‘What about Mother?’
‘She’s with our aunt.’ Blake straightened.
Lyndal looked up at the tower, the smell of smoke making her sweat. ‘Astin’s inside. I’m going to get him out.’ She headed for the tower.
‘What?’ Blake ran after her. ‘It’s on fire. You can’t just walk into a burning building.’
Lyndal did not slow. ‘Why not? He did it for me once.’
She heard Eda swear behind her. Not overly surprising that some of her first words in years would be ones that should never come from a lady’s mouth.
Eda caught her arm just before she entered.The guards hang the keys on the wall.
It was the one advantage of having a sister who had once been locked in there.
‘This is madness,’ Blake said. ‘The smoke alone will kill you.’
Lyndal drew a breath, preparing to enter.
‘Fine,’ Blake said, ‘I’m going in with you.’ She pointed at Eda. ‘You stay right here—no matter what.’
Lyndal pressed the crook of her arm to her nose and mouth, nodded at Blake, and then the sisters ran into the smoke-filled doorway. The haze made the darkness even more unsettling. Lyndal blinked against it as she took Blake’s hand and pulled her through the smoke in what she hoped was the direction of the stairwell. Relief pulsed through her when her foot hit the first step. Then they were climbing as fast as they could.
‘Open the door. Please’ came a voice that did not belong to Astin. ‘Let us out!’
In her rush to get to Astin, Lyndal had almost forgotten that there were other prisoners locked in the tower. The king had done this knowing others would die also.
Blake waved her sister forwards. ‘Go. I’ll catch up.’
Lyndal nodded and drew her first breath. Her throat closed in protest. She hurried on, coughing into her arm. Her shins smashed into the edges of the steps as she misjudged their location over and over, but she continued forwards, checking each cell she passed. Whenever she heard a cough, she made a mental note to return for them on the way down.
‘Astin!’
Panic was setting in. She called for him, knowing it was a terrible waste of air and energy but unable to stop herself. He was probably already dead.
Where is the fire?
As she continued to climb, she got her answer. The smoke glowed an eerie orange up ahead, and the wall felt hot beneath her hand as she steadied herself.
‘Astin!’
Flames appeared, climbing one wall and reaching all the way to the roof.
‘Lyndal?’
She was so relieved when she heard his voice that she began to cry. He was alive. Now she just had to get him out.
Holding her breath once more, she ran towards the flames, the heat from them almost knocking her backwards. She passed just out of reach of them and fell to her knees in front of Astin’s cell. He crawled to her on his stomach.
‘Get right down,’ he instructed. ‘The cleanest air is closest to the ground.’
She coughed as she reached for him. ‘Where are the keys?’
She knew from the look on his face that there were no keys.
‘You need to leave—now. The damp walls in here are the only reason I’m not burning, but they’re drying out, and the fire will spread.’
She shook her head. ‘I’m not leaving without you.’
