Armed with the information he needed , Jona returned to the inn long enough to recover his things and be on his way .
40
* * *
The Alderman ’ s directions were harder to follow than expected . It seemed that the trail had been described according to things either the Alderman , or perhaps his father , remembered from childhood . More than a few of the supposed landmarks were hidden by choking weeds or half buried in the ground . However , Jona had the gift of Scent as an additional guide , and the deathly smell got worse as he walked over springy turf and fields overgrown with wildflowers . If it weren ’ t for the curse , he would have thought the area beautiful .
Regardless of minor changes to the landscape , the bald hill was easy enough to find . After a certain elevation , the long grass of the region ’ s wilderness shortened before stopping . The top of the hill itself was nothing but black , hard-packed , earth and a scattering of lichen-spotted roots . Jona surveyed the area from the crest of the hill and noted a winding dip between the other rises that had the signs of being an old road . Following the broken path by eye , he found a bowl-shaped depression where , true to the Alderman ’ s tale , several man-sized , soot-blackened , stones poked out of the encroaching grass like broken bones . He couldn ’ t see the intact doorway from his vantage point , but the signs were enough for Jona to believe he had found what he sought and began descending the hill .
Before he got more than a few strides , however , he checked the sun . There were only a few hours of daylight left at most , and he shuddered at the thought of trying to face the curse ’ s source in darkness . Instead , he backtracked