Arrows of Time (39 page)

‘You’re not going to report the dog, are you?’

Grayson shook his head. ‘Not if you don’t report me.’

‘Let’s walk.’ Everett led the way down the slope, Grayson and the pup following behind.

Rosette thrilled at the sight of Fynn.
There you are, you crazy mutt-hound. What did they do to you, eh?
You look like you shrank!
She moved her energy forward, and Fynn dashed in circles around Grayson, stirring up dead leaves.
Drayco, look here. We’ve found Fynn!

Indeed.
The big cat yawned.
He hasn’t seemed to have matured much in our absence.

Fynn cocked his ears; his tail stilled for a moment before the frantic wagging resumed.

Can you talk to him, Dray? Calm him down. I’m not sure he’s hearing me.

Fynn hears! Fynn found Maudi. Fynn found Maudi! Let’s go!

Fynn seems to think he found you
, Drayco said, mimicking the exuberance of the pup.

Rosette glowed, her new rendition of a smile.
You certainly did find me, wiggle-worm puppy. Now sit down before you drive these guys nuts. Quiet. I want to hear what they’re saying.

Fynn settled, though his limbs quivered.
Home now, Maudi?

Not yet, little Fynn. We have to find my body first, and get me back in it. Drayco, can you still sense Kreshkali and the others?

Not any more, but Scylla says they’ve found Jarrod. They’ll be along as soon as they bust him out.

Bust him out of what? Is he locked up somewhere?
She shimmered—laughter without sound.

I think he might be.

I can’t imagine him letting that happen. Can you tell Scylla we’ll wait here for her, and to please hurry.

It’s done. What’s next?

I’m sticking to Grayson. Looks like he’s making friends with Everett. Just the right person. This is good luck.

I’ll keep watch on the portal.

You won’t need to hunt?

She felt him yawn again.

A long nap is all I need, for now.

How do you think you’ll be able to watch the portal while asleep?

I can do both, Maudi,

Excellent.
She blew Drayco a mental kiss and followed the men, hovering over them as they headed down the path. Fynn was more relaxed now and onto the business of exploration, seemingly unconcerned that Rosette was a disembodied spirit.

If only she could be that comfortable with it. The constant state of awareness was a shock, as was the detachment from tactile sensation. Her other perceptions were finely honed, though, and she loved being able to read energy fields and auras so clearly. Grayson was emitting a soft violet and yellow glow and she brushed against him, watching the edges turn pink at her touch. He closed his eyes and gave a little shudder, a smile playing across his face. She basked in it for some time before focusing again on her developing strategy.

Drayco still couldn’t get into this world, though having him in the corridors was very useful. He could keep in contact with the others, at least while Scylla was in the corridors. She suspected Drayco would not have gone over too well anyway—a huge black temple cat, seemingly unaccompanied. There were no animals to be seen in this place, save for Fynn and a small kettle of vultures circling high in the distance. She moved closer to Grayson.

Being with him yet not being able to talk, to touch or to let him know she was there, was making it hard to concentrate. He felt more animated now; the edges of his aura were turning a subtle green, matching an emerald tint of Everett’s. That seemed to happen a lot—people’s auras taking on the hue of those around
them, the dominant feeling transmitting somehow to the others. Interesting. She would remember that for future reference.

As twigs snapped under the men’s shoes, her attention returned to the present. She focused on their words. This conversation might offer some crucial hints to her body’s location.

‘Before I answer,’ Everett said, picking up a stick and tossing it off into the distance for Fynn. ‘I’ve got some questions of my own.’

The little dog dashed after the stick, stirring up dirt and gravel as he ran.

‘Fire away,’ Grayson said, his eyes on the path ahead.

‘The body art on your chest…is that permanent?’

Grayson smiled. ‘It is.’

‘And did you put it on yourself?’

‘You could say that.’

Oh, goddess of the woods, Grayson. Don’t start telling him about your genius DNA tattooing. This man’s with ASSIST. Haven’t you worked that out yet!

He doesn’t hear you, Maudi.

Her familiar’s voice sounded drowsy, as if she’d woken him.

