Another familiar voice rang out and Ghrashbreg appeared, shoving his way through the ranks to appear in front of the other Filits. ‘If we had the Stone, you’d already know about it. Get out of our city.’
‘It’s not yours.’
Ghrashbreg looked amused. ‘According to the laws of Scotland it is. Even Prime Minister James hasn’t interfered with our ownership.’
The swarthy Gneiss goblin was unimpressed. ‘He is weak.’ I sneaked a look at de Florinville. His expression was stony and his arms were folded tightly against his broad chest. I guessed he wasn’t very impressed either. ‘Besides, he knows that the law states Stirling is goblin land. Not Filit. Not Gneiss. Merely goblin.’
Ghrashbreg shrugged. ‘We were here first. And you know what the humans say. Finders keepers…’
‘But if you’ve not found the Stone yet, perhaps it’s time you let someone else try. You are growing careless with your efforts. Gabriel de Florinville is here. If he discovers the truth…’
‘He is leaving this evening,’ Ghrashbreg growled. ‘And he knows nothing. The Dark Elf might be powerful but he has other things to distract him.’
‘Such as?’
‘His Fior Ghal is here in this very city.’
The Gneiss general started. ‘Really?’
‘Really.’ Ghrashbreg sniffed derisively. ‘Unless you managed to kill her when you destroyed the Tolbooth. We’ve not seen her or de Florinville since the walls collapsed. The Prime Minister won’t be happy if you’ve killed him. He might even take umbrage and send in a larger contingent. You thought you were killing our only lead to the Stone. Instead you might have ended all our efforts in one fell swoop.’
‘Our efforts?’
‘We’re all goblins here.’
The Gneiss smiled. ‘We are. Why don’t you let us take over the search so you can get a rest?’
‘Fuck off.’
‘There’s no need to be rude, Lord Ghrashbreg.’
Ghrashberg took a menacing step forward. ‘I mean it. Get out of our city. We will give you ten minutes to leave the city walls or your compatriots will find your heads in the next diplomatic bags.’
For a moment it seemed as if the Gneiss leader was going to hold his ground, whether he was outnumbered a thousand to one or not, but in the end he inclined his head and moved back. ‘So be it. But tell me, Lord Ghrashbreg, if you do find the Stone as a result of this woman, will you use it? Or is there another Filit with even grander delusions of power?’
Ghrashbreg laughed. ‘It’s not if we find the Stone, you imbecile. It’s when.’ His laughter stopped. ‘Now get out.’
The Gneiss goblin jerked his hand upwards and returned to the vehicle, which still had its engine running. As he clambered aboard and it reversed away, I glanced at de Florinville. He was looking pale under his tan and beads of sweat were breaking out across his forehead. Holding the eavesdropping spell was obviously taking more of a toll on him than he wanted us to know. This, I thought smugly, was why wraiths were far superior to Dark Elves. But for all the strain etched on his face and contained within the stiff lines of his taut body de Florinville clung on.
As soon as the Gneiss goblins had departed, Ghrashbreg turned to the other goblins. ‘He’s right about one thing – we are growing careless. Our proximity to success is causing us to lose focus. Make sure the Gneiss bastards leave and don’t return. Plug the gap they’ve created. We need to find where the damned Horrocks woman has gone. Does de Florinville have her? Because if he does and he knows about the Stone…’ He sucked in a breath and didn’t bother finishing his sentence. Judging by the expressions of the other goblins, he didn’t need to.
‘Find them both,’ Ghrashbreg ordered. ‘Especially Angela Horrocks. Go door to door until you’ve scoured every damn corner of this city. Kill whoever gets in your way but bring her to me and make sure she is still alive and capable of talking. If you can’t find her, then find her damned brat.’ He paused then, when no one immediately moved, he roared, ‘Move!’
Goblins scattered everywhere. De Florinville gasped and the spell was broken. Mercat Cross was still reflected in Marrock’s clever mirror but we could no longer hear what was going on. It didn’t really matter; I reckoned all of us had heard enough.
