Dreamwalker's Bride - Chapter 247

Chapter 247: Company
Mia’s eyebrows rose. She hadn’t expected this. Not at all.

A small, one-person tent stood near a campfire with all the trappings of a long-term resident. A laundry line where things were hung to dry, a cart, a horse tied up on a long lead designed to give it plenty of mobility, even a washtub filled with rainwater that Mia wondered how someone brought to this canyon.

The pull of her magic drew her eyes to the tunnel the campsite was next to.

“Um, there,” She whispered to Ford as he came up beside her. He frowned.

“Someone’s already here.”

“I can see that,” Mia looked at him sharply, “I have no idea who.”

“I wonder if they’re dangerous,” He mumbled.

“Should we dismount and investigate? Maybe they’re inside…” Mia paused, and decided to look for the campsite’s occupants. The direction of the pull did not change. “Yes, whoever lives here is inside the tunnel.”

The opening itself was odd, as if it had once been natural and collapsed at some point. Piles of rock were stacked to one side. Mia’s eyes widened.

Someone was digging their way in!

Ford seemed to be coming to the same conclusion, but before he could say anything more, a strange squeaking sound echoed out of the crudely dug hole.

They stayed on horseback, with Mia braced to kick Henry into a run and flee if the person, or people, were dangerous. Harper would follow. Tensely, she waited and stared, squinting into the darkness as the squeaking slowly increased in volume.

A faint light began to show as she looked as deeply into the black as her eyes would allow her. A lamp? A torch? It grew slowly brighter as the sound drew nearer. Eventually, out from the darkness of the tunnel, a squeaky wheelbarrow full of rocks and dirt appeared, pushed by a man who crouched, hooded, as he emerged. A lamp was balanced atop his load.

Turning to one side, the man whistled to himself quietly as he moved the lamp and dumped out the rocks and dirt, then wheeled the barrow around to go back into the tunnel. It was a crude contraption, and well-worn, but serviceable.

The man seemed intent on his task, to the exclusion of all else, or perhaps it was the brightness of day that made him concentrate on keeping his head down.

It was only because Mia’s horse snorted and pawed the ground that the man looked up at all.

He froze, staring at them. His eyes were serious and calculating.

“Who are you?” He demanded.

“Who are you?” Ford shot back before Mia could respond.

“I asked you first.” The stranger tensed. “I can tell from your accent that you’re from Foundrel.”

“At the moment, given the position of the river, you’re technically in Foundrel,” Ford raised an eyebrow.

“The war your people lost would say otherwise,” The man sneered, “but I can see you’re too much of a baby to have fought in it.”

“You fought in the war?” Mia interrupted before Ford would continue the argument.

“Might have,” The stranger tilted his head as he looked at her. “You’re not from Foundrel, what are you doing with him?”

“Looking for this cave,” She responded without hesitation. “Do you know what’s inside it?”

The stranger tensed. “Do you?”

Mia nodded. “How did you find out about it? Maybe we can work together to get inside? How long have you been digging?”

Ford cleared his throat and glared at her, but Mia ignored it. Having an ally was always better than competing with someone.

“Years.” The man replied, gesturing to several other piles of rocks and dirt in the area. “It’s a slow task.”

“You’ve been here… for years?” Mia asked incredulously. “You must be close to getting through by now.”

“Who are you?” Ford interrupted, sending a warning look at Mia that she finally heeded.

If this man had been working so long to get into the cave, he must think whatever was in it was valuable enough to merit this enormous effort. If Uncle Trace had been right, and there was magic inside, what use did this man have for it?

Why did he want access to the tree so badly?

She trusted people by nature, but Ford was far more suspicious. Maybe he was right this time, maybe not. Perhaps the man in front of them was a lot like Ford, wanting to make his way in the world after some kind of tragic past.

“My name is Gary,” The man said after a moment.

Mia blinked as the name flashed through her mind. “Gary? How do you know about this cave?”

He hesitated, staring at her. “How do you?”

She glanced at Ford, wondering which of them should answer. He looked at her for a moment before speaking.

“Found a map.” He said curtly.

“A map to this entrance?” Gary asked suspiciously. “Only a few people knew of it.”

“I’m sure that’s not true,” Mia responded evenly. “Everyone who participated in collapsing it must have known.”

The stranger looked at her sharply for a moment, and then smiled knowingly. “You got the map from one of them, then?”

“It didn’t pop out of a hole in the ground,” Ford replied before Mia could. “If you’re not one of them, how did you know about the cave?”

“What are you gonna do?” The man narrowed his eyes. “The little lady offered to help, and you’re being accusatory. I don’t know whether I want you helping me or not. Maybe you’ll stab me in the back and use my progress to get in without me.”

“There won’t be any stabbing,” Mia frowned. “Why don’t I make us all some food over your campfire and we have a nice, friendly talk? I’m sure we can find a way to get along. I don’t want anything from the cave, I just need to spend some time inside it.”

“Why?” The man looked at her as if she were crazy, but his expression changed subtly as he assessed her again. “…You already have magic, don’t you?”