The Doorway and the Deep (30 page)

“But I did it,” she said with satisfaction. “I
did
it.”

“You did. Far sooner than I thought possible, too.”

There was a long silence during which Lottie did nothing but grin.

Then Rebel Gem said, “There's something we need to talk about, Lottie. Something serious.”

Lottie's grin vanished. “What?” Her thoughts immediately flew to Eliot.

“I'm hesitant to even bring it up. I don't want to scare you. But if you've progressed this far, then you need to know the . . . risks.”

“Risks?” Lottie frowned. “You mean, overextending myself? I already know about that. That's why I'm resting, isn't it?”

“No, it's not that. It's about what you're capable of. What your keen can do. If it's anything like mine—and so far, it has been—then you don't just have the potential to heal. You could do the opposite, too.”

Lottie stared at Rebel Gem. “You mean I could
hurt
people? Like Oliver can?”

“Not exactly like Oliver. His keen is something he can't control. You and I, Lottie, we can affect the insides of another person. That is a great advantage when it comes to making that person feel better. But if we were to channel our keen in a different direction, we could also use our power to harm someone. Harm them in the worst possible way. Do you understand what I'm saying?”

“You mean,” said Lottie, “if I'd concentrated on hurting Nash back on that boat—if I'd wanted to make his bruises worse, rather than better . . . I could've?”

“You
could
have, but a true healer would never do such a thing. Healers help, we do not harm. It is not our place to play judge or to exact punishment. Our place is only to feel someone else's pain and do what we can to relieve it. I've only told you about this now so there's less chance of an . . . accident. I don't think you bear ill will toward any of your friends, but if you were purposefully trying to hurt them . . . I just need you to be aware of the danger.”

“Fine. I'm aware.”

Lottie couldn't keep the anger out of her words. She was upset with Rebel Gem, and she couldn't place why. Perhaps it was because Rebel Gem suddenly reminded her of Mr. Wilfer, cautioning Lottie to wait, treating her like she didn't know her own strength.

“Come on,” Rebel Gem said softly. “I'll take you inside to your friends, and you can tell them the good news.”

Lottie tried to push her irritation aside as they walked up the sharp incline of the cave passageway.

Rebel Gem isn't like Mr. Wilfer
, she told herself.
She's actually helping you sharpen your keen. And you did it. You're not useless, you're powerful. You
did
it
.

“By the way,” said Rebel Gem, “I've received some news I think you'll find most agreeable. My genga returned early this morning.”

Lottie, who'd been turning heavy-lidded, snapped to attention.

Oliver
, she thought.
Adelaide
.

“She encountered a party of three travelers on the widest of the wooded paths, headed here,” Rebel Gem went on. “Your friends are both well, as is Dorian. I expect they'll arrive at court within a day.”

Lottie cast Rebel Gem a sharp look. “If you knew all this earlier, why didn't you tell me?”

“I didn't want to distract you from your lesson.”

“
Distract
me? I was already distracted. I've been worried sick about them!”

“All right. No need to—”

Lottie slapped away Rebel Gem's hand, which had been approaching her shoulder.

“Don't touch me,” she said. Then, thinking better of it, “
Please
. I don't want any more of your keen, thanks.”

“Beg your pardon. I didn't realize how quickly it wore off on halflings.”

They emerged from the passageway into the blazing light of the great meeting room. The usual groups of sprites were huddled about the fireplaces, and Lottie recognized a few of the faces as ones she had seen at Rebel Gem's table, the night at the supping lawn. One of them noticed their entrance and waved both arms in their direction.

“Rebel Gem!” he cried. “Ey, ey! Over here, if you please!”

“Excuse me,” said Rebel Gem.

Lottie wondered if she'd only imagined the bite in Rebel Gem's voice. She watched the swish of her green cloak as she joined a group of murmuring sprites. Lottie headed for Fife's room, trying to sort out all the fiery emotions boiling inside her.

She was angry with Rebel Gem, but grateful to her, too. She was nervous and excited and scared—all by what Rebel Gem had told her about the full scope of her keen. She was overwhelmed with happiness about the news of Keats, but now more impatient than ever to see her friends again. Muddled as her mind was, though, there was one clear thought that rose above the rest: she'd used her keen. She'd done it a third time. Soon, she would be able to use it on Eliot and dispel that horrible cough once and for all.

Her heart thumped in time with every step she took toward Fife's doorway, her tongue straining to let loose the exciting news. But as she stepped inside, every word she'd meant to speak fell back into her throat.

“Aha!” said Fife. “We were about to form another search party.”

Adelaide laughed, actually laughed, and Oliver's eyes turned golden at the sight of Lottie.

For there Adelaide and Oliver were, sitting on Fife's bed as though it were the most natural thing in all of Albion Isle.

ALL WAS LAUGHTER
and whoops and the creak of Fife's bed as the five of them sat piled atop the covers. Adelaide had thrown herself on Lottie first thing, squeezing her into so tight a hug that Lottie squeaked, sure her bones would snap.

