Twenty-nine – 04

“You’re crazy,” Thordin blurted. “It’s not possible.”

But it was. Thom knew it with every leaden beat of his heart.

“Wake Phelan,” he said, his voice remarkably steady, sounding eerily calm. “Wake Neve, wake Cameron, wake Marin and J.T. and Kel. Get Sif and get Leinth. We’re going to need them.”

We’ll need all the power we can muster and then some, I’m afraid. We have to hope that our wards will be enough to turn them. They’ve turned everything else.

Then again, nothing’s been a force like this.

His fingers flexed and he got his feet back under him again, moving back toward the railing. Rory and Thordin watched him warily, as if they were afraid he’d fall or maybe throw himself over the railing and into the snow. “When you wake Marin, tell her to bring her bow and to bring my sword,” Thom said as he stared out into the night, searching for any hint of what he knew was coming—another flicker, another burst of light, another howl or hunting call.

Why here? What would we have that they’d want?

A chill worked its way down his spine. He could think of half a dozen things quickly enough.

“Thom—”

He tore his gaze away from the snow-covered landscape and looked at Thordin and Rory. “Why the hell are you two still here? Go wake them. Now.”

“I got it,” Rory said to Thordin. “Stay here.”

He scrambled down the ladder and into the snow. Thom could hear the faint sound of his boot crunching on the snow as his friend dashed away. Thordin met Thom’s gaze, expression grim.

“They shouldn’t be here,” Thordin said in a low voice.

“Neither should Cariocecus or Sif or Leinth—maybe not even you or Neve or Phelan. But you’re here and I know what’s coming. We have to be ready.”

“There’s not enough time.”

Thom turned away again, catching sight of a flicker in the distance out of the corner of his eye. “There’s never enough time.”

That’s why we have to try to be ready all the time, in any moment.

“We’ll make our stand,” Thom murmured. “We’ll deal with whatever threat they’re posing and we’ll make it through. We’ve done it before.”

We’ll do it again.

We have to.

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