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“I have not forgotten who he is,” Merlin said ahead of me. “No, I have not seen him tonight. Why?”
“No matter. I’m sure he can take care of himself.”
My sense of unease grew. Someone had sold us out to Arthur.
What if I was the one who had brought the traitor into their midst? Just why had Javer followed me to Pendrath? Had he really come to be my humble servant? Or had it been to find a new place at a new court that would suit him even better than the old one?
Merlin was skirting away from the center of the temple, back towards where I knew her own chambers lay.
“How did you learn about Kaye?” I demanded, catching up to her as the older woman continued to walk quickly down the corridors, displaying a remarkable lack of concern for the danger.
“He’s to be taken from the frontlines and returned to the city,” Merlin repeated. “We must get you into the castle tonight.”
“Yes, but how? Do you have a plan?” I wrinkled my brow, confused by her demeanor.
“Of course I do. Here. In here, quickly. They’ll be coming this way,” Merlin said abruptly.
We’d reached her chambers. She pushed open the door to the room she used as a study.
A lantern burned low on a dark wood desk in the center of the room. A censer of incense hung from the wood paneled ceiling, its calming scent filling the room as it swayed slightly. There was a chill breeze coming from a small square window set into the stone wall. I glanced out. The moon was still high in the sky above Camelot.
On the far wall of the chamber hung a beautiful, multicolored tapestry I could not recall ever seeing before. It depicted the Three Sisters standing side-by-side, hand-in-hand, smiling at one another in a grove of juniper trees. Behind the goddesses, rabbits, deer, and other wildlife stood in a half circle, looking on as if in awe of the divine siblings.
With a soft hoot, the owl lifted from Merlin’s shoulder, flying to a tall perch on the other side of the desk.
To my surprise, Merlin raised her hand to her lips, as if saying farewell to the bird.
I suddenly heard the sound of tramping footsteps from further down the corridor, and my heart raced. “We’ve gone in the wrong direction, Merlin. We need to get out of here. What did you want to show me?”
Merlin stepped forward, lifting a wrinkled hand to touch my brow gently. She had been more free with her affection since I had returned. Now I wondered if this, too, was a sign of her advanced years. Was her mind becoming muddled?
“It’s all right. It’s fine, my dear girl,” she murmured as she stroked my brow.
I looked at her, baffled, suddenly wondering if she had suffered some sort of injury after all. “Merlin, it’s not fine. We need to get you out of here. We should have gone with Galahad and the others.”
Her eyes were gentle. “I’m so sorry, my child. I didn’t want it to be like this. But believe me, it was the only way.”
I looked at her then. Really looked at her.
The High Priestess of the Temple of the Three Sisters. The Keeper of the Sacred Flame. My oracle, my guardian, my mentor, my friend. Dark shadows lingered beneath her eyes. Her pure white robes were stained with dust and soot. The gold and silver hem of her vestments were edged in blood from the path we had taken. Her small frame was as graceful as ever, but was now bent like a willow in the wind with exhaustion. Her once-lustrous, ebony hair was full of silver strands that flowed in the heavy, serpentine braid encircling her regal head.
As I gazed upon her, my heart ached to see the woman who had guided me through so much of my life now looking older and wearier than I had ever known her to be.
I squeezed her hand. “It’s all right, Merlin. There’s nothing to be sorry for. But we need to go now.”
I put a hand on the hilt of my rapier and started to turn back to the door.
I would take care of Merlin. I would get us out. We’d find Galahad and the others. We’d find a new place, somewhere to rebuild the Round Table’s resistance all over again.
And then a cocoon enveloped me. Invisible bonds held me. I opened my mouth and found I could not do so. I could not move an inch.
My body was being moved and manipulated like a puppet on a string. Slowly, I was lifted up from the floor and turned.
Merlin stood behind me with her hands raised. Her expression was sorrowful but focused.
I struggled to part my lips. It was a fruitless exercise.
With a deft wave of one hand, the High Priestess lifted the tapestry of the Three that I had been admiring, revealing a hidden recess. In a small alcove, a polished, wooden dais stood.
