The Outcast (Summoner #4)(82)

“It’s the only way,” Arcturus replied.

“The Twenty-Fourth will be even harder to break out than we are,” Zacharias snapped. “There’s a hundred damned crossbows pointed at them.”

“But they’re soldiers, not prisoners,” Arcturus argued. “As far as the rebels know, they captured four of us and handed us right to them.”

“Even if Ulfr did manage to get to them, they’ve already said they don’t want to take sides,” Alice said, shaking her head. “It’s a huge risk for them to march out with us. What if someone stopped them? What if Crawley saw them? Or a rebel asked them where they were taking us? I assume Crawley hasn’t given them permission to leave the summoning room yet.”

It was true, and it was a fact that Arcturus had chosen to ignore. In all honesty, he had not thought the plan through, but it was the best he could come up with.

“Does anyone have any better ideas?” Arcturus asked.

“We lock ourselves in here,” Zacharias said, finally joining the circle. “Take cover behind the cart, aim the crossbows at the door and summon our demons for battle.”

“Then what?” Arcturus asked.

“We send Elaine’s Mite with a note explaining our situation to our parents,” Zacharias said, “telling them where we are. They can send a demon to scout ahead. If we’re recaptured, they won’t attack. If we’re still holed up, they can rescue us.”

“But we will be recaptured,” Arcturus argued. “We’ve got a couple of hours at most before they discover our guards are missing. We may take many of them with us but they will beat us eventually, and some of us will die in the process. Your parents can’t help us here.”

“The rebels will be too scared to fight us,” Zacharias snarled.

“Don’t you get it?” Arcturus snapped. “We are their entire plan. Us. Our captivity is the only thing that’s preventing every summoner in Hominum from tearing this place apart. Without us, the rebellion is finished. Trust me, as soon as they find out we’re in here without a crossbow aimed at our heads, every rebel in the building will be pouring through that door.”

“It’s a better plan than yours,” Zacharias retorted. “We can hold out long enough, I’m sure of it.”

But Prince Harold was shaking his head.

“We would be better off surrendering before they start breaking down the door,” he said. “We would be throwing our lives away for nothing.”

“So we do that, then,” Zacharias said. “But none of this breakout nonsense.”

The noble was breathing heavily now, and he glared at Arcturus, daring him to disagree. Despite his lack of support, Arcturus felt his confidence grow. A royal prince, taking advice from a lowborn bastard. They were no better than him.

In the gloom behind, Ulfr spoke.

“I know a place,” he said.

“To barricade?” Prince Harold asked.

“No. Outside,” Ulfr said, pointing at the windowless wall on the far left, where an arrow slit had been bricked up with smeared mortar. “Somewhere we can hide before the rebels catch up with us. Even the hunting dogs will have trouble finding us.”

“Where?” Arcturus asked excitedly.

“Underground. It’s a secret place. Not far, as the crow flies.”

“Fat lot of good that does us.” Zacharias smirked, returning to his pacing. “We’re not getting out of here.”

“Shut up, Zacharias,” Harold snapped, his patience wearing thin.

Zacharias held up his hands in mock surrender, but remained silent.

“How can we convince the soldiers to help us?” Elaine asked. “Maybe Harold can offer them a reward or something.”

“It won’t work,” Harold said. “They already knew there would be a reward for helping us, but chose to remain neutral. What we really need is to force them to choose a side. And a way of making Arcturus’s plan less risky for them.”

He gave Arcturus an apologetic smile, and Arcturus waved it away.

“Crawley,” Alice suddenly said, looking up. She was cradling Edmund’s head in her lap, and had been stroking his forehead. The boy seemed oblivious to the conversation.

“What about him?” Arcturus asked.

“If Crawley’s with us, nobody will question them,” Alice said. “We could capture him. Put a knife to his back or something.”

“He scares the hell out of me,” Elaine agreed.

Arcturus considered it. They were really only trading one risk for another, but it took the pressure off the Twenty-Fourth if they managed to pull it off.

“All right.” He nodded.

“I’ll have to come with you,” Prince Harold said.

“You’re the most recognizable of us all,” Edmund said, turning his pale face up to the young royal. “Why?”

“Because the Twenty-Fourth need to hear their prince ask for their loyalty,” Harold said, tugging a hooded cloak from one of the fallen guards. “Not a desperate commoner and a servant. When the time comes, they’ll be given a choice between helping you, or Crawley. It isn’t fair or right, but they need a better alternative.”

Arcturus considered him for a moment, watching as the prince slipped the hood over his face and took up a crossbow of his own. In the dim light of the room, he could have been any other rebel.