The Staff of the Winds (The Wizard of South Corner Book 1)
Page 28
“Okay,” Marian said, “bring Steven and let’s see where this passage leads.”
“You mean that you don’t know where this goes?” Aaron asked as Marian, torch in hand, led them down the passage.
“Nope. If I did, I would have had you all out of here weeks ago.”
“But if you don’t know where this goes, then how did you know… Never mind, I know, ‘it’s a long story’,” they both finished together and laughed.
When they reached the end of the tunnel, they found it closed off with a heavy wooden, iron-clad door that they could not budge. Time and the elements had sealed it shut. They could not go back the way that they had come—the dead guard had likely been found and the alarm raised by now; there would be big, angry, armed men searching the whole castle for them—so they set to digging their way out through the dirt and roots at the side. Their hands were torn and bloody and it was full dark by the time they managed to open a hole large enough to fit themselves and Steven’s litter through. Looking around, Marian saw that they were in a low depression in a small copse of tress. She was sure that she and Owen had searched that spot days ago, but they had failed to find the tunnel entrance there. Even now, knowing that it was there, she could not tell where the hidden door lay.
Once everyone was out, they covered their exit with some fallen branches and leaves so that the soldiers would not discover their trail.
The moon was just setting by the time they were done, and Marian whispered, “It will be dawn soon, and we need to be into the forest before it turns light. Follow me, and keep as quiet as you can.”
Marian led the group into the woods and to the spot where hers and Owen’s horses were on long tethers. The animals had access to water, but the grass that they had browsed on was completely gone. She dug the tack and provisions out of the brush where they had been hidden while the boys transformed Steve’s litter into a travois. They were all exhausted by then, and Marian let them eat some of her meager rations and drink their fill from the nearby brook—the water tasted wonderful to her after her days of drinking from ditches in the fortress of Carraghlaoch—and rest on the forest floor for a short time.
“Where is my father and the rest of the village,” Aaron asked.
“They were all taken across the river. The way is guarded by the castle. We can’t get to them now. We’ll have to head back to South Corner for help.”
“We can’t just leave them,” Brad objected, “they’ve still got my mum and da. Surely we could figure out some way to rescue them.”
“I’m sorry, I really am, but they are across the river, and the only bridge is guarded by the castle. We’d have to walk up that ramp, right under the walls, and cross the drawbridge in full view. Even in the dark we couldn’t pull that off. Even if we could, there’s more than twenty well armed soldiers over there with them. Owen and I studied this problem for weeks, and we just cannot do it without more help.”
“Can’t we go back and kill those soldiers in the castle?” Edith asked.
“They’ll be on their guard now. There is no way that we could sneak up on them and overpower them as weak as we are,” Aaron said, true regret in his voice.
“You keep mentioning Owen as if he were here,” Brad interjected. “Where did he go?”
Marian had to stop and think before answering that question. After assuring them all that no one could just walk up the ramp and over the bridge without being caught, she could not now confess that that is exactly what Owen had done … not without telling them some of the other things that Owen could do.
“It’s a long story,” Marian cringed when she heard herself say that again, but quickly went on, “and I’ll tell it all to you on the way back to South Corner, I promise.”
After they’d had a short rest, Marian got them all to their feet and began to lead them on the long, cold walk back to the village of South Corner. She and Edith were actually in the best physical shape, so they did most of the walking, while the boys took turns riding the horses. The odd man out carried the sling and kept on the lookout for rabbits, squirrels or anything else they could make a meal of at the end of the day. Around a fire over dinner each night—sometimes adequate, sometimes not—Marian told her friends installments of the tale of the chase by Owen, Jack and her, as well as the experiences that Owen had with the headpiece of the Old Wizard’s staff. Much of what she narrated was greeted by hoots of laughter, but she was not offended and told it as it happened nevertheless. They needed something to laugh about to keep their spirits up.
Aaron found himself admiring the way that Owen’s little sister had taken charge of their party and worked to keep them from dwelling on their many problems. He’d never paid much attention to Marian in the past, but it seemed that she had grown up during the weeks of their captivity to become quite a remarkable young woman. He’d never noticed the musical quality of her voice before, and although her figure was still nothing special, as those things were evaluated by young men his age, she had a grace of movement, strength and stamina much to be admired. He enjoyed being near her and working with her, and was surprised and pleased by a warm sense that the feeling was mutual.
Steve woke up before noon of the second day, and despite the considerable pain he was in, he was in great spirits once he realized that they had been rescued, although he could not believe that Marian had saved them all by herself. When he’d asked how she had managed it, he was greeted by a general chorus: “It’s a long story.”
THE END
To the reader:
If you enjoyed this book, please take a few minutes to give it a favorable review. Your expressed interest is what keeps authors working diligently at their keyboards, and it also makes this and similar works more and more available for our mutual enjoyment. If you did not enjoy this book, let me say that I am impressed with your fortitude to make it all the way to the end, and that you also have my heartfelt apology.
You may be interested to know, that I am working on a sequel to this book that will follow Owen across the stone arch in pursuit of Sarah, and much, much more. There is still much to tell, and no matter how hard I tried, I could not make it all fit into one volume.
About the author:
William Meighan was born and raised in Spokane, Washington. Educated by the Jesuits, he earned degrees in Physics and Applied Statistics. He served as an officer in the US Air Force during the early development days of drones and stealth; then later worked as a Program and Quality Systems Manager and Consultant with advanced electronics firms in the US, Europe, South America and Asia. He is now retired and living on a small ranch in the Mountain West of the US with his wife, two dogs (his), three horses, a pounce of barn and house cats, and a goat (all hers), where she keeps him busy hauling hay, and building and maintaining barns and fences. At every opportunity, he disappears into their library for hours at a time to write.
Table of Contents
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14