I know, but I can talk anyway. Maybe some essence of my thoughts can get through, even if he thinks they’re his own.

I do that all the time.

Rosette stopped.
You do?

The only response was the sound of his purr.

We’re going to talk about that later, Drayco.
She turned her attention back to the men. They had reached the lake and were skirting its edge. Everett kept calling Fynn away from the water, but the little pup wasn’t responding to the command.

‘Canie! It’s foul. Don’t drink it.’

It looked none too pure to her either.
Fynn, little lovely? The water’s bad. Stay out of it.

Water’s wet. Wet is good.

Not this time. Look! Grayson has a stick. Go for it. Hurry.
She shimmered as he scurried away from the shore, catching the toss before it hit the ground.

‘Have you put such marks on others?’ Everett asked.

Grayson took the stick from Fynn’s mouth and tossed it again. ‘It seems like that’s all I’ve been doing lately.’

The men fell into silence. Rosette suspected that each was taking the other’s measure.

‘And what are you doing here?’ Everett asked, indicating the smoke-lined horizon.

‘I’m looking for a woman,’ Grayson said. ‘She may have come through your facility—wounded perhaps.’

‘Did she have…’ Everett hesitated, looking at Grayson’s chest.

‘Tattoos? Yes. You’ve seen her?’

Grayson’s aura jumped to orange and Everett’s matched it, though he didn’t respond immediately.

Say YES, you idiot!
Rosette hovered over him, wishing she could scream, bombarding him with her thoughts anyway. It was like shooting an arrow at close range, straight through a cloud. The man didn’t so much as twitch. She knew he heard her before when she was first brought into the healing centre. Why couldn’t he hear her now?

He thinks you’re dead, Maudi. On ice. His mind cannot conceive of communication with you now.

Well, his mind is an ant-sized dust bunny.

Kreshkali couldn’t hear you either.

That’s
…
different.

Everett had his hands in his pockets, his shoulders hunched. ‘I think I know who you’re looking for,’ he said finally. ‘I can take you to her, if you like.’

‘She’s alive then, unharmed?’

‘Not now, but she will be just as soon as we work out what’s happened to her heart.’

‘Cryo-suspension?’

‘You know about it?’

‘A bit. It’s only experimental.’

Everett eyed him up and down before calling Fynn. He crouched down and opened his backpack. ‘Experimental?’

‘Isn’t it?’ Grayson asked.

‘The technique’s been fully functioning for almost two centuries.’

Finally, some useful information! Drayco, tell Scylla we’re in the future. Jarrod needs to
…

Maudi, I can’t.
He interrupted her thoughts.

Why not?

She’s out of reach again.

J
arrod watched Selene. She was plucking flowers from her neckline and throwing them towards the centre of the cell. The tiny yellow daffodils with crimson eyes formed a mound of vibrant colour at her feet, bright against the rough stone floor. She ground them with her boot.

Jarrod inhaled the scent released from the crushed petals. It brought a wash of relief, easing tight muscles and edgy nerves. He hoped the scent would act as a soothing balm to everyone. Selene’s temper was heating the room like a furnace, doors wide open.

‘What are you looking at?’ She snapped the words towards Jarrod as he studied her face.

‘This isn’t as bad as it seems,’ he said, his voice even, eyes steady.

‘Really? As bad as what, then, if not as it seems?’ she snarled. ‘Did you realise what that bitch-goddess was up to?’

‘She’s not actually a deity,’ Shane said.

‘How can you tell?’ She turned on him and folded her arms.

‘Because Rosette said…’

‘Oh, blow it.’ Selene waved her hand like a knife. ‘I don’t want to hear either of their names right now. I just want to know how we’re going to get out of this.’

Jarrod closed his eyes. ‘I’m working on it.’ His voice was a whisper and neither of them responded. Perhaps they hadn’t heard. At the moment, it didn’t matter. He needed to quickly calculate the myriad possibilities their circumstances offered—quickly as in how long it takes a bubble to pop. Humour flickered across his face as his eyes opened a fraction of a second later. He stood.

