Rise of Keitus (24 page)

Early the next morning, Jacob was awakened by someone knocking on the door of their shelter. He sprang off his mattress and changed his clothes as fast as he could.

But someone got there first. He heard the door open, then Aloren said, “Oh, it’s totally okay.”

How’d she unlock the door without the Key? Dang it—Jacob must have forgotten to close up last night.

“Is Ondel ready?” he heard Dmitri ask. “And what about Thojac?”

Jacob walked around the hanging blankets and sheets right as Matt emerged from his own sleeping area. Dmitri and Kelson stood in the doorway. Dmitri looked regal in a dark purple suit. Kelson had a huge grin on his face, and Jacob was struck by how much of his personality Matt had inherited.

Dmitri nodded to Jacob. “I’ll have more information for you later, but it’s looking like I’ll be able to get you in to work under the king after all.”

“That’s great!” Jacob grabbed an apple from the table. “How did you guys find us?”

“I sent feelers around last night,” Dmitri said. “My people see and know pretty much everything.”

Jacob nodded and rubbed the apple clean. “Makes sense.”

“If Rora and Ondel are ready,” Kelson said, “we should be going.” He glanced at Aloren. “You’ll be spending time with a friend of mine. Her name is Jansa.”

“And you, Ondel, are coming with me.” Dmitri pushed the door open. “Ready?”

The four of them left. Jacob sat at the table and Time-Saw to the castle, wanting to get acquainted with its layout.

Several hours later, Matt returned. “Okay, so Dad is seriously the coolest person in the world!” He flopped into a chair at the table.

“Your dad or ours?”

“Ours—Dmitri. There weren’t that many shadows, but he taught me how to stay in them anyway—how to creep around so no one sees you. And he told me I’m a natural!”

Jacob smiled to himself. That sounded like something their dad would say to make a person feel good when really, they’d done very poorly. He decided not to mention this to Matt.

“So where all did you guys go?”

“Pretty much everywhere,” Matt said. “Back to the lady’s house to check up on her.” The smile left his face. “Another one of her kids died after we left last night. There’s only her and a three-year-old left. We gave her some food, but Jacob, it was awful. She really didn’t even care anymore. Stared at the food like she didn’t know what it was. I don’t think she ate it or fed the kid.”

Jacob knitted his eyebrows, leaning his head against the wall behind him. “Dmitri’s journal said that the people of the city eventually reached a point where they had no hope anymore. It didn’t matter what he did—he couldn’t revive their interest in life. According to the time line, that’s going to be happening really soon.”

“That sucks.” Matt folded his arms and stared at the wall. Neither said anything for a moment, then Matt returned to talking about his experiences with Dmitri.

Aloren came back soon after, carrying new food. “I picked up some stuff from the market. Jansa showed me a bunch of really good places to buy food without getting ripped off.”

Jacob and Matt crowded around her as she showed them what she got: pears, apples, eggs, and a loaf of bread.

“Only cost me one brass coin!”

Jacob whistled. “That’s impressive. It would’ve cost me at least five.”

“I know.” Aloren turned to go to her room. “Oh, and Dmitri wants to talk to us. He’ll be here in a couple of minutes.”

Jacob quickly ate so he’d be ready when the prince arrived. He finished right when the knock sounded at the door.

Dmitri didn’t waste any time saying hello. “Are the three of you willing to work hard? To put in more time than you already have?”

Matt shrugged. “We’ve got a lot of time. I’m speaking for myself, but I’m willing to do whatever you need me to do.”

Aloren nodded. “Same.”

Dmitri looked at Jacob. “I’m sure you agree with your friends.” He grabbed a chair and sat. “The thing is, there is so much to do, and members of my group have families and responsibilities and so many things pulling at them. I’ve got the feeling you three don’t really have to deal with any of that right now.” He motioned to Matt. “We’d like Ondel to work with Cholan, Kelson’s brother. And you, Rora, will continue working with Jansa.”

Dmitri turned to Jacob again.