Chapter Twelve
Without waiting for the other two, I spun away and flew down the fire escape, pelting my way back through the dark bowling alley towards Ange. It was only a matter of time until the Filits found us here and it was imperative that I got her to safety. I’d have to get her to Sally’s, retrieve Becky and find a way to get both of them out of Stirling. There were plenty of gaps in the siege line – the Gneiss goblins had just proved that. What Ange and Becky needed, however, was a blind gap where they could slip through entirely unnoticed by either side. I’d find a way for them; I had to.
Ange was still sleeping, her face calm and relaxed for what was probably the first time in months. Tough: there was no longer any time for rest or for dreams. I shook her awake. She sprang upwards, terror lighting her eyes. ‘No!’ she shrieked. ‘I don’t know where it is! I don’t even know what you’re talking about! Let me go!’
‘It’s me. It’s Saiya.’
Ange stared at me, her eyes still wide with fear. ‘Saiya, I…’ Her shoulders slumped. ‘I’m safe,’ she whispered. ‘It’s okay.’ She smoothed her hair back with trembling fingers. ‘It’s all going to be fine.’
Not necessarily. Rather than sugar coat things, I crouched in front of her. ‘You’re not safe and neither is Becky. Every damn goblin in Stirling is searching for you. By the sound of things every damn goblin outside Stirling wants to kill you. We need to get you both out of here and we need to do it now.’
Her face paled. She’d survived in Stirling for too long to pass out or to crumple, however. Her eyes closed briefly as she absorbed my words and then she stood up on shaky legs. ‘Then we’d better get moving.’ Ange was a survivor. At this point we all were.
With no way or knowing what Marrock or de Florinville were going to do – and no real reason to trust either of them – I was more than ready to skedaddle and leave the pair of them in the dust. I hooked one of Ange’s arms round my shoulders. ‘It’s you and me, okay? We can do this.’
She nodded. It’s not like there was much choice. We’d barely gone three steps, however, when Marrock appeared in front of us, barring our path.
‘Get out of my way,’ I snapped. ‘You didn’t want her here and now I’m granting your wish and taking her away. Don’t worry. Neither of us will mention your name if we’re caught.’
‘You can’t leave now, Saiya,’ he said, with an air of pragmatism that was most unlike him. ‘You won’t get twenty metres down the street before you’re spotted.’
‘Well, we can’t stay here. We’ll be sitting ducks.’ I gave him a pointed look. ‘And we all know what will happen to you and your people if she’s found here. You won’t be able to hide behind your dodgy deals this time, Marrock. Think of the box they sent you.’
His expression didn’t flicker. ‘I am thinking of the box. It’s all I’m thinking of.’
‘Then you don’t want us anywhere near here. You were right the first time, I should have stayed away.’
Marrock shook his head. From the gloom beyond, I was aware of Gabriel de Florinville watching our exchange. He wasn’t my priority though, even if his presence filled the room. ‘I didn’t know what was at stake before,’ Marrock said calmly. ‘I do now.’
De Florinville spoke up. ‘I told him what the Stone is.’
I wasn’t sure it mattered but curiosity won out. ‘So?’ I asked. ‘What is it?’
‘There’s only one Stone they can be referring to,’ he said with a heavy sigh. ‘The Stone of Scone.’ He pronounced the word ‘scoon’, in Gaelic fashion. ‘Also known as the Stone of Destiny.’
I frowned. ‘But that’s in Holyrood. It’s the thing the King is crowned on, right?’ If there ever was a king. The monarchy was based in
England these days.
‘You’re only half right. Yes, the Stone of Scone is what the Kings and Queens of Scotland are traditionally crowned on. It’s heavy and ugly and has been around for centuries. It’s also fake.’
I stared at him. ‘Excuse me?’
He shrugged as if it were a matter of little consequence but it was bloody big news to me. ‘It’s fake. The real one disappeared centuries ago. King Edward of England wanted it so the Scottish Crown took measures to hide it. They put a fake stone in its place.’
‘We’re talking about a lump of granite here, right? A slab of stone? Who cares?’
‘It’s not granite,’ he said softly. ‘It’s red sandstone. It can be traced as far back as Jacob and the Book of Genesis. The power and magic contained within it are immense. The Stone in Edinburgh is merely ceremonial; the Stone the goblins are looking for possesses very real power. If one of them is crowned using the original Stone, they will have the power and the right to usurp the government. They’ll be able to take over Scotland, maybe even beyond. The world as we know it will never be the same. You can forget about democracy.’ He put his hands in his pockets and gazed into the distance. ‘This is why,’ he said softly. ‘This is why the goblins are fighting over this scrap of land and refusing to give in.’
