Page 43 of Destined Dawn

“I’ll put him in my rucksack,” Renzo offers.

I scoop Pip up and hand him over.

“Okay, but, you heard Winnie, no fancy tricks. Our aim is to get there in one piece as quickly as possible.”

“And when we get there, how exactly are we getting into the convent?” Spencer asks. “Isn’t the convent on the Gray Isle? That place is surrounded by haunted waters. You know there’ll be–”

“Haunted places are not so bad,” Tristan says with an unconvincing shrug. “Trekking through the Haunted Forest is how I left the academy a few days ago.”

“Okay,” I say, squaring my shoulders and taking a deep inhale. This is probably as stupid as our last plan to rescue Spencer. Then again all my plans seem pretty stupid and yet somehow – despite the odds – they work out. I just have totrust in myself and these five men. We’ll make this work. We’ll find a way. “Let’s go.”

We stride through the old mansion to the room at the back of the house. It’s long and grand and I assume it was used for parties and dancing. Glass doors line its back wall and I can almost imagine all those fancy gentlemen and ladies spilling out onto the terrace with a drink in hand.

Stone unlocks one of the doors; a cold wind sweeping in immediately and sending the usual ghostly dust spiraling up into the air. We step out onto the terrace. There’s an old dried-up fountain and several large plant pots, cracked and broken. The carcass of a dead bird lies sprawled across the old paving stones, the fine bones of its wings as white as the clouds above our heads.

I hope it’s not an omen, a sign.

“We’re heading north,” Azlan says, pointing up into the sky. “You’ll all follow me. Winnie, Trent, you’ll need to head east about an hour into our journey. Then it’s straight from there to the coast. You’ll hit the caves when you hit the sea.”

Winnie nods.

“We’ll meet you there later, once we’ve read the prophecy,” I confirm.

“Everybody happy?” Azlan asks.

Spencer snorts, clearly anything but happy.

“What happens if we get separated?” Tristan asks.

“We won’t,” I say adamantly.

“It’s better to be prepared.”

“If you’re separated from the group, head for the beach across from the Gray Isle and wait for the others there.”

“And if they don’t turn up?”

“There’s the bond,” I say, “we can feel each other through the bond.”

Spencer fidgets on his feet and I know why. The bond between us isn’t sealed. I can’t feel him like I can feel the others. That connection isn’t cemented. I almost feel guilty about it, but we’re not there yet and so it’s just the way it’s going to have to be.

“Let’s go,” I say, fearing we’ve already wasted too much time.

My broom obeys my magic, rising from the ground and I sit on the polished wood, gripping the handle. Then I kick off from the ground and soar up into the clouded sky.

It takes a moment for the enforcer and his companions to spot us. There’s a shout from below us and then magic streams towards us like bright fireworks. We dodge and weave between them and plunge our way up into the thick cloud. The magic stops. They can’t see us anymore. They’ve lost us.

I let out an exhale and shake the hair from my face, counting those around me just to be sure we have everyone here.

“You still have Pip?” I call out to Renzo.

“Yep,” he answers, patting the rucksack on his back.

Then I grip the handle of my broom and dip my head.

We made it.

Somehow, by the skin of our teeth, we made it again. I just pray our luck will last.