"That was the way I heard it, Arell. I didn't read it for myself, but Belgarath and Beldin kept talking about 'the High Places of Korim, Which Are No More,' and isn't the meeting supposed to be at the Place Which Is No More? I mean, it does sort of fit together, doesn't it?"

"Yes," Arell replied, frowning strangely. "Now that I think about it, it does." Then she straightened, smoothing her gown. "I'll have to leave you now, Ce'Nedra," she said. "Take your baby back to your husband. Give him my regards." Her eyes seemed to glint in the sunlight. "Give my best to Polgara, as well," she added. There seemed to be something slightly malicious in the way she said it. She turned then and walked away, crossing the flowery meadow toward the dark edge of the forest.

"Good-bye, Arell," Ce'Nedra called after her, "and thank you so much for finding my baby."

Arell neither turned nor answered.

Garion was frantic. When he first discovered that his wife was missing, he leaped into his saddle and rode Chretienne off into the forest at a gallop. He had gone three hundred yards before Belgarath finally caught up with him. "Garion! Stop!" the old man shouted.

"But, Grandfather!" Garion shouted back. "I’ve got to find Ce'Nedra!"

"Where do you plan to start looking? Or are you just going to ride around in circles trusting to luck?"

"But—"

"Use your head, boy! We have another way that's much faster. You know what she smells like, don't you?"

"Of course, but—"

"Then we have to use our noses. Get down off that horse and send him back. We'll change form and follow her trail. It's faster and a great deal more certain."

Garion felt suddenly very foolish. "I wasn't thinking, I guess," he confessed.

"I didn't think you were. Get rid of that horse."

Garion slid down and slapped Chretienne sharply on the rump. The big gray bolted back toward where the others were still concealed. "What on earth was she thinking of?" Garion fumed.

"I'm not sure if she was," Belgarath grunted. "She's been acting strangely for the past few days. Let's get on with this. The quicker we find her, the quicker we can get her back to the others. Your aunt can get to the bottom of this." The old man was already blurring into the shape of the huge silver wolf. "

You lead," he growled at Garion. "Her scent is more familiar to you."

Garion changed and cast back and forth until his nose caught Ce'Nedra's familiar fragrance. "She went this way," he cast his thought to Belgarath.

"How fresh is the trail?" the old wolf asked.

"It can't be much more than a half hour old,'' Garion replied, bunching himself to run.

"Good. Let's go find her." And the two of them ran smoothly through the woods, their noses to the ground in the manner of hunting wolves.