starve herself and be locked up in the dungeon with him if she was here out of her own free will.
Farrendel shook his head. “We cannot leave now. You and I are both weak, and we have no supplies. Doubtless, the trolls have blanketed Kostaria in ice and snow to slow down Escarland’s and Tarenhiel’s armies. Without supplies, we would not get far. Even if we could, we have the entire troll army standing between us and safety.”
“Oh. Right.” Melantha sighed and slumped. “So what is the plan?”
This felt all too similar to the conversation he had with Essie on the train. The plan was essentially the same. Waiting for the last moment, believing that to be the right time, instead of acting right away.
Perhaps he and Essie should have attempted the leap from the train. They might have survived without too much damage, and he would not have ended up here, locked in the trolls’ dungeon.
But Essie would not have learned about Melantha or Thanfardil. How much worse would the war have been had Thanfardil remained in charge of all of Tarenhiel’s train system? He could have alerted the trolls to every movement of troops and supplies. He could have sabotaged Escarland’s army as they tried to transport all their weapons across Tarenhiel.
And, without this, Melantha would have gone on hating Farrendel. She might not have continued to aid the trolls, but she probably would have given them enough information to kill Farrendel on the battlefield. He might have ended up here anyway.
It had been the right decision to wait there on the train. Waiting was the necessary choice now.
“We have to wait until Escarland’s and Tarenhiel’s army attacks Gror Grar.” Farrendel stared at the ceiling, steeling himself. It sounded so appealing to break the stone now, end this pain, and take his chances in the rocky, icy wilds of Kostaria.
“You wish to wait until then? Is that not risky? That is when King Charvod plans to drag you out onto the wall. Or possibly kill you here. Or otherwise use you as a trap for Weylind.” Melantha went back to hugging her knees.
“I know.” Farrendel flexed his fingers, telling himself he needed to bide his time. He would only get one chance to escape. “With your magic, I might be able to access enough of my magic to help from the inside. It will be difficult for Weylind to take Gror Grar, unless someone were to blow the gates out from the inside. Or maybe part of the wall.”
Melantha huffed and shook her head. “I never realized your plans were so grandiose. You do not want just to escape. You wish to take down the entire fortress.”
“King Charvod cannot pin me to a wall if I knock the wall down first.” He took too much satisfaction from the thought. This place was getting to him. “But I will settle for causing some minor problems and distractions as we make our way to Weylind. The primary concern is escaping alive.”
“Of course.” Melantha patted his hand. “I will do everything I can to make sure you get home.”
Her fingers were cold. Without a blanket, dressed in a silk dress as she was, she must be freezing.
“Thank you.” Farrendel tried to shift, but the stone pinned him too tightly. All he could do was wiggle his fingers. “If Prince Rharreth is not likely to return tonight, then you should share the blanket. The nights are growing colder.”
“Perhaps Prince Rharreth will let me haul more of the hay from my cell into here. Maybe I can even convince him to let me stay here. It would be easier for him to care for both of us at once.” Melantha settled onto the floor next to him, her back to him, and tugged a corner of the blanket over herself. She rested her head on her arm. “How long do you think it will take Weylind and the army to get here?”
“I do not know.” Farrendel shifted his head, trying to find a more comfortable spot on the small padding of hay Melantha had given him. Realistically, it would probably take weeks. The ice and blizzards that the trolls would hurl at the army would make going difficult, and he could not begin to guess what it would take to move Escarland’s army over the treacherous Kostarian terrain with all their large weapons.
But he desperately hoped it would not be that long. Surely Weylind would have guessed how the trolls would fight back,