Free Faerie Tale by Nicola Rhodes Page B

everyone?’
    ‘Sshhh!’
    Tamar lifted her head and closed her eyes to listen.  It is incredibly difficult to isolate the direction of a distant sound – it always sounds as if it’s coming from everywhere. 
    Then she looked down suddenly. ‘It’s coming from underneath us,’ she said.
    ‘Dungeons?’ said Stiles.
    Tamar rolled her eyes.  ‘I might have known,’ she said disparagingly.
    * * *
    The problem with this plan, Denny was realising, was that he could not keep it up forever.  His voice was beginning to crack although the dancing Faeries did not seem to have noticed (it does not have to be fantastic music. Faeries are fascinated by any music).
    He had been weak to begin with, and now he felt exhausted.  He hoped to God that Tamar found him soon.
    * * *
    As Tamar burst into the dungeon, the already befuddled Faeries scattered in disarray.  Tamar never noticed them go – she was staring in horror at Denny.  ‘Oh no !’ she gasped. 
     Flayed and flambéed, he was chained to a pillar and looked as if he might be already dead.
    However, he must have been semi-conscious because he flinched away with a look of terror that wrenched at Tamar’s heart when she raised the sword to cut his bonds.
    ‘ No !’ he screamed. Then, his legs folded up beneath him and he collapsed to the floor like a puppet that has had its strings cut.
    He looked up ruefully at her from the floor. ‘They broke my bloody legs,’ he told her wryly. 
    Tamar gathered him up.  ‘How did they do this to you?’
    Denny pointed to the Athame sticking up out of the rock.  Tamar nodded.  At that moment, Stiles arrived and took in the scene.
    Tamar turned to him. 
    ‘There’s about a hundred of them upstairs,’ he said.’ 
    Tamar’s face was grim. She lifted Denny and reached out her hand towards the Athame, which flew, into her hand. 
    She nodded to Stiles.  ‘Burn it down,’ she said callously.
    Stiles looked at the wreck of Denny, his expression grim ‘Right!’ he said curtly. 
    Tamar disappeared with Denny in her arms.
    * * *
    The Athame could not heal, its only defect – a remnant of its history as a demonic weapon.  Tamar could heal though, but it was going slowly.  Denny had lost consciousness again after Tamar healed his broken legs.  This had hurt a lot.  Magical healing is not a case of waving your hands about and praying (that’s faith healing).  Magical healing works like regular healing only a lot faster. And Tamar was crying a lot.
    She had thought that she had hated Askphrit, but she realised now that that hatred had been a pale thing compared to her hatred of the Queen of the Sidhe.  What was 5000 years of servitude compared to this ?
    She shuddered.  Don’t think about that.   Denny had saved her from that, and that was that. 
    And if she lost Denny …
    It was a distinct possibility.  It was too soon to tell, but they might have got to him too late.  Even with her accelerated healing powers, there comes a point of no return for everybody.  Not even Tamar could raise the dead.  And Denny was failing fast.
    His skin was healing, and he was beginning to look more like himself.  He opened his eyes, and Tamar felt her heart beat faster.  He tried to speak.
    ‘Shh,’ she told him.  ‘It’s okay, wait until you’re stronger.
    He shook his head frantically.  ‘No,’ he said.  ‘You have to find the Queen.  She’s going to kill Cindy.’
    Behind them, the flames rose from the Faerie palace.

~ Chapter Ten ~
    ‘W here?’ demanded Tamar.
    ‘I dunno. She mentioned st-stones.  That was it – the blood of the witch on the stones.  I – I don’t know where …’
    ‘ I do.’
    Denny smiled.  ‘Of course you do,’ he said.
    ‘How is he?’ Stiles knelt down beside the prostrate Denny.  ‘Oh Jesus!’ he said.
    ‘No, he’s past the worst now,’ said Tamar. ‘Take care of him.’  And before Stiles could argue, she rose to her feet and took off to the stones.
    ‘What