Of course China had exacerbated the issue. That was what China did. Sometimes, it seemed that was all she existed to do.

Skulduggery went quiet as they walked. For several moments, he couldn't force a thought beyond surprise and a certain amount of dread. Anton didn't break his rules for anyone. He'd knowingly sheltered a sociopath intent on releasing the Remnants, simply because handing him over to Skulduggery would have been breaking the Hotel's rules. Yet now... he'd not only agreed to break one, he'd made the agreement with Bakura. All to help Erskine.

Had Bakura kept up his end of the bargain? Most likely. If that wasn't the case, it would have been the first thing Anton mentioned. If the agreement had broken, Anton wouldn't be acting so uncharacteristically uncomposed.

So - first things first. "Does anyone else know?" Skulduggery asked. "Does Ravel?"