Reassurance didn’t come from Thomas, but from the lion. The dull eyes took on a shimmer, then a baleful red shine. It turned its head to fix those unblinking eyes on Jess, and . . . made a sound low in that metallic throat that sounded almost like a purr.
Jess was used to hearing them growl, but he’d never heard that sound before. Before he could ask Thomas if that was a good sign, the lion’s head pushed forward and pressed against his chest, and the mechanical purring grew so loud, it vibrated through Jess’s body. He awkwardly patted the thing’s head. His whole body still felt tight and nervous. “Good girl,” he said. “Is it a girl?”
“Jess,” Thomas said. “It’s a machine. But I think I will call her Frauke. Do you like that name, Frauke?”
“It’s an automaton. It can’t like—” But the lion was turning from him to nudge her nose against Thomas’s chest now. Purring. It seemed beyond odd.
Morgan came next, and she smiled when the lion’s massive nose pushed at her. “Frauke,” she said. “It means ‘little lady,’ doesn’t it? It suits her.” She stroked the metal ears.
“If you’re finished making a pet out of this monster—” Wolfe said, and stopped as Frauke’s head snapped in the direction of his voice and the purring switched to a low, ominous rumble.
“No, no, Frauke. He’s one of us.” Thomas gestured to Wolfe, who looked back as if he thought they’d all gone mad. “Come, Scholar, she needs to learn who you are.”
Wolfe didn’t like it—at all—and that didn’t change even when Frauke’s growls changed to purrs. He suffered the nuzzling with a bitter expression of distaste before he moved well back, and pushed Santi forward in his place.
“Brilliant,” Santi said, and patted Frauke on the head. No hesitation there; he clearly liked the creature. Santi stepped aside to let Khalila crowd forward, and then Dario. “She’ll not only confuse our enemies, but confront them, too. No one questions a party of Scholars and High Garda walking with an official lion as escort, do they?”
The only one Frauke hadn’t nuzzled was Glain, who still watched the door. When they all turned toward her, she shook her head. “I’m not coming near that thing.”
Morgan tried. “Glain. It’s safe. You saw—”
“It’s wrong. It’s wrong that you just . . . changed it. Is it just that easy for you? Just rewrite a killer into a pet?” She glared straight at Morgan finally. “It’s Obscurists who make all this possible, you know. Without them, things would be different, wouldn’t they? Without the automata, the Translation Chamber, the Library wouldn’t have nearly the advantage, and we’d be fighting fair.”
“I’m trying to help!” Morgan said. “And you know I never wanted this! I never wanted to be—”
“Whatever you wanted, you’re one of them. Doing this proves it more than anything else you’ve ever done,” Glain said. “And that’s why we shouldn’t trust you. How hard would it be for you to give us away?”
“She won’t,” Jess said, and got the full, scorching weight of Glain’s scorn.
“Says someone who can’t ever be rational on the subject of Morgan Hault. We shouldn’t do this. What if some other Obscurist rewrites this creature into a killer again?”
“It can’t be done without the same process I went through,” Morgan said. “It doesn’t work that way. You can order them to do a limited number of things by Codex commands, but not change their loyalty—”
“I don’t trust you,” Glain said flatly, and looked Morgan right in the eyes. “I have no idea what happened to you in that tower. What might have been done to you. All I know is, you’ve shown up here and we’ve all just accepted that you’re safe, like this lion. You aren’t. You’re even more dangerous.”
Santi stepped in the way, facing Glain, and said, “Glain. She’s given you no reason to distrust her, has she?”
Glain didn’t want to answer that, but she finally muttered, “Not as yet.”
“Then the matter’s settled. Keep your eyes open and not just on Morgan, all right? We have enough enemies without inventing more.” She nodded but didn’t change her position from the door. “Go introduce yourself to the lion. That’s an order.”
She looked at him for so long, Jess was afraid she’d refuse, but then she pushed past him and stood in front of Frauke to be nudged and cataloged like the rest of them. She didn’t touch the lion. Didn’t stand it for one second longer than she was forced to before she stalked away.