by Andrew Symon
“Can you tell me where Sandy of the Stone is?” A tall stranger had approached without any of them noticing.
Jack hurriedly thrust Tamlina’s ring back into his Sintura belt. Had the man seen it?
“He’ll be up at the house. Past those trees.” Jack pointed; the man nodded and moved off.
“He’s new, isn’t he?” said Lizzie. “There are loads of people I don’t recognise these days. D’you think we can trust them all?”
“You don’t think he could be a Thanatos spy, do you?” asked Jack.
“I don’t fancy meeting those Thanatos again,” shuddered Lizzie. “You’ve never seen the unforgiven dead. Believe me, you don’t want to.”
“And there’s Boaban Shee too,” said Rana. “Mum told me they’re like vampires. And there are Red Caps in the border lands. Most of the country’s Unseelie now.”
“It’s hard to believe it’s like winter almost everywhere,” said Jack, looking up at the clear sky. “It’s nice here. Bit cooler, though.”
Jack resolved to give Tamlina’s ring to Marco for safekeeping – for now. Like the Mapa Mundi, it was too much responsibility. And that vision had been scary.
“I bet Cos-Howe’s doing OK, though.” Jack tried to sound hopeful. “Cosmo can hold out as long as he wants.”
“If the Thanatos …” Rana was silenced by a shove from her sister.
“Let’s get back to the house,” said Lizzie. “It’s getting chilly.”
The youngsters wandered along to Marco and Luka’s house, surrounded as it now was by tents.
“Good news, kids,” called out Aunt Dorcas. “Marco and Luka are coming back tonight.”
“You mean the low road’s open again?” Jack’s eyes lit up.
“No, it’s still out of action. Anyway, they hardly ever use it. Enda’s bringing them over from the mainland.”
“They’re calling more McCools over too,” added Aunt Katie.
Aunt Katie’s changed in some ways, thought Jack. More McCools must mean they’re planning something, and once upon a time that would’ve got her frightened. But with Uncle Doonya a prisoner, she’s not scared now, she’s … determined.
“Does that mean we’re leaving soon?”
“You’ll have to see what Marco says, Jack dear. A grig told us they’ll be here this evening.”
Grigs are flying again, even outside the low road. That definitely means things are on the move.
However, Jack’s newfound optimism was to be short-lived. When Marco and Luka arrived that evening, all they would say was that the time was not yet right for a counter-attack. It wouldn’t be long – Where’ve I heard that before? – but things had to be in place, otherwise the whole mission might fail.
Despite yet another “not yet”, Jack was glad to see Marco and Luka again. Since midsummer they had hardly been on the island. And things on the mainland obviously hadn’t improved. The Kildashie and the Thanatos had most Shian – few as they were – under the thumb. Stories of imprisonment, torture – even murder – were commonplace now. A few areas had managed to resist, but isolated and scattered, and with bitterly cold weather, this was not much use for a counter-attack.
Copyright
First published 2014
by Black & White Publishing Ltd
29 Ocean Drive, Edinburgh EH6 6JL
www.blackandwhitepublishing.com
This electronic edition published in 2014
ISBN: 978 1 84502 770 4 in EPub format
ISBN: 978 1 84502 706 3 in paperback format
Copyright © Andrew Symon, 2014
Mapa Mundi illustration by Rossi Gifford
The right of Andrew Symon to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form, or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without permission in writing from the publisher.
A CIP catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Ebook compilation by RefineCatch Ltd, Bungay