Alarick forced himself to slow down and cover ground methodically. Elissa said she wanted to go back to Keldon and Ashgate. She was likely en route to one of those places.
He flew over the route to Keldon first and did not see her. For the sake of thoroughness, he checked the village, too, even though he knew she couldn't have made it there in so short a time. The only good news was that he didn't see any sign of the Ministry along the way.
He doubled back to the Keep and then flew the route to Ashgate. He remembered it well, even though this village had been destroyed a couple of years ago. She was crazy to try to find anything there. Even if her former love interest (or whatever he was) had left anything behind, chances were good that looters or the Ministry had long since found it. Elissa was stubborn, though, and if she had it in her head that a single book might remain, she wouldn't give up until she knew for certain.
There was no sign of her, however. Again, he checked the village closely, even though she couldn't have made it that far, either.
He flew back toward the Keep, flying a zigzag pattern so he could see more ground. The sun was dropping fast, and he'd soon have to suspend his search. His night vision was good, but not good enough to see wide swaths of ground at night.
He was about ten miles away from the Keep when an eagle joined him in the air. It was Marius. Alarick tipped a wing toward the ground, urging him to land so they could talk properly. They found a patch of open ground and dropped quickly, changing into men immediately upon landing. They came up, back to back, wands at the ready in the perfectly choreographed dance of friends who'd done this many times before.
When no threat emerged, they headed into the woods for cover and sat down on a large fallen tree.
"John told me your Book Mesmer's gone missing," Marius said, settling his brown cloak around him against the evening chill.
Alarick looked at Marius. Time and grief hadn't been kind to him. He was only a few years older than Alarick, but he looked closer to fifty. His once ginger hair had faded to gray streaked with a watery, pale auburn. Deep lines bracketed his mouth and his eyelids had gone papery. Still, the green eyes beneath them were kind and thoughtful. And sharp. The man never missed much of importance.
"It appears so. I know she's gone to look for more books. She came to me and asked me to take her, but I told her no. That it wasn't safe."
"Well, it's not," Marius said. "You weren't wrong."
"Yes, but I didn't know she'd be stupid enough to go out on her own."
"She's not stupid," Marius corrected. "I've never met her, and I can tell you that. I've never heard of a Book Mesmer who was an idiot. They're usually smarter than all of us."
"Oh, she's intelligent. But she's ill equipped for this world. She possesses virtually no defensive skills. What kind of resistance can she mount if the Ministry finds her?"
Marius turned those sharp eyes on him. Alarick stared back for just a moment, just long enough to drop his mask for his oldest friend.
"I see," Baines said softly. "She's not simply a resident of the castle, is she?"
Alarick shrugged. "That's all she thinks she is. That's all I've let her see. She thinks I'm rude and unfeeling, and I've done little to convince her otherwise. But I was beginning to think of her as a friend."
"Well, then, we'll find her," Baines said. "Besides, even if she thinks you're a complete jackass, I'm not going to miss my chance to meet a Book Mesmer. We'll head back to the Keep for tonight and start again tomorrow. Who knows? She might have come home by now. If not, I've got some tracking spells I can try that might show us where she's gone."
They returned to the open patch of land, changed into their avian forms, and took off for the Keep. When they returned, John delivered the bad news that Elissa had not returned.
"Okay," Marius said, shucking off his cloak and dropping it on a chair by the main doors. "Do you have anything of hers? Something with her skin or hair on it? A comb? A pillowcase, maybe? I'll need it to track her."
Alarick led the way up to the library where he grabbed the vial of her hair and all but threw it at Marius.
"Oh, I so want to know what she did with this," he said in wonder, looking at the vial from all angles.
"I can explain it later. Right now, we find her."
"Right," Marius said, clearing a space on a nearby desk with one arm. Papers and books crashed to the floor. Alarick winced. If—no, when Elissa returned, she was going to be furious at the mistreatment of the materials.
"What are you going to do?"
"First, I'm going to try to track her magic. Magic leaves behind a signature unique to every individual. Even if she isn't actively using it, this spell can locate that signature. If it doesn't work, I've got another spell that might guide us to her, but it won't work until the sun is up. Do you have a basin of water? Preferably clear glass if you have it."
