One day, if she repeated the assertion often enough, she might actually believe it. Until then, she would have to be vigilant in keeping him from her thoughts.
To do otherwise was simply too painful.
Her finger had ceased to bleed, and still nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Apparently the gods had more to occupy their time today than messing with her pathetic little life.
The first glimmer of gray pushed up into the eastern sky; it was time to get going.
She closed her pack and pushed herself up to stand, her muscles protesting a night of cramped inactivity in the cold. She had a long day ahead of her, and the last thing she needed was to get caught due to wasting time daydreaming.
Thirty
BRIDGET HAD BEENhere. In this very spot.
Hall squatted on the ground, balancing himself on one knee while he ran his fingers over the almost imperceptible depression in the soft earth.
She’d slept here. He was sure of it. And not too long ago, at that.
“We might well have already missed her.” Jamesy stared out toward the towers in the distance, ragged worry haunting his eyes. “What if we’re too late? What if she’s already inside? What if the Beast has found her and she’s already...” He clamped his lips together as if saying anything more would be too painful.
“We’re not too late,” Hall reassured him, rising to his feet. “We’re only an hour or two behind her at most. I can’t imagine the secret entrance into the castle will be easily located. It is, after all,secret.Have faith in that, Jamesy. Have faith that we’ll reach her in time. We still have an opportunity to find her before she makes her way inside.”
Hall had faith that he would find her. He would not fail in this.
“I’ve no wish to distract from the importance of the rescue at hand but, as close as we are to the castle, should we no consider coming to some decision about what we plan to do?” Eric’s gaze was fixed upon Tordenet as well. “Once we’re spotted, as we likely will be when we move in closer, we’ll no have the luxury of waiting for Patrick and his reinforcements.”
“We don’t need reinforcements.” Hall had tried to tell them this all along. “Not with the tools we carry.”
“Bridget carries the sword,” Jamesy pointed out. “Without the weapon, the scrolls are of little use.”
She had it now, but that would change as soon as Hall found her. There was no way he’d allow her to get close enough to the Beast to use the sword.
“You’ve naught to worry about on that count. I’ll have the weapon in my own hands before we confront Fenrir,” he assured. “But you must remember, each of the treasures plays an equally important part in what we attempt to do. The scrolls cannot contain the Beast until it’s forced from its host by the sword. Wielding the sword does no good if we can’t get to the Beast to confront him. That’s where the jewels come in.”
Hall pulled a small bag from his things and spilled out the contents into the palm of his hand. Sunlight sparkled off the polished facets of five distinctly different jewels, except along one rough edge where Orabilis had ground the gems with a rasp.
He handed one jewel to each of his companions, retaining the ruby for himself.
“It feels almost as if it vibrates against my skin,” Finn said, holding the emerald up between two fingers.
“The jewel is searching for its companions. Together they will create a barrier against evil Magic. Our task is to erect that barrier around Tordenet.”
“How do we... wait.” Finn drew the jewel close to examine it. “I dinna feel anything from it now.”
The others nodded their agreement.
“That’s because the jewels have connected with one another. Each of us will approach Tordenet from a different side. As we close in around the castle walls, the barrier formed by the jewels will prevent Fenrir from accessing all but the most rudimentary Magic. That loss of access should drive him from the castle and into our trap.”
“And we’ll tighten the noose once he’s outside the walls of Tordenet.” Eric stuck the jewel he carried into his sporran. “To trap him and drive the Beast into the scrolls you carry.”
“Exactly,” Hall confirmed.
“What of Bridget?” Jamesy asked.
“I’ll find her. I feel sure she’s headed to the shore side of the castle, which is where I plan to go now. As there are no gates along that wall, it will be the safest place for her to remain. With the jewel I carry turned over to her possession when I collect the sword, the barrier can remain intact, allowing me to go after Fenrir.”
“You are confident in this plan?” Eric waited only for Hall’s affirming nod. “In that case, I, too, am confident.”
Jamesy sighed heavily, as if struggling with some great internal debate. “I suppose we have little choice in the matter. We can but take up our positions to wait for Fenrir’s departure from Tordenet, and pray that you find Bridget and the sword in time.”
