Wraith(32)

Sally didn’t move a muscle. ‘I am not leaving my home. Not for goblins, not for you. Not for anything.’

‘Sally—’

‘I mean it, Saiya. I know you mean well but I’m too old and set in my ways. If they come here, I’ll deal with them.’

We both knew how that would end. Sally was tough but she was no match for the Filits. ‘You’re being ridiculous,’ I began.

The skinny shape of Martin, the boy she’d taken in, appeared behind her. He raised a large saucepan and hit her over the head with it. Sally went down like a sack of potatoes. Martin looked both pleased and horrified in equal measure. Then he bent down and scooped her up, glancing at me. ‘Where are we going?’ he asked.

Damn. He had bigger cojones than me; I’d never have dared to knock Sally Slate out, whatever the situation.

She was too big and he staggered under her weight. He wouldn’t be able to carry her more than twenty feet. ‘There’s an old wheelchair next door,’ he grunted. ‘No one’s been in there for months but I’ve seen it in the garden. It’s rusty but it’ll do.’

Becky wriggled out from Ange’s embrace. ‘I’ll get it!’

Martin nodded approvingly. ‘Good work, squirt.’

I continued to stare at him. He glared at me. ‘What?’

I held up my hands. ‘On your own head be it.’

Less than five minutes later, our motley band was racing back through the quiet streets. I spotted one or two pale faces staring out from the few houses that were still occupied, watching our mad dash. Ange was exhausted, the effects of her ordeal still affecting her, despite Gabriel de Florinville’s efforts to heal her. All the same she kept up, spurred on by Becky. I was beginning to feel like we could do this; we could reach the school and get out of here.

When we burst through the school’s main doors, Gabriel de Florinville and his companion, Rymark, were already there. There was no mistaking the relief on his face. Ignoring everyone else, he sprang forward and pulled me into his arms.

‘You made it,’ he whispered into my ear, his warm breath tickling my neck. ‘That’s it. I’m not letting you out of my sight again, Saiya. No matter what happens we’re staying together.’

I coughed, aware that everyone was staring at us. ‘You got away.’

‘And managed some misdirection. The Filits won’t come near here for some time. Between their search for your friend, Marrock’s whispers and the fallout from the Gneiss bombing, they have things on their mind other than Rymark and me. Or you.’ He pressed his lips against my temple with a strange, searing heat.

Sally, who was rubbing the back of her head and groggily spitting fiery insults at her teenage ward, stopped talking and gazed at us open-mouthed.

‘I want everyone to know,’ de Florinville said aloud, realising that we were the object of everyone’s attention, ‘that Saiya Buchanan is my Fior Ghal.’

Becky, Ange and Martin looked confused but a smile twitched the corners of Sally’s lips. ‘Your Fior Ghal?’ she crowed. ‘Excellent! This is the best news I’ve had in years!’

I stared at her. The best news? That I was destined to become an incubator for Gabriel de Florinville’s sperm? What the hell was wrong with her? The Dark Elf might be extraordinarily good looking, with intelligence and power to boot and, yes, my tummy might feel a little odd whenever he looked at me with those dark glittery eyes… But as a matter of principle I hoped for a say in the matter of whether I had children – not to mention who I had those children with.

‘What’s a Fior Ghal?’ Becky asked.

‘No one important.’ I glared at de Florinville. When all this was over, he and I were going to have some serious words – if I ever saw him again. Destiny shmestiny.

Gabriel smiled at her. ‘Someone very special to me. Saiya is unique.’

Irritated, I interrupted them. ‘Where’s this tunnel? We need to get out of here.’

Pat, Marrock’s annoying henchman, peeled himself away from the far wall where he’d been skulking. ‘I’m here to show you,’ he declared, in a voice that suggested we should bow down and be grateful to him. Then he glanced at de Florinville and bowed himself. Idiot. ‘Follow me.’

Our little group trailed after him, past old display boards with ragged posters for long-since-forgotten dances and warnings about bullying. Most children had managed to get out of Stirling in the early days of the siege. I glanced at Becky. Most of them.

