The Gang of Legend
Page 21
Bub sat on the opposite short edge, and Carson and Heidi occupied the other side of the table to me and my brother. Heidi’s shirt was changed, the bloodied one disposed of—Bub said we could probably get the blood out with Daz, or Persil, or maybe Fairy Liquid? Heidi said she’d rather just burn it. Now, she sat in an over-large hoodie, leaning against Carson’s shoulder. She’d drawn one knee up to her chest, and hooked an arm around it.
In the center of the table was a single book: Tyran’s journal.
It lay open to a series of maps, decorated by copious amounts of miniscule, hard-to-read scrawl.
Manny sighed. He took his head from his hand, and leaned forward. He took the book in hand, lifted it, and flicked through the pages.
More maps. The majority of the journal was filled with them. Only the occasional lengthy entry cropped up, long essays arranged over four or five pages before the reams of maps resumed.
“So,” Manny said. “This is what we have to go on. Tyran’s notes on the Brynn Overson quest.” His flipping brought him toward the back, where roughly three quarters of the way through the journal the maps abruptly ceased.
He lay the open book back down. “Anyone happen to recognize this?”
Borrick frowned at it. “No.”
I peered, and shook my head. “Could be anyplace.”
“Well, a coastline, anyway,” said Heidi. She traced one of the lines. “That’s a promontory, I think.”
“A what?” I asked.
“A thin strip of highland that juts out into water,” said Carson quietly.
“Oh.” I saw it now. “Like a peninsula kind of thing.”
“Excellent,” said Manny, sighing. He ran a hand through his hair. “We’re scouring the entire universe for this.”
“The million-world clock might be able to find it,” I said, eyeing the crystalline facets shimmering overhead. “It found Laknuria.”
“We had a full globe map for Laknuria,” said Heidi. “A little snippet like this … there are probably thousands of identical features on worlds across the universe.”
I bit my lip. Slipping the book closer to me, I scoured the text Tyran had scrawled around the map’s edge. But none of it was concrete; open questions like Aerial approach necessary? and Heat map? were scattered about the peninsula’s rendering, none answered.
There was not even a mention of the crypt, the Blade of Universal Adoration, or anything that would hint to me this was anything whatsoever to do with the Overson questline.
“Anything?” asked Borrick.
“He wasn’t sure,” I said at last.
Manny frowned. “Tyran said he’d worked out where Overson’s crypt was.”
“No, he didn’t,” said Heidi. “He said something like ‘all in due course.’”
“‘All in good time’,” I murmured.
“He was just posturing,” said Borrick with a sigh.
“Of course.” Manny bowed his head, clutching his temples. “I shouldn’t have expected anything less.”
“So yet again, we have nothing to go on,” said Heidi.
“We don’t have nothing,” I said. “Tyran’s notes … they aren’t great …”
“They’re worse than ‘not great’,” said Borrick dismissively.
“But regardless, we have something here.” I waved the journal, its glossy leather cover reflecting a bar of light from the eternally burning fireplace. “And we have this whole library at our disposal. If we put our heads together, I know we can do it.”
“Our heads?”
That was Carson.
I looked up to see him looking tense. Biting his bottom lip, he glanced away—and then met my gaze head on.
“You want me to help,” he said. “Don’t you?”
“You don’t have to,” I said. “But … Carson, remember what I said the other morning? When we crashed your college interview?”
Carson hesitated. “Uhm.”
“I said you’re the brains of our operation. You’re smarter than all of us, put together, and multiplied by ten. That’s not flattery—I really, honestly mean that. All our achievements before … we couldn’t have come close to any of those without you.”
He looked away. “You found the Chalice Gloria just fine.”
“Yeah, in April. I ran away from home in January. If I’d had you with me from the start, you think it would have taken me anywhere near that long? You’d have cracked the entire mystery for me in about a week, if that.”
“You’re smart, Carson,” said Heidi. “Way smarter than us.”
He bit his lip.
