Page 64 of Legacy of Thorns
Everyone crowded around as Daphne searched for a lake that fit Finley’s description. It wasn’t hard to find it.
“There.” She placed her finger on the spot. “That’s where Fin thinks Barlowe’s castle is. Except it’s surrounded by brambles and forgotten by the world. I think the Legacy has helped with the forgetting, but it must have been cut off for at least a generation.”
Avery rolled up the map, speaking with decision. “Once we’re there, we should be able to find something as big as a castle, brambles or not.”
“You’re coming with us?” Daphne asked.
“Of course,” she replied, and her husband laughed.
“If you can keep Avery from jumping into a rescue with both feet, please let me in on the secret.”
“I appreciate your enthusiasm as always, Avery,” Lorne said with a smile. “Are you volunteering your wagon?”
The three of them began to discuss logistics, but Daphne wasn’t listening.
“You would be just as capable of opening the brambles as Finley,” she murmured to Archer.
He made a thoughtful sound at the back of his throat. “We’d have to get there before them. Can we do it?”
“Barlowe and Finley are in a carriage, so if we go on horseback…”
Elliot’s voice broke through her thoughts. “Brilliant as your plans may be, Avery, those two seem to have a scheme of their own.” He nodded in Daphne and Archer’s direction.
“Daphne? Archer?” Lorne raised his brows, looking concerned.
“We need horses,” Archer said. “Fast ones.”
“You want to get there before Barlowe and Finley,” Nisha said slowly.
Archer nodded. “Barlowe has already shown he’s willing to kill to keep his secret. So what do you think he’ll do to Fin once Fin opens those brambles and wakes the girl? We have to get to that castle before they do—Fin’s safe until then. I can open the brambles enough for us to get in, and then we can take Barlowe by surprise when he arrives and rescue Fin.”
“Unfortunately the stables of this inn aren’t exactly brimming with riding horses of sufficient speed and stamina,” Nisha said.
Elliot exchanged a look with Avery. “There’s Nutmeg, at least,” he offered when she gave a small nod.
“Is that your cart horse?” Archer sounded skeptical.
“She’s not exactly a normal cart horse, though, is she?” Daphne asked, remembering her previous encounters with the chestnut mare. “I always thought she seemed…different.”
Avery laughed. “She certainly is, but you’re observant to have noticed. Most people don’t.”
“How unusual is she?” Archer asked, brightening.
“Very,” Elliot said dryly. “Avery has taken her so many places over the years—sometimes into places brimming with Legacy power—and it’s changed her. She’s far smarter than any horse has the right to be, for one. Like the parrots in Glandore or the mice in Sovar. And she doesn’t tire nearly as quickly as she should.”
“She can manage the ride,” Avery said decisively. “Elliot knows that from experience.”
Daphne raised her eyebrows, looking between them. At any other time, she would have been interested in the story behind that statement. But she couldn’t think about anything but rescuing Finley.
“Just how extraordinary is Nutmeg?” she asked instead. “Could she manage the ride with two riders?”
“That depends on the second rider.” Avery glanced at Morrow. “Extraordinary or not, she’s still a horse, so if one of them was Morrow here…But I assume you mean yourself and Archer? In that case, she should manage.”
Nisha frowned. “But what can the two of you do on your own?”
“We’ll come up with a strategy on the way.” Archer spoke with the confidence of extreme youth. “We’ll have the element of surprise, remember. And you can all follow behind more slowly to provide backup.”
Daphne didn’t share his confidence, but neither was she going to say anything to discourage the scheme. They had to take the risk and try to rescue Finley. And for once they would be the ones a step ahead instead of Barlowe.