I bloody hoped de Florinville was paying attention. His kind could have stopped all this long ago. In response he gave me a warm smile. It made my toes feel tingly and I scowled to myself while doing what I could to smile back. This wasn’t the time, I reminded myself. There were far bigger things afoot than my feelings.

When we reached the end of the dusty corridor, Pat pointed into a classroom that looked as if it were filled with old boxes. Desks had been pushed into one corner; in another there were towering stacks of uncomfortable looking chairs. It was the perfect place for an ambush.

Apparently I wasn’t the only one who thought so. De Florinville stepped forward, motioning to the rest of us to stay where we were, then he entered without a backward glance. Without thinking, I followed.

‘Stay in the corridor, Saiya!’

He was worried his baby mama might damage her womb if there was a fight. I ignored his command and put my finger to my lips, pointing to the left. I didn’t wait to see if he did as I bade but slipped to the right, peeking over the boxes and glancing into the crannies. It seemed safe. It seemed that we were alone.

‘Happy now?’ Pat’s voice echoed round us. ‘Marrock told me to get you out of Stirling safely and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.’ He sounded miffed that we didn’t entirely trust him. ‘You can count on me.’ He added a smile for good effect. It didn’t really help.

I didn’t bother reminding him that a few nights ago I’d stripped in front of him because he’d threatened me and demanded to check for weapons, or that he was a sleazy bastard who would probably sell his grandmother if it meant he’d get another foothold in the hierarchy of life.

‘Saiya?’ De Florinville asked, deferring to me in a manner that almost made me fall over in shock.

I gave him a tight nod while Pat’s oily, unpleasant grin widened. ‘She trusts me,’ he said. ‘She knows me,’ he added a wink.

I ignored de Florinville’s questioning look and raised my eyebrows. ‘Let’s get on with this,’ I said.

Pat shrugged. ‘The entrance is over here.’ He shuffled over to a large cardboard box labelled ‘Exam Texts’ and pulled it to one side, revealing a gaping hole in the floor. There was a precarious-looking rope ladder going into it. I eyed it with concern; I’d manage it and so would de Florinville and Rymark – but Ange? Becky? Sally? It looked as if it went a long way down.

‘How far is it?’

Pat pursed his lips. ‘Fifty feet maybe? It takes you down to the old sewers that lead under the city. There are rats but if you wave a torch around they usually run away. I’ve used it plenty of times to bring in supplies for Marrock. There are torches at the bottom that you can use.’ He bared his teeth. ‘Are you scared?’

I didn’t bother responding. I’d simply have to get everyone down first and then come back up on my own. No doubt de Florinville would try and stop me but I’d worry about that when the time came.

‘I’ll go first,’ de Florinville declared. ‘Then send the boy down.’

I considered and nodded. ‘Good idea. I’ll help Becky. She might struggle but she’ll want to do it and if she gets down then Ange will follow. Then your man can go before Sally—’

‘Rymark.’ From behind me, he cleared his throat. ‘My name is Rymark, my lady.’

I’d never been called ‘my lady’ before. I stumbled slightly but de Florinville was already there, catching my elbow and steadying me. ‘Thanks,’ I muttered.

‘Gabriel,’ he said.

I forced a smile. ‘Thanks, Gabriel.’

His face lit up in a smile, a dimple creasing his cheek, and my heart missed a beat. Good grief. Coughing to cover my embarrassment, I nodded at Rymark. ‘It’s good to be formally introduced,’ I said. ‘And, um, thanks for earlier at the castle. It was nice of you to help me when you didn’t know who I was.’

He smiled at me with a friendly twinkle. ‘Any time.’

Let’s hope not.

Gabriel moved to the hole and swung himself easily over the edge. Keeping his eyes on mine, he lowered himself down. As soon as he was swallowed up by the darkness, I beckoned to Martin. He looked nervous and scratched at his neck with shaking fingers. ‘It’ll be fine,’ I reassured him.

Once the tension was released from the rope ladder, I called down. ‘Is everything okay?’

Gabriel’s voice floated back up. ‘It’s fine. Hang on.’ There was the faint sound of fumbling and then a brief roar. A moment later, light appeared as he lit one of Marrock’s torches. I peered over and saw him beckoning.

‘Go on, then,’ I said to Martin. ‘You can do it.’