They had been listening from the other side of the wall? Birds, indeed! Charis scoffed silently. No wonder the woman had been so assertive in her attempts to coax Charis from the room yesterday. Amon must have been behind the wall then, too!
Amon shrugged off his cloak and handed it to Thea, then turned to the chaise to address the two of them. “Caeneus, this is Thea. She has been a member of this household since my father was young. Although she is my housekeeper, she is also a fellow member of the inner circle of our organization.”
The wrinkles on Thea’s brow deepened, and Charis found herself empathizing with the woman’s confusion. Amon was being uncharacteristically forthcoming with information this evening. She was intensely curious to know more about the organization he was referring to, but Thea spoke up first.
“When I saw the bookcase open, my heart nearly leapt into my throat.” The elderly woman pressed one hand to her neck as if there were a lingering possibility that the organ might make a second attempt. “You told me you didn’t want Charis to find out about the organization.”
“That was my original intent. Unfortunately, recent events have forced my plans to change.”
Charis’ eyelid twitched. Another secret? One that he kept from her so soon after pleading for her trust? Though she itched to tell Amon exactly what she thought of that, a pinch on her forearm and a quick shake of the head from Nerissa silenced her. For now. Sulking, Charis sat back and thrummed her fingers against the cover of her book while their conversation continued uninterrupted.
Amon balled his hands into fists, and he paced the length of the room as he spoke. “The handoff earlier tonight did not go as planned. The Senka were waiting for us and attempted an ambush to intercept the package.”
“Surely, it was a coincidence. How could they possibly have known about our plans?” Thea asked.
“I’m afraid there is a real rat in our organization, albeit not a literal one.”
The color drained out of Thea’s face. “That’s unthinkable.”
“I’d like to believe that, but unfortunately, tonight’s events have made their betrayal quite obvious.”
Thea’s eyes shifted to the window even though the view outside was blocked by the curtains. “Does the traitor know you were involved?” she asked, her voice trembling.
Amon stopped pacing to give the woman a comforting pat on the shoulder. “I don’t think so, or else the Senka would have been here already.”
“I suppose we should be grateful for small miracles, then.”
“Agreed. We’ll need to determine the traitor’s identity soon. At the moment, I have an even more pressing issue to deal with.” He nodded toward Charis and Nerissa. “I need some time to speak with them alone. Although I trust you implicitly, there are some secrets that aren’t mine to reveal.”
Thea regarded the two of them with renewed interest. “I understand.”
“Since it is growing late and our conversation here may take some time, I’d like to take you up on that offer of tea and cookies. Afterward, please see to it that we are not disturbed. Absolutely no one should be allowed to enter the house—not even another member of the inner circle.”
Thea bobbed her head in a single, brusque nod. She spun on her heel, striding purposefully from the room with a look on her face that could break stone. She returned only long enough to deliver the requested tray of food and then excused herself to take up watch.
Charis’ mouth watered at the sight of the shortbread cookies nestled among the dainty cups and saucers, but she abstained from taking one. Her curiosity was more intense than her hunger.
As soon as the door clicked shut, Charis exploded with questions. “What exactly is going on here, Amon? You’re a member of some kind of secret organization? And what’s this package you’re talking about?” Before he even had a chance to answer the barrage, she whirled around and turned her ire on Nerissa. “And you, Caeneus, how long have you been in contact with him? Have the Ohanzee been working with Amon’s group this whole time?”
“There’s no need to call me ‘Caeneus’ now. Amon already knows who I really am. That’s part of the reason why I’m not wearing my choker,” Nerissa answered calmly. Her placid tone of voice would have convinced anyone else that she was completely collected, but Charis knew her friend’s nervous habits all too well. The red hue coloring her bottom lip—a sure sign that she had been biting it—belied the truth. “I am also learning for the first time that the Senka and the Ohanzee aren’t the only secret organizations at work in Renatus.”
Nerissa patted the cushion beside her and waited for Charis to sit back down, then went on to recount the events that had transpired since their departure from the festival the previous night.
“And can you imagine this, Charis?” she added when the story was almost finished. “Until Amon found out who I was, he was going to leave me alone in an underground storeroom—in the dark.”
Charis knew Nerissa’s quick change of topic was a classic tactic to redirect her wrath to another target—and it worked.
“I wasn’t going to leave you in the dark! It simply hadn’t occurred to me that you didn’t have a glow lamp of your own,” Amon protested in an attempt to defend himself. But all it earned him was a scathing glare from Charis, who slowly shook her head in disapproval.
“This is completely unfair,” he complained. “I took a huge risk by delivering that letter and arranging to hand over the book.”
“About that letter,” Nerissa said as Amon poured himself a cup of tea, “whoever delivered it could easily have read the message ahead of time and reported the contents back to the Senka.”
The upturned corners of Amon’s lips peeked over the rim of his cup. “I am completely confident that the person who delivered the letter is not our rat.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“Because I am the one who delivered it. I knew that the Ohanzee would only be seeking the book if it were of the utmost importance, so making contact with them was too sensitive a task to be trusted to anyone else.”
