Possibly. What we need to discover, however, is what this building might be protecting beyond the shielding stones and the transport gate you found. There has to be something else here. He paused, then added out loud, "Be careful."
"You keep saying that," I said, amused. "Anyone would think you don't trust me to look after myself."
"Well, you do have the unfortunate habit of stepping into trouble." His voice was dry. "And remember, I cannot help you if you find it here."
"I have Amaya. We'll cope." I dropped a kiss on his lips, resisted the urge to do a whole lot more, then said to Rozelle, "Follow me."
I led the way into the building, retracing my steps to prevent creating too many obviously new footprints in the muck coating the floor.
"Well," Rozelle said, her gaze narrowing as she stopped several feet away from the inky wall that masked the stone circle. "That's particularly nasty, isn't it?"
"Yeah." I lifted my hand and showed her the red marks where the blisters had been. "I wouldn't get too close, either."
"I wasn't intending to." She handed me her carryall, then walked the length of the wall, examining it warily. She stopped close to the back wall and said, "Okay, here's the sorcerer's point of entry."
"How can you tell?"
She glanced at me, her expression amused. "Because I'm a witch and that's what I'm trained to do." She walked back around until she was standing on the opposite side of the circle to the doorway. "We shall make our entrance here. Our sorcerer is less likely to sense it. My bag, if you would be so kind."
I handed over the bag. "Won't he sense the break in his magic?"
"Perhaps, if he is looking for it." Her gaze met mine. "There is no other way to enter this circle, though."
"Then do it."
She drew out her athame and made a protection circle, then sat cross-legged on the ground and began the incantation to create the doorway.
After several minutes, the shadows began to retreat, until a gap that was about two feet square had formed. It revealed not only several black stones but the concrete and metal steps beyond them.