Wraith(47)

In the end it was a simple decision to make. There were enough hidey-holes in and around these slopes that I could bundle Gabriel into and keep him concealed. Then it would be simple to sneak out on my own and retrieve Ange’s puzzle box. It was so small and lightweight that my shadow could carry it. Using my wraith form was the only way this venture would work.

I kept a tight grip on Gabriel’s hand as we slipped and slid our way down. I listened for any goblins crashing down after us but, whatever Isabella and the others were doing, it appeared to be working. Time and distance stretched between us and the castle walls; much more of this and I’d start to relax.

‘How are you doing?’ I grunted, worried that Gabriel was struggling to keep up.

Annoyance flashed in his eyes. He was definitely on the mend. ‘Fine,’ he growled. Then his foot slipped and he crashed down against me.

I grabbed for a branch or a tree trunk or even a damn bramble bush to keep the pair of us in place, but it was no good. The mud underneath our feet was too slippery and the slope was too steep. Although I managed to wrap my fingers around a thorny twig, it snapped off; Gabriel and I went barrelling downhill, tumbling one after the other.

Unable to do anything else, I pulled up my knees and put my arms around my head to protect myself. I could feel my body picking up speed as rocks and jutting stones slammed into me. This had the potential to end very badly. A gigantic fir tree loomed in front of me and I knew I was still gaining too much momentum to swerve round it. I squeezed my eyes shut and tensed for the inevitable collision.

It never came. Suddenly we stopped falling. I slowly opened one eye and then the other. I was hanging in mid-air, the tip of my nose less than a foot from the tree. Gabriel, still clinging onto my hand, was next to me. His lips were moving and I could hear his murmured chant. Thank goodness for Dark Elf magic.

I stretched out a foot, carefully putting it down and testing my weight. Then I brought down the other one. When I was sure I was safe, I tugged at Gabriel. He opened his eyes and stared right into me, as if searching my soul. ‘That was close,’ I said. ‘Good job.’

His jaw clenched and he looked away. ‘Yeah,’ he said sarcastically. ‘Go me.’

I blinked. ‘What’s wrong?’

‘Nothing.’

I tilted my head to the side and examined him closely. ‘Gabriel, are you pissed off with me or with yourself?’

He started to fold his arms across his chest but his foot slipped again, and he was forced to abandon the position in favour of grabbing a birch tree to avoid a repeat of our hillside tombola fun. ‘I told you to run,’ he growled.

‘Excuse me?’

‘You heard me. I told you to run. You should have run then you’d be far away from here and safe.’

‘Sure,’ I nodded. ‘Of course, in that scenario you’d be dead already.’

‘There are more important things than my life,’ he snapped. ‘You can’t put yourself at risk like that!’

‘Because there’s no contingency plan for locating the Stone?’ I asked.

A shadow crossed his face and in that moment I knew he wasn’t thinking about the Stone of Scone, he was thinking about me and my safety. I was so taken aback that I stepped backwards, momentarily forgetting where we were. Almost immediately I started sliding again and lost my balance. This time Gabriel thrust out a hand and caught me. He pulled me into his chest and wrapped one arm round my body while his other hand cupped my face and tilted it up to his.

‘I’ve only just found you,’ he whispered. ‘I didn’t really believe that you existed before now. You can’t put yourself into danger like that.’

I gazed back at him. ‘I think you’ll find that you were the one in danger. You were the one who almost died. Your tongue turned blue and you almost stopped breathing. And I had to enlist Isabella Markbury and her mates to help us get out of the castle. If another Filit goblin spots you, you’re a dead Elf.’

‘Not when I’ve you got around to protect me.’

I smiled. Gabriel dipped his head until I could feel his warm breath against my cheek. Then his expression darkened. ‘I don’t know what happened back there.’

‘You were poisoned,’ I said helpfully. ‘By Ghrashbreg’s wine.’

‘I got that part.’

‘I dragged you out of the castle. Isabella, Tilly, Ophelia and Cordelia killed the goblin guards at the gate so we could escape.’

