Annifer

Chapter 14: Kriston

We re-entered the castle through the west door. My vision was blurred and I was struggling to walk. If Hosta had let go of my arm, I think I would have fallen to the ground. At the bottom of Kriston's staircase the guards stopped us.

"No one enters this tower by order of Lord Skarp," the taller of the two barked. The doctor handed him the dispensation. He read it and looked at me suspiciously. "She goes in. Not you, old man."

Hosta nodded at the guard and squeezed my arm. The guards stepped aside to let me past. I looked past them at the staircase and my heart sank. I was so close. I even had a crystal but now I wasn't sure I could even manage to get up the stairs. Gerda's voice came back to me.

"You're strong, Annie. You can do this. I know you can." I took a deep breath. Clenching my fists, I mustered all my strength and stepped forward. One step at a time, I told myself and started to climb. Halfway up I was seized by a desperation to see my brother that carried me the rest of the way, almost at a run.

At the top I saw the bedroom door was ajar. I flung it open. Kriston was lying in his four-poster bed, his closed eyes sunk in their sockets, his complexion white as a sheet. I ran to him, perched on the bed and stroked his forehead. It was cold to the touch. He was barely breathing. Tears flowed down my cheeks. I buried my face in his neck and wept. You have to pull yourself together, I told myself. You don't have much time.

On my hands and knees on the floor, I rolled the carpet aside. Then I knelt on Kriston's pillow, slid my arms under his armpits and pulled him up until he was in a sitting position, his head lolling on my shoulder. I fumbled in my pocket for the phial, ripped the cork out and emptied the contents into Kriston's open mouth. He spluttered and coughed weakly, his face contorted in pain but I saw his throat work as he swallowed the liquid. I threw the sheets aside and dragged him onto the floor. As gently as I could, I laid him on his back. I grabbed his pillow from the bed and slipped it under his head.

Hands shaking, I dug the chalk out of my pocket and, crawling on the floor, I drew a lopsided circle around him. I wrenched my brother's desk draw open, pulled out two thick candles, thrust them wick first into the fire till to light them and positioned them on the chalk circle, on either side of his chest. Lastly I placed Dr Hosta's crystal on the edge of the circle below his feet. Trembling from head to foot, my heart beating like torrential rain, I knelt at Kriston's head. I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to bring my body and mind to stillness.

Suddenly a wet nose touched my arm. I jumped. My eyes shot open.
"Milo!" I shouted. He must have been hiding under the bed. I threw my arms around his neck. Just then a furry head brushed against my leg and I heard a familiar purring. "Sasha!" I caressed her soft black head. She must have snuck past the guards without them noticing. Now I had a crystal and two animal helpers. My heart lifted, confidence suffused through me. I spoke the words of the prayer, breathed in deeply, closed my eyes and exhaled, letting the tension flood out of my body. I looked within. The fire in my heart blazed fiercely, a glowing, raging ball of flame. I sent it out, down my arms into the palms of my hands. My hands grew warmer. Soon they were white hot. I pressed them to Kriston's temples. The fire coursed out of me and into my brother's body. All the while, I continued reciting the healing prayer.

I opened my eyes and looked down at my hands. I could see the energy like a bright white light flowing into him. All at once, the crystal at his feet lit up like a lamp. Sasha nuzzled his head and Milo licked his leg. Both animals shone as if lit from within. Light streamed into my brother's prone body, filling it with energy, till it glowed with a bright white radiance.

But still he didn't move. Not even an eyelid flickered. I felt my arms start to shake with the effort. I was getting dizzy, fighting to stay conscious. A wave of nausea passed over me and I tried not to throw up. Sasha's purring was getting fainter and Milo's head was drooping. We were all tiring. The healing light was starting to dim. We couldn't hold on much longer.