"I've never been so freaked out in my life," William added. "But, obviously, we're okay," he told her again, this time squeezing her hand.

"When we got inside the house, both of them flashed us their tattoos." Nathaniel's voice was serious, but tinged with the relief he was obviously still feeling.

"We have Friends among the guard now?" Henry asked, amazed.

"We always have," Marcus answered, casting a look at Henry that held reproof and something else she couldn't decipher. "But it seems their numbers are growing. Clearly, Tolliver hasn't been able to offer enough incentive to all of his soldiers to keep them toeing his line."

"Not that any amount of incentive would ever have been enough for many," Nathaniel said, and after her conversation with Ben today, she understood the appreciative glance he directed at Marcus.

"We spent a few hours talking with them. They fed us dinner, and then accompanied us for a good part of our journey, though they didn't wish to come far enough to know exactly where we were coming." Relief was still evident on Marcus' face, though now that she was thinking more clearly again, she could also see a dark shadow underneath his eyes.

She looked over at Nathaniel, and then up at William, who was sitting so close to her on the couch that they were nearly touching. "What else happened?" she demanded.

Nathaniel sighed, his shadow growing darker, and a deep line appearing between his eyebrows. "The two guards their names were Tobin and Derek did share with us some news."

Quinn's stomach tightened ominously, and William placed his hand on her shoulder again.

"Lily, Graeme, and Thomas were all taken into the custody of Tolliver's personal guards some time ago."

The floor started to look uneven again; she felt William tremble next to her, though his expression was steady. "What? How? What...?" She didn't know what question to ask ... or what she even wanted to know.

Nathaniel seemed to feel the same way. He stood and paced the floor, directly behind the couch where William and Quinn were sitting, as Marcus spoke.

"From what little information we have, it appears as though Thomas did make it to Harber Village, but he was followed there. Some guard recognized him at the border, and he was watched for the rest of his trip he never knew. For two days, Philothean guards tracked his every move, reporting back directly to Tolliver."

William clutched her hand again this was clearly no easier for him to hear a second time. Behind them, Nathaniel rested one hand on each of their shoulders. Quinn tried to concentrate on what Marcus was saying.

"Lily and Graeme have been targets for some time. Graeme is one of the leading members of the ruling council of Harber Village, and he has been outspoken against Tolliver's policies from the beginning. And then Lily with her ties to Eirentheos, and her practice as a healer using the new methods ... Their prominence has caused no end of frustration to Tolliver, and those to whom he has promised positions of power in his 'new government.'"

"So where are they? Where has Tolliver taken them? To his castle?"

"Oh, definitely not. Many of Tolliver's current actions are in direct contradiction to what his father has ordered him to do. Hector is more patient than his son. He knows that directly provoking Eirentheos would not be a good plan. Our sources indicate that he doesn't know much about many of the soldiers' activities within the villages, either. The people are growing upset, and I don't think Tolliver begins to realize the consequences of that. Hector would."

"So where, then?"

"Derek and Tobin both seem to think that they would likely be held at one of the estates of one of Tolliver's head soldiers."

"But why? What would Tolliver do with Thomas? What good does it do him to hold him captive?"

William moved beside her. "Tolliver hates Thomas, for one thing. He's never much liked any of us ... but he now has a personal grudge against both Thomas and I for that incident at the naming ceremony. He's made no secret of that."

"So he's what? Holding Thomas as some kind of revenge for that?"

"No," Nathaniel answered. "I'm sure it's more than that. First of all, there's no way he could allow Thomas to reach Harber Village and interact with the people there. Right now, he and his supporters are spreading rumors there that Stephen has withdrawn his support of them, and that Lily and Graeme fled from them, effectively abandoning the village to Tolliver and his army. His soldiers have been terrorizing the village for over a cycle now."

"Terrorizing them how?"

"Tolliver has basically given them free rein to do as they please within the village. Essentially, they have occupied Harber Village Tolliver's own people are under control of his army there. They've raided the shops, stolen things from people's homes ..." Marcus sighed. "Almost nobody in the entire village has any jewelry or silverware left. The soldiers just take what they like, and sell it wherever they can. Harber Village is very isolated most of the population of Philotheum has no idea about what's going on there."

"So Lily's pendant..."

"I'm sure was stolen some time ago, and found its way to that market in Eirentheos. The people in Harber Village are becoming more and more afraid of Tolliver and his guards. Some of them apparently have a habit of showing up, uninvited, in people's homes at mealtimes. Lily and Graeme were the most outspoken citizens against it. Stephen has been supporting them as much as he can, but it has been a desperate situation."

"So what do we do? How do we find them?" She was starting to get a little panicked again.

