“That’s not my name.”
I sighed inwardly. “Deleo. I need to know where you are.”
Rachel looked at me. “Is that supposed to be funny?”
I looked back at her.
“You’re working for Belthas,” Rachel said coldly. “Go ask him.”
“Yeah, well, I’m not working for Belthas anymore.”
“Good.” Rachel took a step back.
“Wait!” I called. “Look, Rachel, I’m trying to help you. If I was working for Belthas, why would I need to know where you are? I’d just ask him!”
Shireen cocked her head at Rachel. She’d kept pace with Rachel, and the darkness was starting to shroud the two of them again. “He’s got a point.”
“Shut up,” Rachel said. “He led them to us! It’s a trick!”
“I hate to point this out,” Shireen said, “but we’re not really in a position to turn down help.”
Rachel hesitated, then looked to her left at the shadow and her face hardened. “No.”
I knew Rachel was about to step back into the darkness, and once she was in there, she wouldn’t come out. “Cinder’s with me.”
Luna looked at me. Rachel paused. “What?”
“We made a deal,” I said. “I’m going there for Luna, he’s going there for you, and we’ve both got a score to settle with Belthas. He’s with me back in the real world. We’re coming but we need to know where Belthas is.”
Rachel hesitated. “Look, what have you got to lose?” I said. “If I’m working for Belthas, it doesn’t make any difference to you if I know where his base is. But if I’m telling the truth, this is the best chance you’ll get of letting Cinder find you.”
I could see Rachel thinking about it. Shireen waited, silent; maybe she knew trying to push Rachel now wouldn’t help. The shadow didn’t move but I could feel it watching me.
“Scotland,” Rachel said at last. “Northern Highlands.”
“You saw it?”
“I know it. An old manor on the Black Craeg mountain.”
“Does Cinder know where it is?”
“You’ve got the name.”
“Anything else?”
“How would I know? It’s a manor. It’s got cells. Belthas is there and so are his soldiers.”
I nodded. “All right. We’ll be there soon.”
“Then
I felt Luna flinch but didn’t look at her. “Can you help us find a way out?”
Rachel laughed. “In your dreams.”
“We die, you die.”
“Doesn’t mean I’m going with you. You found a way in. You find the way out.” She glanced from me to Luna. “Don’t come back.” Rachel stepped back; the darkness flowed over her and she was gone. Shireen had time for a quick wave before she vanished too. Silently and smoothly, the black crystal door swung closed, shutting with a click. The last wisps of darkness faded and we were alone.
“Well,” I said after a moment. “That went about as well as could be expected.”
“You’re working with Cinder?” Luna asked.
“For now … We got what we came for. Time to go.”
Luna looked around at the doorways. “So where … ?”
I looked down at her, eyebrows raised. Luna sighed. “I get it, I get it. Up to me, right?”
Luna thought for a minute, then crossed the hall, heading for one of the doors. “But word of warning,” I said. “Finding someone’s dreams in Elsewhere isn’t hard. Leaving is.”
The door Luna had picked was blue crystal. It opened at a touch to reveal a rounded corridor lit with a pale light. I waited for Luna to step in, then shut the door behind us, taking a quick look around before I did. “You know, if there’s anything else you know about this place,” Luna said as I caught her up, “now might be a good time to tell me.”
“I don’t know how Elsewhere works,” I said. “Nobody does. There are books about it but they’re not much more than guesses.”
“You’ve been here before, right?” Luna said. “How did you get out?”
I shrugged. “Instinct? Luck? I don’t know. There are a few rules that work for me but I don’t know if they’ll work for you.”