‘Well?’ Selene asked, pressing a petal between her thumb and forefinger, staining her fingertips yellow.

‘We’ll get an interview with Le Saint before long. She’s upset, but not incensed. She’ll want to know why this happened and what our part in it is.’

‘And what will you tell her?’

‘The truth.’

‘I’d like to hear that,’ Shane said. ‘I’ve no idea what’s happened.’ He dropped his face into his hands.

‘We’ve been set up, that’s what’s happened,’ Selene said. She dug a pebble from the floor and threw it at him.

‘Not set up exactly,’ Jarrod said. He held out his hand as she started to protest. ‘Used as a distraction, yes, but I think she was only looking for a buffer of time.’

‘Time for what?’

‘To get away?’ Shane asked.

‘Maybe, or perhaps to keep us all occupied here while she does some other mischief in the corridors.’

‘Like I said, a setup.’

Jarrod frowned. Selene’s assessment disturbed him. It was possible that Nell’s agenda was more complex
than he had originally thought. According to his calculations, she would be heading back to her temple in Dumarka to check on the results of this little adventure. She knew he would hold her to their agreement, though. He had her blood. He could track her anywhere now. He didn’t have to worry about her getting away from him.

‘And what do you think is going to happen when we speak to Le Saint?’ Selene asked.

‘She’s going to thank us,’ Jarrod said.

Shane and Selene both stared at him.

‘Are you mad?’ Selene said. ‘She’s hardly going to give us an award. We effected her lover’s murder. She’ll want to feed us to her crows, or worse.’

‘She would have initially, but my guess is the spell is dissipating now that he’s not here to weave it.’

‘He’s had her under a spell?’ Selene asked.

‘Heavy as metal.’

‘And you think she’s going to come to her senses now that he’s dead?’

‘I do.’

‘And then what?’

‘And then new doors will open.’ He closed his eyes again. ‘They’re coming now. Let me do the talking.’

Kreshkali smiled at Teg as he ran towards the tree line. He disappeared into the woods and she caught the change of his bipedal gait as it became the easy lope of a wolf. Her heart beat faster, and she drew in a long breath to steady it.

‘Where’d you send him?’ An’ Lawrence asked, frowning at the sound of Teg’s shift.

‘He’s checking the road behind us.’

‘We’re being followed?’

‘I hope so.’

‘You don’t mind if I send Scylla along too?’

‘That would be ideal,’ she said, unruffled by his mood. ‘I want us captured, not them.’

‘I can’t wait…’

She looked at the Sword Master; his jaw was tight, his hand on the hilt of his sword. ‘Rowan, we know they’re being held beneath the temple itself. This is the quickest way to get to them.’

‘Getting to them isn’t the problem. It’s getting out that worries me.’

‘I’m not without skills.’

‘Nor I, but this is not our Treeon and we don’t know who the High Priestess is. My guess is she’s adept, or she wouldn’t have Jarrod locked up in the first place. Have you thought about that?’

‘I have.’

‘And?’

‘I’m not worried.’

He avoided her eyes and stared at the hills around them—lush, green and covered with wild flowers. ‘Do you have any idea
when
we are?’ he asked.

‘Other than Beltane?’ Kreshkali shook her head. ‘Not a clue.’

‘Didn’t think so.’

They’re coming
, Teg announced.
Riding hard. Seems they got the message.

His voice resonated in her mind.
How do you do that?

Mistress?

How do you deliver an ordinary bit of news, yet make it sound like
…She faltered, giving herself a little shake.

Like what, Mistress?

Never mind. We’re ready here.
Kreshkali paused for a moment, catching An’ Lawrence’s grimace.
How many are there?
she asked Teg.

Six.

And Scylla’s with you?

Grudgingly.

Can you stay out of sight and still track us?

What do you think?

Kreshkali laughed.
We won’t be long, Teg. Stay close.
She turned to An’ Lawrence and rested her hand on his shoulder. ‘There’re six riders heading this way, at the gallop,’ she said. ‘Teg’s going on to Treeon Valley under cover, with Scylla, of course.’ She tilted her head at him. ‘But you already knew that, didn’t you?’