Rob Scott - Lessek_s Key

‘We can steal the far portal, right? It’s not too large? If it’s like the one in Steven and Mark’s house, it’s a rug. We can roll it up and carry it between us, that shouldn’t be a problem. We can take a ship to Orindale, and you can contact Gilmour again – if it isn’t too hard to do. Is it? I mean, it doesn’t hurt, does it?’

‘No, I just get a bit-’

‘Oh, good then, because if it was painful, we could find some other way to locate them, but if you contact Gilmour from Orindale, or maybe from the ship on the way over – ships are a nice place to sleep, what with all that rocking – and then we can find them, and we can go home. Oh, Alen, thank you, thank you, thank you. I can’t tell you what this means.’ Hannah was almost incoherent, and the others left her to carry on until she was finished. She had come a long way, through many stressful and unfamiliar challenges, desperately praying someone would tell her that Steven Taylor was alive and that they could go home together. No one interrupted her as she veered wildly between laughter and tears until she stopped to catch her breath.

Calming finally, she said, ‘But we still have to go inside the palace to steal the portal. That’s still dangerous, and I don’t want to get my hopes too high, because that could still kill one or more, or damn – sorry – all of us. But I don’t want to think that way; I want to believe we can do it. We can get in the palace, can’t we? We can get inside and find the portal – I suppose we have to leave that to you, Alen – and then we can take it with us. If we get in, we can get out. And we can take the portal to Falkan with us, and Steven and Mark and I can go home.’

Then her eyes widened; she smiled as an idea took shape in her mind. ‘And you all can come with us. You should think about it, really, it’s wonderful there, especially in Colorado, there are so many places to visit, things to see and enjoy – and it’s so much safer than it is here. You could find happiness there. I know you could.’

Hoyt reached across the table and took her hand. He laughed and said, ‘Hannah, gods keep you this happy for ever, I mean it, but you are not going into that castle.’

‘Why not?’ Hannah asked. ‘We’ve come so far.’

‘That’s right,’ Hoyt made Alen’s argument for him, ‘and if we don’t need to send you home from the palace, there is no need for you to go inside.’

‘Well, how are we going to-?’

‘I’ll go get it.’

‘Not by yourself,’ she protested.

‘It’s what I do, Hannah. I am one of the best: I can get in there, grab the portal and be out before anyone knows I’m gone.’

‘I’ll need to be there too,’ Alen said.

‘Not without me,’ Churn signed.

‘No and no,’ Hoyt said to each of them. ‘There’s no need to risk everyone’s lives to retrieve this rug. Alone, I can be invisible. If we find a way inside, I can get in, get the portal, and get back out quickly. No one will even see me there. I’ll find Malagon’s chambers, wait for him to step out, even for a moment, and be inside without a sound.’

Alen shook his head. ‘The prince’s chambers will be sealed with a spell. You need me with you.’

Churn signed again, ‘Not without me.’

Finally, Hoyt stood, jouncing the table and nearly upsetting several tankards. ‘Fine, fine. You two can come along, but not Hannah. There’s no reason to endanger her.’

‘I agree,’ Alen said.

Churn nodded.

‘But you know what this means, both of you.’ Hoyt was visibly upset. ‘This changes the entire operation. What should have been one person going in quietly now becomes three, and that means we triple the possibility that we will end up fighting our way out – or worse.’

‘We don’t have a choice,’ Alen said. He had no intention of Hoyt or Churn going anywhere near the palace. ‘At the very least I have to go in; whether I can unlock all the doors Prince Malagon will have sealed, I don’t know, but I can, to some extent, mask my own movements. Hoyt, I don’t see any reason for you to come along – except that, like your burly companion, you seem determined to be there.’

‘I am going in,’ Churn signed.

Hoyt looked dejectedly down at his beer. ‘Fine. I hate this idea, but fine.’ He sulked another moment, then turned on Churn. ‘And you. What are you thinking? You want to die in there, is that it? He does. Did you know that?’ He gestured over at Alen. ‘He wants to face Prince Malagon and kill the prince and himself at the same time. Is that what you want?’

‘I am going in.’ He swallowed half his beer in one massive gulp.

‘I hate to interrupt, but what can I be doing while you three are in there stealing the portal?’ Hannah had no desire to enter Welstar Palace. Hoyt and Churn were thieves by profession; she had never stolen more than an extra carton of milk at school. She wasn’t skilled with a bow, a rapier or a short blade, and if she did go along, her safety would be an added burden on her friends.

‘I know it makes no sense for me to go inside with you,’ she went on, ‘so I won’t ask to come along, but there must be something I can do to make sure we get away safely.’

‘You can build three pyres,’ Hoyt said sarcastically. That’s right. We’re going in there to get this portal so you can go home. The rest of us have nothing to gain in there, and these two don’t plan on coming back out again.

‘You’ve known all along,’ Alen interrupted, glaring at the younger man, ‘that you do not have to accompany us on this journey. Hannah and Churn have business here in Malakasia. I have issues to address. You came for the trip, Hoyt. We are all glad you did, but you should feel no obligation to enter Welstar Palace, and certainly not on your own.’

Hoyt softened. ‘You’re right. Sorry, Hannah.’

‘I’ll go in,’ she said. ‘You’ve already done so much for me, and I’ll not ask you to risk your life again, especially for nothing but the chance to cheat death against tremendous odds. I’m not afraid to admit that I don’t want to go in, but I don’t think you want to, either.’

‘Don’t worry about it – what kind of freedom fighter would I be if I turned down a chance to deny Prince Malagon one of his favourite toys?’

‘And to answer your question, Hannah,’ Alen broke the momentary silence, ‘when we escape the palace, we will either make our way west into the mountains on horseback, or we will move downriver under cover of darkness; whichever we decide, our packs, supplies and horses, or our barge, raft, canoe, whatever it is we use, will need looking after, so you are the only person left to ensure our speedy departure.’

Hannah was pleased to have something to do; she was still a little embarrassed at Hoyt’s comment. She reminded herself Steven was alive and waiting for her in the east.

Hoyt rose. ‘I’m going to get a few things we need for the river trip.’

‘Nothing to eat?’ Churn asked.

‘I’m not hungry,’ he signed back.

‘I’ll come with you.’

‘No, you eat, you big bear. We need you strong tomorrow morning. We have vegetables to load, and we both know how grumpy you’ll be tonight if you don’t eat.’

‘You all right?’ Hannah asked.

‘I’m fine.’ He turned to leave.

‘Let him go,’ Alen whispered. ‘He has to make a decision; we need to give him some time.’

‘But he’s going into the palace for me,’ Hannah insisted. ‘I don’t want that on my shoulders for the rest of my life.’

‘Hannah, take it from an exceedingly old man; if it saves your life and allows you to return home with Steven Taylor and Mark Jenkins, then yes, of course you want it on your shoulders for the rest of your life. Don’t try to tell me otherwise, because I am too old for bravery, pride and sacrifice for one’s values, that’s all grettan shit, and I’m not interested in wallowing in it. Hoyt is not going into Welstar Palace for you, he’s going in for everyone: for Churn’s family, for my family, for all the miserable, oppressed people of Eldarn who never had a chance to enjoy freedom or prosperity in their lives, and especially for one very talented thief who would have been a wonderful, caring doctor had he been given a chance. This is all much bigger than you, Hannah. Hoyt knows it; he just needs a little time to realise it.’ And I will have done one final good deed for my friend. Then I will be able to go in. Alone.