“I’ve found a way to get you in the castle, but you’ll have to live there permanently—until you’re released or have accomplished what you came to do.”

Jacob felt his stomach practically enter his throat as his heart started racing. Things were about to get much more dangerous. How would he communicate with Matt and Aloren? What if something happened to them and he wasn’t there to get them back home?

Dmitri must have sensed his worry. “You’ll still be able to attend meetings, and you’ll see me in the castle occasionally. We’ll make sure your two friends are cared for. And you can get caught up with them at meetings.” He leaned back, folding his arms. “What do you all think? Are you up for it?”

Jacob picked at his lips. “Can we have a moment to talk?”

Dmitri got to his feet. “I’ll be outside. Let me know when you’ve decided.”

Jacob looked at Matt and Aloren. The colors for excitement and panic swirled in the air around them. He could tell how freaked out and eager they were, and knew a similar expression was on his face.

Matt tugged on his hair, making it stand up on end even more than usual. “Guys, I really don’t know. I mean—not seeing you all the time? How are we going to know if one of us is safe or not?”

Aloren organized food on the table that didn’t need to be organized. “I really wish we could’ve brought Early and Hazel.” She looked at Jacob. “Is there any chance . . .”

He shook his head. “No. They’re too small. If I try to warm their hands, I’d probably destroy them from the shoulder down. We can’t even risk practicing.” He started pacing the room. “I wish Azuriah were available.”

The leader of the Shiengols had left to work with his people and would be out of contact again for a while. Azuriah’s wife, whom Jacob still hadn’t met, had found a group of Shiengols who didn’t want to help. Azuriah predicted a difficult time trying to convince them to join the fight against the Lorkon. Jacob honestly didn’t have a lot of hope that he would be successful—it had been hard enough to get
that
Shiengol to help, let alone many Shiengols who lived halfway across Eklaron.

Aloren grabbed Jacob’s arm. “Go ask your dad and mom for their opinion. They’ll know what to do.”

“Good idea.”

Jacob returned to the present and found Mom watching a chick flick in the living room with Amberly asleep by her. Mom paused the movie, and Jacob told her about Dmitri’s suggested arrangement.

She immediately shook her head. “No way, Jacob. No way. I’m not okay with this. Separating you from the only people you trust? Not a good idea.”

“I trust Dmitri, and I’ll see him in the castle.”

“Not enough.” She looked up. “Get Early. We need to find out what your father thinks.”

Jacob couldn’t help but smile to himself as he ran to his room and grabbed some seeds. Of course Dad would be okay with it—it was his idea, after all. But Jacob didn’t find it necessary to tell Mom that.

Early appeared a moment later. She’d been with Fubble the Wurby and the others, trying to help them find a specific tunnel. Jacob quickly explained the situation, then asked her to find out what Dad wanted.

“Let him know Mom doesn’t think it’s a good idea. Then tell me what he says. I’ll be downstairs with Mom.”

Early disappeared with a flash.

But after five minutes, ten minutes, then fifteen minutes, she still hadn’t returned. Jacob rubbed the back of his neck and looked at Mom. She sat with her arms folded, the grumpy expression on her face mirroring the pinkish-red color of irritation that flowed in the air around her.

“I can’t stand this anymore,” he said. “I’m going to talk to Kenji about it.”

She nodded, relaxing her position. “Very well.” She pointed at Jacob. “But you tell him how I feel.”

Jacob Keyed to Kenji’s house. The patriarch sat at the table, surrounded by books and papers. He was still spending a great deal of time studying Brojan’s notes. He listened while Jacob talked, then took a deep breath.

“Jacob, you need to be willing to do whatever is necessary in this situation, regardless of how your mother feels. And I’m sorry about that, since she should have a say in what happens.” He leaned back in his chair. “You’re going to have to be separated from Matt and Aloren for a time.”

Jacob nodded. “That’s what I was thinking—Dmitri found me a way in, and I’ve got to take advantage of the situation.”

“Exactly. But good luck with your mother, anyway.” Kenji smiled.

