Page 55 of Fiendish Delights
‘I spy with my little eye, something beginning with S,’ Slim said in a small voice.
Thank goodness he’d changed the subject. ‘Sky?’ I guessed.
‘Nope.’
‘Seatbelt?’ Otis asked.
‘You win.’
Otis smiled, though unfortunately nobody else did.
It was dark by the time we pulled into the now familiar – and thankfully deserted – car park. The abbey ruins stood stark and silent, framed by the moon which, for once, was unobscured by clouds.
I was beyond grateful that the long, uncomfortable journey was over. I grabbed Hugo as soon as we climbed out of the Jeep and pulled him to one side. ‘I’m sorry,’ I said. ‘I shouldn’t have gone prying into your life.’
Frustrated, he ran a hand through his hair. ‘It’s not your fault, Daisy. You’d have known about it if you’d been brought up amongst elves – it’s been the subject of speculation for many years. I’ve mostly escaped being blamed because I was barely a toddler at the time but…’ He sighed. ‘Mud sticks, you know.’
Yeah, I did know. ‘I’m sorry,’ I repeated.
‘Don’t be.’ He forced a smile. ‘Besides, we’re even now. Iknow your background and you know mine. That’s got to count for something, right?’
I didn’t smile back. ‘You shouldn’t blame Gordon. It’s not his fault. He’s only doing his job.’
‘Unsuccessfully.’
I touched his arm. ‘Hugo…’
‘Leave it. Lady Rose is ancient history now. We’ve got our own ancient history to worry about – and this one could involve some modern-day fiends. We should get a move on.’ He strode off towards the old graveyard.
I bit my lip then followed.
As a group, we’d already decided that we wouldn’t camp out for the night and we wouldn’t wait for daybreak. We knew where we were going and what we were doing, and we couldn’t risk drawing any more attention either from the living or from the dead. This time it was important to work quickly; with luck, we’d be driving out of Wales by the time dawn broke.
There were a few scuff marks around the old tree, suggesting that some of Hugo’s cannier followers had worked out what we’d been interested in and had attempted some digging of their own, but most of the earth was undisturbed. They’d obviously not had any more luck than we had on our first visit. That was something.
This yew tree would endure for many more years after we had gone, and none of us would be responsible for its death. I reached up and pressed the palm of my hand against its rough bark, silently promising that it wouldn’t come to any harm. Hester and Otis solemnly followed suit and a moment later the others joined in.
When Hugo glanced at me, his eyes were warm and the awkwardness from the journey had ebbed away. He understood; everyone did. For some reason that meant more to me than I could put into words.
Eventually we all stepped back. Miriam gave a satisfied jerk of her head. ‘I can’t sense any vampires. I think we’re in the clear.’
‘What about ghosts?’ Hester asked.
She smiled. ‘No ghosts.’
‘Zombies?’
‘No zombies.’
From Hester’s expression, she still wasn’t reassured. She’d already told me several times and in no uncertain terms that she refused to lurk around the car park again.
She and Otis flapped towards me and settled in their usual positions on my shoulders. Hester’s body vibrated with tension but she was holding herself together admirably. ‘You’ve got this,’ I whispered.
‘So have you, Daisy,’ she whispered back.
We all turned to Gordon, who was twisting his fingers together nervously. He swallowed hard. ‘Er, could I perhaps have some light?’ he asked.
Within three heartbeats, six bobbing balls of fire were illuminating the tree and making great shadows flicker and dance around our feet. Given the moonlight it was probably overkill, but I supposed every little helped.
