"According to this passport, you entered Romania last July and never left."
In the arrivals hall at Bucharest Airport, Professor Roscoe examined Gavin's passport over and over. He could hardly believe his eyes.
They had just got off the plane.
Cordelia had not rated the journey particularly highly—
Takeoff had been interesting, but once they rose above the clouds, there was nothing but a dull expanse of white.
She could not steer the seat herself, and the windows would not open.
The only thing worth praising was the in-flight meal.
Not because it tasted good, but because this was the first time she had seen anyone put chicken, mashed potatoes, and peas into three separate compartments and serve them with such solemnity.
She had studied it for ten minutes before finally asking Gavin, rather hesitantly, whether she had to eat them in the order of the compartments.
Professor Roscoe had checked all three sets of documents throughout the flight, then collected three arrival cards while they queued after landing.
He stopped at "date of last departure," then repeatedly rubbed the supplementary visa page from last year in Gavin's passport.
There was only one Romanian entry stamp and the freshly stamped departure stamp from the United Kingdom.
The space below was completely blank. There was neither a Romanian departure stamp from last year nor a record of his reentry into the United Kingdom.
"Strange..." Professor Roscoe frowned. "When I helped you apply for an expedited visa at the department last week, I distinctly remember a departure stamp here from your return to the United Kingdom last year... how has it gone blank?"
"You're misremembering, Professor."
Looking perfectly composed, Gavin extended two fingers and slipped the passport out of his supervisor's hands.
"That was probably the watermark on last year's visa."
Professor