Thrice Upon a Marigold by Jean Ferris

Author:Jean Ferris
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

12

I KNOW THEY CAME THIS way!” Chris called back as he ran. “I didn’t spend my childhood in these woods without knowing how to track.”

They had had to stop while Wendell caught his breath. Chris wished he could have kept the group running off without Wendell, but it had been his idea to bring the wizard on this expedition, so he was forced to have them all accommodate. If they’d only reached Vlad’s lodge a few minutes sooner, he’d have Poppy now, safe and sound (he hoped), and Boris and Vlad and their cohorts would be in custody. Why hadn’t they started earlier, ridden faster, dawdled less? But now he was so close behind, he could almost smell them. Or maybe he actually was smelling Boris, who had always left quite an aroma in his wake.

Sebastian, Rollo, and the other guard stayed alert to make sure they weren’t set upon—either by the kidnappers or any other random rogues who frequented the forest. And as Sebastian looked around, he noticed something.

“Where’s Phoebe?” he asked. “When did we lose her?”

“She was behind me when I ran out the back door,” Wendell said, proud that he had been going fast enough to be ahead of someone. “But I don’t recall seeing her since then.”

“Neither do I,” Chris said, rising from where he’d been examining the trail. He knew now which way the culprits had gone and he was eager to keep going.

Sebastian wondered how he could have taken this long to notice she was missing, when he was usually conscious of her every move. “I’ll go back,” he said, alarm in his voice. “Something must have happened to her.”

Just then they heard a call through the dense forest.

“It’s Phoebe!” Sebastian said, running back the way they had come. “It’s Phoebe!”

It took longer than Christian had hoped it would, but soon Sebastian returned to the clearing, holding Phoebe by the hand. She was followed by a goat on a rope, and in her other hand she held her sash, the opposite end of which was bound around the wrists of Bartholomew.

“What’s this?” Christian asked.

Phoebe gave him a quick explanation. The presence of the goat, once the king understood it, caused his heart to grow cold.

“We’ve got to find them,” Chris said. “We’ve got to. Wendell, I want you and the guardsman and Hannibal to head back to the castle with the goat and Bartholomew. I’ll deal with him later. Right now, we’ve got to move faster.”

Wendell grumbled about being left behind, but truthfully, he was glad. His legs were old and short and he’d run about as far as he could. “All right. As long as you know I wish I was coming with you. But I’ll do my duty. Come on, you.” He pulled the goat behind him while the guard took hold of Bartholomew.

Chris turned to the young footman. “And in case you’re getting any ideas, Wendell is an accomplished wizard and he can turn you into a toad in an eye blink if there’s any funny business.

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