The one on the back recited the danger of craving magic and warned of how the best intentions could have disastrous results. Yelena Liana Zaltana’s name and title filled the final side and below hers, in smaller letters, was my name. Opal Cowan, glass magician. We were credited with defeating the Daviian Vermin and the Fire Warper they had released.
I had protested when they installed the statue. My part in the battle was minor compared to most, but Yelena had turned and looked at me with those beautiful green eyes.
“Opal,” she’d said, placing a hand on my arm. “Without you, I would not be here. I would be existing in the underworld, spending an eternity guarding those evil souls. I made sure your name was with mine.”
I hadn’t been able to argue with her logic. My nightmares didn’t occur every night and were worth enduring to have her here with us.
The bathhouse beyond the formal garden was the identical size and shape of the dining hall. My skin itched and I smelled like a horse. I added another wish to my growing list, trying to ignore the stiff feel of dried sweat on my shirt.
The small pasture occupied the back section of the Keep. Situated between the stables and the glass shop, it was used for limited grazing. Quartz headed left without being signaled. She knew where the fresh water, clean straw and sweet hay could be found. And the Stable Master’s famous milk oats.
Glad the Stable Master was asleep, I rubbed both horses down, fed and watered them before treating them to his homemade milk oats. They both trotted to their stalls. Quartz sighed with sleepy pleasure as I secured the door. She fell asleep before I left the stable.
The hulking dark presence of Third Magician’s Keep tower pressed down on me. I should go straight to Zitora’s office in the administration building, but a warm glow from the east side of the pasture beckoned me. The distinct crisp smell of burning white coal filled the air, drawing me near. Light beamed from the windows of the glass shop. I would just poke my head in for a second, see who manned the kiln and make sure all was well with the equipment.
Entering the glass shop, I paused. I soaked in the roar of the kiln, standing still until I felt the rumble deep in my bones. Dropping my saddlebags, I shrugged off my cloak and tossed it to the side. I let the heat press against my skin like a comforting blanket. Home.
Piecov, a first-year student, bent over a table, writing on a piece of paper. He startled when I called his name.
“Opal, you scared me!” He rushed to me with his arms wide. Wrapping me in a hug, he squeezed. “Thank fate you’re back. We missed you, and your sister has turned into a tyrant.”
“A tyrant?” I cocked a dubious eyebrow. My beautiful sister Mara made honey seem bitter in comparison. She was incapable of being mean. Jealous? Who, me?
“She’s worried sick about you and has been grumping at us for months. You should have sent her a message,” Piecov admonished. “We’ve been hearing a ton of crazy rumors about you and Ulrick and about a Stormdancer and a Warper. What’s been going on?”
I slumped on a stool. It would take days for me to explain everything. Piecov was right; I should have sent Mara a message once I returned to Ixia and decided to disobey the Council’s orders.
“It’s a long story. I’ll fill you in later. Where is Mara? Is she still staying in the east guest quarters?”
“No. She’s living with Leif in the staff quarters.”
Good news. Perhaps they decided to make a formal commitment. Our mother would be thrilled over the possibility of grandchildren.
“Do you want me to fetch her?” Piecov asked.
“No. Don’t bother her.” I inspected the equipment as Piecov launched into what the glass artists had been doing since I left over forty-two days ago.
“You should see Pazia’s newest project. She made a bowl and ringed the edge with diamonds.”
“It sounds gorgeous.” I adjusted a valve, thinking about the significant expense of the diamonds. Imported from Ixia, they were of limited quantity. I jerked, remembering diamonds stored magical energy and could be used by magicians to boost their power. Perhaps Pazia attempted to augment her small magic with the bowl.
Then another thought rocked me. Buried and hidden in my cloak and saddlebags were enough diamonds to fill a foot-wide orb. What would happen if I placed a charged diamond in one of my glass messengers? Would another magician be able to recharge the magic inside the glass?