Behind her, Nathaniel rested both of his hands on her shoulders. "I know it's hard, Quinn," he said. "But we wait, we gather the information we need in order to proceed, and we do this the right way, without putting anyone else in danger."

"Or potentially creating more danger for Thomas," William added she could tell that he'd felt her tense defiantly beside him.

"For tonight," Marcus said, "we go to sleep. It's late, and it's been a long day for everyone. I know I'm exhausted. I'll see you all in the morning." She watched as Marcus disappeared down the dark hallway toward the bedrooms.

"Are you going to be able to sleep again, Quinn?" Ellen asked. She looked over at Nathaniel. "She was so exhausted that she just slept for several hours."

She thought about it. She started to nod; her arms and legs felt unnaturally heavy, and she'd had to suppress several yawns during their conversation, but then an image of the dark, lonely room flooded her mind. William turned to her in alarm when she began trembling again she couldn't help it. The panic she'd been holding back all day was still there, just under the surface. The idea of being alone again in a strange place, for hours on end brought it all crashing down on her again.

"What's wrong?" William asked.

Her hands were shaking, and she felt cold; all of her strength seemed to have drained away. She didn't know how to answer, so she just shook her head.

Nathaniel came around the couch and knelt down in front of her. "Quinn, what is it? Are you okay? What's going on?"

She swallowed and blinked furiously, trying to see through the strange tears that threatened to spill over. Nathaniel took her hands in his and looked up at William.

"Hey, come here," William said, adjusting her so that her head rested on his arm. Nathaniel sat down, close on her other side. She didn't speak, just stared ahead, still blinking against the tears.

William couldn't remember ever feeling so helpless before. He'd wondered when all of this was going to get to her, and now he felt like he should have seen it coming when he and Nathaniel had left her alone with people she didn't really know. It had bothered him, this morning, watching her ride off with Ben, all by herself.

Earlier tonight, when it had gotten dark and they still had a long distance to ride he had known, then, that she would be worried. He'd had vivid flashes of what it would have been like if the situation were reversed, if she had been out on the road with Nathaniel and Marcus, and he'd been trapped somewhere, not knowing if they were safe if she were safe.

He understood the panicked look in her eyes now, almost like a rabbit caught in a trap, and he was overcome by an urge to fix it for her to take her into his arms and tell her that everything was going to be okay, that there was nothing to worry about, that he would take care of everything.

He couldn't do that, of course. For one thing, he didn't know if it was true. Right now, everything was such a mess; he needed someone to tell him it was going to be okay, because he really wasn't so sure.

So he did the only thing he could do he sat there next to her, her head against him. After a few minutes, he took hold of her hand and squeezed it gently, without saying anything. He felt her nod slightly, and she raised her hand to her eyes briefly, wiping away a tear that must have slipped.

Ellen came into the room he hadn't even noticed that she'd left carrying a tray of sandwiches and mugs of steaming tea.

"Quinn never ate dinner," she said. "And I'm sure you might be hungry again by now. I meant to feed all of you before Marcus went to bed."

Nathaniel nodded. "Thank you so much, Ellen. We appreciate your hospitality more than you know."

William was suddenly embarrassed. "I'm so sorry; I've been so rude. You've been gracious enough to offer us your home, and I haven't even introduced myself."

Ellen chuckled. "I think we may be a little past all of the formalities, William, Prince of Eirentheos. We're all in this together. It's lovely to meet you, and please don't hesitate to make yourself at home here."

He nodded. "Thank you so much, for everything."

"The pleasure is ours," Henry said, standing and putting an arm around his wife's waist. "I only wish that we'd first been able to get to know one another in more pleasant circumstances. Please make yourselves at home here. Feel free to use anything you need, or ask if there's something you can't find."

"Thank you both," Nathaniel said, rising from the couch and walking over to them. Henry let go of Ellen long enough for Nathaniel to give her a long, fierce hug.

William was perplexed. Nathaniel was obviously quite close to Ellen and her husband, but today was the first time William had heard either of their names. After many years of living and traveling with his uncle in two worlds, he'd thought he knew everyone Nathaniel spent time with. This whole journey so far had been filled with surprises.

"Of course," Henry answered. "We're going to go to bed in a few minutes. There is plenty of food in the kitchen, if you need anything else."

Nathaniel nodded. He watched Ellen and Henry disappear down a long hallway, and then he turned back around and reached toward the tray Ellen had brought out. "Would you like a sandwich, William?"

"Sure. Quinn?" he asked, looking down at the top of her head. Nathaniel, still standing over them, shook his head. "She's asleep."

"Oh," William mouthed silently. He frowned. What did he do now? He looked up to his uncle for help.

