in the ice.â
The others crowded around, Anna leaning over the back of Jamesâs chair. There was a silence as they took in the illustration of Belialâhe was facing away, his head turned to the side, his profile razor-sharp. He wore a dark red cloak, and a single clawed hand was visible at his side. Not quite the elegant gentleman James had met in Belphegorâs realm, though there remained the same aura about him of leashed menace.
âSo Belial left you a calling card,â Anna murmured. âRude of him not to wait until the footman was at home.â
âSo is it meant to be a message?â said Thomas. âA way of saying, âHere I amâ?â
âPerhaps a way of saying he is me,â said James.
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