Besides being the only person who could trap magic in glass, the other limit to my messengers was their short lifespan. Once the magic was used, it no longer worked. But what if it could be used over and over again? I would lose my leverage. No longer be indispensable.
“Opal!”
Mara’s cry jolted me from my thoughts. She plowed into me, pushing me against the back wall. Her hands clamped on my shoulders and her face creased with a medley of emotions.
“I want to hug you and shake you all at the same time.” She dug her fingernails into my skin.
“Make up your mind before I start to bleed.”
She pulled me toward her, then released me. I stumbled back.
“How did you know I was here?” I asked.
“Leif smelled you. He woke me up and said Quartz was in the lilac bush.”
Yelena’s brother had unusual powers. His magical ability to smell a person’s intentions and their past deeds remained unique among magicians. He was frequently called in during criminal investigations to aid in determining guilt.
“Why didn’t you send me a message? What’s been going on?” Mara demanded.
“Didn’t Leif tell you?”
She waved a hand. “You know Leif’s aversion to politics. Besides, they’re keeping a tight lid on what happened to you in Ixia. All I know is you were kidnapped again! And taken to the northern ice sheet. Oh, Opal, you must have been so frightened.” Her arms enveloped me and she stroked my back as if she soothed a child.
The events on the ice sheet seemed frozen in my heart. Distant, as if I watched through a glass sheet. Only the time spent with Kade in Ixia could warm my insides. I remember being scared, but now I felt numb.
I pulled away from Mara. “It’s a heck of a story. Most people don’t even believe me. Yes...” I rushed to assure her. “I know you will, and you make sure to be at the Council’s interrogation so you can hear it all. I’m too exhausted to repeat it now.”
“Council’s interrogation? It’s that bad?”
“Oh, yeah.” I picked up a pontil iron. “How’s the kiln been running?” I asked, changing the subject.
She clutched her skirt and released the fabric over and over. “A little hot. It’s the warming season. With the temperatures heating up during the day and cooling so fast at night, it’s hard to find the right balance of coal, but we will.”
“How’s the cauldron? Any signs of cracking?” Glass was very acidic and would eventually eat through a ceramic bowl.
I slid the kiln’s door open a crack. Bright orange light seared my vision. I squinted and poked a pontil iron in the molten glass-filled cauldron, spinning the metal rod to check the consistency of the melt. Molten glass gathered on the end of the rod like taffy and I removed the iron. Turning the rod to keep the glass from drooping and dripping onto the floor, I studied the slug. It glowed as if alive, pulsing with a deep orange light.
If Mara answered my question, I didn’t hear her. It felt wonderful to hold such potential in my hands again. It had been so long. I sat at the gaffer’s bench and picked up metal tweezers to shape the glass before it hardened. Since I hadn’t used a hollow blowpipe, I couldn’t insert magic inside. But maybe I could try—
“Stop right there,” a voice called.
Mara sat on the edge of the table with her hands over her mouth, staring at the door. A moment passed before I realized a guard aimed a crossbow at me. Piecov had spread his
arms wide to show he was unarmed.
“Step away from the bench,” the man ordered.
I abandoned my piece and moved a few feet away.
“Hands where I can see them.”
I raised my hands. Interesting how annoyance pulsed through my veins instead of fear. His alarm was evident by the sweat staining the fabric under his arms. What did he think I was going to do?
He called out an all clear over his shoulder, and moved aside. The arrow remained pointed at me. Irys and Zitora entered the shop. By this time, anger had replaced my annoyance.
“Make sure you have a null shield in place. I might try to escape.” I didn’t bother to cover my sarcasm or fury.
Zitora and Irys exchanged a look. They had erected a null shield. As Janco would say, holy snow cats!
“Opal, why didn’t you report to my office when you finished with the horses?” Zitora asked.
Aha! Understanding dawned. My stop in the glass shop looked suspicious if they believed I had turned rogue. My anger cooled and disappointment twinged deep in my chest. How could Zitora believe I’d turned rogue?
