Kilenya Series Books One, Two, and Three (53 page)

Jacob put the book down, wondering if, after all Dmitri’s hard work, the baby was just going to die. That would stink. Then Aloren’s predicament crossed his mind again. What if
she
died? How would he react to something like that? As soon as he’d thought it, he pushed it as far from his mind as possible. He couldn’t dwell on it. Wouldn’t.

He hated sitting around, not doing anything, while she was in Maivoryl. He rolled onto his back, hands behind his head, thinking. A plan would be good, just in case the Fat Lady’s potion didn’t work, or if something happened that prevented the Makalos from going with him.

He needed to concentrate, make sure he’d thought of every possible situation, make sure he was ready for anything that could happen.

If they didn’t get more potion, it would only be a two-person rescue team: Jacob and Matt. He couldn’t ask Akeno to come, not with his leg the way it was now.

Jacob got to his feet and paced the living room. He could Key them to the city—that would be the fastest way to get there and back. But how were they to get in unnoticed, and where would they Key to? He bit his lip, thinking. Not straight to the town hall. He didn’t know if the Lorkon had placed traps for him or not, and he wasn’t about to find out.

Then he remembered seeing several houses that looked vacant. One of those would be perfect! If he said, “Maivoryl City, vacant house,” they’d be fine. Not having Akeno would make things a lot more difficult, since Akeno had that ability to sense other living creatures, but then again, the trees wouldn’t let Akeno touch them anyway. Jacob would have to rely on his new-found combat skills, but he felt ready. He’d improved a great deal over the last few weeks.

They’d first check the town hall, since that was where he’d last seen Aloren. After, they’d sneak around the city—keeping in the shadows—and would look for any sign of a non-deformed person. ‘Course, she might be deformed by now. He’d have to look for someone her height and age, then. His excitement grew as he thought over the details of his plan.

The door behind him opened, and Jacob jumped.

Matt laughed. “Boy, someone’s tense.”

“Where’s Sammy?”

Matt plopped on the couch, a can of soda in his hand. Jacob was used to Matt’s characteristic green swirls, and barely noticed them. “She insisted on watching a ‘bonnet’ movie instead. Something about persuading. Then, she fell asleep after it had only been going for twenty minutes. I didn’t want to sit there watching it, and I can’t wake her up from naps—she’s super grouchy. She’d bite my head off. So, I left. She’ll be asleep for at
least
two hours.”

Jacob raised an eyebrow. “Wow. You’re the perfect boyfriend.”

“Hey, she’d do the same.” He leaned forward. “So, what’s on your mind? You’re gonna wear a hole in Mom’s carpet.”

Jacob sat on the other couch. “Just stressing over Aloren’s situation. What if the potions never get finished? What if they don’t work? What if the ‘team’ never gets put together, and she ends up staying in Maivoryl City for the rest of her life?”

Matt shook his head. “We’ll go get her if the Makalos can’t fulfill their end of the deal.”

“Exactly. And I’ve been planning how to do that. You and I would go, of course.” Jacob jumped to his feet again, too antsy to sit. “We’d Key there—to an empty house or something.”

Matt nodded eagerly. “Then we could sneak to that town hall place where you left her, right?”

“Yeah—we’d have to be really careful no one sees us. But I’m sure we could do it. The whole city is almost black, and if we dressed in dark colors, we’d blend right in. Plus, the people avoided the forest and stuck to the streets while we were there. So, since you’ve taken the potion, and I’m me, we’ll be able to hide in the trees!”

“Except for them trying to beat us up,” Matt said. “Didn’t you say that’s what they do?”

“Oh, yeah.” That wouldn’t work. Jacob scratched his chin. Another idea occurred to him. “We could still use the woods, though. The people stayed really far away from there.” He paused, still thinking. “We’d stick to the outskirts of town, near the forest, and be fine. I’m sure of it.”

“Why do the people avoid the woods?”

