17. Darkness #3
I knew it was probably impossible, but that voice screamed inside me, anyway. It was maddening, knowing he had to be in this building somewhere.
I couldn’t bear not seeing him.
Another thought hit me then, and I felt like a fool.
I had Alaric’s invisibility talisman in my pocket.
I carried it with me everywhere these days, given my situation at Malcroix.
I’d even made a point of making sure I had it on me tonight, before I told the others what I intended to do.
The gold snake bracelet Bones gave me was also wrapped around my forearm, but that would be for emergencies only.
I had no confidence I could control it, not after what happened with Quicksilver, and anyway, it would be better if I could get away unseen.
For both reasons, Alaric’s gift would be better for this.
There were problems with the talisman, too.
The longest I’d ever gotten it to last was five minutes and eight seconds. By the end of that eighth second, I began to fade quickly back into view, and then I’d have to wait the full minute before it would work again.
It was risky. I’d have to plan my route carefully.
I’d also tested who the talisman seemed to work against, in case there were Magicals immune to its magic.
I hadn’t found anyone yet who could see through it, not even Forsooth, or Blackstone.
I suppose that shouldn’t have surprised me, given how good Alaric was at object magic, but I’d been a little surprised about Blackstone, honestly.
No, the time issue was the real bother.
That hard, five minute and eight second ceiling made relying on it risky.
Five minutes was generally plenty of time to get out of sight if someone happened upon me unexpectedly in the library, or in one of the college corridors, or even in the gardens or by the lake.
Here, though? Could I always be certain I could get out of sight in that amount of time, particularly if I found myself surrounded by a group of dark sorcerers?
There was also the matter of timing.
Five minutes definitely wasn’t long enough to cast complex magic in one of the main thoroughfares of the castle, and either one of the crypt entrances would likely qualify, given the location of their doors.
No, going after Bones still probably wasn’t the wisest use of my time.
I bit my lip, trying to think.
I had to, though. I had to at least try.
But what was my goal in finding him, precisely?
To get a message to him? To break him out of the dungeon altogether?
To examine his collar so Alaric could figure out how to open it?
He might not leave with me even if I asked.
He probably wouldn’t, if it went against his vow, or if he thought it would just get both of us killed.
Another thought occurred to me.
Could I find Varya, maybe?
Bones seemed to think she wasn’t being held in the dungeons.
Maybe I get her out of here at least, or at least learn whether she was being imprisoned in the Black Tower at all. Varya had a place to go, a place Bones seemed to think she would be safe. Her family in St. Petersburg would take her in.
I couldn’t go back empty-handed. I couldn’t.
Not when I was this close.
I began to make my way slowly to the mouth of the alcove.
If I could find Varya, that would potentially ease two areas of worry.
One, I’d been worried about her safety for months. I’d desperately wanted to know if she was okay, and if she was Malefic’s prisoner. It would be a huge relief to get her out of here, assuming that was even remotely an option.
Two, Varya would help me. She would help me try and save Bones.
Varya knew a lot more about this castle and Malefic Bones than Malefic himself likely suspected.
Before we sent her to Russia and her family, maybe she’d be able to tell us how to break into the dungeon, or how Bones’s collar worked.
There was even some chance she could tell us about “Ascension,” or other areas of Malefic’s plans.
I began to slide carefully out of the deepest part of the crevice.
I kept my hands balanced lightly on the stone, moving my boots and clothing as quietly as possible, my body angled sideways, my face aimed towards the magical candlelight.
When I got close to the mouth of the crevice, I mouthed another spell and concentrated on my primal to reinforce the quiet around me.
I knew it had worked when the next step I took on the stone was dead silent.
I would look out, first, and maybe see if I could make my way down more of the corridor before I activated the talisman.
I had to factor in that one minute recharge period, and timing would be everything.
If I spent the full five minutes walking to another part of the castle, I could end up in a much worse position if I got trapped where there happened to be people and nowhere to hide because I’d timed things badly.
I thought about where to go first.
Varya’s private sitting room? Was there any chance she’d be locked in there?
I tried to calculate times in my head.
Maybe four minutes to the stairs. Another minute to Varya’s rooms.
No. That was cutting things too close. I should break the trip in two. My mind scoured that part of the castle, everything I remembered from staying here and from the map Alaric drew, until I finally lit on something.
The reading nook.
There was a small fiction library just past the informal sitting room down the south hall.
I could hide in there long enough to wait out the remainder of the invisibility shield.
I knew that library pretty well. There was even a dumb waiter I could hide in, if I got really desperate during the minute I needed to recharge the talisman.
From there, I could make it to Varya’s sitting room in roughly two minutes.
If I got stuck, or if someone other than Varya ended up being in that room, there were two guest rooms on the same floor.
The whole place was littered with guest rooms, and while they might be in use with all the Dark Cathedrals currently staying at the castle, they likely wouldn’t be in their bedrooms while some kind of attack was being planned.
Maybe I could even wait until most of them left the castle, and get Varya out then.
My breathing slowed as my mind coalesced around the plan.
Of course, a million things could go wrong. But any path I chose contained risks.
The decision to look for Varya calmed something in me.
I was about to stick my head out of the opening in the stone, to peer carefully down the corridor to decide if I could hear or see or sense anything––
––When strong fingers clamped around my wrist.