Escape from Wolfhaven Castle (10 page)

‘We need to find help,’ Elanor said. ‘We can’t rescue everyone by ourselves.’

‘My mam said to go and find my father,’ Tom said.

‘So where’s he?’ Sebastian asked.

‘In the forest somewhere,’ Tom answered.

‘But
where
in the forest?’

Tom shrugged and looked uncomfortable. ‘She said to look for him where the wolves howl.’

At the word ‘wolves’, Fergus’s ears pricked up and he growled softly.

Sebastian looked disgusted. ‘Where the wolves
howl? That’s not much help. They howl everywhere.’

‘But the prophecy mentioned wolves,’ Quinn argued.

‘And it also mentioned
unicorns
,’ Sebastian snapped back. ‘Besides, what good is just one man? We need an army! We should go to the nearest castle and beg the lord to help us.’

‘Yes,’ Elanor cried. She thought of being safe behind castle walls, with a soft bed to sleep in … and chamber-pots. ‘Yes, let’s do that.’

‘So where are we?’ Sebastian asked.

‘There was a map in the locker,’ Quinn said. She pulled it out and they unfolded it, four heads leaning together to examine it.

Spread out before them was the Kingdom of Stormness, guarded by mountains to the north and east, and by blue ocean to the south and west. The land was shaped like a running girl, one arm stretched before her, skirts billowing. Wolfhaven Castle was like a gemstone on the blue river and harbour that made up her choker necklace. The long chain of castles that guarded Stormness from her enemies to the east ran
down like buttons to the king’s stronghold, Stormholt Castle, the jewelled tip of her slipper, far to the south.

But the boat had sailed upriver, to the wild north.

‘I think this must be Frostwithy Falls,’ Quinn replied, pointing to a picture of a waterfall far to the north. ‘It’s the source of Wolfhaven River. That means we have travelled about six hours up the river.’

‘So where’s the nearest castle?’ Sebastian asked.

Tom put his finger on a picture of a tall, forbidding-looking castle, set on a rock in the sea, surrounded by cliffs. ‘It’s Frostwick Castle.’

‘Right,’ Sebastian said. ‘That’s where we’ll head.’

‘Frostwick Castle! Lord Mortlake of Frostwick wanted to make a trade agreement with my father,’ Elanor said. ‘Surely he’ll help us!’

‘But the Grand Teller told us we had to wake the sleeping heroes,’ Quinn protested. ‘She didn’t tell us to seek help from a lord!’

‘I tell you what, if we see any sea-serpents on the way, we’ll grab a scale from it,’ Sebastian said. ‘In the meantime, let’s try and do something practical. Getting help from someone with his own army makes a lot more sense right now.’

‘Still, I don’t know if that’s the right thing to do.’

Quinn frowned. ‘There was something I didn’t like about Lord Mortlake.’ Tom met her eyes, his own just as troubled. Quinn hesitated, and then pulled out the small bag of tell-stones Arwen had given her. ‘Let me throw the stones.’

She laid out four white stones and stared at them, frowning.

‘What do they say?’ Tom asked.

Quinn pointed at one stone after another. ‘Crossroads means it is a moment of decision …’

‘We needed a pebble to tell us that?’ Sebastian jeered.

Quinn ignored him. ‘Ring means that a time or a season is coming to an end, and a new one is beginning. Bird means flight, or escape, or freedom. Dark Moon means darkness and fallow times, and … sometimes … black magic.’

‘Well, that’s reassuring,’ Sebastian said sarcastically.

‘What does it all mean?’ Elanor asked. ‘Surely it means that we’re escaping from darkness and black magic?’

‘Except the Dark Moon stone came last. That means it lies ahead of us.’

Elanor gasped, then pressed her hands over her mouth. She looked imploringly at Sebastian.

He stood up. ‘Lady Elanor wants to seek shelter at Frostwick Castle. I think we should do what she wants. Aren’t we in the employ of her father, after all?’

‘Well, yes, but …’ Tom objected.

‘But nothing. What our lady desires, so I am sworn to deliver.’ Sebastian bowed deeply, but the boat rocked and he almost fell overboard.

Tom grinned, and Elanor tried to hide her smile.
She thought Sebastian was very well-mannered indeed, if rather clumsy. Mistress Mauldred would have approved of him.
A gentleman is always gallant
, she would say.

‘But what if the Lord of Frostwick Castle has something to do with the invasion of Wolfhaven?’ Tom interrupted. ‘I’ve been thinking …’

‘Good heavens, a pot-boy thinking,’ Sebastian mocked.

Tom flashed him a look of annoyance, but persevered. ‘I reckon it was that Jack Spry who opened the gate for the bog-men. He’s the only real stranger at the castle, and it just seems all too coincidental that he should start living there only a few weeks before the castle is invaded.’

‘That’s true,’ Sebastian agreed.

‘No,’ Elanor spoke up quickly. ‘Jack Spry wouldn’t have betrayed us. He was so grateful to us for letting him stay. He said he’d be starving in the streets if we didn’t let him stay.’

‘A likely story,’ Sebastian said with disgust in his voice. ‘Well, I saw him sneaking off to explore the
castle. He would have seen the key hanging upon the fireplace in the great hall. He was probably checking out the best way to drag it to the gate. It’s so big he couldn’t lift it easily.’

‘I wouldn’t have thought he’d be strong enough to open the gate,’ Quinn said.

‘And I guess he was strong enough to steal all my father’s silver …’ Elanor admitted, solemnly.

