by Teri Barnett
“I can’t heal myself, Connor,” Bethany answered.
“Why not?” he asked.
“It’s just not done. It’s against the practices of a Healer to use the energy on ourselves rather than on those who would seek our aid.”
“I think it’s time you tried. After all, you want to be your strongest when you meet up with the infamous High Priestess, don’t you?”
“The High Priestess? Is she here?”
“The woman who brought us here said something about needing to talk to the High Priestess Liazar. If she’s not here, then she must be in the vicinity,” Ian answered.
“If that’s so, then I’ll try it. For Sarah’s sake,” Bethany said. Slowly, she raised her hand to her head, grimacing as she gingerly felt the contusion. As she continued to run her fingertips over it, she slipped into the Knowing. A soft indigo mist formed around her head, concealing her face from view. After a few moments, she let her hands drop as her body swayed, overcome with dizziness. When the mist cleared, a shadow of the bruise was still there, but its intensity was lessened.
“You’ve almost done it, Bethany. Can you try again?”
Bethany felt the side of her head. The bump was there, but it was quite a bit smaller than it had been. She closed her eyes as the room began to spin and it took all of her concentration to keep from falling over the side of the cot. “I’ve done as much as I can. I’ll be fine in a little while.”
Connor lay his hand on her cheek as he leaned in to kiss her, the door opened.
“Come with me,” the guard ordered, looking at Ian.
Connor stood. “We go together.”
“Not this time. She wants to see him first.”
“Who wants to?” Bethany asked. “Is it the High Priestess?”
“For a group of ‘pilgrims,’ you three seem to have a lot of questions about us,” the guard snarled. Two more entered the chamber and flanked Ian.
Connor’s hand moved to the gun. Ian shook his head. “Not yet. Save it. I’ll be all right.” Ian glanced at Bethany and smiled. “Be well, Bethany.” She lifted her hand and smiled back as the guards lead him out the door.
Bethany stood and started to go to Connor when a wave of dizziness swept through her. She teetered as Connor rushed to her side. He gathered her into his arms, holding her tightly against him.
“This is my fault, Connor. Ian only came because I asked him to. She’ll kill him.”
“We can’t know that for sure. As for Ian’s being here, you couldn’t have stopped him. He wants to help you find Sarah, too. He’s a good man.” He leaned over and kissed the top of her head. “I have a friend like him at home. He never leaves me, even when I treat him like a dog.”
“A dog?” Bethany sniffed.
“Yeah, it’s a small furry animal. Very loyal. Anyway, Jimmy Brown Eagle, that’s his name, well I think he’d follow me to the ends of the earth. Of course, it goes both ways.”
“I remember Jimmy. He’s the one who was with you in the tent and at the portal, wasn’t he?”
Connor grinned. “The very same.”
“I’d like to meet him in person someday,” she said.
“I hope you will, Angel. But right now, you need to rest.” He helped her back to the small cot. Sitting down, he pulled Bethany onto his lap. She curled up in his embrace, resting her head on his chest.
“Where have you been, Billy Boy, Billy Boy? Oh, where have you been, charming Billy?” he crooned in Bethany’s ear.
Bethany held tight to Connor and tears rolled down her cheeks as Ian’s screams echoed around them.
Chapter 28
The torch’s weak flame eventually sputtered out, leaving Bethany and Connor in virtual darkness. They stayed on the cot for most of the day. Ian’s yells of pain had stopped some time ago and now they kept vigil for his return. It was evening when the door finally scraped open. A thin stream of yellow light slowly expanded to fill the entire room. Bethany ran to the door.
“Ian?” she called.
A guard pushed her way in. “Move away from the door.”
Bethany backed up. “Where’s Ian?”
“Resting,” the guard answered with a vague smile. She placed a tray of food on the floor and turned to leave.
“Excuse me, ma’am,” Connor called. “Would you be so kind as to leave us a fresh torch? I’d like to make sure it’s food I’m eating and not one of the varmints I keep hearing running about.”
