Lysandrashowedupaspromised, this time unaccompanied by one of the foreboding guards, a rushlight in hand that she wedged between the loose stones by the door.
“Hurry,” she said as she thrust a bundle of cloth in Brunhild’s direction.
When Brun caught it against her chest it unfurled to reveal rough serving clothes from the same coarse weave as the other woman’s.She swiftly shed her tunic and leggings and donned the skirt and blouse, snatching her belt so she could tuck the skirts into it if she needed to run or climb.
When she was finished, Lysandra twirled her finger.Brun obeyed, the skirt belling around her ankles as she turned.“How’s this?”She asked.
Lysandra tapped a knuckle against her chin.“We’ll have to keep your hair under a scarf, it’s too distinctive,” she finally said as she pulled another piece of cloth from her pocket.
Brun wrapped it around her braids, hiding them.
“Let’s go,” the other woman said as she put her finger to her lips and tugged Brun toward the door.Brun mutely followed because she wanted to evade discovery as long as possible.
Lysandra snuffed out the rushlight and left the door ajar before she began scurrying down the dark halfway, as swift and nimble as a cat prowling in search of a mouse.
Brun stumbled in the dark more than once, biting back a curse when she stubbed her toe.When they reached a dead end that branched to the right and left, Lysandra darted to the right and ducked behind a heavy tapestry.
There was a commotion to the left, down the corridor they were avoiding, and a boisterous, rusty laugh Brun knew all too well cut the silence that had fallen between them.
She would know her father’s mocking laugh anywhere because she had often been its target.Surely her ears deceived her.
She shook away her unease and focused on one step at a time.
When they came upon a flight of stairs stretching down into the inky darkness, Brun briefly wondered if she was being led to Helheim’s lair.The thought made her shiver.“Falling off these would be a messy way to go,” she whispered.
“Aye, you’d end up with a bashed head and a broken neck,” Lysandra grimly said.
When Brun hesitated, her heart hammering away in her chest, Lysandra impatiently grasped her elbow.“Come, they’re waiting for you at the end of the tunnel.”
“What about you?”
“I stay.I’ve yet to accomplish what I was sent here to do, and you’re more of a hindrance to me than anything.”
Brun grinned sardonically because for most of her life that’s what she’d been — a hindrance.“You needn’t accompany me.”
“The path is treacherous,” she said skeptically
Brun fought the urge to roll her eyes.“I’ve faced far worse across a battlefield than steps leading to nowhere.Just tell me what I need to know to survive this perilous journey.”
“Careful footing, because the steps will be slick with damp near the bottom.When you reach the mouth of the cave, go to your left.There will be a set of stairs carved into the side of the cliff.Twenty four of them until you reach the bottom.If you’re certain you don’t require my help, I’ll ensure you’re not pursued.”
Toran and his rescue party waited in the cove beneath the cliffs undetected.It was on the opposite side of the island from the Kraken Keep, and fringed by sharp rocks that prohibited all but the sleekest vessels from anchoring there.Toran and his men had transformed into their each uisge form rather than bothering with a coracle for the journey.He’d transform again and carry his mate on his back to get her home where she belonged.
They crept toward the edge of the stairs that disappeared into a straggle of brush at the bottom.
Cath’s belief in his informant was unwavering.He’d insisted over and over again that although their mission was risky, it wouldn’t fail.Tor was reluctant to place his faith in circumstances and people he couldn’t control, and going on this mission where there were so many unpredictable variables was driving him mad.He tightened his grip on the pommel of his sword and widened his stance, ready to leap into the fray if necessary.
When the bushes shook slightly in the moonlight, he motioned for his men to crouch until the disturbance was revealed.
He waited, his heart pounding, until a bundled figure emerged from the shadows.Even in the half-darkness, Toran recognized his wife.He stood awkwardly, waiting for her to realize he was there.Once she removed her head covering, she turned in his direction.“Mate,” she said.
Though there was fire between them, her affection thus far had been begrudging.That single word from her mouth made his blood crackle in his veins, and he moved forward to wrap her in his arms.
She stiffened at the embrace.
“Thank the gods you’re safe,” he muttered into the crown of her head, glorying anew in the way her height was nearly a match for his.
“Of course I’m safe,” she scoffed.“I would have managed to free myself eventually, but I’m grateful for your intervention.”
