Jane Doe and the Key of All Souls by Jeremy Lachlan

Author:Jeremy Lachlan
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Hardie Grant Egmont
Published: 2020-01-06T16:00:00+00:00

THE SECOND KEY

The march to the canyon floor passes by in a daze. The sandy, spiralled path looping round the pillar. The swarm of red-cloaks following as we go, swinging from the ropes, climbing down, tracking our every step. The archers crouched on every ledge, arrows nocked and ready to fire. The sweat. The dread. Definitely not the welcome we were expecting.

No more games. What did Masaru mean?

Elsa ignored him. Played it cool when he instructed us to hand over our weapons. Violet objected, of course. Elsa told her to obey. Now she’s gabbing at Masaru in Arakaanian a million miles an hour, no doubt telling him about Yaku’s deception and the attack on Orin-kin. ‘The Boboki are coming for her, Masaru,’ she adds so we can understand. ‘We’ve no time to waste.’

‘Dai dai, oda min,’ he says, clucking his tongue. ‘Always in a rush.’

Elsa glances back at me, visibly shaken by his less-than-lacklustre response. Tries to cover it with a smile. ‘Apologies, oda mun,’ she says. ‘I’m just a little anxious.’

‘I am sure you are,’ Masaru says, playing the Cradle key through his fingers.

He should’ve given it back by now.

By the time we near the bottom, the suns are out in full force. The canyon walls are peppered with columns, caves and curtained windows. Doors and perilous staircases. Undulating paths criss-cross the canyon floor, weaving around the base of the pillars. A fair number of scorpions were blown over the mountain during the sandstorm. A bunch of club-wielding teenagers stand by, ready to squash them. Any ordinary day, I bet they’d make a game of it. Race each other. Right now, they’re staring at us, clubs raised. Another classic Jane Doe greeting.

‘No way,’ Violet whispers, gaping down the length of the canyon. ‘Jane, it’s the painting. The one hanging in Winifred’s study. Except for the creepy decorations.’

‘Glad you’re enjoying the view, Violet, but I think we have more pressing concerns right now.’

The red-cloaks swarm around the base of the pillar, flanking both sides of the path.

‘This is all quite unnecessary,’ Elsa chuckles, but her eyes are a little too wide, too frantic. ‘We were heading to see the Elders anyway. We don’t need this much protection.’

‘Udun gór,’ Masaru says. ‘Perhaps it is not you we are protecting.’

Through the procession of red-cloaks we go. Some stare at Aki. Others at me. Anyone’d think they’ve never seen an avatar of three ancient gods before.

None of this makes sense. These people have sheltered Elsa for decades. They’re on our side. So why are they treating us like a bunch of crooks?

Across the canyon floor we go, into the shade of a large cave. More decorations hang from the walls. Knotted flags. Strings of teeth. Threaded skulls. Some of them, I notice now, are human.

‘Perhaps a rest first,’ Elsa suggests, trying to buy us time. ‘Before we see the council.’

‘No rest,’ Masaru says. ‘We go to the chamber now.’

A staircase carved of stone. A sandy, cliff-side corridor. Open archways and balconies line one side.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.