“I couldn’t resist. I figured it would be a long time before I would be allowed to come here.”
“Allowed?” Mara recovered from her surprise. “Why wouldn’t she be allowed?” Outrage fueled her words. “Without her, you wouldn’t have—”
“Mara.” I drew a breath and released it. “They have a good reason.” I stepped forward and a loud pop pierced the air. A force slammed into my shoulder, knocking me to the floor. Dazed, I stared at the shattered glass next to me. The piece I had left on the rod had cooled too fast and cracked off.
Unfortunately, the noise startled the guard and he’d shot me with an arrow.
9
Pain radiated from my left shoulder, shooting down my arm and ringing my neck. Legs appeared, voices queried and my vision blurred. Hands helped me to stand and I stumbled until an arm wrapped around me. Supported, I lurched to the infirmary with no real memory of the trip.
Healer Hayes’s mouth moved, but I didn’t understand his words. My sister squeezed my hand. I blinked at her in surprise. Nice of her to come along, I opened my mouth to thank her, but Healer Hayes touched the arrow’s shaft and my world turned black.
* * *
An insistent poking jabbed my shoulder, each thrust a painful burning spike as if a hot needle gouged my skin. I swatted my torturer with my right hand because my left arm was stuck.
“Stop it, Opal, or I’ll tie down your other arm,” Healer Hayes said.
I peered at him through slits in my eyelids. He fussed with white bandages stained red.
“It hurts.”
“The arrowhead went deep, damaging tissue, muscle and bone. I hope you’ll regain use of your left arm.”
I gaped at him. The pain was a mere inconvenience compared with the prospect of a useless arm. How would I work with glass?
“There.” He finished wrapping my shoulder and helped prop a few pillows behind my head. “Are you hungry?”
My stomach felt as if I had swallowed a bucket of sand. “No.”
He sprinkled a white powder into a glass and poured water over it. Handing it to me, he said, “Drink this for the pain, and make sure you consume plenty of liquids today. Tomorrow you will eat.” He set the water pitcher down on the wooden table by my bed.
“How long will I have to stay?” The utilitarian room reminded me of when my sister Tula had been murdered over five years ago. She had been so close to a full physical recovery when her attacker returned to the infirmary to finish the job.
“Until I say you can go.” He patted my hand. “You’re going to need your full strength to face the Council.”
His reminder inflamed my injury. I gulped a few mouthfuls of the bitter water. When he left the room, a guard outside the door moved aside to let him pass. Great. I tried to laugh but it hurt too much. Of all the scenarios I had imagined about my return, being shot by an arrow hadn’t been one of them.
I dozed off and on. Without a window in my room, I couldn’t tell the time. Mara’s strident voice pierced the fog of my thoughts.
“...her sister and if you don’t let me in, I’m going to—”
Her threat was cut off by Hayes’s soothing voice. Then the door flew open and Mara swept into the room laden with a basketful of...stuff. Hayes was two feet behind her. She demanded a prognosis, firing questions at Hayes until she was satisfied.
“Right now, rest is the—” he tried.
“She’ll get plenty of rest,” Mara assured him. “I’ll make sure of that.” She shooed him out the door, then unpacked books, a blanket, biscuits and the glass fox Tula had crafted for my birthday. Mara placed the fox on the table and bustled about with the other items. I studied the little guy. I’d never been able to achieve the same exquisite details with my animals. Those lifelike touches made Tula’s statues sought by collectors.
“Leif sent Yelena a message to return. Healer Hayes is a dear, but you need her healing powers to fix that shoulder,” Mara said.
“Mara—”
“I have given Zitora strict orders that you not be questioned unless I’m there.”
“But—”
“And I’ve sent a message to Mother and Father. The more supporters you have around you the better.”