Alarick ran down to the kitchens and deviled the cook until he came up with a clear glass bowl. Alarick went to the pump and filled it, then carried it back to the library. He only had to go back once to refill it when his haste caused him to spill the water. On the next attempt, he consciously slowed down, although the effort had him cursing under his breath.
Back in the library, he placed the bowl on the desk and stood back to let Marius work his magic. Tracking and divination weren't subjects in which Alarick was well versed. He knew the theory and could perform the spells, but his efforts generally yielded less than satisfactory results. Marius, however, was a master.
Marius shook some of Elissa's hair into the bowl and swirled it around with his wand. The water turned red, reminding Alarick uncomfortably of blood. Marius chanted, "Magicae invenire" three times over the bowl. The tiny pieces of hair began to arrange themselves on the surface of the water, much like iron fillings arrange themselves in response to a magnet.
The shape of the British Isles formed in the bowl. Marius gently lifted his wand from the bowl and allowed one drop of water to drip from its tip onto the map. "Locus," he whispered.
For a moment, nothing happened. And then a tiny golden spot formed on the map southeast of the Keep, followed by another golden spot further south. Another and another appeared, all in a line heading south-southeast.
"The spell worked," Marius said.
"Where is she heading?" Alarick asked. "Neither Keldon nor Ashgate lie in that direction."
"My guess? London. Do you not see how far away she is?" Marius indicated the distance she'd traveled with the tip of his wand. "And she may be further than that. The spell isn't always one hundred percent reliable. She's moving too fast to be on foot."
Alarick understood, then, and let what he'd tried to block out of his mind wash over him.
"The Ministry," he breathed.
"Looks like," Marius said. "Either that or she's borrowed a horse from somewhere."
"All of mine are here. John and I checked the stables earlier," Alarick said, a cold ball of fear forming in his gut.
"She could have obtained one from somewhere else," Marius said, but Alarick didn't believe it.
"Where will they take her?" Alarick asked. "I haven't been to London in probably twenty years."
"They'll take her to the Law Courts, most likely, to stand trial as a witch. That's if they don't kill her first. But since it looks like she's on the move, it appears they've decided to keep her alive for now."
"Why?" Alarick asked. "You know more about the inner workings of the Ministry than I. Why not just kill her now? What's the purpose of a trial when they've already decided she's guilty? That might tell us how long she has to live."
Marius shrugged. "I have no idea. I've seen them kill in haste and I've seen them keep people alive, though tortured, for months. There is no making sense of their motives."
"Give me your best guess," Alarick pleaded.
Marius walked away from the bowl, deep in thought, and wandered over to the scriptorium.
"Is anything of hers missing?" he asked, looking around.
Alarick studied the chaos. It was still far less orderly than he preferred, but having spent some time with her in this space, he'd become accustomed to her organizational system. He entered the scriptorium and looked around.
"Phaedo," he said. "It's not here. Her father gave it to her and she always kept it there," he indicated the empty upper right corner of her desk. "She once said it made her happy to have him close."
Marius' face fell. "If she had a book with her, then chances are good they're going to use her as an example. If they do, she'll be publicly tortured before they finally behead her. She's a woman, she's a witch, she's in possession of a book, and she's literate. Others will be made to see that those transgressions warrant slow, painful punishment."
Alarick paced to the window and, extending both arms, braced himself against the frame and dropped his head.
"It may not be too late," Marius said. "And they may not have her at all. We'll go at dawn."
"I cannot ask you to endanger your life for this," Alarick said. "I'm not certain that even I should put my own life in jeopardy for her. I've never done so for any other resident who left here. Not even the one who mattered most."
"That was different," Marius argued, remembering the incident to which Alarick referred. "You didn't even know that Abigail had gone until it was too late."
"But I drove her away," Alarick said. "She left the Keep and died because of my actions, just as Elissa will die because I drove her away."
"The past need not repeat itself. We'll go at dawn," he said again. "If we're very lucky, we'll catch up to them before they reach London."
Instead of retiring to Alarick's rooms, the two men stretched out on the sofas in the library. Alarick felt closer to Elissa there. If he could feel her spirit, then nothing bad had yet happened to her. Or so he told himself all through the sleepless night.
Just before dawn, Alarick went to John Lucas' room and knocked on the door. His Master of the Household opened it, eyes barely open, clearly having been woken from his slumber.
"Marius and I are going after Miss Stone," he said to John. "If I do not return, I'm giving control of the Keep over to you." He handed John a piece of paper saying as much, signed and witnessed by himself and Marius.
