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The skeleton shook his skull. “I cannot, but the fiend leaves a heavy footfall in his wake. Whomever he is, there is a shroud around him that obscures the truth from weak eyes.”
“Shroud?” I wondered as I looked up at Ben. “Like the assassins’ guild?”
He shook his head. “I doubt it. They have the advantage in the shadows. This showy display of power wouldn’t benefit them.”
“The shroud is not a group, but a magic,” the skeleton spoke up.
An idea hit me, and I raised my left arm. “So he’s obscured with something this?”
The skeleton gave a single nod. “Yes. His magic is as that.”
I dropped my arm to my side and looked up at Ben. “Sounds like a certain guy we met earlier, doesn’t it?”
He pursed his lips and nodded. “Yes, it does.”
“What’s the likelihood that more than one person other than me would have one of these special items?”
Ben shook his head. “Not likely at all.”
CHAPTERTHIRTY-THREE
“You seemto have some ideas as to the fiend,” Fox spoke up.
“We have a theory, but we have to return to the surface to test it out,” Ben told him before he returned his attention to the imperious skeleton. “We will see if we can find this fiend who disturbs your subjects, and we’ll return here once we have an answer.”
“The only answer I need is the eternal peace of my subjects,” the skeleton replied as he pointed a bony finger to the entrance behind us. “And do not attempt to force your way back here. None may enter here without my permission.”
My face drooped. “That’s a fine message to give someone who’s trying to help you.”
“The dead and the living must remain separate,” the skeleton insisted as he raised himself higher in the seat. He must have been a tall man in life as he towered over even Ben. “You help yourselves as much as I by finding the fiend who sullies the earth.”
Ben bowed his head. “We will do so, and bring peace to both the living and the dead. If you will excuse us.” He grasped my hand and caught Fox’s eye. The corpse had remained fixated on the skeleton. “Are you coming?”
Fox shook himself from his stupor and pursed his lips. “I. . .I think I’ll stay here for a while longer. This is where I belong, after all, and I’ll only slow you two down, anyway.”
My eyes flickered to the skeleton king on his throne. “And you want to know who he is, too, don’t you?”
Fox chuckled. “I see my secret is out, but yes. As a scholar, this figure intrigues me.” He grasped one of my hands in both of his and smiled at me. “It was a pleasure to meet you, Miss Lucas. And you as well, Count Castle. May we meet again on a happier occasion.”
I snorted. “Then it’s not going to be our deaths.”
He smiled and shook his head. “No, but you had better be finding the fiend. I despise farewells, and evil waits for no man.”
My good humor faltered a little for the strange man we had only just met. “I don’t like goodbyes, either, so we’ll just say we’ll meet again soon.”
He bowed his head. “Then we shall meet again soon.”
Ben and I stepped back, and I cast one last curious look at the commanding lord of the catacombs. He inclined his skull to Ben and me. “Fare thee well, Imprimis and her guardian. May the light guide you on your path.”
The title he had given me stirred even more curiosity within me, but a look of warning from Ben told me that would have to be another unanswered question. Ben led me out of the room and back into the long corridor with the magistrates. We had only gone a few steps when I happened to look over my shoulder. The doorway had vanished.
“Ben,” I spoke up as I tugged on his sleeve.
He paused and looked at where I nodded. There wasn’t any surprise on his face. “The lord has sealed off his chambers.”
“But who was he really?” I asked him.
Ben shook his head. “I wish I knew, but I’ve never heard any stories of a skeleton ruling the catacombs.”
