The Gold-Son by Carrie Anne Noble

Author:Carrie Anne Noble [Noble, Carrie Anne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781477819678
Publisher: Skyscape
Published: 2017-06-19T18:30:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Two

AN BEALACH AMACH

(THE WAY OUT)

After the ambush, no bells rang to mark the passing hours.

Tommin had been sitting with Eve and Alby in the unused barn for what seemed like half a day or more, keeping still and quiet, listening for rampaging Trolls. His hands itched and burned, his heart beat erratically, and his head throbbed. He’d never left his cravings unsatisfied for this long, and he knew ignoring the need might soon lead to disaster. He knew that soon, his skin would break out in the multicolored hives called rainbow pox, and after that, he’d drift into the gold-deficiency coma. The coma could last days, weeks, or years. Centuries, even.

He shivered at the thought, or maybe it was from the fever that came with the pox. He rolled up his sleeves and checked his arms. No spots yet.

Alby’s head nodded, and he fell asleep with his back to the wall.

“Are you all right?” Eve whispered. She plucked the candle from Alby’s fist and brought the light close to Tommin’s face. Concern was etched on her brow. “You look terrible.”

“Gold deficiency,” Tommin said. “It’s coming on quick, I’m afraid.”

“No,” Eve said. “You have to fight it. Get on your feet. It’s as good a time as any to look for Copper in the statue garden—before this one wakes up.” She helped Tommin to his feet.

His knees trembled. He held Eve’s arm to steady himself.

“If I could find a few of those little gold pills, or even take the buckles off someone’s shoes . . .”

“Why not his?” Eve pointed to Alby’s feet. “He’s asleep, so it would be stealing. It should help a little.”

“But if I wake him?” Tommin’s teeth chattered. He stared at Alby’s buckles and breathed deep to absorb the scent of their silvery goodness.

“I’ll Charm you out of trouble or something. Go on. You’ll never make it to freedom in the state you’re in now, and I surely can’t carry you.”

Tommin knelt at Alby’s feet. Very cautiously, he undid the strap of one shoe and slid the buckle free. Bliss filled him as he worked at the other shoe. In for a penny, in for a pound, as the Leps liked to say. With both pieces of bright silver in hand, he stood.

He felt new again. “Let’s go.”

Outside the barn door, they stopped to listen and look. The dim light of a few lamps on posts showed them no one, and Tommin heard nothing but his own breathing and strong, steady heartbeat.

Eve extinguished the magic candle and pocketed it. She took off running, and he followed her, zigzagging through deserted lanes, stopping now and then to check for the presence of Trolls or Leps. A hint of smoke drifted through the air, as well as a stench Tommin feared came from burning bodies.

They darted through a gate and past statues of beasts, men, and Faerie folk. Eve never slowed until they reached a statue of a Leprechaun king. There, she stopped, panting and bending to rest her hands on her knees.

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