Accompanied by Zill’s family, Jake and Emily stepped outside and made their way through the crowd. Solev and Melos were standing just outside the Sacred Circle, waiting for Ari to count the votes.
“The voting has come to an end. Please wait here while I count the pebbles,” announced Ari.
None of the gnomes had permission to enter the Sacred Circle into which the votes had been cast. Since Ari was Yolen’s apprentice, no one doubted her integrity.
After making sure that everyone was present there, she stepped inside the ring of ashes. Blue and red pebbles were scattered all across the ground, with some lying perilously close to the bonfire. The crowd of onlookers waited silently as Ari gathered the pebbles in a large wooden bowl.
It took her almost half an hour to collect all the peb
