“The Priestess wants that stone. If you get to it first, you take that advantage away from her. That changes everything. It will be much easier to get your mom back.”
Keegan nodded beside me. “He’s right.”
I swallowed, letting that settle, even as the doubt didn’t fully lift.
“Then why did Gideon leave with it?” I asked, more to myself than either of them. “He told us it was in a safe place. Why didn't he just leave it there?”
Keegan's eyes met mine. “How do you know he didn't?”
I dreaded that question because I hated the answer more. “I can feel it.”
Keegan couldn't hide his surprise. “You can feel the stone.”
It was more of a statement than a question, but I nodded.
Neither of them answered right away.
Keegan didn’t push, but I could tell he was thinking it through, piecing things together the way he always did.
I looked back toward Nova and Stella, still speaking with the orcs, and then out beyond them, toward the edge of the trees where the world shifted into something less certain.
Gideon hadn’t run.
He’d moved with purpose.
And whether I liked it or not, I had a feeling that purpose was tied to all of us, but maybe most of all, to me.
I just wasn’t sure yet if it was going to save us… or make everything worse.
Chapter Six
“The orcs confirmed that sounds like their homeland,” Nova explained. “And they told me the best spots where Gideon might decide to take cover.”
I glanced at them and gave a quick nod in appreciation.
“Is this good or bad?” I asked.
“Well, it complicates things,” Nova said. “The goblin scouts came back with samples from the orcs’ soil in the wetlands so that we could decipher what type of spell or magic was used to deplete the marshes of their resources.”
“Right.” I nodded.
“From what research we've managed to do so far, it looks as if she cast a dehydration spell that creates an inability for the bogs to soak up and retain water. We're working on a counterspell, but it will take time.”
“And one thing leads to another, and food becomes scarce, families become scared, and the power play begins,” I said softly.
“Except that you threw a wrench in her plans,” Keegan said.
“We all did.” I looked at Keegan. “Even Gideon.”
A smirk touched Keegan's lips as he shook his head. “Fair enough.”
Nova nodded. “But there's more. The Priestess cast a curse that affected both the orcs in the caverns as well as the swamp lands. The good news is that if we can break the curse, it will break it in both areas. The bad news is that I've never seen anything like it.”
“Why would Gideon go to the place where the orcs can't go back to? There have to be other hiding places.”
Keegan let out a sigh and shook his head. “He’s still all about self-preservation and survival. My concern is he has something else up his sleeve and wants you isolated when he hands over the stone.”
I wasn't sure that was it, but it was the most logical answer.