Nathaniel smiled, and then adjusted one of the cushions at the end of the long couch to act as a pillow. He helped William gently move the girl so that her head lay against it. Though her eyes never opened, she stirred slightly, her body grew stiff, and she mumbled, her voice so sad that he thought it might break his heart. "Not alone again ... not alone."

William pulled her feet into his lap, reaching up to softly stroke the back of her hand. She seemed to relax, her head sinking into the cushion, and her arms curling into her chest.

When he looked up, he saw his uncle watching him, an intense look in his eyes that held a meaning William couldn't decipher. Once William's eyes met his, Nathaniel shrugged, then handed him one of the sandwiches. He walked over to the hallway, and opened the door to a small closet there, which made William raise his eyebrows again. When he returned, he carried a pillow and two blankets, which he set next to William on the couch.

* 21 *.

Shocking

PALE SUNLIGHT WAS STREAMING across her face when Quinn woke up. She remembered where she was, but she was confused about what she was doing in the sitting room. Just then, a motion on the couch across from her caught her eye. She sat up to investigate.

"You're really awake," William said. He was sitting there, leaning against a cushion on the end of the other couch.

"Yeah," she said, kicking off the blanket and pulling herself up so she could stretch. "Why am I out here?"

He shrugged. "You fell asleep out here. You were so tired ... it didn't seem like a good idea to wake you."

"Oh ... Did you sleep out here, too?" she asked, noticing the neatly folded blanket and the pillow on the other end of his couch.

"Yeah ... Would you like some tea?" He nodded toward the low table between them; two steaming mugs sat in the middle.

"When did you make this?" She picked up the mug closest to her. It warmed her hands, and she sniffed at the steam, inhaling the scent of the tea she was starting to love. It had a taste that was somehow both sweet and a little spicy. She settled back against the cushions, pulling her knees up into her chest, and setting the cup on top of them.

"I just brought it in here a few minutes ago. You've been kind of stirring for a while. Were you dreaming again?"

"Um ..." she closed her eyes, searching, and then shook her head. "If I was, I don't remember. Was I talking? Sometimes I talk when I have really vivid dreams."

"Not this morning, no."

His voice sounded a little too careful. Her cheeks flushed and she narrowed her eyes. "What did I say last night?"

He looked down, staring into his own mug of tea. "Nothing really ... just that ... you didn't want to be alone."

"Oh." Her face turned a furious shade of red now.

He looked up, watching her. "Hey, Quinn. It's okay totally understandable, given the circumstances. We should have realized that would be hard for you."

"So you stayed out here with me?"

"Yeah."

Warmth filled her chest and it wasn't from the hot beverage she was drinking. "Thank you."

They both sat there and sipped intently at their tea, neither really knowing what to say. She was relieved when Ellen came into the room.

"Good morning," she said. "Are you two hungry for breakfast?"

"Sure," she answered quickly. Her stomach rumbled she realized she hadn't eaten since lunchtime yesterday. "Can we help you?"

She followed Ellen into the kitchen without waiting for a response; she needed something to do with her hands.

Quinn didn't know what the day was going to hold. After breakfast, Nathaniel, Henry, and Marcus announced that they were going to speak to some other Friends of Philip at another safe house on the other side of Estora. She was desperate to go, to be a part of things, get out and see for herself what was going on, but Nathaniel was adamant that she stay right where she was.

"There are things about this you don't understand, Quinn. We cannot risk having you out on the roads, among the people when we don't even know what's going on," he'd said.

"Then tell me! What don't I understand? How am I ever going to help here if you keep telling me that I don't understand? Make me understand."

Nathaniel's eyes had been set, more firmly that she had ever seen them before. "You're not going, and neither is William. We cannot risk another prince of Eirentheos when we have no idea what Tolliver is doing with Thomas. We simply do not know everything we need to know. I promise, Quinn, that I will tell you what I can when I can."

The situation was starting to feel hopeless, an endless time of waiting, wondering, and not doing anything, which made her feel a little crazy. If she could be out, riding, heading somewhere, on their way to get Thomas, or find something, she would have felt better. Instead, they were stuck.

As she worked around Ellen and Henry's home that morning, she wished that something anything would happen. Just before lunch, she regretted her wish.

She and William were in the kitchen, helping Ellen chop vegetables when there was a frantic knocking at the door. Ellen dropped the knife she had been holding and ran to pull it open, Quinn and William on her heels.

Ryan was standing there with Ben, who had gone outside to assist him with some things in the grounds. He looked panicked. "My Lady, it's Tolliver. He's just down the road, on his way here."

Quinn looked at William in shock. His terrified eyes matched hers.

Ellen's voice, however, was steady enough to surprise her. "How many guards has he brought with him, Ryan?"

"It appears to be only one, Lady."