“You should listen to them, mate,” said Manny. “You found the lost treasure of Ostiagard, for crying out loud. You’ve got your head screwed on way tighter than any of the rest of us.”
“Which isn’t saying a lot coming from someone who goes through gates without checking where they go,” said Heidi, “but he’s right.”
Manny suppressed a grim smile. “Touché.”
“Look, Carson,” I said. “I’m not sorry for seeking you out. You’re part of our team, and a really damned important one at that. But I am sorry for interrupting you trying to get your life back on track again. And if that’s what you want, then I’m not going to stand in your way. We can take you home right now—if that’s what you want. But please—think about this.” I leaned forward, meeting his eyes. “We need you, more than ever right now. Not for fame, or glory, or anything else—but because stopping Preston from this mad thing he’s trying to do … it may be the most important thing we ever do.”
Carson considered. He glanced away from me, to the end of the table, where Alain sat in glum silence, expression terse.
“He’s a threat,” said Carson quietly, “isn’t he?”
“He’s not thinking straight,” Borrick answered. “And after Burnton … there’s nothing he’ll stop at to get what he wants—even if it means killing us.”
Carson exhaled.
He reached out for Tyran’s journal tentatively.
Slipping it into his hand, he considered the final map.
At last, he said, “I’ll stay.”
My heart skipped—as did Heidi’s, going by the rise of her eyebrows.
“You will?” she asked, as if she hardly dared to believe it.
Carson nodded. “For this. But when it’s done—when we’ve stopped Preston—I’m finished.”
“Thank you,” I breathed, gripping his wrist.
Manny nodded. “Thanks, Carson.”
Borrick murmured a demur thanks too.
“So …” said Bub. “Shall we get started?”
Heidi sighed. “I’ll start near the back, shall I?” She rose, making for the bookshelves.
Borrick clambered up too, as did Manny and Bub.
“I have this aisle,” said Bub.
“This one’s mine,” said Borrick.
Manny took the next, holding a hand up.
“Any title that might mention Brynn Overson at all,” I said, “even the tiniest, most distant connection …”
“We know what we’re doing,” said Heidi.
Bub rumbled, “It’s like muscle memory at this point.”
Carson heaved a sigh. He flipped Tyran’s journal to the first page. “Right then,” he said, leaning forward. “Let’s see here.” Pushing his glasses up his nose, he began to read Tyran’s notes, starting at the very beginning.
His lips moved, mouthing the words as his eyes roved back and forth.
I slipped into the nearest unoccupied aisle. Fingers tracing book spines, I began this familiar process of sifting shelf by shelf, book by book, in search of anything that might help us, however big or small. And it might very well be the last time all of us were arrayed here, searching together.
This time, though, it counted, really counted, for something much more than fame or glory. This was the fate of the world—and it lay in all of our hands.
Mira Brand Will Return In
THE ANTECESSOR CONUNDRUM
>
THE MIRA BRAND ADVENTURES, BOOK 8
Coming in 2019!
Get it here!
Author’s Note
Thanks for reading! If you want to know immediately when future books become available, take sixty seconds and sign up for my NEW RELEASE EMAIL ALERTS by CLICKING HERE. I don’t sell your information and I only send out emails when I have a new book out. The reason you should sign up for this is because I don’t always set release dates, and even if you’re following me on Facebook (robertJcrane (Author)) or Twitter (@robertJcrane), it’s easy to miss my book announcements because … well, because social media is an imprecise thing.
Come join the discussion on my website: http://www.robertjcrane.com!
Cheers,
Robert J. Crane
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Formatting, and so much more was handled expertly by Nick Bowman of nickbowman-editing.com.
Lewis Moore handled editing, with a final proofing pass by Lillie of Lillie's Literary Service, who you can find at lilliesls.wordpress.com.
The most excellent cover was created by Momir Borocki.
Many thanks to that whole crew for helping make this book happen.
And thanks as always to my family—wife, parents, in-laws and occasionally my kids—for keeping a lid on the craziness so I can do this job.