‘It is here,’ Ange said, her voice so quiet it was barely audible. ‘The real Stone is in Stirling.’
All of three of us looked at her. She coughed and ducked her head. ‘I mean, the goblins are convinced it’s here. They think I know where it is but I don’t. I really don’t.’
‘Why do they think you know?’ I asked, nervously glancing towards the exit. I half expected an army of Filits to storm in at any second.
‘Bernard,’ she said.
‘Your ex? Becky’s dad?’
Ange nodded. ‘He’s dead now. Sepsis or something.’ Her face twisted. ‘Good riddance to him. He might have been a bully who preferred using his fists to solve his problems but apparently he could trace his lineage back to the people who first hid the Stone. He left me his stuff in his will so I could pass it on to Becky. I thought there would be food or money, something useful, you know? There were a few things. He was a cunning bastard who had more on his shelves that most but other than food, there were just some old clothes, a watch and a worthless little trinket box.’
The same worthless little trinket box that Becky had shown me; the one Ange had hidden in their secret stash and which she knew wasn’t worthless at all. I hummed in disappointment but otherwise kept my mouth shut. Neither Ange nor I were stupid enough to discuss it further.
I looked at de Florinville. ‘Big deal.’
His mouth dropped open. ‘Pardon?’
I shrugged and repeated myself. ‘Big deal. We’ve had to deal with goblin rule for three years. We’ve managed. Lots of us are dead, lots of us are starving, but no one’s come running to our rescue. Not you, not the Prime Minister, not anyone. If the Filits or the Gneiss find this Stone and end up ruling all of Scotland instead of all of Stirling, it’s probably not going to change my life or Ange’s or even Marrock’s. It’ll just be more of the same.’
De Florinville’s dark eyes held mine. ‘There are lots of reasons why we couldn’t get involved. We wanted to, believe me – the last thing any of us wanted was to leave Stirling to goblin rule – but our hands were tied. Believe me, Saiya. I’d have fought for Stirling if I could have.’ His voice dropped. ‘I’d have fought for you.’
‘But you didn’t.’
He wasn’t going to give up. ‘The Stone changes things. With the goblins actively searching for it, the treaty is broken. The protectorate doesn’t hold. We can retake Stirling. Things can go back to normal.’
‘None of that does us any good,’ I pointed out. ‘We’re still trapped here. And that’s even if they don’t find the bloody rock.’
His hand reached out as if he were going to caress my cheek. Something in my expression must have changed his mind because he pulled back at the last moment. ‘Not for long,’ he said grimly. ‘It’s imperative that we get news of the Stone to James. He’ll have no choice but to act.’
Except James would still be on the outside. If this Stone really was that important, then leaving the city meant leaving it to the Filits. All the armies in the world wouldn’t do any good if Prime Minister James couldn’t get them into Stirling to retrieve the Stone.
Another chilling thought occurred to me: in the event that James couldn’t put his regal mitts on the Stone of Scone, maybe he’d do everything he could to ensure that no one else would either. And that would mean obliterating the city. I glanced at de Florinville from under my eyelashes but if he knew what I was thinking then his face didn’t show it. Thinking on my feet, I pulled back my shoulders and met his eyes. ‘Okay,’ I said. ‘But we have to focus on Ange as she’s the one who might know where the stupid Stone is.’
‘And Becky,’ Ange interrupted, twisting her hands. ‘We can’t leave Becky.’
I nodded. ‘Don’t worry. I have a plan.’ Sort of. I pointed at de Florinville. ‘You need to go back to the goblins. Delay them. Talk to Ghrashbreg and tell him you saw Ange’s dead body. Mine too. It’ll take them time to clear away the rubble from the Tolbooth and find out the truth. That’ll give us a chance to collect Becky and get her and Ange out of the city.’
