Scourge: A Grim Doyle Adventure

Chapter 25

Grim felt as if the walls closed in around him. They were trapped.

The door pounded again. Eevenellin grabbed the different samples of hair and dropped them in each of the vials. Blue smoke swirled as she added them. The Grundel took the vials of blood and dropped their contents in each, corked them and shook. One vial turned deep purple, the other violet.

Eevenellin held the violet one up. “This is for Valeria. The other is for the Scourge. One drop in the mouth of each infected person should be enough.”

The door pounded harder and a violent red glow surrounded it. The door barely held, straining against the pressure. Rudy pulled out her rod, pulled three switches and popped a couple of levers. Her fingers danced along it like she knew exactly what she was doing.

She pointed it at the door and a blast of golden light poured out of it. It enveloped the door and secured it in place.

Eevenellin’s eyes widened. “Impressive.”

Rudy grinned. “I’ve been practicing with Quinn.”

Grim glanced about the room. “How are we going to get out of here?”

“I’ll take care of that,” Eevenellin said. The Grundel placed the two vials in separate pouches at her side and reached behind the bed. She motioned for Grim to get off and the bed folded itself up to reveal a set of stairs descending into the catacombs.

“Hurry,” Rudy muttered, continuing to hold the door. Grim’s legs buckled and he grabbed his sister for support.

“You okay?” she asked.

“I’ll be fine,” he said through gritted teeth. His arm hurt and his brain felt like it was swimming.

Eevenellin descended the stairs and Grim followed. Rudy brought up the rear with the rod still gripped in her hand. As she stood over the stairs, she released the trigger. She descended the stairs behind them and they all heard the bed click back into place just as an explosion thundered above. Something scratched frantically at the bed and growled.

“Are you all right?” Eevenellin asked as Grim’s legs failed him once more.

He nodded and rubbed his head. It throbbed.

“We have to run,” Eevenellin said. “It won’t take long before he figures out how to open that bed.”

A soft blue light emanated from her hand — one of Master Rickett’s firefly bugs. It flew above them to illuminate the tunnel.

The Grundel tore down the corridor, and Grim and Rudy stumbled after her. They followed her through the maze of tunnels until they finally came upon a set of stairs that wound upwards. Eevenellin knocked three times on a stone. A door opened and they spilled out from the wall at the side of the orphanage.

“How do you know all of these entrances?”

“Dorian showed me. There’s more, sublevel,” she said, pointing downwards.

The door slid closed behind them, becoming seamless with the stone wall. Grim ran his fingers along the surface and could find no trace of the door.

The Grundel handed Grim one of the pouches. “Take this to the Infirmary. I will take the other to free Valeria.”

They then ran out into the chill, night air where leaves blew across the grounds with a heavy wind. They bolted towards the Infirmary and stopped in their tracks about half way across. Standing in front of the door was Master Galan and the Changeling. Rudy grabbed the rod and faced him. Eevenellin took out her own.