“Blood and bones, sir. You startled me.”
“Any sign of the thrall?”
“Not yet,” Gareth said. “But it’s likely keeping to the shadows.”
“All right.” He opened the gate with a clang, hoping to alert the demon to their presence. “Come on, let’s get to the grotto.”
Leaving the gate open felt wrong, luring a demon onto campus even worse, but the thrall wasn’t going to harm Aurelie. Desshouldbe worrying about himself, or at the very least Gareth. They had such a short window to make this work. If he was gone for too long, Aurelie would undoubtedly grow suspicious. Worse, she might even come looking for him. He thought of her back in her laboratory, her hair unbound, her lips still swollen from earlier.
“Did you get her scent into the grotto?” Gareth asked.
“Yes,” Des growled, not wanting to share any more details. “I left one of her ribbons there, too, and carried her back to her laboratory.”
Gareth grinned, clearly about to say something suggestive, but thought better of it when he saw the look on Des’s face.
The grotto was as they’d left it: the gate was still ajar, Aurelie’s ribbon a dark tangle on the stone bench. They crouched in the shadows on either side of the grotto and waited.
Miraculously, it didn’t take long before they heard the thrall’s howl, sending shivers down Des’s spine. This creature had been following Aurelie for weeks, possibly months, tracking her every move.Everardhad been tracking her every move. This had to work, not least because he wanted to see that man rot in prison for what he’d put Aurelie through.
If Gareth’s research on thralls was correct, Everard would be greatly weakened with the demon imprisoned behind iron bars. Tomorrow, Commander Yew would post a guard to Everard’s house and arrest him the moment he stepped outside, if he could move at all. Des, Gareth, Daisy, and Jasper would come to the university to explain everything to Aurelie, and hopefully reveal the good news that her uncle was safe and sound.
Of all the difficult things Des had done in his life, telling Commander Yew the myriad ways he’d betrayed his trust was perhaps the hardest. He did it before his promotion ceremony, in case Yew changed his mind. But he’d heard Des out, which felt like a miracle in itself.
By the time he’d left Yew’s office, Des knew he had utterly betrayed Aurelie. But Aurelie going to prison was better than her dying, even if the thought of her behind bars was unbearable. She should be free to learn, to love. To marry, though he knew it would never be him. Not once she knew what he’d done.
“I think I hear something,” Gareth whispered.
Des had been so lost in his thoughts, he had missed the crunching of large paws in snow, but a moment later, the thrall’s red eyes appeared in the dark. Its nose was low to the ground, tracking their scent. Des tensed in anticipation. They had only one chance to get this right. The chain was still coiled where he’d left it by the iron gate. He held his breath and said a silent prayer. This would work. Thishadto work.
“Now!” he shouted the moment the thrall entered the grotto. Gareth leapt on the gate, slamming it shut just seconds before the thrall’s pointed snout was thrust through the bars. It yelped and leapt back at the close contact with the iron, giving Des enough time towrap the chain around the gate and snap the padlock closed before its teeth snapped dangerously close to his fingers.
“We did it,” Gareth breathed as they stood back, swords drawn, waiting for the creature to somehow break free of its cage.
Twice, it came close to the iron, growling as it sparked against its fur, tingeing the air with the smell of brimstone. It clawed at the stone at the back of the grotto but quickly gave up. It sat back on its haunches and released the most mournful howl Des had ever heard. It would be a miracle if Aurelie hadn’t heard it. There was a strong temptation to kill it now, but he’d vowed to capture averitaalive. Besides, if they were wrong and killing it didn’t injure Everard, then Aurelie’s uncle could pay the ultimate price for his impatience.
“I have to get back,” Des said to Gareth. “Come on.”
Still astonished the plan had worked, they ran back to the university gate. Gareth was about to slip through when Des shocked them both by pulling the boy into a firm embrace.
“You did good, kid,” he said, ruffling Gareth’s hair.
And Gareth, bless him, smiled wider than Des had ever seen before.
“What will you tell Aurelie about the ribbon?” Gareth asked as Des closed the gate behind him.
“The ribbon is the least of my concerns right now. Tell Commander Yew we succeeded. I’ll be back at the fort shortly.”
Gareth started to go, then paused. “You’re doing the right thing, you know.”
Des had no idea if that was true, but it was too late to turn back. He could only hope that, someday, Aurelie would forgive him.
Chapter 36
Aurelie
Aurelie woke to the sound of the door opening and Des’s large silhouette slipping through. Before she could say anything, he sat down on the ground next to the sofa and kissed her cheek.
“What took so long?” she asked, glancing at the clock. At least half an hour had passed since she fell asleep.