halfway across it she felt something change. The air was different there. Dead and thin, like the air inside a tomb.
“What are you doing here, Silas?” Da’ru’s voice was calm and threatening. The crowd was too far away to hear her words, but the councilmen were listening with interest.
“I have brought you what you asked for,” said Silas. “The girl and the book.”
“You have Wintercraft? Here, with you now?”
“The girl has it.” Silas pulled Kate forward. “Show her.”
Kate pulled Wintercraft slowly out of her coat pocket, and Silas took the precious book, handing it formally to the councilwoman.
“I believed you had turned against me, Silas,” said Da’ru. “I will admit, I did not expect to see any loyalty from you tonight.”
“You command the circles,” said Silas. “With Wintercraft, you can conduct the ritual of souls the way it was meant to be done. That is what you want, after all.”
“I never should have let this out of my sight,” said Da’ru. “And I should have kept a far closer eye on you from the beginning. Two mistakes that I shall not make again.”
Silas glanced at the dead crow on the table and his eyes narrowed, just for a second. Kate sensed his anger, but Da’ru was too busy turning through Wintercraft’s pages, making sure they were all intact. Once satisfied, she closed the book and spoke loud enough for everyone in the square to hear.
“As many of you know, Silas Dane is one of Albion’s most loyal sons,” she said. “He was once our greatest warrior and now he is our finest collector, ensuring that this country is kept safe from the few unwanted elements who still lurk within our midst. For generations the Skilled have chosen to hide in fear rather than stand at your side, yet I stepped forward, the only one among them willing to use the veil to help our country survive. Many of those cowards have since been hunted and captured because of Silas’s efforts. He has proven himself a hero to us many times over, but what you do not know is that Silas is far more than any ordinary man. He is unique.” Da’ru walked right up to Silas, and Kate was sure he would take that chance to strike, but still he held back. “Silas has seen the very depths of the veil for himself. He has walked the path into death and he has survived.”
Half the crowd cheered again, thinking that Da’ru’s speech was all part of the festivities, while the other half stayed quiet.
“Twelve years ago, I witnessed Silas’s death. And, using knowledge passed down to me by our ancestors themselves, I changed his fate. I reached out to his spirit and returned it to our world.”
That was a lie. Kate watched Silas, waiting for him to say something.
“Many of you may not believe me. But here, tonight, I shall prove it.” Da’ru signaled to Tom, who ran along to the rear black carriage and opened its door. “You are all gathered here to see proof of life enduring beyond death. Proof which I, and the rest of the High Council, fully intend to provide.”
Two wardens stepped out of the carriage carrying someone awkwardly between them: someone slung in a blanket with a bloodied leg swinging out over the side.
“This prisoner is a traitor,” said Da’ru. “He has been found guilty of theft and of conspiracy against the High Council. For that, he deserves death. All traitors must face their executioner and this man shall be no different. But tonight, I intend to show mercy to this criminal. I have restored life to the dead once before and, once his rightful sentence has been carried out, to prove Albion’s strength beyond any doubt, I shall do it again.”
The crowd chanted together as the wardens rolled the prisoner out of the blanket and onto the table. “Traitor. Traitor. Traitor.”
His wrists were bound and he wriggled painfully as the wardens tied him down, leaving him powerless to do anything except look nervously around at the people surrounding him.
“Artemis,” whispered Kate.
Da’ru was already cleaning the crow’s blood from her blade. “Prepare him,” she said.
Chapter 20
Blood
Kate tried to run to Artemis but Silas kept her chain held tight. She was about to shout at him to let her go, when Silas’s eyes met hers and he glanced at the floor.
Kate looked down. The ground she was standing on was carved with thousands of tiny symbols, some of them so small that they looked like