by Raine Thomas
“You said you’ve noticed P’oq and your fellow council members acting strangely,” Ty said after sipping his tea. “When did you first notice it?”
The tea is fine to drink, he thought.
Kyr silently thanked him and took a sip of her own tea as she awaited Halda’s answer. The councilor appeared to give Ty’s question some thought.
“It was around the time they returned from a visit at the Vawn palace,” she said at last.
“They visited the palace?”
“Yes. We were all called to an audience with the Guardians, along with the councils from the other megais.”
Halda paused to take a tea cake covered in pink frosting. Kyr realized she was moistening her own lips as she watched Halda take a bite. Flushing, she took another sip of tea and avoided Ty’s penetrating gaze.
“I was unable to attend,” Halda continued after she finished the cake. “The day we were scheduled to leave, I took a spill down the stairs and suffered from a couple of bruised ribs and a sprained wrist. Traveling that far was out of the question.”
“When was that?” Ty asked as he loaded several of the tea cakes and sandwiches onto his plate.
“Not long before the Ascendant returned,” Halda responded. “In fact, P’oq informed me that the purpose of the audience was to discuss the ball celebrating Ma’jah Kyr’s return.”
Kyr and Ty both felt Halda’s sorrow as she thought of Kyr’s death. It touched Kyr enough to have her eyes stinging. Since Halda was looking down into her teacup as she gathered herself, Ty switched plates with Kyr. She was too grateful to be embarrassed, and just silently thanked him as she ate one of the cakes.
“You said P’oq told you about the purpose of the audience,” Ty said. “Did you not know the purpose before it was held?”
Halda frowned. “No, actually. It was a little odd, though we did all assume it pertained to the Ascendant. And then when Syd and Nevyll returned and started making decisions I questioned, well…”
“What kinds of decisions?” Kyr encouraged when Halda trailed off.
For a moment, Halda hesitated. Kyr could tell that she was uncomfortable speaking ill of the two males who had served with her for most of her life. Kyr sent out the thought that she and Ty were to be trusted, taking care to keep it subtle so Halda wouldn’t perceive it.
Eventually, Halda sighed and set her teacup down. “They dole out unreasonably harsh punishments, even when I offer up persuasive arguments. They do and say things that instigate confrontations with those we’re meant to counsel. We’ve sent more Wrym to the palace prisons over the past six lunar cycles than in all the time I’ve been a member of this council. Good homes are being broken, and I can’t live with it any longer. That’s why when I sensed you earlier…well, I hoped you were here to help.”
Kyr set her empty plate and cup on the table and met Halda’s gaze. “We are. We’ve got news to share, Councilor, and it won’t be easy to hear.”
Halda’s lips pressed together into a thin line, but she nodded in acknowledgement to urge Kyr to continue. So Kyr did, explaining in a general way what they had discovered regarding the lifting of repressions, influencing of Alametrians to commit crimes, and the shadowy conspiracy within the palace. Although Kyr felt Halda’s shock and dismay as she listened, her expression reflected none of that. She’d been in a position of authority for too long to lose her composure over awful news.
Still, the councilor’s voice wasn’t quite steady when she spoke after Kyr finished. “You’re saying that all of the Wrym who this council found guilty and sentenced to prison are probably in the Dark Lands right now fulfilling some unknown goal for Advisor Vycor?”
“I’m afraid so,” Kyr said.
“And the Advisor used his abilities, which are beyond any Mynder’s power to overcome, to influence Dem-Shyr TaeDane to kill the Ascendant?”
“Yes.”
Halda rose from the settee and walked over to a tall window. Kyr easily read that the other female needed to process what she’d been told. Giving her privacy with her thoughts, Kyr exchanged a look with Ty.
She believes us.
He nodded. She’s scared for herself and her people.
Who could blame her? This really sucks.
Yes, it does.
