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The envelope should not have felt like a piece of solid gold in Cormac’s hand, but it did He should run Flee, before Porter changed his mind

Give the cord another turn or two, his ghost Amelia said Just in case

He did, fidgeting Porter’s expression was expansive, pleased The man was so happy to help, wasn’t he? He reached out to shake Cormac’s hand “Good luck, son”

Maybe they didn’t need the spell to ensure Porter’s cooperation Maybe the wheels of justice didn’t need any greasing at all on this end On the other hand, a little nudging couldn’t hurt

“Thank you very much, sir,” Cormac said as calmly as he kne He picked up his black leather jacket from over the back of the chair, walked out of the boxy little office, down the hall, and out of the building into the brightsunshine He squinted into the blue sky

He was free

BACK AT his Jeep, he tossed the precious envelope on the passenger seat After consideration, he picked it back up and tucked it in the inside pocket of his jacket Like he expected it to disappear if he didn’t have it with him

“Shouldn’t feel any different,” he said out loud “Not like anything’s really changed”

Symbols are powerful, Amelia said You know that

This one e, taken another step toward norure out what to do with the rest of his life

Helot