Read Online Down Among the Dead Men (Forest Kingdom Novels) by Simon R. Green - Free Book Online Page B

before?”
    MacNeil smiled and shrugged. “They don’t know you like I do. Anyway, I’m telling you now. If Scarecrow AJack has somehow found out about the gold, you can bet he’s not working on his own anymore. He couldn’t even move that much gold without help.”
    “How do we know it hasn’t already been moved?” said Flint.
    “The odds are against it,” said MacNeil. “All the signs would seem to suggest that we’re the first people to have entered this fort since … whatever happened.”
    Constance frowned. “Scarecrow Jack usually works alone. And I’ve never heard of him being interested in gold.”
    “Everyone’s interested in gold,” said Flint.
    “Not Jack,” said Constance. “He’s different.”
    MacNeil looked at her. “You know Scarecrow Jack?”
    “I met him, once,” said Constance. “A few years back I was searching for mandrake roots not far from here, and I got lost. Jack found me and showed me the way back to the main trail. He was very polite, very sweet, and extremely shy. I liked him. He’s a simple enough soul, happy with the life he leads. The Forest gives him everything he needs. But … I suppose anyone can be tempted.”
    “Exactly,” said MacNeil. “So, we’ve got to find the gold, or what happened to it, before Jack gets back here with his friends. For all we know, there could be a small army out there, just waiting for him to report back.”
    The Dancer looked at the ceiling thoughtfully. “We’d have a hard job defending this place against even a very small army.”
    MacNeil shrugged. “All we have to do is keep them away from the gold for a few days, and then the reinforcements will be here. But to do that, we’ve got to find the damned gold first.”
    “All right,” said Flint. “Where do we start? We’ve already looked everywhere once.”
    “Yeah,” said MacNeil. “Which means we must have overlooked something … some clue. So we’ll just have to search every room and corridor and hidey-hole all over again, and keep on looking until we do find something.”
    “Now?” said Constance. “At night?”
    MacNeil looked at her sardonically. “Still bothered by your dream, Constance? Afraid the nasty demons are going to jump out of the shadows at you?”
    Constance looked at him steadily. “You can be very irritating at times, Duncan. Something here in this fort drove the people insane, so that they killed themselves and each other. It’s still here, and it’s still dangerous. And evil is at its strongest during the hours of darkness.”
    “I’m sorry, Constance,” said MacNeil, “but there’s no real evidence for any of that.” “My Sight—”
    “Is clouded here. You said so yourself.”
    “You’d have believed Salamander!”
    For a long moment no one said anything.
    “The sooner we start this search, the sooner we’ll be finished,” said MacNeil quietly. “We’ll make better time if we split into two teams. The first one to find anything sings out. Flint, you and the Dancer start at the entrance hall. Check it over thoroughly, even if you have to rip the walls apart to do it. Then start working your way back, room by room. Constance and I will Start here and work our way out to meet you. Between us, we should cover every room in the fort.”
    “It’s going to be a long job,” said the Dancer.
    “Then we’d better make a start, hadn’t we?” said MacNeil.

CHAPTER THREE
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    Wolves in the Forest
    Scarecrow Jack moved through the dark woods like a speckled ghost, his feet making no sound as they trod a path only he could see. Jack was a part of the Forest and knew its secret ways. Trees loomed over him like sleeping giants, their gnarled arms stirring uneasily in the gusting wind. Milky shafts of moonlight spilled through occasional gaps in the overhead canopy, and collected in shimmering pools on the forest floor. Jack stopped suddenly and dropped down to crouch motionless in the shadows. Something was wrong in the Forest. He