“Don’t know why exactly, but I wouldn’t be surprised if it was ‘cause the trees beat them up too.”

“So . . .” Matt said, then paused. He cleared his throat. “Why do we have to wait until the Makalos tell you they don’t have the potion?”

Jacob hesitated, turning to face Matt. “Because they asked me to wait. And they want to send a large group.”

“But wouldn’t it be better—quick and painless—if only two people go?” Matt got to his feet and started pacing too. “I mean, catch the people in Maivoryl City off guard, you know? Slip in and out before anyone notices we’re there?”

Jacob ran his hand through his hair. “I don’t know, Matt. I can’t break my promise to the Makalos. And there’s got to be a reason they’re so adamant that a whole ton of us go at once.”

“It wouldn’t hurt to try, would it? What’s the worst that could happen? You’re practically invincible, and I’m fast and strong. If we get there, find Aloren, and bring her back, they’d be grateful, not mad. If we get there and can’t find her, we come back. Simple as that. And listen—Mom and Dad are with Amberly at her dance rehearsal, Sammy’s asleep, the Makalos don’t need you tonight—right?—and we don’t have anything else to do.” Matt put his empty soda can on the end table. “Let’s go now.”

“Wait—I need to think through this first.”

“That’s fine. But remember you’ve already put a lot of thought into it. The opportunity won’t come again for a long time.”

Jacob frowned. Matt was right—the open window fell perfectly onto tonight. And if they brought Aloren back safe and sound, the Makalos would most likely be grateful. They’d be mad, of course, which he’d deserve, but grateful. Gallus, for sure, would be.

He paced a couple of times. If they couldn’t find Aloren, they wouldn’t have to tell anyone. Could he live with a lie like that? He wasn’t sure. “Man, Matt, I don’t know. I don’t feel good about it.”

“That’s only because you’re nervous that you’d end up disappointing the Makalos. Jake, I’m not going to push you into this. If you don’t feel good about it, we shouldn’t do it. On the other hand, I’m just as interested in getting her out of there as you are.”

Jacob took a deep breath. His sick feeling dissipated with each breath—maybe it
was
only because he was nervous. What if this really was the right decision? What if the Makalos were misguided, and every minute Aloren stayed there meant more damage to her? He sat on the couch, putting his head in his hands. He’d never considered whether the Makalos might actually be wrong. He’d been impatient with them, and frustrated, but hadn’t ever truly doubted. If they were wrong, and waiting was the worst thing they could do, the
best
thing—the correct thing—was to go get her. Now.

He stood quickly. “Okay, but we need to bring things with us. Our biggest pocket knives, flashlights, dark clothes, like you said, and hoodies. It’s kind of cold there.”

“We can even bring your gnat.”

Jacob hesitated again. He’d promised Hazel she could go when they rescued Aloren. He shook his head. “No, not this time. I don’t want to tell her we’re going if it just ends up a disappointment.”

Matt shrugged. “Fine.”

Jacob took a deep breath, then smiled at his older brother. He was so glad Matt would be around this time.

The boys changed, hiding odds and ends in their pockets. Matt found a couple of old air pellet guns while Jacob grabbed some beef jerky. They wanted to be completely prepared.

They met outside Jacob’s door. Both of them had on black baseball caps, though Jacob realized his hair was dark enough that he didn’t need to wear a cap. But he felt better having the shade over his eyes.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Jacob asked.

Matt raised an eyebrow. “It depends on how much this girl means to you.”

“A lot.”

Matt laughed. “You’re not really having doubts, are you? ‘Cause she’s all you’ve talked about since coming back.”

Jacob grunted in reply, the butterflies in his stomach returning. He made sure the Key was securely attached to his chain and belt loop before putting it into the keyhole. “Vacant house, Maivoryl City,” he said, putting the Key in the lock.

He opened the door a little, pressed his face up against the crack, and looked through. The room was in shambles—broken furniture strewn across the floor, papers everywhere, shredded clothing draped over some of the furniture. He waited for several moments, making sure the room was empty before pushing the door open farther and stepping through. Matt followed closely on his heels.

