Page 108 of Vale of Dreams

“Castle Menzies.” I frown. “Where is that?”

“Near Aberfeldy.”

I recall the weeks spent poring over Scotland’s map with Avalon Tower knights, trying to figure out the best lines of defense against the Fey army. I turn to Raphael. “I know Aberfeldy. We’re way too far north. The majority of our army is about a hundred and fifty kilometers south of here, near Glasgow. More than that, really, because there are no direct roads. We’ll need transportation.”

Going by the brief glimpses of Talan’s mind, the portal he plans to use for this attack is about ten miles north of something called “Green Hollow.” I’m almost certain that’s Glasgow. Auberon will be opening a portal there.

Raphael glances at Cameron. “Can you tell us the fastest way to get to Glasgow?”

“You won’t get there driving. The roads are in shambles. You won’t get more than five kilometers with a car.”

“Horses?” I ask desperately.

“I suppose you could get horses in town,” Cameron says thoughtfully. He walks closer to us, scratching his cheek.

“We can’t ride a hundred and fifty kilometers on horses in one day,” Ysolde points out. “Especially not in our state.”

“What if we get to a northern military post?” Raphael says. “Cameron says people are using homing pigeons. They might have those, or some similar way of delivering a message.”

“There’s one north of Perth,” I say slowly. “That’s closer. We could maybe get there in time.”

Cameron shakes his head. “The ways to Perth are crawling with Fey patrols. There’s no way you’ll get through on horseback. You’ll be captured in no time.”

“We have to try,” Raphael says. “Ysolde, you can stay here. Nia, you, too. I’ll grab a horse and try to?—”

“No way,” Ysolde says.

I close my eyes. “Let me think. Cameron, there’s a river nearby, right?”

“Aye, that’s right. River Tay.”

“Right!” My eyes snap open again, my excitement rising. “And the river flows right through Perth, doesn’t it?”

“Aye,” Cameron says. “It goes east, then south to Perth.”

“We could take a boat to Perth,” I say.

“We can get you a boat,” Cameron says. “But it’s a wild river, especially in the past weeks. I think the Fey magic makes it even rougher. Their presence has a certain wild effect on nature.”

“That’s all right,” I say, grinning. “Ysolde here can handle a wild river. Right, Ysolde?”

“Is true,” Ysolde tells the man in broken English. “I am what humans call a Mo-zets.”

“Eh?” Cameron squints.

“She’s an expert in whitewater rafting,” I quickly say, hoping to avoid going down that particular rabbit hole. “Can you get us a boat? We need to get moving as soon as possible.”

The boat belongs to a local fisherman, who seems brokenhearted to sell it to us. “Used to fish in it with my dad down in the loch,” he tells me, his voice cracking, “but he died two years ago, and with those Fey monsters everywhere, I cannae risk using it.”

“I’m sorry about your father,” I say, handing him two diamond rings that Talan gave me. “I understand.”

“My family needs to eat, and we’re running out of food. Shops are empty, markets are empty. A Fey patrol went into our town last week. They killed my mate and his wife for no reason at all.” He stares at the rings in his hand. “Maybe with this, we’ll be able to get on one of the outlaw boats to Ireland. Leave our home behind for now.”

“You might be able to return soon,” I say. “If we win this battle.”

He raises a shaggy eyebrow at that. “Do you know what’s going on, lass? The humans are getting massacred. This place will be overridden by Fey within days. I can only hope that Ireland’s not next.”

He turns, shaking his head as he walks away, shoulders slumped.

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