Page 81 of Let Slip the Dogs of War

“Hey, guys?” Grant comes stomping back over, and when he sees we’re hugging, he joins in. “So, I think we’re lost,” he mumbles into my shoulder.

“Um, okay?” Ophelia’s eyes are as red as mine feel, but there’s no sound of it in her voice.

“Best bet is probably to head back to the castle,” Grant says. He detaches himself from the hug and steps back. “I can keep us hidden. We’ll get to Lark and see if he knows a better way to get back through, or at least we can try scrying Cassian again. I’m not quite sure how his magic works, but they must be able to move where the gateway lands, right?”

I shrug. I don’t know.

“If that fails…” Grant shoves his hands into his pockets and chews on his lower lip contemplatively for a minute. “Yeah, if that doesn’t work, I’ll try to cut through the veil like he did. At least I can get to them and tell them to open the gate and come looking for you?”

Ophelia nods. I know she’s disappointed we won’t get back tonight, but there’s not much else we can do. The suns are dipping even lower, and I don’t fancy tramping around these woods in the dark again. I’ve no doubt that Grant can do a good job protecting us, but he’s got to be running on fumes too, right?

He leads us in the direction back to the castle, though I think if I nudged the plants, they’d show me the way. They seem excited by the direction we’re going, gently shaking their leaves when I glance at them.

“Is that… normal?” Ophelia asks.

I shrug. “For here. Not at home, obviously. I think you’d have noticed.”

She nods, but she still looks vaguely freaked out by the whole thing. I get it. I wonder if Lark and Oisin have bonded already, if the forest feels more alive or if that’s just my imagination.

It takes a few hours for us to traverse the trees—we didn’t head away in a direct straight line, it turns out—and when the town and the castle come into view, I let out a sigh of relief. Lark will be surprised to see us, for sure, but I’m certain he won’t turn us away. He wants us to get home.

I’ve got the worst headache, too. We can have a sit-down, maybe rest a little more before we head out again.

The wildflowers are faintly closing up now that the suns are down. The town seems livelier than it did when we arrived; voices rise and fall, and I hear music.

“Guess they’re celebrating the coronation,” Grant says. He tilts his head to one side. “There’s a lot of power in the centre of town. It didn’t feel like that before.”

“The oak?” I ask.

He shrugs. “Doesn’t matter. We’re going to have to be careful getting up there. Stick close. If we keep to the shadows, I can make them surround us, but that doesn’t mean we can’t be seen.”

“Can we help?” Ophelia asks.

“If you find a chance to, feel free. But I can do this. I’ve done it before.”

We both nod and crowd a little closer to him as we cross the field. It’s not so bad out here; the revelry seems to be all up in the town, and when I gently probe with my magic, I can’t sense anyone else.

“We’ll be able to sneak back into the castle through one of the doors,” Grant whispers as we walk. “I found… a servants’ entrance, I guess. It’s a bit early, though. We’ll have to keep our eyes out for any fae.”

“It’ll be fine,” Ophelia replies. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Grant nod. I reach for the mirror in my pocket. Maybe it will work here? That would save us walking up there.

I want to see Lark again desperately. I just don’t know if I can let him go a second time.

We’re about halfway across the field when Grant freezes. The movement brings me and Ophelia up short, too, and his magic washes over me, not nearly as controlled as it usually is.

His eyes go wide. “Back to the trees! Run!”

We don’t argue. We don’t even hesitate. Ophelia is off first, faster than I am, but I’m quick on her heels. Grant stays put.

“Grant!”

“I’ll catch up.”

He can, I suppose. Then I feel it. See them. Dark shapes burst out of the shadows, and the flowers around us become sudden hazards, trying to trip us and pull us down to the earth.

Ophelia cries out and nearly falls, but I grab her arm, yanking her to her feet. We’ve not run that far, and my heart is pounding already. I don’t know that the trees will protect us. Maybe we should have run to the town instead?

Magic bursts behind us and I fall this time, rolling and pushing at the flowers trying to keep me there. Ophelia swears and grabs at me. I glance back. Grant is surrounded, fighting off fae whose faces I can’t see.