Jacob stepped onto a floorboard that groaned in response, and he jumped. When nothing happened, he let out a sigh of relief. They tiptoed through the rooms and halls, making sure the entire place was vacant before proceeding.

The brothers returned to the front room and glanced out the window. The streets were deserted—but who knew how long they would stay that way. A slight glint of sunlight forced its way through the green atmosphere.

“Do we split up, or stick together?” Jacob asked.

“Stick together. You lead the way, watching in front of us, and I’ll stay behind and keep an eye out for anything that tries to sneak up on us. Get your knife out—just in case.” Matt pulled his pellet gun from a pocket, making sure the clip was securely attached.

After some discussion, they opted to use the back door.

The door creaked as it opened, making Jacob jump, and Matt choked back a hysterical laugh. “Wow—that freaked you out.”

Jacob glared at his brother, but Matt only motioned him to go out the door.

They looked both ways, then jumped off the porch into the tall grass, dropping to their hands and knees. The grass was a blessing—if they stayed low enough, it would actually cover them fairly well.

Army crawling, they reached the forest edge. There were no lights, and the sun was barely visible, the houses dark. Jacob led the way toward the town hall. A noise behind them made Jacob’s heart nearly stop, and they both froze.

A shadow passed by, but didn’t pause.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Jacob scurried behind a shed, then—making sure the coast was clear—stood, dusting off his jeans.

“Now where?” Matt whispered.

Jacob crept to the corner of the shed, peering around it. A person wandered the street, looking lost—Jacob couldn’t tell if it was a man or a woman. The town hall was three buildings away. He waved to Matt and pointed toward it.

“Town hall,” he breathed.

Matt nodded. Jacob waited, worried the person on the street might also be heading to the Town hall. Once the individual had gone beyond the house, Jacob dropped to the ground again and rolled into the filtered green sunlight. He looked both directions, then rushed to the back of the house nearest them—twenty feet away.

So far, so good.

A movement in the window—Jacob froze. He motioned Matt to stop as well. The person left the window, and Jacob prayed he’d been far enough away not to be seen. He waited a full five minutes, checking his watch, before doing anything.

Jacob motioned to Matt to follow. He edged to the corner, peering around it to make sure the person on the street hadn’t changed course. He or she was still following the same path, straggly black hair more visible now that the brothers were closer. This house was situated nearer the street, making Jacob feel vulnerable.

Only a woodpile lay between the houses. The boys raced toward it, crouching as low as they could. As he ran, Jacob tripped over something in the grass and crashed down on top of the woodpile. Something stabbed his leg, and he cried out in pain before remembering to keep quiet.

“Dang it!” Matt said. He pulled Jacob up, and they ran away from the houses. Jacob tried not to limp, but his leg hurt pretty badly. A ruckus and voices sounded behind them. Slamming doors, things banging.

He and Matt fell into the tall grass close to the forest right as a mass of people poured out of the nearest house.

Jacob prayed as hard as he could that the people hadn’t seen them. He felt blood tickling his leg hairs, and hoped the wound would stop bleeding.

“We saw you, kiddies,” a feminine voice called.

Jacob and Matt looked at each other. What should they do?

“Come out—we won’t hurt you.” A man’s voice this time.

Someone snickered.

“They went that way, I think.”

The sounds of footsteps drifted to the left.

“No, they went around the house.”

“Idiot! You didn’t see! You were behind me.”

“No matter.”

“Oh, I bet they went into the forest.”

Some of the people hissed.

“We can’t find them there.”

“We should let Keitus know.”

“No, leave it to the traitor—that’s
his
job.”

The boys heard the sound of swishing grass very near them, and they looked at each other. The fear racing across Matt’s gray eyes was enough to make Jacob think they were doomed. They’d failed!

The footsteps stopped and there were several moments of silence. Then a voice said, “They’re long gone.”