Once again, his easy agreement comforted her. She knew he wasn’t any happier about bringing this news to people’s doorsteps than she was. Added to being the bearer of bad news was the reality that every person they told became a possible target for Vycor. They were putting lives at risk in an effort to save many more. Not for the first time, the weight of responsibility pressed like a mountain on her shoulders.
“You say that this is occurring across all of the megais?” Halda asked without turning around.
“Yes, Councilor.”
“This is troubling on so many levels.” She turned and looked between Ty and Kyr. Her eyes were lit with the fire of indignation. “Lifting the repressions is simply unconscionable. Never mind the smaller offenses we’ve seen over the past couple of lunar cycles. There is bound to be massive in-fighting within all of the megais as people begin experiencing negative emotions again. Many people will be hurt or killed. And what is stopping the mayhem from spreading from one megai to another?”
“We believe that’s actually one of the Advisor’s goals,” Ty responded.
Halda nodded slowly. “You say he wants to assume power. By creating chaos, he could ultimately step forward and put an end to it with these new abilities you mentioned.”
Kyr hadn’t thought of it in quite that light, but realized the Wrym was right. And if Vycor’s abilities weren’t enough to stop the trouble he’d caused, the V’larian weaponry sure would be.
“People will flock to him for help,” Halda continued, “and eventually rely on him for leadership.” For the first time, true fear reflected in her expression. “If he has connections in the Dark Lands as you said…”
None of them needed her to finish the sentence to understand her worry. Her megai was at great risk if the protections were lowered.
Halda walked back to the settee and sat down, her expression grim. “What can I do to help you in your efforts?”
“We need to scan as many Wrym as we can,” Ty said. “That way, we can learn how far Vycor’s influence extends. Then we can help you develop a plan to secure the megai.”
“Then that’s just what we’re going to do.”
Chapter 12
Not long after Halda vowed to help them, she was called back to business for the council’s daily session. She instructed Kyr and Ty to wait for her in her chambers. She intended to explain to Syd and Nevyll that she’d received a surprise visit from friends, and request an early conclusion to the day’s proceedings. There was little doubt in her mind that the male council members would jump at the chance to stop work early. Evidently, along with their increasingly harsh punishments had come an equally poor work ethic.
When they were alone, Kyr shifted closer to Ty. She was suddenly filled with doubt. Vycor and Shaya had gotten to all of the megai councils. The fact that Halda was outside of the Advisor’s influence appeared to be an anomaly. If the highest officials within each megai had already fallen victim to Vycor’s evil, who knew how many other Alametrians were under his influence? What kind of a chance did they have when it was impossible to trust anyone?
Ty put his arm around her and pulled her tight against his side. We’re going to defeat him, Kyr.
You don’t know that any more than I do. I sense your doubt. Even more, I sense your fear.
He didn’t reply. She tilted her head so she could look into his eyes. Will you tell me what’s really bothering you?
The pain that entered his eyes surprised her, but she pushed that reaction aside. She had to know what caused it.
She had to know how to help him.
I’ve allowed you to keep whatever it is to yourself up until now, she pointed out, bringing a hand up and touching the side of his face. You
know you’re not really hiding it from me.
Kyr…
Please, Ty. You’re my amanti. We share everything, for better or worse. If our roles were reversed, you wouldn’t let me keep something from you and you know it.
He was quiet for a long moment. She felt him weighing whether or not he should share whatever burdened him. She relaxed, sensing victory was at hand.
“I can’t,” he said at last.
Her lips parted in disbelief, not only because of his refusal, but because he had firmly closed off the mental connection they shared. She hadn’t even known he could do that.
“What do you mean, you can’t?” she asked.
He pulled away from her so he could rise from the loveseat to pace. The deliberate physical separation from her exacerbated their mental disconnect. Anger festered hot and unwelcome in her chest, so she made a conscious effort to subdue it. Whatever Ty was keeping from her was obviously causing him immense distress. She had to do her best to keep that in mind and not just slap some sense into him.
