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‘I’ll help you,’ she suggested, worried he might fall. She stood and held out her arms. Finn gave her a grateful smile, and together they left the common room. Elen called ‘goodnight’ after them, and her voice followed them down another passageway leading from the common room. Sereh quickly realised the over-enthusiastic Finn was her best hope of extracting information about this strange place and Skaldi.

They didn’t walk far along the black passageway lit with orange lamps before Finn pulled open a curtain Sereh hadn’t noticed in the dim glow. He held the thick curtain aside while she and Arrow slid into the room. Sereh’s attention was on keeping the huge pile of furs from tumbling to the floor as she brushed against the heavy material. A chilly blast of air whipped around her ankles only to abruptly stop as Finn dropped the curtain. Heat engulfed her. It would make the furs she carried unnecessary. She wasn’t sure she’d be able to sleep in such heat.

‘It’s hot in here,’ she murmured, already feeling sweat forming on her clean skin. Her hair was dry now, she realised. The entire network of tunnels seemed to be very warm.

Finn moved confidently to remove a screen and light flooded the room. Sereh saw two beds on either side of the rock chamber. They were already piled high with furs and pillows. Still, Finn turned towards her and collected the armful she carried.

‘This one here is mine, and I’ll make Arrow a lovely warm and comfy bed beside me so she can sleep by me. You can have the other bed. Come on, Arrow, look what I’m going to make for you.’ He spoke in cajoling terms to the wolf-dog, who watched him, head tilted to one side, as though unsure what he was saying. Arrow was used to sleeping on the ground, no matter the weather. Often outside. This would be a luxury she’d never before experienced.

The bed Finn indicated to Sereh looked huge and inviting, but she felt unsure. Finn was busy with his task of layering furs for the wolf-dog, and even Arrow had lost all interest, wandering over to him and getting in his way as he tried to pile the furs at least four high on the black floor. Indecision warred with Sereh as she further surveyed her surroundings. Like the common room and everywhere else she’d seen since Skaldi had delivered her here, it was a uniform black. The rock was smooth. As she leant against it, watching with amusement the antics of Arrow and Finn, she felt heat coming from it.

‘Finn, are the walls warmed?’

The words were out of her mouth before realising. She bit her lip in frustration at her inquisitiveness. She’d intended to become friendly with Finn before plying him with her hundreds of questions. He didn’t turn towards her but answered in a distracted way as he and Arrow argued over the placing of a thick, jet black fur.

‘The walls. Oh yes. All the rock. The mountain warms it. That’s why there’s no hearth in here. You don’t need one provided you keep the curtain shut all the time. Why, doesn’t your home have heated rocks?’

His question was innocently asked. It distracted Sereh from hers on how the mountain could warm the rocks. Had Finn never seen one of their homes? How long had he been here? Had he never been outside?

She collected her random thoughts and stuttered. ‘Um, no. We have to warm our steadings with peat fires, like the one you have in the common room.’

‘We only use that for cooking, not for heat,’ was his prompt, still distracted reply. He and Arrow had finally stopped fighting, and Arrow was now sniffing around the furs, before settling down contentedly, with her nose faced towards Finn.

‘I’ll keep looking at Arrow if you want to get undressed,’ were his next words. Sereh’s confusion grew. Get undressed? For bed? She’d never given that much thought, always keeping at least her under layers on, and sometimes, even her external ones. But as sweat continued to form on her skin, she realised it wouldn’t be necessary in this place of warmth and shelter. With a self-conscious glance in Finn’s direction to make sure he was true to his word, she quickly stripped her borrowed clothes from her body and slid between the furs. It felt cold for an instant, and she briefly resented Finn’s advice, until she felt a deliciously intense heat work its way up her body. She exhaled in joy.

A smile stole across her face that only left when Finn asked in an aggrieved tone, ‘Well, are you done yet? I’d like to get into my bed before sunrise!’

‘Sorry, yes, I’m all done. I’ll look at the wall while you change.’ As she studied the impenetrable black of the warm cave wall, she heard the rustling of clothes as Finn undressed, followed by a loud thunk as he threw himself into bed.

‘Night, Arrow. Night, Sereh,’ were the last words she heard from the boy as she turned away from the wall. Arrow was already snoring, and Finn had his back towards her underneath the huge pile of furs he slept beneath. She doubted he’d speak again, and in mere moments his gentle snores joined those of Arrow’s.

She was alone again, and that was a bad thing. Her thoughts instantly turned to Erann. Her sorrow returned. Where was he? Why had he gone and more importantly, where had he gone? In the silence of the still cave, fresh tears streamed down her face and sank into the thick pillow supporting her head.

She’d never been more comfortable.

Or more disconsolate.

4

ERANN

The world went black, and Erann fell but didn’t stop. He simply kept on falling. He cried out in shock.

His falling finally halted, one leg crumpled under his body. A strangled shriek erupted from his mouth, quickly followed by a prolonged scream of deep torment and anguish, echoing back too loudly in an enclosed space. The agony was too intense. He couldn’t fight it. He sought the relief Skaldi had provided him with when he’d last been injured.

‘Skaldi,’ he whimpered, but there was nothing there. He sensed nothing. No connection. No welcome nudge into his thoughts.

‘Skaldi,’ he spoke louder, his cracked voice breaking the deep silence.

When there was no reply. He sank into welcome unconsciousness.

Overwhelming agony woke him. He didn’t know how long he’d been asleep. He’d not shifted position. His posture awkward, his healing leg pulsing with agony.

He attempted to move, to get the weight of his upper body off his leg, to straighten his leg. His mouth was parchment dry. He peeled his tongue from the roof of his mouth. He swallowed, or attempted to do so. It was deeply uncomfortable. A cough wracked him and the pain in his leg took second place to his desperate need to drink.

Under control once more, he swallowed. He must drink. The need consumed him. Frantically, he looked around him. There was nothing but complete blackness. Where was he? Where was Skaldi? Where was Sereh? Why did he feel warm? His breath caught, he felt it coming fast, too fast, panting more than breathing. Each breath was drier, the air too stale. His need for water grew.

Desperately, he pressed his hands on the ground, extending them as far as he could. Unable to see anything, he felt the surface he sat on, endeavouring to calm himself. The surface was unyielding and dusty. He lay awkwardly on his side – his leg stuck out a strange angle. Every movement brought sparks behind his eyes. He tasted blood on his parchment dry lips. His head pounded. His leg throbbed. He had no idea of how long he’d been unconscious. He remembered being with Sereh, Arrow and Skaldi on the glacier with a stab of memory. He remembered kissing Sereh and watching her face as she saw Skaldi for the first time. He smiled. His plan had worked. How he didn’t know, but it didn’t matter. It had.