Repairer of the Breach (Stones of Fire Book 4) by Sarah Ashwood (reading eggs books .TXT) 📗

be anything dangerous here. That’s good. On the other hand, doesn’t seem to be anything that can help Carter, either. But the angel, the visitor, said help was in the hills. This city is on a hill. Is the help in the city or is the help in the hills themselves? Where do I search next?”

Discouraged, I gave up on the idea of further exploring the city. It seemed so vast that I was afraid I could search for days in and out of houses and shops for the mysterious “help” I was supposed to find and never locate it.

“Wish my visitor had been a little less vague,” I grumbled.

Before leaving, I did help myself to some women’s clothing and shoes that I found in a good-sized shop. The shoes were more like sturdy sandals, and the dress was a simple, sleeveless sheath that went over my head and was belted at the waist. I had no idea if I was draping it right; it seemed kind of bunchy. However, fashion was the last thing on my mind at this point. Nobody was around to see or care. I just needed something more practical than my ruined evening gown.

Thinking along those lines, I secured a couple of wraps from the shelves in case it got chilly at night, found a bag, and stuffed them inside. I went further still, taking some food items. I wondered if I should take some clothes for Carter, if he were ever to wake up and shift back into his human form. The clothes were uncomfortably close to what I’d seen in movies of ancient Greece, which reinforced my theory about Atlantis. I couldn’t see Carter running around in a skimpy tunic or kilt, but I grabbed one anyway, figuring at the least he could use it as a shirt.

Last of all, I took a couple of extra shirts that I could potentially rip up for bandages. I wished I could read the signs on the shops. I would’ve looked for an apothecary, to see if I could find anything whose medical purpose I remotely understood. Unfortunately, for time’s sake I had to set the idea aside, and I left the city by the same gate through which I’d entered.

Outside, I tried to get my bearings and decide where to search first, and if the sun was going to descend on me before I could get back to Carter. Weirdly, I couldn’t discern that the position of the sun had changed that much. I didn’t seem to be in grave danger of losing daylight yet.

Shouldering my self-made pack, I started back down the steps, seeking a trail. There were many that met at the stone steps leading up to the city gates. I simply had to take my pick. I chose one that led back over the hillside. Wasn’t sure why, except it seemed to follow the natural curvature of the land and led away from the city, into the surrounding hilltops.

I hiked along for a while, thankful I had actual shoes. The day was warmer now, but far from scorching. I was amazed by how I wasn’t growing hungry or thirsty yet, and how my energy levels weren’t flagging. Was it due to the meal my visitor had left?

The trail wound and curved along, leading me through knee-high grasses and past stacks of boulders, away from the city walls and into the rugged hills. Once I got through this terrain, the landscape became rockier. I had to watch every footstep because of the gravel and loose shale beneath my feet. My breath hitched in my chest as I kept climbing upward, towards bare cliff faces and towering piles of stone. At one point, I stopped to catch my breath, turning to look back the way I’d come.

Below me spread the city. From here, I could see it was ringed in several concentric circles, one inside another. Down the hillside from the city was the strip of woods, and below that was the beach. We were on an island. I could see that now. I sought out the area where I gauged I’d left Carter, but I was too far up to spot even a dot on the beach.

Please let him be okay, I prayed, and swiveled around to continue my climb.

As I went along, I tried to keep my senses alert for possible signs of danger, from wild animals if nothing else. All was quiet and non-threatening. The countryside seemed as lifeless as the city. Until I noticed the owl up ahead, perched on a craggy boulder beside the trail. I was surprised to see the little guy there in broad daylight. I was even more surprised that he didn’t take off as I approached. In fact, he sat there watching me, his round, bright eyes alert and knowing. I stopped beside him. He returned my stare with an expression so sentient it was almost creepy.

“Um, hello,” I said.

I’m talking to an owl. Why am I talking to an owl?

The owl blinked, as if in response. Then abruptly fluttered his wings, lifting himself into the air. He took off, soaring in circles over my head and returning to hover in the air in front of me. He didn’t hoot or make any noise, but I could’ve sworn he was beckoning me to follow him.

After all the weird things today, an owl waiting to guide me didn’t seem any crazier than anything else. What did I have to lose…except possibly my life, if it led me into a trap or a dangerous situation. Which I could be walking into blindly anyway, since I had no idea where I was, where I was going, or what I was doing except seeking blindly for some promised “help.”

I took off after the owl. It flew fast enough that I had to pick up my pace. I wasn’t exactly used to cross-country trekking, and the hike uphill, skirting boulders and picking the best places to set my feet, wasn’t