I gaped at her as if she’d grown wings. “Wow, you have changed. You’re more—”
“What?” She crossed her arms, waiting. She had pulled her long, curly hair into a bun, exposing more of her heart-shaped face.
“Bossy.”
She sighed. “I had to be. You disappeared and no one would tell me what was going on. I badgered Zitora until she caved. But then she still only gave me vague snippets of information.” Frustration laced her voice. She paced in the small room. “I wanted to help you, but I didn’t know where you were.” Mara halted and glared at me. “It was a nightmare for me, a repeat of when Tula was kidnapped. I didn’t want to stand around waiting to be told you had died, but I was forced to. Just like with Tula.”
The truth of her words hit me. I had been so focused on finding Ulrick, I hadn’t even thought about her. “I’m sorry I caused you so much grief. It was very inconsiderate. But you shouldn’t have bothered Yelena, and this is the busy season for Mother and Father.”
“Nonsense. Strength in numbers, my dear.” And just like that she forgave me.
She settled on the single chair by my bedside, wriggling into a comfortable position. Her intention to stay clear, Mara laid a warm hand on my forehead. “No fever for now. Good. Go to sleep, Opal. I’ll be here to watch over you.”
My protest died on my lips. When Tula had been recovering from Ferde’s assault, Mara had stayed home to work in the factory with our brother, Ahir, while I was whisked to the Citadel by Master Jewelrose. Yelena had wanted my help in “waking” Tula. Her trauma had been so severe, her mind had retreated to a fond memory. With Yelena, I traveled through her thoughts and convinced her to return to consciousness.
Tula and I had always been close. Being about eighteen months apart in age, we had been inseparable. We either idolized Mara or were jealous of her. She was the oldest and could do no wrong, acting more like a mother than a sibling. Her beauty and the constant flock of admirers didn’t help our feelings. Our brother received attention because he was the baby.
As I drifted to sleep, I realized Tula and my actions growing up had isolated Mara. I promised I would try to rectify the relationship.
* * *
Janco’s complaints woke me. “’Bout time. I’ve been here for an hour.”
I cracked an eye open. Janco lounged in the chair with his feet propped on my bed.
“Can’t leave you for one night.” He tsked. “Shot by friendly fire. It sucks to be you.”
“How nice of you to spare my feelings. Any other little joyful nuggets you care to comment on?”
“Sheesh, you’re grumpy in the morning.” He sulked.
“Where’s Mara?”
“Probably sleeping. I gave the poor woman a break—she’s been here for two days straight.”
Two days already. I rolled my shoulder—all I could do with my left arm wrapped tight to my body. Darts of pain radiated.
“I don’t blame her for wanting to stay with you. That was a heck of a homecoming even for the Creepy Keepy.” He brightened a bit. “But she trusts me. She wouldn’t let anyone else stay with you.”
“She’s being a bit overprotective,” I said.
“With good reason. Leif’s been running interference for you, but the Council demanded you report to them tomorrow.” He dropped his feet and sat up. Wincing, he rubbed his side. “Yelena’s here already. We had an early workout, but she’s planning on seeing you later this morning.”
My stomach flipped with mixed emotions. Happy Yelena had arrived and terrified about the Council session.
Healer Hayes entered the room and shooed Janco out so he could change my bandage. He frowned and hemmed as he worked.
“What’s wrong?” I asked him.
“It’s healing. But it’s slow.” His lips pressed together as if he chewed on a thought. “You need to know why.”
My heart beat a faster rhythm. The news had to be bad. I waited as he struggled to find the right words.
“I couldn’t use magic to heal you,” he said.
“Why not?”
“The Masters have erected a null shield around you. No one can work magic through a shield, so your shoulder will have to heal on its own. Sorry.”
I didn’t have the energy to be upset. It wasn’t a surprise. It felt more like a betrayal. I’ve been living in the Keep for five years, working with the Masters on various projects and risking my life. Couldn’t they even give me the benefit of the doubt?
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