“Drake and I found you guys,” Rachel explained. She held up a little string. From the end of it dangled the Caberton signet ring.
“My ring,” Jason said, reaching out a hand.
“Just a second,” Rachel chided. “Notice anything unusual?”
He did. As she held the top of the string, the ring didn’t hang straight down. The string hung at a slant, as if the ring were being magnetically drawn toward him. Not dramatically, but unmistakably.
“What?” Jason said, looking up at Galloran. “Is this some kind of homing ring?”
“It is now,” Rachel said. “We met a lady who makes charms, and Drake had your ring, so she enchanted it to help us find you. It led us straight here.”
“Wow! Did the lady come with you?”
Rachel shook her head. “She’s a wanderer. Sort of a hermit. She would have let me wander with her, but she had no intention of joining us.” Rachel produced a necklace of bead and bone and a few small feathers. “She gave me this for you. It should prevent lurkers from reaching out to your mind. She tailored a couple specifically for me and Drake. This one is more generic, but she thought it would work.”
“Does yours work?” Jason asked.
“We ditched a lurker right after we started using them. It had been after us for weeks.”
“I know of this charm woman,” Galloran said. “She has a true gift.”
Jason gazed at Rachel, still trying to accept that she was real. “How long have you been here?”
“Not long,” Rachel replied. “I could have let you sleep a little more. We’re not attacking the bridge until the moon sets. But I couldn’t wait.”
“Let’s give them a chance to talk,” Galloran suggested. “They have been apart for some time.”
He and the others moved away, not too far, but far enough for Jason and Rachel to speak unobserved. Jason stared at Rachel, the pretty missing girl with photos all over the Internet.
“So the Word didn’t work,” Rachel said softly.
“They already filled you in?”
“A little. You really made it home? Then came back?”
Jason started folding up his blankets, brushing off leaves and dirt as best he could. “I couldn’t stay there knowing you were here and that the Word was a fake. I know a way home now, in a cave near Felrook. It would be tricky to find it alone, but Ferrin could lead us straight there.”
“Did you check on my parents?” Rachel asked. “Did you let them know I’m alive?”
“Your parents have turned you into a national celebrity,” Jason said. “You’ve been all over the news, the Internet—you name it. Your mom and dad are anxiously looking for you. They’ve offered a big reward. But I couldn’t contact them. I’d mysteriously vanished the same day as you. I would have instantly become a suspect.”
Rachel fretted at her lower lip. “That makes sense. I knew they’d be so worried. I’m glad they’re looking. It means they still have hope. I’ve been gone so long.”
“It’s a little worse than you think,” Jason said. “The rate that time passes in our worlds doesn’t match up. It’s not way off, but when I got home, a few more weeks had gone by than I would have expected. And when I came back, less time had passed here than there.”
“So time goes by faster back home,” Rachel summarized.
“Seems like it,” Jason said.
“Then they think I’ve been gone even longer than I’d realized,” she said, rubbing her forehead. “I guess it’ll make the reunion that much sweeter when I make it back. Ferrin really rescued you?”
“Yeah. I guess they filled you in on that, too. Was he around when you got here?”
“He went with Nedwin and Chandra across the river. They stole a canoe. Galloran made it sound like you guys have him on some kind of leash.”
“Ferrin joined us voluntarily,” Jason said. “And he willingly gave Galloran a piece of his neck with an artery in it. He seems to have really joined our side.”
A little line appeared between Rachel’s eyebrows. “You think it’s for real?”
Jason shrugged. “My instincts say yes. He did everything Galloran asked, and had plenty of chances before that to turn me in.”
“We’re heading for the Sunken Lands?”
“Yep, then on to the Seven Vales to see if the Amar Kabal will help Galloran fight Maldor.”
Rachel nodded quietly. “You and Ferrin know a way home?”
“Yeah.”
“Have you thought about maybe … I don’t know …”
“Ditching everyone and having Ferrin take us to the cave?”
She shrugged.
Jason considered the idea. He had found Rachel. He had informed Galloran that the Word was phony. What more could he achieve by remaining in Lyrian? He was no warrior. This might be a smart time to bow out and let the experts run the rebellion.
Then again, he had a hard time picturing himself back home with so much left undone in Lyrian. He had managed to be useful so far. What if he could still make a difference here? Wouldn’t he always wonder how it all turned out?
“We’d have to fully trust Ferrin,” he said. “The way home is deep in enemy territory. We’d be at his mercy. Believe me, we don’t want to get caught.”
Rachel nodded. “I’m not saying we should try it. I’m mostly just glad to hear there’s a way. We can stress about it later. Looks like crossing this bridge has to come before anything.” She stood and offered Jason a hand. He accepted it, and she helped him rise, his blankets tucked under one arm.
“I’m glad you found us,” Jason said. “I was so worried.”
“You were worried?” she replied, hitting him on the arm. “I thought you were being tortured inside of Felrook this whole time!”
Jason chuckled. “Since we split up, I’ve mostly been watching movies, playing video games, and reffing Little League.”
She swatted him again.
“Hey!” he complained, backing away. “It wasn’t my fault! I got back as soon as I could.”
Hands on her hips, her expression softened. “You did come back for me.”
By her tone of voice, he could tell she was thanking him. “What are friends for?” He wanted to pick her up and spin her around, he felt so relieved.
Tark came tromping over to them. “We’re going to start moving into position.”