“At least give me a hint,” she implored, clasping her hands together to avoid the whole slapping scenario.
“I can’t,” he repeated, this time with some heat behind it. “Am I not allowed any private thoughts at all?”
Anger retreated, leaving hurt to eat a hole in her heart. “Of course you are,” she said. “I didn’t mean—”
“To press me?” he interrupted. “Then can we please drop the subject?”
That brought the anger back in a snap. Fortunately for him, the doors opened to admit the two Wrym females for clearing the food service trays. Otherwise, there was every possibility she would have thrown the teapot at his head.
* * *
Not long later, Halda ordered a horse and carriage to drive them through the governing center. She made a grand show of wanting to give her “friends” a tour of the area, and they were all smiles as they climbed into the carriage.
The smile felt disgustingly fraudulent to Kyr, who was still stewing over Ty’s stubborn refusal to confide in her. She made a point of sitting next to Halda in the carriage rather than beside him. Her temper was a hair’s breadth from igniting, and she didn’t feel like testing herself. She knew it was important to put her personal feelings aside to accomplish what they were about to do. She’d figure out how to deal with His Royal Pigheadedness later.
She opened her senses as the trip began. Ty did the same, though he seemed determined to keep a barrier between them. She reminded herself again that she couldn’t shout at him with the Wrym council member in the carriage. They both needed to focus on figuring out the extent of Vycor’s influence in the megai. With so many people to scan, it wouldn’t be easy to pinpoint individuals who had been influenced. They could only hope to get a good estimate.
It came as a tremendous surprise when they didn’t sense anyone under Vycor’s influence among the Wrym they encountered.
“How can that be?” Halda asked in a low voice masked by the clomping of the horses’ hooves.
“I’m not sure,” Kyr said with a puzzled frown. “I can sense that most of the repressions have been removed, but there’s no sign of the Advisor’s unusual mental signature.”
“Has the Advisor ever visited this megai?” Ty asked Halda.
“Not in quite some time,” the Wrym replied. “He was much younger back then. SteffenDane was still the Advisor.”
“I believe Vycor needs to have direct contact with someone to influence them,” Ty said. “If none of these Wrym have visited the palace since Vycor assumed his abilities, they wouldn’t be influenced.”
“But then how did the repressions get lifted?” Halda wondered. “It’s not as though they went to the Vawn or Dane megais to endure a mass Rite.”
“That’s a good point,” Kyr said. “And it would take the work of a number of Mynders to pull it off with this many people.”
Halda sat straighter as though something had just occurred to her. “Well, now, Advisor Vycor hasn’t been here for a visit in a long time, but there was that group of Mynders who came through not long after Syd and Nevyll returned from the palace.”
“What purpose did they offer for being here?” Ty asked.
“They said they were visiting to check the protections along the border to the Dark Lands. I admit to wondering why they suddenly had to be here in person. No one has ever bothered to do so before.”
“That’s when they probably reduced the repressions,” Kyr hazarded. “Do you remember the names of any of the Mynders who visited?”
The Wrym’s brow wrinkled in thought. “Not all of them introduced themselves. In fact, only two of them did the talking, and they did most of it with Syd and Nevyll. Their names were Dibon and Luex.”
Despite her lingering frustration with Ty, Kyr found herself exchanging a brief look with him. Luex had been one of Kyr’s most frequent guards at the palace. Even without direct access to Ty’s thoughts, she knew he had trusted the other Mynder. They both knew that if he had come here with Dibon, a guard closely connected to Shaya, and it had been soon after the council’s influencing, the odds were that he was working with the Advisor.
Luex had guarded Kyr for an unknown amount of time without Ty ever sensing that he was under Vycor’s influence. Kyr remembered many times when he stood guard in her chambers or escorted her through the palace at Ty’s command…which meant he had somehow been able to elude Ty’s ability to detect harmful thoughts.