“I suppose that would be acceptable.” She took the extinguished torch from its holder and replaced it with a fresh one another guard handed her. She cast a backward glance at the pair, then closed the door behind her.
Bethany carried the tray to the cot where Connor was sitting. Together, they shared the meager fare of flat bread and berries, washing it down with cold bitters. After one swallow, Connor grimaced.
“Like I said before,” she said, “it takes some getting used to.”
“I don’t think I ever will.” He shivered, swallowing the drink.
“I’ve been thinking, Connor. Do you suppose they used this cell for anyone who may have challenged the priestess and lost?”
Connor shrugged. “They could have. What difference would it make?”
“Well, I could go into the Knowing and see if there’s any information to be found. If someone was here who knew the answer to what we seek, maybe I can find out.” She chewed on a piece of the hard bread and shrugged. She looked at Connor. “What do you think?”
“If it’ll help us get out of this hell hole and find Sarah and Ian, I say do it. It sounds like a good idea to me.” He cleared the tray from the cot and placed it near the door. “What do you want me to do?”
“Nothing, other than try to remember whatever I tell you. I can’t always recall everything I’ve said.” She shifted to the edge of the bed, placed her feet on the floor, and went into the Knowing.
“Tell me what you see, Bethany,” Connor bade quietly.
Bethany scanned the room. Generation upon generation of prisoner began to appear. Some old, some young. Men, women, children. All manner of dress and demeanor, from the richest nobleman to the lowliest slave. “There are so many people here. I can’t make out what any of them are saying.” She put her hands over her ears. “It’s getting too loud.”
“Pick out one person and shut out the others,” Connor whispered as though he were in her head. “You can do it. Go slowly and seek one person at a time.”
Bethany nodded. “I see a young woman. She’s sitting on her heels, crying…”
“My baby, my baby,” the woman sobbed. “They killed you.” She rolled her eyes heavenward. “Sweet Mother of All, please forgive me for turning against you. The Eitellans offered worldly riches but they stole my child. I’d gladly give it all back to save his soul. They might as well kill me, too.”
“Hasn’t someone told you what we had in mind?” a voice called through the door. “Come sunset, the priestess will take you, too, though I can’t see why she’d bother as old as you are.” Laughter mixed with the sound of footsteps echoing down the hallway as the guard walked away.
“Oh, Connor, they took her child, too,” Bethany cried. “What if we don’t find Sarah? What if we’re going about this all wrong?”
Connor put his arm around her shoulders and drew her close. “You’ve got to trust your instincts, you know that. It’s what’s brought us this far. Try again,” he urged. “Pick out someone else.”
She nodded. “There’s an old woman in the corner.” In her mind’s eye, the woman came into clear focus. She was wearing the garb of a priestess, only it was dirty and torn. Her pewter gray hair had been shorn above her ears and all her jewelry removed. Bethany listened as she talked to herself, repeating the words in a murmur for Connor’s benefit.
“Throw me in here, will you? Upstart!” She picked up a
stick and started to scratch at the wall, making marks. Bethany struggled to decipher the writing. It was a type of old cuneiform, similar to what she had seen on Yongi’s statue. Perhaps they were from the same time period.
“What can I do for revenge?” The old woman stroked her chin. “I know! I know!” A bony finger sliced the air. “I’ll leave a message of death for future Eitellans. If I convey the secret words, then they’ll be able to destroy the priestesses that follow me.”
With the stick, she dug at the mortar surrounding one of the smaller blocks of which the wall was constructed. Finally, it loosened and she struggled with it until she was able to slide it out halfway. She put her hand inside one of the knee-high boots she wore, pulling out a thick, sharp skinny implement, like an oversized sewing needle. Furiously, she scratched and dug, forming the letters that would spell certain death for future priestesses.