“Titania's sake,” Adelaide said. “Oh,
Titania's sake
, Lottie, we thought you were dead! Or else you'd all been captured by Northerlies and put in shackles and sent into the quarry mines. We worried for you every minute, didn't we, Oliver?”

Oliver's eyes dimmed to gray. “Slow, slow as the winter snow, the tears have drifted to mine eyes.”

Lottie didn't have to ask how they'd arrived in Fife's bedroom. Adelaide launched into the story with vigor, barely stopping for breath in the pauses between.

The night of the ice crawler attack, Adelaide and Oliver had jumped from the boat and been dragged under by the current, just as Lottie had.

“I thought I was going to drown,” said Adelaide. “Can you imagine a more unrefined way to go?”

“I can,” began Fife, but Adelaide continued talking over him.

“There I was, thinking those might be the last moments of my life, when someone grabbed me by the collar and pulled me out of the water. It was a Northerly. He and his wife lived in a cottage nearby and had heard our shouts. They fetched Oliver out of the water, too, and then they helped out Dorian, who'd caught hold of a tree root farther down the river. When Fife came back looking for us, I tried to call him over, but then—”

“The ice crawler,” said Lottie.

Adelaide nodded. “The Northerlies were afraid, so they dragged us away from the riverbank and to their cottage, where we dried and warmed up. We returned to the bank later that night. We tried calling for you, but there was no reply. We looked everywhere, up and down the bank. Oliver and I were so afraid.”

“And we were just as worried about you,” said Eliot.

A blush rose in Adelaide's cheeks, but she continued her story. “Oliver and I tried sending our gengas out, but they kept circling back to us. They didn't have any idea where we
were, and they were too scared to leave our sides after the attack. And Dorian lost his genga.”

“You mean, it flew away?” Lottie asked, thinking of Trouble's penchant for disappearing.

Adelaide's face darkened. “No. I mean he
lost
his.”

Lottie blanched. “That's awful.”

“Yes,” said Adelaide. “Anyway, Dorian told us the best thing to do was head to the Northerly Court with the hope that you all had made it there safely. But first, he said, we should go to Gray Gully, which wasn't too far off our path, and where we could find supplies and transportation.

“And
guess
who we met there? Mr. Ingle! He owns a little house in the town center. If you can even call it a town center. It was so
primitive
. They didn't even have a florist there. I checked. But dear Mr. Ingle is just as kind as he ever was, and I think he's much better off in a house than that frightful inn of his, even if it
is
a house in Northerly territory. He didn't seem to understand just how uncivil a town Gray Gully is, though I tried to explain.”

“What!” gasped Fife. “How
dare
he not care about incivility!”

Adelaide gave Fife a dirty look that made Lottie want to weep from happiness. She hadn't realized just how much she'd missed Adelaide until now—even the most irritating things about her.

“
As I was saying
,” Adelaide went on, “Mr. Ingle was very kind and hospitable, but Oliver and I were still worried silly about the rest of you. We stayed two days longer than either of us wanted, but Dorian insisted it was worth it because of the type of transportation he was waiting on. And you'll never guess what it was: a cart drawn by
horses
.”

“You're lying,” said Fife. “Impossible.”

“You can see them for yourself!” Adelaide said, ablaze with excitement. “They're tied up just outside the caverns. A gray one and a white one, and they're just as regal as I thought they would be. It seemed cruel to make them pull our weight.”

“She's lying,” Fife said to Oliver. “Isn't she?”

“It's true,” said Oliver. “There are dozens of them in Gray Gully.”

“What's the big deal?” said Eliot. “They're just horses.”

“Are horses common in the human world?” asked Adelaide, astonished.

“Common enough,” he said. “Though, come to think of it, I guess there aren't many on Kemble Isle.”

“Then you've seen them before?” Adelaide looked impressed.

“Of course,” said Eliot. Then, to Lottie, “They're talking about them like they're
unicorns
.”

“Maybe that's what they're like to sprites,” Lottie said, equally amused.

“Anyhow,” said Adelaide, “on our way here, Rebel Gem's genga found us and carried the news ahead. We weren't far behind. And when we reached court, Dorian insisted we wait around for Rebel Gem to show up because she was liable to have questions for us, but then Oliver said Dorian would have to tie him up in a hundred knots if he intended to make us sit around rather than find our friends. So Dorian finally let us go, and we found Fife and Eliot, and now you, Lottie. And everyone's well, and we're all together, and surely things can't possibly be as bad as they've been these past few days.”

“Fife told us about how you saved his life,” Oliver said, turning dark green eyes to Lottie.

“It was Trouble who saved us, really,” said Lottie.

“Lila's been in such a tizzy.” Adelaide nodded to the violet finch roosting in the crook of her crossed ankles. “Her heart was beating so fast on our journey here, I thought she might burst from fear.”

“I sent Keats down to Wisp Territory,” said Oliver. “He reported back a few hours ago.”

“And?”

“Lyre has ordered the entire Guard to fall back to the glass pergola in an attempt to keep the ‘most important' wisps safe, should Iolanthe and her soldiers attack again. Father is well. He's still tending to the sick and working on his cure.”

“Did you tell him our news?” asked Lottie. “About the ice crawler and the assassin?”