‘Perhaps he let down a rope for those bog-men to climb and they helped him open the gate,’ Tom suggested. ‘Anyway, Lord Mortlake brought the boy in a pie. They’re in cahoots.’

‘Do you really think so?’ Elanor asked. ‘Jack Spry said he hated Lord Mortlake and was glad to have been able to leave him.’

‘Well, he would say that, wouldn’t he, if they were in cahoots.’ Tom looked around at the others. ‘Don’t you see? I really don’t think we should risk going to Frostwick Castle.’

Elanor felt tears prickle her eyes. ‘But there’s nowhere else for us to go. It’s not safe out here in the forest. There are wolves. And bears. And witches.
And bandits.’ She dabbed her eyes with the trailing sleeve of her dress.

‘Now look what you’ve done,’ Sebastian said to Tom.

‘All right,’ Tom said. ‘It’s okay, Lady Elanor. We’ll go to Frostwick Castle if you really think we should.’

Elanor’s tears dried up at once. She smiled at him radiantly.

‘Just don’t blame me if we all end up in a dungeon,’ Tom added, hoisting his knapsack onto his back.

Elanor could not help thinking that Tom could have done with a few hours reading
A Lady’s Complete Guide to Manners, Morals & Modesty
. Surely a gentleman should never insist on having the last word?

14

FROSTWICK CASTLE

T
om left the boat tied up under the willow tree. ‘It may come in useful,’ he said. ‘If we need a quick escape.’

Sebastian rolled his eyes. ‘Soon we’ll be riding back to Wolfhaven Castle at the head of an army. We won’t be needing a boat.’

‘Better safe than sorry,’ Tom said.

While tucking the cushions and blankets away in the locker, Quinn found a compass. ‘This may come in useful,’ she said, holding it up.

Sebastian grabbed it. ‘I’ll take that.’

‘Why do you get it?’ Tom said furiously, pausing in the act of tucking the map into his knapsack.

‘Squires are trained to read compasses,’ Sebastian answered. ‘My guess is you’ve never even seen one before. I don’t recall ever seeing a compass in a
kitchen
,’ he scoffed.

Tom went red, and jumped ashore. Without looking back, he stormed up the path, Fergus at his heels.

‘You don’t need to be so rude to him all the time,’ Quinn said, picking up the other knapsack.

‘Rude?’ Sebastian was astonished. ‘I’m not rude.’

‘You are,’ she said, and hurried up the track after Tom. Elanor followed, looking back at Sebastian with her brow all scrunched up.

Sebastian stumped along behind. He hadn’t spoken with malice, he reassured himself. He was just stating an obvious truth.

The slope was steep, but there was a clear path with stone steps here and there, to make the climb easier. He soon caught up with the girls, though Tom rushed on ahead, whacking at trees with an old stick. The other three all walked in silence. Gradually they caught up to Tom, though he would not look at them.
Sebastian wondered if he should apologise, then told himself angrily that the pot-boy should get over it.

The four walked on and on and on.

‘There’s something odd about this forest,’ Tom said eventually. ‘Have you noticed?’

‘No birds,’ Quinn said at once.

‘That’s right. And no rabbits either. Or foxes. I’ve seen nothing living at all.’

Sebastian looked around in surprise. It was true the forest was very still and quiet. ‘What does it mean?’ He put his hand on his sword-hilt. ‘Are we in danger?’

‘I don’t know,’ Tom replied. ‘Maybe it’s just been hunted too much. It does mean we can’t catch anything for our supper.’

‘I knew we shouldn’t have eaten all the food,’ Quinn said.

After that, Sebastian kept a close eye out, but he
heard no birdsong and saw no small animals creeping through the underbrush. Tom was right. It was strange.

About an hour later, Tom stopped, holding up his hand. ‘I smell smoke,’ he whispered. ‘We’d best be quiet, just in case someone’s ahead.’

After a few more minutes, they approached a clearing where bristly-chinned men sat on fallen logs, sharpening knives and grinding the edge of sharp-looking axes. Bedrolls lay around the fire. The men were all roughly dressed, in patched breeches and cloaks of uncured hides.

Tom put his hand on Fergus’s collar, keeping him quiet. Then the children dropped down to their hands and knees and crawled around the campsite, keeping their heads low and trying not to make the bracken rustle.

At last they left the camp behind them.

‘Bandits, do you think?’ Quinn whispered.

Tom nodded. ‘Nasty-looking lot. I’m glad they didn’t hear us.’

Sebastian wondered uneasily what his father would think. Would he approve of his son creeping
through the underbrush? Sebastian did not think so. ‘Valour, glory, victory!’ his father always cried.

Disheartened, he stamped on up the path, promising himself he would not be so chicken next time.

Eventually the path led to a narrow road which ran directly north. The trees were left behind, and they climbed through bare moorland dotted with grey rocks. A fast-running stream tumbled over rocks to the left. Mist rolled in, and then it began to rain.

They trudged on in sodden silence until they came across an old shepherd with a flock of black-faced sheep.

‘Excuse me, sir,’ Elanor asked. ‘Is this the road to Frostwick Castle?’

He gaped toothlessly at her then jerked his thumb along the road. ‘Ahhh, urrr,’ he said. Elanor took that to be an affirmative.

After about another hour of walking, Sebastian saw a castle far ahead, perched on the top of a steep pinnacle of rock. He pointed it out to the other three, and they all began to walk faster, hoping to get out of the rain.