Part 21 (1/2)

”It won't open,” said James. He ran his fingers around the edge of the door, then up and down the wall on the right side.

”Why won't it open?” asked William.

”If I knew that, I could open it,” snapped James.

Treggar said, ”If it slipped your notice, squire, we are at the end of a very long hall with no place to hide. If you can't open that door in the next minute, we will have to return to one of the corridors we pa.s.sed and seek another way out of here.”

James was focused, but there was urgency in his movement. ”I don't know . . .”

He quickly moved to the left side of the door and continued his inspection. After a moment, he said, ”Let's go.”

He headed back down the hall and turned left at the first corridor. ”Where are we going?” asked William.

James said, ”I don't know, but I know in a fortress this big there are almost certainly some empty places where we can lie low.”

”Why this way?” asked Treggar.

”Because it's in the opposite direction from where we were.”

Treggar said nothing, content with the answer.

They left the spa.r.s.ely-lit corridor and turned into one that was pitch dark, and again James lit his taper.

”How do you do that?” asked William.

James said, ”If we find a place to hole up, I'll show you.”

They moved along in silence for a while, turning a couple of times as James sought to move as far as he possibly could from the temple. Suddenly he stopped. He held the taper down close to the floor and said, ”Dust. Not a lot of traffic through here in a few years.” He straightened up and they moved forward again.

Before long they came to what appeared to be a room once used for storage. The door frame was rotting and the hinges had fallen off. Whatever had become of the door would remain a mystery.

James entered the room and held the taper aloft. The flickering light illuminated the s.p.a.ce: roughly twenty feet wide and half again as deep, the actual dimensions hidden by a fall of rock.

James said, ”Come over here,” and motioned for them to sit in a corner, as far from the door as possible. ”No one may have come this way in a while, but Ruthia-” the G.o.ddess of Luck ”-is a fickle woman at times and I don't want some pa.s.ser-by to notice a light in an unused room.”

Treggar looked at the fall of rocks and said, ”It's unused because it's unsafe. Look at those timbers.”

James moved his light a little closer to a fallen lintel and said, ”Dry as paper.” He pushed aside a few pieces that had fallen so he could sit on a large rock.

”I thought old wood got harder,” said William.

”Sometimes,” said Treggar. ”I've seen old buildings where the timbers are as hard as steel.” He picked up a small piece and crumbled it between his fingers. ”Sometimes it just gets old.”

”What do you judge the clock to be?” asked James.

Treggar said, ”Near dawn.”

”I wager our friends over there are likely to sleep during the day. Their trade is usually conducted at night. I'm going to slip out and look around. If I can't find another way out, I'll look at that door again. We can't stay here long.”

”See if you can find some water,” said William. ”I'm parched.”

James nodded. It had been hours since they had left their equipment and found the newly-carved entrance to this ancient place. ”I'll see what I can do.”

”Before you leave: what is that trick with the light?” asked William.

James handed over the lit taper and said, ”Watch.” He reached into his belt-pouch and pulled out another long taper, it looked like a thick punk of slow-burning wood, the kind used to light fires and torches. ”These have a substance rubbed into them.” He then produced a small vial of liquid and poured a drop onto the punk. For a brief instant nothing happened, then a flame burst out on the tip. ”I bought these from a street magician in Krondor a while back. Very handy and you don't have to strike sparks with flint and steel-even works in high winds.”

William grinned. ”I thought maybe old Kulgan taught you that finger-fire trick of his.”

”Hardly,” said James. ”I'd leave these with you, but I may need light more than you do. Sit tight.” James stood up, stepped through the doorway and was gone.

William held the burning taper James had left behind, until Captain Treggar said, ”Better put that out, lieutenant.”

William obeyed and plunged the room into darkness. ”If you don't mind, I'm getting flint, steel and tinder out, just in case.”

”I don't mind at all.”

William could hear him moving in the dark, then Treggar said, ”Here's some of that wood. If you need to make a torch in a hurry, it should catch quickly.”

'Thank you, captain.”

A long silence followed.

Treggar spoke. ”That squire is an unusual fellow, ain't he?”

William said, ”From everything I've ever heard. I've only spent time with him occasionally when my father brought me to Krondor on visits. You've been in Krondor for years. I would have thought you knew him better than I do.”

”Hardly,” said Treggar. Another long silence followed, then he said, ”He's the Prince's squire. 'Pet Squire,' a few call him, but not to his face. Lots of special privileges.”

”From what I know, he's earned them.”

”Seems that way, don't it?”

William said, ”Captain?”

”What?”

”Just want to say I plan on pulling my duty. Not being around the first week . . . well, it wasn't my idea.”

”I'm getting that impression.”

Again silence.

William said, ”Well, I really didn't want duty in Krondor, actually.”

”Really? Why not?”

”I'm not really related to the Prince. My father was adopted into his house by Lord Boric, years ago.”