Page 26 of Fiendish Delights
Hugo’s mouth tightened. ‘Do you need a dose of spider’s silk?’
‘No.’ I managed a smile. ‘It’s the power of this place. It’s…’ I shrugged. ‘I guess it’s getting to me.’
Hugo didn’t say anything but a thoughtful look came into his eyes. ‘What?’ I asked.
He shook his head. ‘Nothing. Come on. The others aresetting up camp. Let’s do a quick sweep of the abbey and the graveyard before the sun sets. There’s not much more than an hour of daylight left and I’d like to get an overview of the area.’
I glanced over my shoulder at the other four. Becky and Miriam were already hiking away from the ruins, lugging various bags and equipment; Slim and Rizwan were rummaging in the back of Hugo’s jeep. It felt like Hugo and I were swanning off on a leisurely stroll while everyone else did the hard graft.
‘We all have work to do,’ he said softly, as if he were reading my mind. ‘We need to establish the lay of the land and make sure it’s safe before night falls.’
I bit my lip, then nodded sharply.
‘Safe?’ Otis squeaked as we moved closer to the ruins. ‘Why wouldn’t it be safe?’
‘Boogeymen,’ Hester said, smirking at him.
I rubbed my arms. ‘No.’ My voice was quiet. ‘We like to pretend that we control magic and have tamed it to our will, but places like this prove that magic is a wild thing. Our control is illusory – and temporary. There’s no telling what might happen here if we’re not careful and alert.’
‘Can’t you see the graveyard, Hes?’ Otis asked, with an uncharacteristically sly edge. ‘It’s over to the left.’
‘Graveyard?’ Her demeanour altered drastically. ‘Nobody told me there would be a graveyard!’
It was time to nip this in the bud. ‘Can the two of you join the others and help set up camp?’ Hester was flying towards Rizwan and Slim before the words had left my mouth.
‘I’mnot scared of a graveyard,’ Otis said.
‘No, but Hester could probably do with some reassurance.’
A flash of guilt crossed his face and he took off after his sister. I felt Hugo watching me and glanced at him. ‘What?’
The corner of his mouth crooked up. ‘You’re good with them. That’s all.’
‘The Primes are your people.’ I shrugged. ‘Hester and Otis are my people.’
He was silent for a long moment. ‘I should never have misjudged you when we first met.’
I snorted. ‘That goes without saying.’ Then, before the conversation became too serious and awkward, I pointed to the arch. ‘Come on. We’ve got a job to do.’ And I strode towards the ruins.
It didn’t take long to explore what was left of the abbey, even though Hugo and I took our time to examine every nook and cranny. I wasn’t certain what we were looking for, although I had a vague, unsubstantiated confidence that I’d know it when we found it.
There was nothing that immediately suggested itself worthy of closer inspection. The good thing was that there were also no signs of anything untoward: no disturbing trail marks or hints of nasty beasties.
The swirl of magic was at its strongest beyond the ruined archway, where presumably the centre of the abbey had once stood, but it felt benign and there was no sense of anything dark or mysterious. Eventually, we abandoned the ruins for the graveyard beyond. By that point the sun was already dipping low and the light was growing dim – it was December, after all, and the days were frustratingly short.
We walked up and down lines of gravestones, the frost-laden grass crunching beneath our feet, but it was obvious thatwe both knew where we were heading. Close to the small church stood a large yew tree. Dafydd ap Gwyllim was supposedly buried beneath a tree, and given that I was sure it was a yew tree etched onto the scroll in Mud McAlpine’s flat, it had to be the most promising place to explore.
Despite the fading light, I wasn’t in a rush to reach it; strangely, neither was Hugo. Taking our time, we circled the rest of the graveyard until only the yew tree itself was left to investigate. ‘Last but not least,’ I whispered.
‘You feel it too, don’t you?’ Hugo said. ‘That thrum of excitement that says we’re getting somewhere, that we’re on the right track and our hunt will prove worthwhile.’
‘Doesn’t everyone who does this sort of thing feel that way?’
He laughed. ‘No, definitely not. Some hunters are in it for the money.’
‘That’s me,’ I said. ‘Allme.’
‘Some hunters are in it to solve a puzzle.’