‘I worked that part out too.’

I shrugged. ‘Then what’s the problem?’

His eyes were growing darker and more troubled by the second. ‘Ghrashbreg said he’d caught the wraith that kidnapped you. He must have been lying, though, because I definitely saw one when we were leaving.’ Uh-oh. My stomach dropped. Gabriel’s brow furrowed as he tried to remember. ‘I was pretty out of it. That poison was bloody strong – but there was definitely a wraith there, Saiya. It must still be after you. I’ll deal with the Stone. You’re not safe. You should get the hell out of here while you still can because the wraith must be after you because of me. You won’t be safe till we get to Holyrood where I can protect you properly.’

The warmth that had been spreading inside me chilled immediately. ‘I thought we’d already covered that,’ I said, in a much lighter and more humorous tone than I felt. ‘I’ve been the one protecting you.’

I had to tell him the truth. I had to tell him I was the wraith. Once that secret was out in the open, we could finally move on.

Gabriel’s expression didn’t change. ‘Wraiths are dangerous, Saiya. In fact, they’re more than dangerous – they’re evil little bastards who only care about themselves. This world would be a whole lot safer if they didn’t exist.’

If they didn’t exist? What exactly was he suggesting? ‘They’re not all bad.’

‘Yes, they are.’ His voice was insistent. ‘If you see a shadow out of place, you must tell me. I can put down any wraith that tries to attack you. I won’t let you get hurt.’

I tore my eyes away from his and turned away. I couldn’t even begin to think of an appropriate answer. I had to either start yelling in his face or change the subject. ‘We need to go. The goblins might still come down the cliff after us. There’s a small cave near here where we can hide. You’re obviously still weak after the poison and you need to rest up.’

‘I’m fine.’

‘Your skin is still green. You might have performed a magic spell to stop us being squished against a tree but you’re not right yet. You can’t half die and then run around the Scottish countryside without expecting some side effects.’

‘I do have a strange taste in my mouth,’ he admitted.

That would be the iodine I’d forced him to drink. ‘Well, there you go,’ I said briskly. ‘We find the cave and hunker down for thirty minutes while you get some rest and we can check that we’re not being followed. Then we’ll head out and sort the Stone out once and for all. Okay?’

For a moment I thought he was going to argue but fortunately he took a deep breath and acquiesced. ‘Okay.’

I forced a smile. ‘Great. Let’s go.’





Chapter Twenty




I wasn’t completely sure about the cave’s location; it was a long time since I’d been in these woods and it wasn’t easy to get my bearings. Eventually, however, I spotted a familiar rocky outcrop and I knew we were on the right track.

I stomped through the undergrowth towards it, churning over what Gabriel had said about wraiths – and starting to quiver with anger as a result. How dare he dismiss an entire race out of hand like that? He’d virtually advocated genocide when he said that the world would be safer if we didn’t exist.

My mind flitted back to the other wraith, the one who’d been despatched to kill Ange. Yes, he was an assassin but he’d turned his back on that and helped us when he realised what was going on. In fact, he’d not just helped us, he’d sacrificed himself. And I wasn’t an assassin. I wasn’t evil. Ange knew the truth and she didn’t despise me.

My thoughts tripped over one another and my rage increased. This was yet another first for me. Normally I found it easy to separate my emotions and deal rationally with whatever problem I faced but I’d never experienced a problem like Gabriel before.

When I finally located the cave, I kicked away the dead branches that blocked the entrance and crouched down to enter it. I didn’t bother checking to see if Gabriel was following me; I knew from the sounds he was making that he was hot on my heels.

Once I’d crawled in a few metres, the cave widened and I could stand. It was very dark and gloomy, just my kind of place. I glowered at Gabriel as he also stood up but he couldn’t see my expression through the darkness. He murmured something under his breath and, a moment later, a faintly glowing ball of light appeared from nowhere and floated above our heads. Great.

‘You’re angry,’ he said.

‘We need to rest.’

He moved over to me but he was sensible enough not to touch me. I was painfully aware of his proximity. ‘What’s the matter?’