The Dark Elf’s expression was a mask. He certainly wasn’t giving much away but I could tell from his tone of voice that he wasn’t happy about the idea. ‘That’s all very well,’ he said. ‘But how will you get out of Stirling without being noticed? It’s not just the Filits who are after Ange. The Gneiss goblins are obviously aware of her existence. There was a reason why they targeted the Tolbooth – they knew the Filits were getting close and they wanted her dead.’
I thought of the other wraith who’d been moments away from wrapping his shadowy hands round Ange’s throat. ‘Indeed.’
‘I can solve the problem of the Filits,’ Marrock said. ‘I have a route. We normally use it for bringing in supplies for the black market. It tunnels under the city.’
I flung him a look. ‘A tunnel?’
‘Truthfully, I have more than one. Besides the one that will help you escape, which is located on the outskirts, there are others that start from here. One leads to the Tolbooth in case I ever need to mount a rescue. One is an escape route should I ever end up besieged.’ He returned my look. ‘I take care of my own.’
I sniffed. ‘Don’t the Filits know about it?’
‘They tend to turn a blind eye to my activities.’ He bared his teeth in a semblance of a smile. ‘I know which palms to grease and, until recently, I didn’t upset them.’
‘Except now you have upset them very much,’ I said. ‘They know you have interest in Ange. You asked about her. Your henchman died because of that interest.’
‘That was at your behest,’ he said, as if I needed reminding.
I didn’t rise to the bait. ‘I’m aware of that but it doesn’t change the fact.’
Marrock rubbed his chin. ‘They also know that I received the warning loud and clear and have pulled back from my … enquiries. Plus, I can contact Lord Ghrashbreg and inform him of your earlier visit. That should provide us with some leeway.’
So it was us now. What strange bedfellows I’d found.
‘I’m coming with you,’ de Florinville interjected. ‘It’s too dangerous outside the city walls with the Gneiss goblins prowling around. Besides, you’ll never gain access to the Prime Minister quickly enough without me.’ He held up his hands before I could argue. ‘I’ll still go to the Filits and provide the diversion that you need but then I’ll meet you at Marrock’s escape point and we can travel together.’ His gaze held mine, making it impossible for me to look away. ‘You know it makes sense, Saiya.’
It did. Being with de Florinville would offer protection that I couldn’t manage myself, not without my shadow form. What he didn’t know was that I was not going to leave the city. I’d
see Ange and Becky out and wave at de Florinville as he tripped off with them. Then I was going to turn right back around and find this damn Stone before the goblins did. Now that I knew of its existence, I couldn’t just forget about it. Hell would come to the Highlands before I’d let the goblins take over the country. One city was bad enough.
‘Fine,’ I said, as if acceding to his will. ‘That’s a good idea.’
Marrock smiled grimly and snapped his fingers. A few moments later, another minion ran over with a map. Marrick rolled it out on a table and jabbed at the northeast corner. ‘Here,’ he said. ‘I have a tunnel under the walls which is accessed via an old school building. It takes you out beyond Stirling. You’ll come out close to an old church in the east. It’s not too far from the Gneiss encampment so you’ll need to be careful but it’s not impossible. For someone like Saiya, it will be a piece of cake.’
Gabriel de Florinville’s eyes grew sharp at that comment but he didn’t say anything. I nodded and checked my watch. ‘Three hours,’ I said. ‘That’ll give Ange and I enough time to retrieve Becky and get to the school. That should you give you two chance to get to the goblins and plant the necessary seeds to help our escape.’ I felt goose bumps of anticipation rising up across my skin. The next few hours might prove to be the most important of my life. ‘How do we get out of here without being noticed?’ I asked Marrock. I knew I could manage it on my own but, with Ange in tow, it would be far harder.
‘There’s a lane which leads out along the river. It’s rarely used by the goblins. The Elf can leave first. He’ll stall any goblins heading in this direction and divert them. Then you take the Horrocks woman and go. After that, I’ll head off and do what I can to delay Ghrashbreg and his bastards further.’ There was a note of macabre satisfaction in Marrock’s words, as if this were something he’d been waiting to do for a long time.
‘What do you get out of this, Marrock?’ I asked. I knew my motivation and Ange’s, I even understood de Florinville’s, but Marrock had no reason to jeopardise his life in this fashion. He was sitting pretty.