"I won't try to talk you out of it," John said, coming quickly to alertness. "Rest assured that everything will be well here. I'll see to it."
"I know you will." Alarick extended his hand and John took it, clasping it in both of his hands.
"Go well," he said.
Alarick turned and went downstairs where Marius waited for him in the main hall. Marius handed him his cloak, donned his own, and they went outside to begin their journey. Once airborne, Alarick flew once around the Keep, committing it to memory should he not return.
They flew south for several hours, following Elissa's last known path. The hope that she was alone collapsed when they found the tracks of several horses and wagons on the main road. It wasn't impossible that she'd found a band of merchants and begged transportation, but they both knew it was unlikely.
When they stopped for rest, Alarick asked his friend, "How does the Ministry move so fast? They use horses, correct? They shouldn't be able to cover this much ground this quickly."
"You have been out of touch up there in your castle," Marius said. "They've perfected a breed of horse that can travel a hundred miles or more in a day. I believe it's something they found in the Near East. They've been breeding them for years now and have thousands in their stables."
"Wonderful," Alarick said without enthusiasm. This news was something else to worry about. It explained the rate at which the Ministry was able to reach village after village, even before his own spies could alert him to a potential attack.
They flew onward and reached London just after sunset. They landed in Hyde Park and immediately took cover under some trees after changing back into their human forms. It was raining, and the water dripped from the leaves and down Alarick's collar. Another time the discomfort would have bothered him. Today it barely registered.
"I'd say we wait until morning to try to find her, but the cover of darkness is our best asset," Marius said. "Are you able, or are you too tired?"
"I can do what needs to be done," Alarick said.
"Very well. Let's see what we can find out."
They reconnoitered around the Law Courts for a while, eavesdropping from the shadows on the conversations of guards and anyone who passed in or out. Finally, at the rear doors, they heard what they needed.
"Are you on duty tomorrow?" one guard asked another.
"No. Why?" said the other.
"You should see about getting your shift changed. Tomorrow is going to be fun."
"Oh?"
"They brought a witch in tonight."
"So? That's not new," said the other guard.
"No, but this one had a book on her. And she can read."
Alarick rolled his eyes this comment. As if her ability to read made her any more or less dangerous than the fact she was a witch. The ignorance of the Ministry never stopped astounding him.
"What are they going to do to her?" asked the second guard.
"Public torture. There's to be a flogging and a branding. Eventually, they'll decapitate her. Or maybe even give her a traitor's death and throw her entrails on the fire!" The glee in the man's voice chilled Alarick.
"Sounds like fun. I'll go see if McIntyre wants to trade shifts. Is it going to be here?"
"No, over in front of Ministry Cathedral. That's where they're keeping her tonight. The consecrated ground should weaken her, making her easier to control."
Alarick clutched Marius' arm as the latter struggled mightily not to laugh at that remark. They backed away quietly into the darker shade of adjacent buildings.
Once they were safely away, Marius said, "What is it about these idiots that makes them think their religion will hurt us?"
"Because the Ministry says so," Alarick said. "And if the Ministry says so, then it must be true. We are devils, heathen, or demons to them, so of course consecrated ground should wound us. That it doesn't must come as a rude shock."
They walked toward the cathedral. Before the Ministry seized control and disbanded all religions other than the One Truth, it had been known as Westminster Abbey. Now it was the official cathedral of the Ministry, used to preach their propaganda against anyone who did not willingly submit to their control.
"Big place," Alarick said, looking up at the looming double towers of the facade. "Elissa could be anywhere in there."
He averted his eyes from the scaffold in front of the main doors. The place of execution looked especially sinister in the dark.
"I bet they have her on the altar," Marius said. "It's the most sacred place, the place they believe is most likely to weaken her. That's good news and bad news. The good is she'll be easy to find. The bad is it means no place for us to hide as it's a more open area than a tiny anteroom."
"Should we wait until tomorrow when they bring her out?" Alarick asked. "Try to snatch her as they're moving her?"
"No. There will be too many people here. Public punishments attract a lot of attention. We won't be able to avoid notice in the crowds."
"What's our plan, then?"
Marius studied the cathedral. "The North Door offers closer proximity to the altar than trying to fight our way down the nave. If we're lucky, we might be able to advance close enough without detection that we can take out any guards before they spot us."
