“That’s me and my sister, Lucy,” Morgan explained.
“I love it,” Josephine said, taking the necklace and slipping it over her head. “I’ll treasure it. Thank you for everything.”
“Don’t thank me now. Thank me when I see you back in your land.”
She felt teary at the thought of saying good-bye.
“I want you to take this, Neddy,” Morgan said, reaching under the back of his coat and pulling out a small dagger sheathed in a shiny green metal.
“But that’s your lucky hunting knife!”
“Exactly. And I want all of my luck to be with you kids. Don’t be afraid to use this, Neddy. The Master won’t show mercy, so neither can you.”
Ned’s face betrayed fear for the first time. He took the knife and slid it into the back of his pants, wearing it just as his father had. Morgan reached out his hand and Ned shook it, feeling like a man for the first time in his life.
Morgan finally pulled away. “You best be going. You can’t be late.” He was beginning to choke up, so he pulled out a handkerchief and pretended to blow his nose.
Beatrice put a tender hand on his shoulder. “They’ll be fine, dear. You’ll see.”
“Forward, Thunder!” Ned ordered, but the stallion refused to move.
Josephine clucked her tongue at Mabel, as she had seen people do at home, and the mare clopped past Ned. Josephine turned around to see Ned glaring at his horse, and she chided him, “His name is Thistle.”
“Forward, Thistle,” Ned said grudgingly, nudging the horse forward with the heel of his shoe. Thistle trotted forward and soon caught up to Josephine.
Beatrice and Morgan chuckled as they watched the two of them ride away, but their laughter was tinged with uncertainty and fear.
THIRTY-FIVE
Ida had finally managed to chew through the ropes binding her hands. In the tight space it was very difficult to bend, but after considerable effort she was finally able to reach the ropes around her ankles and slowly work the knots loose. She wiggled her toes and enjoyed the sensation of pins prickling her legs as they woke up. She twisted her torso and crawled into a new position where she could look upward. She saw there was a long passageway with a dim light at the end.
She cleared the hair from her eyes, rubbed her hands together, and spit twice for luck. She then began to climb up the narrow tunnel. The walls were made of dirt and thick tree roots. She clung to the roots, but as her feet searched for a stronghold, she kicked away big chunks of earth and sent herself falling back to the bottom. She tried again. She jumped up, grabbed a root, and pulled up her bruised body. She knew she just needed to get above the level of crumbling dirt. She kicked up her leg even to where her hands were and found support on one of the thicker roots. She heaved herself up until she was squatting and looked skyward for the next sturdy root. She grabbed it and used the same method as before. Again and again she hoisted up her body, all the while trying not to look down at the abyss that threatened to reclaim her.
Her eyes were full of soil and she was dizzy from lack of food. As she neared the opening, she felt she couldn’t possibly go any farther. She paused and caught her breath, trying to imagine reaching the top and at last gulping the fresh air. The thought was enticing but not enough to give her hands the motivation to reach up once again. She thought of the Institute, of her family, and then of Fargus. Who would take care of him? No one could understand him but her. Without her he would be forever trapped in silence, and they would drag him away to a house for stupid people. She looked up at the bright light and kept climbing, her heart and head full of thoughts of Fargus. “He’d better appreciate what I’ve been through for him. If he doesn’t, I’ll punch the little freak.”
She reached the top of the pit and, with one last mighty effort, threw her tired body over the edge. She lay there panting, unable to move, covered in muck and sweat. She didn’t think she’d ever been happier to see the sun in her life, although she did wish she had a cool glass of water. She rolled over to take in her surroundings and found she was lying in the middle of a field with no crops, just dirt and tree stumps. There was a foul smell in the air that reminded her of the time she’d hidden strawberries under her bed and then forgotten about them. The Brothers could not be far. The thought was enough to push her to her feet. She had no time to waste resting.
A large manor stood next to the field. It had several towers and a door so large that she figured it must be a drawbridge. Despite the ornate decorations on the front of the house, it had a sad quality to it, as if no one had remembered its birthday for several centuries. Whoever was inside had been responsible for putting her in that hole. Instinctively, Ida set off in the opposite direction of the manor.
She had walked about five yards when she tripped and almost fell into another hole. She cursed to herself, and stood back up. She resumed walking, but soon she heard a voice, faint and very high but definitely a human voice, coming from deep inside this new hole. She went back, got on her knees, and peered down into the blackness.
“Hello?” she asked. No reply. She spoke again but much louder. “HELLO!”
“Who’s there?” the tiny voice asked.
“This is Ida. Who’s there?”
“Clarence.”
“Hello, Clarence. It’s nice to meet you.”
Up from the hole came a faint “It’s nice to meet you, too.”
There was an awkward pause. Finally Ida spoke again. “Do you want some help?”
“Uh . . . with what?”
“Getting out of this hole?”
“Oh. I’m not sure.”
“Criminy. Is everyone around here crazy?”
“What are you doing?”
“Well, at the moment it appears I’m wasting my time talking to some nutter down a hole. But after this, I plan to go to Gulm and find my friend Fargus.”
“Ooooh, Gulm. Yes, I’d like that, please.”
“Just my luck. The one place he’d like to go,” she whispered to herself, rolling her eyes.
“Can you help me out?” Clarence asked.
“I’m not sure. Are your hands tied?”
“Yes.”
“Well then, I don’t know how you can crawl out.”