Jacob Keyed home and relayed the message to Mom. She took a deep breath, then obviously pushed her feelings aside, changing the topic.

“Early came back while you were gone. She couldn’t get hold of your dad, but decided to go to the Fat Lady’s instead and ask her.”

Jacob frowned—Early had done something of her own accord? Wow. “What did the Fat Lady say?”

Mom wouldn’t respond. She stared at the carpet and played with Amberly’s hair. A tear slipped down her cheek, and Jacob knew what the answer had been. He put his arms around her shoulders.

“It’s going to be okay.” He didn’t know that for sure, but Mom needed to hear it.

She was still crying when he went back to Troosinal.

Aloren and Matt looked up and stared at him expectantly.

“Well, Mom freaked out and we couldn’t get hold of Dad, but the Fat Lady and Kenji said the same thing: we have to do it. It’s necessary, regardless of the danger.”

Aloren tucked her hair under the scarf. “We’ll just have to do our best to keep in contact with each other.”

A worried look crossed Matt’s face. “How are you going to handle this when you need breaks from Traveling? Doesn’t it make it harder having all of us in the past?”

Jacob nodded. “Yeah, but I can go for several days now. And so long as we return home for a few hours each meeting, we’ll be fine. Since my ability allows me to do that—spend lots of time in the present without lots of time in the past going by—we’ll be okay.”

Matt didn’t look totally convinced. “All right,” he said, his expression serious. “I’ll go get Dmitri.” He opened the front door and invited in the prince. “We’re on board with your plan.”

Dmitri smiled. “Good. Get your things, Thojac.” He motioned to Matt and Aloren. “Kelson will be along soon. Let him know your decision, then he’ll take the two of you to where you’ll be staying.”

“What sorts of things do I need to bring?” Jacob asked. “Blankets? Clothing?”

“Clothing, yes. Blankets and bedding, no.”

Jacob walked into his sleeping quarters, made sure the Key was still in his pocket, and grabbed his extra shirt and pair of pants. The rest of his Troosinal clothes were in Mendon. He rolled them up and tucked them under his arm.

Dmitri glanced at the wad under Jacob’s arm when he returned to the main room. “They’ll be giving you things to wear while on duty at the castle, so you can wash your personal things—however much of it you have—in the meantime.”

Jacob felt his cheeks flush. Dmitri was probably pitying him for his extreme poverty. Oh, well. Jacob said goodbye to Aloren and Matt, trying not to feel like he’d never see them again, and followed the prince outside.

Dmitri pulled himself up on his horse and motioned to another one. “I brought that for you.”

Jacob eyed the creature. It was much bigger than any horse he’d ever seen, and he hadn’t ridden in over a year. After two tries, and a very red face, Jacob finally got himself up in the saddle.

“You know how to ride?”

Jacob nodded. His face burned even hotter, but luckily, Dmitri didn’t seem to notice.

“Stay behind me. The people of this city will get suspicious if a servant or peasant is seen riding alongside the prince.”

Jacob nodded, and Dmitri headed down the road toward Pig. It took some coaxing, but Jacob’s horse finally followed. He couldn’t tell if it was because the horse wanted to keep up with Dmitri’s or because Jacob had conveyed the correct message, but then he decided it didn’t matter because they were going together. He settled into the saddle, trying to get accustomed to being there again.

The ride to the castle took over an hour—people stopped the prince frequently, begging for money and food. He gave out little loaves of bread from his saddle bags and the occasional fruit or vegetable.

Everyone ignored Jacob, and that was just fine with him.

Once they got to the castle, Dmitri jumped down from his horse and handed the reins to a servant. Another servant waited for Jacob as he dismounted. The servants led the horses away, and Jacob followed Dmitri to the steps of the castle where an ugly butler waited, wearing a tux-like outfit.

Dmitri motioned to Jacob. “This is Thojac. He’s the replacement for the footman the king had killed this morning.”

Jacob swallowed. Killed? He turned to ask Dmitri, but the prince was already walking away, head high. Jacob took a deep breath and looked back at the man.