Above the Vaulted Sky - Page 212

                It doesn’t take us long to return to town. There is a bustle in the main square. I can see the others from the hunts have returned and are at the centre of commotion. They’re easy to make out. Their clothes are covered in a thin film of dust from the sands. We walk through the crowds until we’re at the centre.

                ‘Elle, Easton, there you are,’ says one man, Upson who walked us through the hunt routines only that morning. He’s well-built and his dark skin glistens with a layer of sweat. It’s rare to see here amongst those so used to being ghosts. ‘We may have some news about your friend.’

                Elle steps forward. ‘You saw him? Is it singing time?’

                Upson looks uncomfortable. ‘Not exactly,’ he replies. ‘We might have to fetch him another way.’

                ‘What do you mean?’ I join Elle at the front of the crowd. ‘What’s happened to him?’

                ‘That’s the thing.’ Tarquin appears through a gap between listening heads. ‘We’re not entirely sure.’