“How did you manage to enter the inn unseen?” Nerissa asked Amon. “The clerk said that she found the letter on the front desk after returning from the washroom, even though the door to the inn was locked and no one rang the bell to be let in all night.”
“The answer to that is quite simple. I didn’t use the front door to get in,” Amon said enigmatically.
“Oh?” Charis said. “So I should add breaking and entering to the list of your charms?”
A short bark of laughter escaped Amon, and his hand twitched so sharply it rattled his cup, sending tea sloshing over the rim to pool on the gilded saucer below. “I had never thought of it that way. I suppose, technically, it would be considered breaking and entering.”
She puckered her mouth and folded her arms across her chest. “And what’s so amusing about the idea of being a criminal?”
“That’s not what I found amusing.” Amon returned to the tray for a napkin and grabbed a shortbread cookie at the same time. “You’re keeping a mental list of my charms. It’s a completely unexpected—but pleasant—discovery.”
“I’m doing no such thing!” Charis huffed, though she could feel heat rising to her cheeks in spite of her vehement denial.
Fortunately, Amon turned his focus back to Nerissa before Charis’ blush became evident. “To answer your question, I accessed the inn by the same method we used to come here. I came through the tunnels. There are hundreds of entrances from the canals that haven’t been sealed up, leading into the basements of buildings all over the city. The locks on most of those doors are archaic at best, so they are rather simple to pick. I followed Raysel back to the inn last night after he walked Charis home. Once I knew where you were staying, all I had to do was check my maps to see if it had an unsealed entrance.”
He dipped the cookie into the tea and added, “Following him was no easy task, by the way. I can’t tell you how many times he doubled back or intention
ally took wrong turns. But I know this city and its shortcuts better than he does, so I was able to keep up even though he managed to throw me off twice.”
“You followed me home?” Charis croaked.
“Of course I followed you. I knew you’d never agree to let me accompany you if I offered, so it was the only recourse available to me. I was following you from the time you walked out the front door and into the hackney. I told you that this city can be dangerous. There was no way I was going to let you go to the festival alone. I’d never forgive myself if something happened to you, and quite frankly, I’d rather face the wrath of the Senka than the anger of your father.”
“I told you I’m perfectly capable of taking care of myself,” she retorted. Her declaration would have been more effective if her stomach hadn’t chosen that exact moment to let out an audible growl.
Nerissa passed Charis a cookie and then pointed to Harbinger, which leaned against the side table nearby. “I agree with him on this. I don’t need protection either, yet I have Raysel as my guardian. I’ve made it this far in my quest because I had you and all of the Ohanzee helping me. Everyone needs to have someone to look out for them.” She directed a pointed look at Amon. “Both of you do, so it’s a good thing you can rely on each other.”
Suddenly, all of Amon’s attention was focused on pouring himself another cup of tea. “Didn’t you say you were anxious to take a closer look at that book? You still haven’t even unwrapped it.”
Nerissa’s lips pressed together into a thin line, but she didn’t comment on the abrupt subject change. She reached into the leather bag on her lap and withdrew a cloth-wrapped package. “I am exceedingly curious to see if this is one of the six books we’re searching for.”
“Do you think it really is the sixth book?” Charis asked.
“After all the trouble we’ve gone through to get it into your hands, I certainly hope it is,” Amon murmured.
“First, I want to know something,” Nerissa said. Her hands remained on top of the fabric, unmoving. “How did you learn that we were looking for books with crystals in their spines?”
“I overheard Charis’ conversation with her father when he discovered she had lent the book to you.”
Charis jerked her hand away from her mouth right before taking the last bite of her shortbread, and a fountain of crumbs tumbled into her lap. “That’s right. He helped cover for me that night,” she said, hurriedly picking the tiny grains off the blankets.
“If you keep that up, this room really will have a rat problem,” Amon grumbled in a tone that was only half teasing.
Nerissa giggled—she actually had the nerve to giggle—at his comment until Charis’ side-eyed glare cut her short.
“A book with a crystal embedded in its spine is such a rare thing that it stood out in my mind—particularly since I owned one myself,” Amon explained. “I didn’t find out that Charis had actually given the book to the Ohanzee until recently. Since then, I’ve been looking for a way to discreetly get in touch with your group, so when she came here to meet with you, I seized the opportunity.”
“I hope it really does have the last piece of the prophecy,” Charis said.
“Me too,” Nerissa agreed. “I guess there’s one way to find out.” She tugged the knot free, and the fabric wrapping slid away from the book.
Charis leaned over Nerissa’s shoulder to get a better view of the book. A triangular design decorated the cover. Despite having been embossed into the leather, the pattern appeared to rise up out of it. Nerissa hesitated before prying the crystal out from behind its flap in the spine, as if she were afraid it might not respond to her touch.
But there was no need for hesitation, no need for worry. Light bloomed from the stone the moment her skin brushed its surface.
