Free Spook's: The Dark Army (The Starblade Chronicles) by Joseph Delaney

I think he’d been really happy at home. If we could get him to concentrate on that, it might be the way to send him to the light.’
    Tom nodded but he seemed distracted, lost in thought.
    ‘Are you all right?’ I asked him.
    He shook his head. ‘I’m far from all right. And I think we’ll have to wait until next year to sort out those ghosts.’
    I stared at him in astonishment.
    ‘We’re going home. In a few days Grimalkin expects me to ride out to attack the kulad – it’s madness. I’ve been thinking and worrying about it for days. The trouble I’ve had climbing these steps has convinced me. We’ll travel back to the County before the snows trap us here. We’ll go and tell Grimalkin now.’
    He’d given me no clue at all that he’d been considering this option. When I’d asked to go home he’d just brushed aside my pleas.
    My heart soared with happiness. At last Tom had seen sense. I hated this cold war-torn land and felt homesick for the meadows and green hills of the County.
    At last we were going home!

JENNY CALDER
    TOM KNOCKED POLITELY , and then we entered the room I shared with Grimalkin.
    She was sitting cross-legged on her bed and stared at us without blinking. The moment I saw her face I could tell that she knew what Tom was going to say – whether she had scryed it or was simply reading the intent in his eyes, I don’t know. Her gaze was anything but friendly. My powers didn’t work with the witch assassin – she kept me out – but my instinct was that we might be in real danger from her if she was angry.
    Tom stood facing her while I closed the door. I grew more and more anxious. I knew that Grimalkin wasn’t going to like this. How would she react?
    ‘I’m going back to the County tomorrow,’ Tom told her. ‘I’m not fit enough for what you propose. It’ll take months for me to regain my strength – probably the whole of the winter – and I’m better off recuperating back home.’
    ‘You cannot leave now – it will disrupt my plans,’ Grimalkin spat. ‘Without you here, army morale will disintegrate at the first setback. The prince is expecting you to lead them.’
    I was furious when I heard her say ‘my plans’. Why had Tom allowed himself to be caught up in her schemes in the first place? I wondered.
    ‘Why does it have to be now?’ Tom asked. ‘Wouldn’t it be better to attack the kulad in the spring?’
    Grimalkin shook her head. ‘The Kobalos will not wait for spring. They are a people of cold and ice. Winter is their time. Within months their army will cross the river and overwhelm these small principalities. It is vital that we strike before that happens. What I can learn at the mage’s kulad will not save these border lands, but may well ensure the survival of the County. Our only chance is to act now.’
    I couldn’t fault Grimalkin’s reasoning; I expected Tom to yield to her will – I’d watched her controlling him ever since we left the County. Why should that change? She was very persuasive. But, to my surprise and delight, he resisted.
    ‘I just can’t do it. I’m weary . . . I’ll be no good to you. You’re better off without me.’
    ‘You must do it! You
will
do it!’ Grimalkin growled, showing her pointy teeth.
    ‘Don’t threaten me!’ Tom cried, an edge of anger coming into his voice. ‘We’ve been allies in the past and will be in the future, but I need to rest. You should listen to what
I
want for a change.’
    ‘How can you let down Prince Stanislaw and the warriors who believe in you? The odds are against them – many of them will die in the coming conflict – but they have seen you defeat the Shaiksa assassin and survive death itself. Only your presence will give them the confidence to cross that river. You cannot refuse.’
    ‘I
do
refuse! When I fall off my horse with exhaustion, it won’t inspire anybody with confidence, will it?’
    ‘You will do as I say!’ cried Grimalkin, coming to her feet.
    I couldn’t