Echoes in Darkness

Chapter 31 - Ian

She didn't come at all that next day. Brant had helped Peter and I find an antidote for our mother. When night fell we sent Rus to go look for her, and when she came back, she had said what she found. Alex was locked in her room for believing she was Isabella.

"We need to get her out of there. Soon, we can't stay here for much longer," Peter said.

"How? Her door is locked, and her bedroom is on the third floor. There isn't an easy escape," Rus said folding her arms across her chest.

I thought. "And we can't go marching through the front door either," I said. "Then we'll really get caught, and killed."

"We need to somehow sneak her out of her own home."

"There's a secret passage in her house. It opens at the third floor, in her room, and leads to the kitchens where she can escape unnoticed. Alex and I played in the halls when we were younger," Bianca said.

"Bianca, can you write down the directions that Alex needs to take?" I ask. She nods and begins to write them down. "Rus when Bianca has the directions written down you need to take it to Alex. There you need to tell her what's going on."

Rus nodded. When Bianca was done writing down the directions I took the note and wrote down where she was going to meet us. I then handed the note to Rus, and she took off into the night.

***

It was midnight when Rus returned back to us. She quickly shifted back, and sat on the bed.

"She's not doing too well. I saw her mother use her magic on Alex. She was unconscious. The good thing though was that I found a place for the note where her mother won't find it, and Alex will," she said.

Just as she finished the sentence a wave of pain went through my body. I crumpled to the ground, and held my body. Something was happening. My body went cold, and I began to see something.

A bed, and mother was lying in it. Father was holding her hand tight, and crying next to her. Physicians surrounded the bed. They were saying things, but only certain things pierced through. 'She doesn't have much time.' 'You must bring them back to say goodbye.' Mother was dying, and it wouldn't be long until she was gone.

The vision faded, and Peter and Rus where standing above me. Worry was etched on both of their faces. Peter held out a hand, and I took it. He helped me up, and I sat on the bed rubbing my head in one hand, and my amulet in another.

"Are you alright?" Peter asked watching me.

"It's Mother. She's dying. We need to get back there quickly." I said.

"It's a good thing then that we got a note to her. She'll be able to escape. I'll make sure of it," Bianca said from her place in the corner.

"I know. But we have to hurry. Mother is about to die, and if Alex is in the state she is there's no telling how long it will take. We'll be vulnerable to an attack from King Edwin," I snapped.

Peter was silent. I rarely ever snapped at Peter. "So, what are we going to do then?" Rus asked.

"We're going to bring her back home, and I have a plan."

I went to my saddle bag to grab the antidote. It was two vials. I took a towel and made it into a small sack for Rus to easily carry the antidote back to Hutan in.

Rus walked over to me. "Rus, I'm sending you back to Hutan ahead of us. You're much faster, and if you fly all night, and all day at top speed you should be there in time. Give the antidote to my parents," I said as I held the bag in front of me. I looked at her, and quickly hugged her. "Be safe," was all I said.

"I will." She let go of me, and walked over to Peter.

I turned to Bianca. "I need you to get word to the girl that came in last night. Tell her that she needs to be ready."

She nodded. "Wait," Rus said. "Alex said to talk to Emile. To ask her if she had told anybody about what she had said."

Bianca nodded. "Where are we going to meet?"

"There is an abandoned stable about a mile northwest of here. That is where we're going to meet."

Bianca nodded once more, and quickly left the room.

They whispered between each other. After a few minutes Peter kissed her forehead, and the two hugged. I turned around as to not intrude on their moment. I adjusted the things in the bag so that they wouldn't fall out while Rus was flying. I quickly read the note, and added in where we were to meet her when she got out. When they were done, they both walked up to me.

"Are you ready?" I asked Rus.

She nodded. "Ready as I'll ever be," she responded.

We walked to the window, and Rus began to change again. When she was a falcon once again, I placed the bag over her head, and rested it on her neck. She spread her wings and took off in the night. I turned back to Peter.

"Get some rest. It might be the last night in a bed until we get home," I said to him.

He nodded, and turned to the bed. I closed the window, and also turned to my bed. I took off my extra layers, and just laid down on the bed with my clothes on. Pulling the blankets over top of myself, Peter blew out the candles that were lighting the room. Soon it was pitch black in the room, and I let sleep consume me.