"And if she's not there?"
"Then we either battle our way through until we find her, or we get killed. You choose," Marius said. "If you say retreat, then we will."
Alarick thought for a moment. "No. Once we're in, we finish it. One way or another."
"Excellent," Marius said. He rolled up his sleeves and readied his wand.
"Ready?" he asked.
Alarick nodded. "Let's go."
The North Door offered only one guard. Alarick and Marius hid in a small grove of ornamental trees. Not wanting to attract attention with bright flashes of light, Marius quickly conjured two venomous vipers from his wand and directed them to slither quietly toward the guard. The first sank its fangs into the guard’s calf, bringing him to his knees. The second struck simultaneously, sinking its fangs into the man's neck. The guard was dead before he could do more than say, "Ouch." Marius waved his wand and the creatures vanished.
They squelched through the mud and slipped inside the North Door, which had been left ajar. Seeking cover, they ducked behind the remains of a statue. The cathedral, which had once housed memorials to artists, poets, and scientists, had been largely stripped of all such ornamentation. Those fine people did not adhere to Ministry dogma, so their memorials were not welcome in this space. Or anywhere. Only stumps and pedestals remained, the larger pieces that the Ministry could not remove without great effort. Still, enough remained for Alarick and Marius to hide behind, provided they stayed low to the ground.
They inched their way toward the altar. When it came into view, they saw Elissa chained atop it, spread-eagled. At least she was still clothed; the Ministry hadn't sunk that low. Even from a distance, they could see the bruises on her face and arms, mere hints of the damage likely lurking beneath her clothes.
Tears tracked down her cheeks as she stared at the vaulted ceiling impossibly high above her. Alarick took an involuntary step forward, but Marius put a restraining hand on his arm and pointed to the two guards who stood on either side of the altar.
Marius pointed to himself and then to the guard on the far side. Then he pointed to Alarick and the guard on the near side. Alarick nodded his understanding.
They stood together and leapt out into the transept. Without any hesitation, the two wizards unleashed a barrage of spells and curses from their wands. They cast first to mute and immobilize, then to kill. Bolts of white, green, and purple light illuminated the dimly lit cathedral. Once their victims were dispatched, Alarick turned his attention to Elissa.
"Are you okay?" he asked, bending over her.
She shook her head no.
He started to inquire further, but Marius silenced him. "I'll get her loose. You take care of them," he said, pointing toward the Ministry guards now charging down the nave at them.
Wand raised, Alarick unleashed every disabling, disarming, and killing spell he knew with deadly precision. Unfortunately, the sheer number of Ministry personnel quickly overwhelmed him, and he was forced into defensive mode once the gunfire began.
"Have you got her?" he screamed at Marius.
"Almost," Marius said through gritted teeth. He was casting unlock spells on Elissa's chains, but the locks weren't normal locks. Alarick watched as spell after spell failed. Somehow the Ministry had designed locks resistant to common unlock spells. Marius was reaching deep into his knowledge reserves to come up with spell combinations that worked.
Alarick cast spells to shield them from the onslaught and repel the bullets. He was tiring, however, and it was clear he couldn't hold them off much longer.
At last, the locks popped free and Marius scooped Elissa up in his arms. She screamed in pain, but there was no time for gentleness or to inquire as to what hurt. With Alarick providing cover as best he could, the three made their way back to the North Door.
Once outside, they encountered more guards who'd obviously been tipped off to their presence.
"Get her airborne," Alarick screamed at Marius.
"What about you?" Marius asked.
"I'll make it," he said, but he didn't sound confident. "Save her! And under no circumstances are you to come back for me. Keep yourselves safe."
Marius laid Elissa on the ground, and while he changed, Alarick dug deep into his energy reserves to protect them. Unable to protect all three of them, he lowered his own defenses and cast them all toward Marius and Elissa.
He felt the bullets tear through his flesh, but he stood firm until Marius was airborne, dodging bullets with Elissa clutched in his talons. Alarick was certain Elissa's screams would be the last sounds he ever heard. At least she was alive for now. He'd done what he could. That was some comfort.
When Marius was safely away, Alarick tried to shield himself but he was spent. Soaked through by the rain, he dropped to his knees in the muddy courtyard, turned his face to the pouring sky, and waited for death to take him.