Bethany watched in a few moments what must have taken the old woman several months to write. Every night, she’d force the block out and work. On the left side, she made the markings. On the right, she dug until a small hole was formed. When her work was finished, she placed the needle into the hole and slipped the stone into place for the last time. That night, a guard came to take her away. The old priestess never returned.
Bethany walked slowly over to the wall perpendicular to the cot. Pushing the bed out of the way, she dropped to her hands and knees and searched the stones. There it was. The one she’d seen in the vision. She sat back on her haunches. “Connor, come here.”
He squatted down next to her. “Is that the stone?”
“Yes.” She dug with her fingers at the sand the old priestess had packed into the joints until enough was gone to allow her to slip her hands in next to it. “I can feel the carvings,” she said, sliding the stone forward.
Connor went to retrieve the torch. “Can you read it?”
“It’s an old tongue but, yes, I think I can interpret it.” She lay down on her stomach in order to have a better look. She ran her fingers over the letters.
“What’s it say?”
“‘Hear my words, children of Eitel. If you would destroy the priestess, her head she must lose. Take this gift and put it to good use. Shaken thrice, a weapon you’ll have. Strike fast and sure. You’ll not get a second chance.’” Bethany sat up and leaned back against the cot, crossing her arms over her knees.
“Didn’t you say something earlier about the woman placing something in the stone?” Connor asked, reaching around its side. “Here it is.” He pulled out the shiny silver needle and handed it to Bethany.
Bethany paced to the center of the room. “It said to shake it three times to kill the priestess. Do you think I can kill her from here?”
She gave the needle a good shake downward, but nothing happened. She shook it two more times and the instrument began to glow a bright orange. She dropped it and backed away, watching wide eyed as it stretched and grew in length.
“My God,” Connor said, standing behind her. He moved past Bethany and picked it up. “It’s a sword.”
“Of course!” She clasped her hands together. “‘If you would destroy the priestess, her head she must lose.’ The High Priestess must be beheaded!”
“Beheaded?” Connor swallowed hard.
Bethany nodded. Taking the weapon from Connor, she watched as it returned to its normal size then fastened it to the inside of her blouse. “As sure as I’ve ever been about anything in my life.”
Chapter 29
The cell door’s bar hit the stone floor with a heavy thud, cutting through the stillness of the tomb-like cell. The noise jolted Bethany and Connor awake.
Esther walked in with a guard on either side, her arm in a sling. She placed a new torch in the holder and turned to face the pair. “Well, well. We’ve met before, haven’t we?” She eyed Connor. “I suppose you came back so I could thank you for this,” she said, pointing at the injury. “You really should have stayed away when you had the chance. Now you’ll have to deal with Liazar. I don’t mind telling you she’s in a foul mood this morning. That friend of yours kept her up all night with his howling.”
“What did she do to Ian?” Bethany demanded, rising from the cot. “Tell me or I’ll finish what Connor started.”
“Really, Connor, you should keep a muzzle on this one. She’ll get both of you into trouble for sure,” Esther hissed.
Connor moved to stand in front of Bethany, shielding her from the other woman. Esther immediately caught sight of the gun. “Take that from him!” she commanded the women with her. “Didn’t you check them for weapons?”
The two guards looked at each other sheepishly. “Yes, Ma’am. Please forgive us. We didn’t know what it was. It looked like some sort of ornament.” As one guard held a crossbow at Connor’s throat, the other took his gun. Esther held out her hand and accepted it.
Bethany and Connor stood stock-still, unable to move with the arrows pointing at them, waiting as the guards checked their persons for anything else they may have. Satisfied they didn’t possess any other weapons, they stepped away. Bethany allowed herself a small sigh of relief. They hadn’t found the needle.
Esther smiled at Connor. “She’s especially interested in you, dear sir.”
“Why?” Connor’s eyes narrowed.
“No idea but I suppose you’ll find out soon enough.” Esther stepped to the side as the guards shoved the pair in front of them. Holding a crossbow at each of their backs, they directed Bethany and Connor down the long winding corridor to meet with the High Priestess, Liazar.
