Page 46 of Tattered Huntress
Boonder glanced at Otis, dipped his head in acknowledgment and bowed. ‘My apologies, sir. I was mistaken.’
Otis sniffed, slightly mollified.
‘Thank you for that,’ I said to Boonder, meaning it wholeheartedly.
‘You’re not so bad, Daisy,’ he told me.
I grinned. ‘Neither are you.’
We walked together towards the other teams. Everyone except Hugo was facing away from us. His gaze swung between us, his expression inscrutable. He turned away as we joined the group. ‘What’s the hold up?’ he demanded.
One of the twins replied, ‘There are some concerns about the best way forward.’
Humphrey, who was pursing his lips anxiously, nodded his head. ‘There’s a wide tunnel to the left. Eleanor and I have already investigated it, but it leads to a dead end.’
Eleanor looked extraordinarily pale, even in this dim, flickering light, and she was clutching Humphrey’s arm tightly. She appeared to be feeling the claustrophobic weight of the cave even more than I was.
‘There’s a second accessible tunnel,’ the twin continued. ‘But it’s a small space. Bess wiggled through it for several metres and it seems to lead somewhere.’ She looked Boonder up and down. ‘I’m not sure you’ll fit through it.’
She pointed. When my gaze followed her finger, I couldn’t prevent a sharp intake of breath. It was indeed a tiny space. A shudder rippled through me at the thought of entering it; it would be a tight squeeze, even for me.
Hugo and his Primes were already moving right, and my brow furrowed. I stepped sideways to get a better view and felt a flicker of magic emanate from Hugo. A second later, the far side of the cavern was illuminated by a ball of flame similar to the one I’d created earlier.
I squinted, noting the dark entrance to yet another tunnel that appeared large enough to walk through without stooping, then I rocked back on my heels. Oh.
It wasn’t Hugo’s ability to throw fire magic such a distance that caused my dismay, although that was astonishing enough; it was the thirty-metre-wide chasm between him and the tunnel. There were two routes forward – but both were incredibly perilous.
With a slight nod of my head, I motioned Otis towards the right then I did the same to send Hester left. They understood instantly. As the others mulled their options and the sixth team of treasure hunters – the witches – appeared, I stepped aside and waited as the brownies flew in opposite directions.
The Primes were uncoiling rope from their bags, the shapeshifters had formed a tight discussion group, andBoonder was kneeling on the ground and gazing at a small book filled with runes.
‘I don’t like this,’ Eleanor whispered to Humphrey.
‘Neither do I, my dear,’ he replied. He patted her arm reassuringly but I noticed that his hands were shaking. I knew how he felt.
Otis reappeared first, emerging from the blackness of the chasm with a spooked expression. ‘It’s a long way down, Daisy. If you fell, you’d definitely die. I suppose you could try air magic to manipulate the atmosphere and prevent yourself from crashing, though.’ He sounded doubtful.
Only in the worst-case scenario. Using any sort of magic in that dark hole could have dangerous repercussions for us all – and, anyway, none of us knew if crossing the chasm would lead to what we were seeking .
Boonder shook his head. ‘You can’t risk sending any magic down there. Even fire could be a problem. We don’t know what the air is like below us.’
‘I know,’ I said.
One of the twins – Bess – jerked. ‘What?’ her voice rose high enough to echo around the chamber. ‘She can’t use magic in that hole! The consequences could be catastrophic!’
I clenched my jaw. ‘I know,’ I repeated. As Hugo swung towards me, I was already glaring in his direction. ‘I am not planning to use magic down there,’ I said for a third time. For fuck’s sake.
Hugo returned his attention to his ropes. ‘Good,’ he grunted. ‘We don’t know what effect magic might have. Using controlled fire magic in this large space is one thing but using air or earth magic below us is a different matter. You might cause a roof collapse or wake up slumbering beasties that have lived for centuries here in the darkness.’
All the other treasure hunters seemed to think I was anidiot. I opened my mouth to spit an obscenity at the lot of them, but Hester’s reappearance forestalled me. She fluttered from side to side, shivering. ‘It’s about half a mile long,’ she said.
I shuddered. Beside me, Humphrey gasped audibly.
‘It gets narrower before it opens into a wider tunnel,’ Hester continued. ‘If you shimmied along on your belly, you’d probably make it. But,’ she added, ‘it’s very dark. And very difficult.’
I swallowed back the returning claustrophobia. I wasn’t convinced that I’d manage it; if panic overtook me in that tiny space, I might hyperventilate and end up truly stuck – forever.
‘One team has almost died already,’ one of the witches said. ‘I’m not risking my life for a chance at some old coins, no matter what reward Sir Nigel dangles in front of us.’
