the horrors I’d experienced. Then I forced my muscles to relax and turned back to Vee and Fergus.
“Before I felt the drop, hands pulled me back and a deep voice said, It is not yet your time. The next thing I knew, I awoke in the castle gardens unharmed.”
Tears glistened in Fergus’s eyes. “Do ye think . . . could it have been . . . an angel?”
“Aye, that is my belief.”
My old friend reached over and clapped me on the shoulder. “A true miracle, then.”
“But what happened after that?” Vee asked softly.
“I ran, but the witch caught me within hours.”
“So you’ve been her prisoner this whole time?” Her delicate brow furrowed and she shook her head. “But why didn’t she kill you once she got you back? Not that I’m complaining. I just don’t understand . . .”
A pain shot up my jaw and I unclenched my teeth before saying, “The witch had . . . other plans for me.”
“Jamie, whatever you’ve been through . . . I’m sorry.”
Her sympathy didn’t help. Would she feel the same if she knew I’d murdered one of our people in cold blood? I shot to my feet. The weight of what I’d done was suddenly heavy enough to drive me into the ground.
Startled, Blaz let out a deep bark and I jumped, the abrupt noise sending my heart pounding into my ears. I shook so hard, I had to cross my arms to still their trembling.
Vee started to rise. “Jamie—”
I shot her a glare and she lowered back down.
“Where’s my brother?” I couldn’t trust that what Adelaide had told me was true. But if it wasn’t, surely I would’ve seen him by now.
“He . . .” Vee started and then began again, her voice firm. “I sent him across the bridge with as many Doonians as he could take with him, in accordance with my vision.”
I gave a single nod. “And the bridge?”
Fergus answered, “ ’Tis gone. Disintegrated during the quake. We believe by the witch’s magic.”
“What of the mountain pass?”
“We don’t know,” Veronica said.
None of it was their fault. And yet red closed in on my vision and my pulse thrummed in my fingertips. Vee had sent Duncan out of Doon when I needed him most. And with no way to return, I may never see my brother again. Judging from the numbers of those who’d greeted me in camp, our population had dwindled to a third or less. And the witch was raising an undead army of thousands. We were as good as dead.
“I need to sleep.” And with that, I stalked off.
I found an empty pallet next to Oliver in the infirmary and collapsed upon it without removing my boots. How long had it been since I’d truly slept?
When sleep finally came, the same dream I’d had for weeks sucked me in . . .
This was it. Our last hope—my last hope.
Because if I couldn’t save Doon, I couldn’t save her—the girl who had become the sustainer of my soul, my strength, my light—and if I didn’t have her, I would never be strong enough to lead what was left of us.
If there is anything left.
Tension buzzed through my veins as strategies and contingencies rebounded through my brain. I rolled my shoulders and bent my head. The prayer was incoherent at best, a mantra of deliver us, give me strength, protect her . . .
I lifted my eyes, and the outline of our beloved Brig o’Doon—our portal to the outside world—shimmered in the malevolent haze. The bitter taste of fear coated my tongue as a rhythmic beating filled the air, vibrating in my chest.
With a resounding ring, I drew my sword. The answering tone of blade, ax, and bow staff being unsheathed rang out behind me. The unity of our people was heartening, but it wasn’t enough. Half the guard had been lost in the separation. These soldiers were mothers and fathers, tanners, blacksmiths, maids . . . trained in only the bare essentials of battle.
The bridge solidified with every deafening beat of my heart. Its stones becoming solid once more, I could make out the silhouettes of men on the other side. Glancing to my right, I wished to see the Captain of the Guard, my brother and friend, Duncan. Instead, I was greeted by the ashen face of Gideon MacTavish, his bald head dripping with sweat, his sword quivering as if it had a life of its own.
Saints.
In disgust, I turned back to the ominous sight on