Even the dogs fell back a little, crouching low, though their snarling muzzles were even more terrifying than before. Half emerged from the carriage, the man disdained their menace and slowly scanned the crowd. It was as if he were memorizing the face of each individual there, or worse, already knew it. Those who failed to avoid his gaze could not tear their eyes away. The street began to stink of fear while, above, the already gloomy sky seemed to darken further, adding its weight to the sense of oppression that the man’s presence exuded.

Then, into this silent interrogation came a flurry of movement and the two dogs, still snarling, began to crawl forward, their tails sweeping over the cobbles expectantly. The man in the carriage turned sharply towards the disturbance, his teeth bared as if in imitation of his attackers, but even as he did so, the cause was upon him. A lithe figure, ragged and dirty, was vaulting nimbly up on to the carriage. Disbelief came into the man’s face. It was changing to anger when the newcomer reached down, seized his hair with her left hand and jerked his head back, unbalancing him. Then with her right, she plunged a knife into him. It was a deliberately wounding stroke.

‘Just to catch your attention, Hagen,’ she hissed, wrenching his head back further and slashing savagely at his flailing arms. ‘This one should be for the Count, but really it’s for my parents. I wish I could take more time over it,’ and she stabbed him in the throat twice. ‘Rot in hell.’

A futile hand clutching his wounds, Hagen straightened momentarily, then crashed back down into the carriage, the opened door slamming behind him. Even as he disappeared from view, the woman was running back into the crowd, the two dogs at her heels and the knife trailing blood. She made no sound but neither did she hesitate and the crowd parted hastily to let her through. The movement seemed to break the spell that Hagen had cast and abruptly the street was alive with screaming, fleeing people. The city was busy at that time of day, and those trying to escape found themselves impeded by others who were pursuing their normal errands or had been drawn to the scene by the noise.