“Fight? You think when I get up there the creature’s going to say, ‘Thank you very much, I’ll be off now’?”

“Believe me,” says Geiléis, “if I knew, I would have told you straightaway. It seems unlikely this could be so simple.”

“Why would it throw the stone down?” Hoping Geiléis won’t object if I say my bit. “Why would it give Blackthorn a clue? Whole thing could be a trick.”

“I cannot answer that,” Geiléis says. “It is possible that all the creature wants is to be released from the tower. Perhaps Blackthorn need only cut a path through the thorns, at the right time on the right day. But it would be foolish to assume that. The prolonged screaming suggests a certain violence of feeling; that could quickly turn to acts of aggression. We must tread with care.”

“Time’s a bit short for being careful,” says Blackthorn.

Everyone thinks about this for a bit. Then Flannan speaks up. “The situation is more perilous than I’d realized. Blackthorn could get herself killed. How can you expect that of her, Lady Geiléis?” Which is the same thing I’m thinking, more or less. I wait for Blackthorn to tell him to mind his own business, but it’s the lady who puts him in his place. She stares at him like a queen telling an underling he’s brought her the wrong breakfast.

“Mistress Blackthorn is her own woman and has come here of her own choosing. As for what may lie ahead, we have time to make a plan. To provide whatever protection is necessary.”

“What about today?” asks Flannan, sounding angry. “Where was that protection when Blackthorn nearly got hit on the head by this rock?”

That’s a bit rough. Onchú and Donncha did their best. Not their fault if Blackthorn doesn’t obey orders if they don’t happen to suit her.

“Flannan,” says Blackthorn in that special soft voice, “this is not your concern.”

“It is if—”

“Flannan.”

He shuts up after that. If Blackthorn tells you to stop talking, you stop. End of story.

“Will you go ahead with the cleansing ritual, Blackthorn?” Geiléis asks.

“Most certainly,” says Blackthorn, “since if it’s effective, I may not be required to enter the tower at all. I’ll go looking for a suitable spot tomorrow. I need to gather herbs as well.”

“Onchú will arrange—” Geiléis starts, but Blackthorn cuts her off.

“The correct practice of a cleansing ritual requires the wise woman to perform various stages of preparation alone. Fail to observe that rule and you risk rendering the ritual completely ineffective. I will take precautions.”

Can’t say I like the idea of her going off alone any more than Geiléis does, but she’s the wise woman and I’m just the hanger-on, so I keep quiet. If I say what I think, she’ll only bite my head off.

Senach speaks up. “Rain is expected, Mistress Blackthorn. You may have noticed the clouds building. When wet weather comes to Bann, it tends to linger. The next few days may not be ideal for walking in the forest.”