Rise of the Erifs (The Fire Song Chronicles Book 1)

Chapter 29

Latainia 

TORIN STARED AROUND THE TABLE WAITING FOR SOMEONE TO CHALLENGE him. He knew it was coming. But to be honest everyone was a little stunned. After Laykin had turned up they had all assumed that Jaydar had died on Keppar.

"You mean he's alive?" Bowa breathed.

Jenna nodded. Torin had already informed her of Avian and her letter about Jaydar.

"I had just assumed that he was dead," Bowa said, running a hand through his hair. "But alive. Where is he?"

"On Keppar. Crimson is holding him prisoner," Torin said.

Bowa shook his head in disbelief. He was almost too scared to believe it in case it wasn't true.

"We must rescue him now and bring him home!" Torin said.

Jansen's expression openly showed his doubt. "But how do you know this?"

Torin faltered, he couldn't tell them where he got the information from. They would never believe him.

"From a contact I have," he settled for.

"Oh really?" Jansen said, his voice laced with sarcasm.

"They'd rather that I don't disclose their name," Torin said, calmly. 

"So that just explains everything, does it?" Jansen eyed Torin in suspicion. 

Sahron drummed her fingers on the table. "I have to say that aside from the seemingly unknown unreliable source, how would we even get him out? How would we get into Keppar in the first place?"

Torin placed a piece of paper on the table. "I've got that covered too."

"What's that?" Jansen said. 

Sahron reached out and grabbed the paper. Her eyes scanned the contents before turning to Torin in utter disbelief.

"Is this what I think it is? And if it is, where the hell did you get it from?" 

"I believe that piece of paper is a diagram of Crimson's castle," Torin said, trying to control the tremor of excitement in his voice.

"What?!" Bowa snatched it out of Sahron's hands.   

"It can't be!" Jansen said. "No one would just give it to the Erif's arch enemy!"

"It's pretty roughly done," Bowa commented.

"And written in a hurry," Sahron added.

"Torin, who gave this to you? You can tell us," Bowa said, gently.

"I can't," Torin said. "I have to get Jaydar out and that is going to help me do it."

"What if it's a fake?" Jansen said.

"It's not." Torin's tone was dangerous.

"But on the black market things can be fakes," Jansen said.

"It's not and I didn't get it on the black market," Torin said.

"But it-"

"It is not a fake," Torin said, his tone final.

Bowa was nodding. He saw the determined set to Torin's jaw. 

"If Prince Torin is convinced then so am I," he said.

Torin leaned forward. "I don't want a full scale attack. I want us to get in and out. That's all."

"A small task force then," Sahron said, nodding along.