Long before the Coffer ever left the ancient world hidden beneath Anarctica, Danton had warned Marcus to prepare for the possibility that Phei already knew what they intended to do:
"Assume the Dragon knows everything."
Marcus had looked at him with immediate annoyance. "Everything?"
"Everything," Danton had repeated, smiling. "The Coffer. The keys. The Chained. Our timing. Assume someone has already crawled into our walls, read our letters, emptied our wine cellar and left our secrets neatly arranged on his bedside table. Then ask yourself whether our plan still works."
Marcus had considered that excessive paranoia but Danton had considered it longevity.
Ancient beings did not survive by assuming the enemy was stupid.
