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She swallowed then put her arms around me.
‘You’re such a good, brave man,’ she told me softly. ‘I’m so proud of you, and I know your parents would be, too.’
I blinked away tears and hugged her tightly. ‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘For everything.’
‘Oh, bless you. You don’t have to thank me,’ she said. ‘Caring for you was a pleasure and an honour. Come on. Let’s go and call that meeting.’ She pulled away from me and smiled. ‘Personally, I’m not a fan ofGroundhog Dayanyway. It gets very tedious very quickly.’
She winked and slipped her arm through mine, and we headed into the living room together. I was quite pleased to see the credits were rolling onGroundhog Day. Not that I disliked the film, but at least it meant I wasn’t going to interrupt everyone’s viewing.
Emrick caught my eye, and I had the strangest feeling that he knew exactly what I was about to say. He gave me a reassuring nod, even as Keely urged me to sit down and told me I could choose the next film, and did I want any nachos and dip? Hector and Celeste had returned to Castle Clair, and I noticed Killian wasn’t back from Ballydraiocht yet. No matter. I still had to make this announcement.
‘I’m sorry,’ I told them all, meaning it. ‘I don’t want to spoil your fun, I really don’t, but this can’t wait. I need to talk to you all.’
I saw the carefree expressions on their faces change immediately, and guilt almost overwhelmed me. Why did I have to do this now? And yet I knew this couldn’t wait. We were running out of time. The days of wait and see were over.
‘What’s up?’ Keely asked, and I saw the dread in her eyes and wished I could reassure her.
‘I’m sorry,’ I told her. ‘I know we said we’d talk everything over first, but this came to me when I was upstairs alone, and I knew it had to be said now. No putting it off. I must tell you all together.’
‘Go on,’ Harley said, taking Keely’s hand in support. ‘Just say it.’
I faced them all, wishing I was better at public speaking and hoping I didn’t mess this up.
‘There’s something I didn’t tell you,’ I said. ‘When I took back my magic I had a vision. Well, a few of them actually. But this one…’
Briefly, I told them about the room and about the woman I’d seen, begging me to release the sword from the stone and free her love.
‘But who is she?’ Keely asked immediately. ‘And who’s her love?’
‘I have no idea,’ I admitted. ‘The point is, though, I now know where we were when she told me this. We were standing in a room. A stone room. And earlier today I was there in reality. It’s the crypt under the chapel. And that’s where the Sword of Feidhlim is.’
They all exchanged glances.
‘The Sword of Feidhlim is in the crypt? Then why didn’t you bring it back with you?’
‘Ah, well…’ I rubbed the back of my head. ‘That’s the thing. It wasn’t there when I went there today.’
‘Well then,’ Trinity said with a frustrated sigh, ‘we’re no further on.’
‘Yes, I think we are,’ I said slowly. ‘The thing is, it occurred to me today that, just maybe, I’m not going to find the sword in this time. Maybe the sword is waiting for me in another time.’
There was a lot of murmuring and some excitement.
‘Sounds a possibility,’ Sirius said cautiously. ‘But if that’s the case, how on earth are you going to find it? It could be anywhere. You can’t go back to every single moment in time to search for it.’
‘I don’t think I have to,’ I said. ‘Think about it. What do we know about the Sword of Feidhlim? The one crucial thing we absolutely know for a fact.’
There were a few blank faces. I can’t deny I felt a rush of pride when it was Keely who provided the answer.
‘You had it with you when you accompanied the Tremaynes to Scotland to meet with the Seelie Court,’ she said thoughtfully.
‘Exactly!’ I said, beaming at her.
‘So what are you saying?’ Romy asked. ‘That you’re going back to the seventeenth century in the hope that, somehow, you’ll find the Sword of Feidhlim there?’
‘But what if you don’t find it?’ Sirius asked. ‘What happens then?’
‘Have you any better ideas?’ I asked. ‘Right now, this is the only shot I have at finding it. If any of you have any other suggestions I’m happy to listen.’
