Fortissima by Sara Kingsley

Author:Sara Kingsley [Kingsley, Sara]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 978-0-473-40090-3
Publisher: Blue Fern Books

Late that night in the barn I tell Tui, Leif, and Catriona what happened.

Tui is furious. “How dare he threaten you like that. I’ve got a mind to give him a piece of—”

“Hold on, Tui,” I say. “I’ve been thinking all day about it. I’m grateful he said something, even if it was, well, quite insulting. If he hadn’t …” The thought of Jude taking action instead of simply warning me overwhelms my ability to speak.

“If he hadn’t,” Leif says, “we wouldn’t know that word has gotten as far as Sagegate. I’m sorry for thinking we’d be safe here.” He looks crushed.

I put my hand on his arm. He’s sitting next to me on my cot, while Catriona and Tui sit across from us on Leif’s bed. We’ve only lit a single lamp, placed on the floor between us so the light doesn’t shine out of the barn windows. “Don’t worry, Leif. We’ve been safe here, but it’s time to go.”

“You don’t mean we should start over the pass without Billy, do you?” Catriona asks.

“Yes, that’s exactly what I mean.” I reach into my pocket and pull out a piece of paper, unfolding it and laying it down so everyone can see. “Look, I went over to the Benfords this afternoon and had the old man draw this map.”

Everyone leans in to look at the diagram of the pass, which shows distances, dangers, and places to camp—caves and such. He’s even roughed out the final leg to the Bastion, although he apologized for the lack of detail of this area, saying he’s rarely traveled that far.

“We have this,” I say. “We’ve got our warm gear ready and we’ve been packing food away. And besides, we’re bound to run into Billy along the way. He might be willing to turn around and guide us the rest of the way across.”

They are silent for a few minutes, considering my plan.

“I don’t know about this, Raven,” Catriona says. “I think it’s too dangerous to try it on our own. I know of this pass—many have tried to cross it without success. And I don’t mean they’ve simply turned back. People have left to cross it and haven’t been seen since. In the summer, too. Maybe we should backtrack, cross over the main pass. We could disguise ourselves … or something. There’s got to be a way to evade Hunters out that way.”

I consider this. But I know that to go the other way would mean certain capture. Based on what Jude said, it’s not just Hunters we need to be worried about. Word has gotten out and anyone could be looking for me. I remember the WANTED FOR TREASON notice, still folded away in my jacket pocket. I shudder.

I look at each of my three friends. “No. We’ve got to attempt this pass. I know it’s going to be difficult, but we’d be easily trapped on the main route.”

Catriona starts pacing back and forth. We all wait for her response. She stops in front of us, hands on her hips.

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