Had Vycor’s abilities somehow bypassed Ty’s? Had the Advisor learned how to hide Luex’s thoughts from them?
Was that why Ty was worried now?
Kyr stilled as another thought occurred to her. Vycor had learned about the extent of her relationship with Ty from someone, and she knew it wasn’t Gren. The only other guard who she remembered guarding her chambers at times when she might have been with Ty was Luex. He must have been the one to tell Vycor about them.
In fact, she mused, Luex had been present the night that the Guardians found her and Ty in her chambers and all of this had been set in motion. She had to believe he’d played a pivotal part in it all. He was probably the person Vycor had ordered to reveal their secret romance if he was ever harmed, too. Even if Luex was acting under Vycor’s influence, the extent of his treachery made her feel ill.
She didn’t share any of her conclusions with Ty, but she didn’t bar him from her mind, either. As upset with him as she was, she wasn’t going to ruin their chances of succeeding in this battle against the palace by acting like a petulant child.
“Now that we suspect what happened, what can be done about it?” Halda asked, turning Kyr’s thoughts.
“I believe we’re going to have to send Mynders—those outside of Vycor’s influence—here to help protect you,” Kyr said.
Halda didn’t seem pleased with that suggestion. “How will you know who to trust?”
“We’re not without our abilities, Councilor,” Ty said.
The Wrym looked doubtful. Kyr read from her thoughts that she didn’t believe Kyr and Ty were very powerful. How could they be? “Kaya” had light hair and dark eyes, and “Tavin” had the opposite. Both were physical indications of low-level abilities.
Seeing no help for it, Kyr looked Halda in the eye and influenced her. “Don’t believe everything you see, Councilor. We have the ability to stop Vycor. I’m going to ensure he can’t do to you what was done to your peers. Then we’ll send help from the Dane megai.”
Halda didn’t issue a word of argument as Kyr drew on her power and fulfilled her promise to protect her by guarding her mind from possible intrusion.
They returned to the council building a short while later. The horse and carriage pulled up to a private entrance. Halda’s footman opened the carriage door and assisted Halda and Kyr out of it. Kyr sensed Ty trying to get to her first to help her down, but she ignored him.
Everything they had learned that day weighed on her. It came as some relief when Halda offered them her guest suit
e. Since the daylight was fading and she had much to process, Kyr could only thank the councilor for her hospitality.
Before long, they were alone. Kyr looked at Ty to see if he’d reestablish their connection without her prodding him. She judged by the look on his face that he wouldn’t be open to that idea at all, no matter how much she nagged.
Well, she’d just have to make him open to it. But for the moment, she’d let him think he’d gotten his way.
Why don’t we give Sem an update? she thought, hoping that a conversation with Ty’s sarcastic cousin would cheer her up. It’s been a couple of days since we’ve heard from him or Gren.
All right, Ty responded.
She took small comfort from the look of regret she saw on his face as he turned and looked at her. Because he opened his mind in order for them to connect with Sem, she knew he felt he was doing the right thing, even if it caused both of them pain. She didn’t have to know what troubled him to understand how he felt.
She still wanted to throttle him, though.
His lips twitched as her stray thought reached him. Then they both focused on connecting with Sem. Kyr was anxious to learn about his progress into the Dane megai, and she sensed Ty was, too.
After a couple of minutes, they exchanged another look. In all the times they had reached out to Sem, they had never failed to reach him, even if he was busy or asleep.
But for some unknown reason, he wasn’t reachable now.
Chapter 13
It took Ty several minutes of trying to connect with Sem before Kyr convinced him to give up. Although they had no way of knowing why, they just couldn’t reach him.
An unwelcome glimpse of his dream—a flash of Sem’s head rolling out of the basket—flew through his mind, so he once again closed the connection between him and Kyr. He noticed she visibly flinched when he did. The sight of it made him utterly miserable, but revealing the dream to her was out of the question.