Chapter 27: Down
We went into the Hollow on the first night of the new moon.
It took three weeks to plan. Ronan watched the Warden rotations and I studied the old maps in my father's study. Tam forged a note from Odalys's office to keep the third patrol away, and I took a silent, vengeful pleasure in that, because Odalys had once given Tam a lecture on penmanship.
This time we didn't come alone. Tam brought a coil of rope, three lanterns, a pouch of chalk, and a small hand axe she refused to explain.
"Just in case," she said.
"In case of what?"
"In case of anything."
The iron ring beneath the c***k was the key. When I pulled it with Ronan's weight behind me, a section of the Table slid aside with a low grinding, revealing a shaft that dropped into darkness. Iron rungs were set into