Bethany forced herself to take slow, deep breaths as they moved down the dark, musty corridor. She was thankful she and Connor were being taken together. His strength would help keep her from losing her resolve.
Soon, Sarah, soon. Mama’s coming.
Connor whispered in her ear. “We’ll get through this, Bethany.”
“I love you,” she whispered back. “No matter what happens, please know that.”
“I love you, too.” He cleared his throat. “Damn, I can’t help but feel like we’re being led to the gallows.”
“Gallows?”
“Never mind. It’s an unpleasant place.”
“You two be quiet.” Esther called from behind them. “We’re here.”
They stopped in front of a large wooden door as wide as the corridor. Esther pushed past them and knocked at it first twice, then a pause, then another four times.
Slowly the door creaked open. They had to cover their eyes because of the brightness of the room. Everywhere, torches glowed. Esther motioned for the guards to proceed and they pushed Bethany and Connor forward.
As her eyes grew used to the light, Bethany noticed they were in an altar room, but it was unlike any she had ever seen. At least four times the size of the usual ones she helped to excavate, it extended well beyond the entry. The walls were painted similarly to Yongi’s kiyolo, with further tales of the life of Eitel. At the center of the room was an immense white marble throne instead of a statue.
When they were within ten feet of the seat, Esther ordered them to stop. “That’ll be far enough.”
From somewhere inside the altar room, the sweet melody of a lyre floated out to them. As the musician strummed, a woman with long, dark red hair emerged from behind the throne and took her seat. She let her gaze pass over Bethany and come to rest on Connor.
“My God.” Connor gasped.
“It’s been a long time, dear Connor. Is that all you have to say to your wife?”
Elizabeth?
Bethany’s mind reeled. The two women she had grown to despise were one and the same. She looked from Connor to Elizabeth, unable to speak.
“I thought you were dead,” Connor said, his voice low.
Elizabeth eyed Bethany. “So, it would seem.”
Connor drew himself up. “What have yo
u done to yourself? You look like hell.”
She pounded a fist on the arm of the throne. “On the contrary. I’m the picture of health, thanks to the hospitality of these delightful Eitellans.” She flung her long red tresses over her shoulders.
“What I meant was, any trace of my former wife is completely gone,” Connor spat. “You may appear beautiful on the outside, but I know your insides are rotten to the core. You’ve sold your soul to the Devil himself.”
Elizabeth scowled and leaned forward. “I see you haven’t lost your self-righteous do-gooder ways. I happened to arrive during one of their celebrations. I stepped out of a kiyolo and there they were. Well, you can imagine what must have been running through their minds to see someone appear in such a way.” She leaned back, resting her head against the cold stone. “Seems the priestess who preceded me wasn’t too popular. I’d read the Book of Eitel and knew how to get rid of her. So, I did. And I took her place” She studied her fingernails. “Fascinating story, don’t you think? They even gave me a new name. Liazar.” She waved her hand in the air. “It means rebirth.”
Bethany took a deep breath, forcing herself to stay calm. “So, you’re Elizabeth?” she asked, her voice tinged with sarcasm. “Really, Connor, whatever did you see in her to make her your wife?”
Elizabeth’s eyes flashed sparks of anger and her hands gripped the armrests of her throne.
Good. I’ve rattled her.
Bethany was glad for the hidden sword. When the time was right, she would strike.
Elizabeth turned back to Connor. “Dear husband, what brings you here? I wouldn’t have thought you could have climbed out of that whiskey bottle long enough to figure out how to cross over.”
He shrugged and pointed his chin toward Elizabeth’s hand. “I see you’re still wearing the ring I gave you.”
Elizabeth held up her hand and studied the sparkling gemstones in the candlelight. “It is quite lovely. I couldn’t bear to part with it.”
Bethany sensed Connor’s tightly leashed tension. She shifted closer to him, her fingers lightly brushing his.