The chaise gave off a series of soft creaks as Charis bounced in her seat, clapping her hands together in a delighted cheer. “It really is one of the books! You said this was supposed to happen, but since the crystal was missing from my book, I didn’t get to see it.”
A look of utter befuddlement overtook Amon’s face. “It’s glowing?”
“The crystal is meant to glow in reaction to her touch. It confirms that this book is one containing a piece of the prophecy inside,” Charis explained.
“Well, you seem to be an expert on the subject,” Amon commented. “How is such a thing even possible?”
Charis looked expectantly to Nerissa, but she was too preoccupied to answer. With the crystal still glowing from within her fist, she opened the book and pried away the fabric from the upper corner of the inner lining. Apparently, she was so eager to get to the prophecy that she couldn’t be bothered to put down the crystal. She didn’t even notice the additional weight as Charis leaned closer to read the text along with her.
When the fabric peeled away, it revealed another section of the prophecy along with another diagram.
The sixth section of the prophecy is as follows:
During this time, the last of the ancient weapons that brought about the Fall of Civilization will be rediscovered. Though the Reflection wishes to restore peace to the two countries without bloodshed, as long as this weapon exists, and as long as King Gared’s work remains unfinished, lasting peace cannot be attained.
King Gared’s work must be finished. The last of the ancient weapons must be destroyed. Its power is too great to be allowed to exist. And yet, using this weapon is the only way to save Renatus from a second Fall.
Charis’ eyes raked over the precisely formed letters several times; however, without having seen the other sections of the prophecy, there was no way for her to formulate a meaningful interpretation.
Nerissa heaved a sigh and rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand, only then noticing that she still held the crystal. She laid the stone on top of the peeled-back fabric, and the light emanating from it faded away. “I was afraid of this,” she said.
“That last line sounds especially ominous,” Charis said with a slight waver in her voice. “That’s to be expected right? The prophecy exists because Renatus is in peril.”
“I know, but I can’t imagine how this section could be any more cryptic,” Nerissa replied grimly. “And if that weren’t bad enough, Casimer got the fifth book before we did. So, we don’t have the section of the prophecy immediately preceding this one. We’re missing some key information, and there just aren’t any clues here as to what that information might have been. On top of that, apparently an ancient weapon is going to be rediscovered. I hope we will be the ones to find it and not Casimer or the Senka.”
Amon’s head cocked to the side at Nerissa’s mention of the weapon. “May I see the prophecy for myself?”
Nerissa handed the book to him, and Charis watched, curious to see his reaction as he read over the text. His expression gave nothing away, but a moment later, he knelt down to hold the book at their level and pointed to the first line. “I think I may be able to offer some additional insight, though I don’t know how useful it will actually be.”
Nerissa’s green eyes instantly brightened. “Any information would be helpful.”
Turning to Charis, Amon said, “Do you remember our conversation about the mistranslated notes that I’ve been giving to my uncle?”
“How could I forget that?” she answered.
“Then you must also recall why Casimer assigned me to research those old paintings for him.”
Charis’s hand flew to her mouth. How could she have forgotten that? And yet, so many other things had happened in the meantime that his reason had completely slipped her mind until just now. “He thought they held clues to a powerful weapon from King Gared’s time!”
“A weapon from King Gared’s time,” Nerissa mused. “That does begin to tie some things together.” Upon seeing Charis’ and Amon’s matching quizzical expressions, she elaborated further. “Both this section and the first section of the prophecy make reference to finishing the work King Gared started. If the ancient weapon
also dates from Gared’s time, then it stands to reason that the two things must be related. If my guess is right, destroying the weapon is part of completing Gared’s work.
“I must admit that I am disturbed by the fact that Casimer may have already started searching for this weapon. Having a head start puts him at an advantage, and as I already pointed out, the prophecy doesn’t say who will be the one to discover the weapon.”
Charis wrapped one arm around Nerissa’s shoulders and gave her a squeeze. “As long as the mistranslations in Amon’s research aren’t found out, then Casimer definitely won’t be the first to find it.”
“That’s right. You mentioned something about mistranslations a minute ago.”
Amon nodded. “My uncle believes that a series of antique paintings may hold clues to a powerful weapon that King Gared had ordered to be destroyed. There is no better place in Renatus to research the history of the arts than the University Library in Chiyo. He sent me to study at the University as a cover for carrying out his research on the side. I’ve been sending back regular reports on my findings through Senka messengers ever since I arrived.”
“So Casimer finds the arts useful for something after all,” Nerissa scoffed. “How do the mistranslations fit in?”
“While I had no intention of helping Casimer’s efforts from the outset, I could neither refuse the assignment nor avoid sending back reports at regular intervals. But it did occur to me that he had no way of verifying how accurate my translations were.”
A sly grin crept across Nerissa’s face as the realization of what Amon had done dawned on her. “So you’ve been mistranslating the documents from the very beginning.”
“Exactly,” Amon said. “To be honest, I haven’t seen any evidence that the tales about the paintings are true anyway. Still, I can share with you what I’ve found thus far so that you aren’t starting your search from the very beginning.”
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