Other Works by Robert J. Crane
World of Sanctuary
Epic Fantasy
Defender: The Sanctuary Series, Volume One
Avenger: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Two
Champion: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Three
Crusader: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Four
Sanctuary Tales, Volume One - A Short Story Collection
Thy Father’s Shadow: The Sanctuary Series, Volume 4.5
Master: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Five
Fated in Darkness: The Sanctuary Series, Volume 5.5
Warlord: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Six
Heretic: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Seven
Legend: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Eight
Ghosts of Sanctuary: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Nine
Call of the Hero: The Sanctuary Series, Volume Ten* (Coming in 2019!)
A Haven in Ash: Ashes of Luukessia, Volume One (with Michael Winstone)
A Respite From Storms: Ashes of Luukessia, Volume Two (with Michael Winstone)
A Home in the Hills: Ashes of Luukessia, Volume Three (with Michael Winstone)
The Girl in the Box
and
Out of the Box
Contemporary Urban Fantasy
Alone: The Girl in the Box, Book 1
Untouched: The Girl in the Box, Book 2
Soulless: The Girl in the Box, Book 3
Family: The Girl in the Box, Book 4
Omega: The Girl in the Box, Book 5
Broken: The Girl in the Box, Book 6
Enemies: The Girl in the Box, Book 7
Legacy: The Girl in the Box, Book 8
Destiny: The Girl in the Box, Book 9
Power: The Girl in the Box, Book 10
Limitless: Out of the Box, Book 1
In the Wind: Out of the Box, Book 2
Ruthless: Out of the Box, Book 3
Grounded: Out of the Box, Book 4
Tormented: Out of the Box, Book 5
Vengeful: Out of the Box, Book 6
Sea Change: Out of the Box, Book 7
Painkiller: Out of the Box, Book 8
Masks: Out of the Box, Book 9
Prisoners: Out of the Box, Book 10
Unyielding: Out of the Box, Book 11
Hollow: Out of the Box, Book 12
Toxicity: Out of the Box, Book 13
Small Things: Out of the Box, Book 14
Hunters: Out of the Box, Book 15
Badder: Out of the Box, Book 16
Nemesis: Out of the Box, Book 17
Apex: Out of the Box, Book 18
Time: Out of the Box, Book 19
Driven: Out of the Box, Book 20
Remember: Out of the Box, Book 21
Hero: Out of the Box, Book 22
Flashback: Out of the Box, Book 23
Cold: Out of the Box, Book 24* (Coming February 8, 2019!)
Southern Watch
Contemporary Urban Fantasy
Called: Southern Watch, Book 1
Depths: Southern Watch, Book 2
Corrupted: Southern Watch, Book 3
Unearthed: Southern Watch, Book 4
Legion: Southern Watch, Book 5
Starling: Southern Watch, Book 6
Forsaken: Southern Watch, Book 7
Hallowed: Southern Watch, Book 8* (Coming in 2020!)
The Shattered Dome
(with Nicholas J. Ambrose)
Sci-Fi
Voiceless: The Shattered Dome
The Mira Brand Adventures
Contemporary Urban Fantasy
The World Beneath: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 1
The Tide of Ages: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 2
The City of Lies: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 3
The King of the Skies: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 4
The Best of Us: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 5
We Aimless Few: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 6
The Gang of Legend: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 7
The Antecessor Conundrum: The Mira Brand Adventures, Book 8* (Coming in 2019!)
Liars and Vampires
(with Lauren Harper)
Contemporary Urban Fantasy
No One Will Believe You: Liars and Vampires, Book 1
Someone Should Save Her: Liars and Vampires, Book 2
You Can’t Go Home Again: Liars and Vampires, Book 3
In the Dark: Liars and Vampires, Book 4
Her Lying Days Are Done: Liars and Vampires, Book 5
Heir of the Dog: Liars and Vampires, Book 6* (Coming Late 2018/Early 2019!)
Hit You Where You Live: Liars and Vampires, Book 7* (Coming in 2019!)
* Forthcoming, Subject to Change