“You’ve got it.”
“This is sounding complicated, but I think you’ve come up with an interesting idea. Let’s go try to explain this to the others. I think it may take awhile for it to get through Gavin’s head, especially if he’s still feeling hung over. Besides, I’m hungry. Let’s collect Maya and go back to our rooms.”
Lucy nodded so that’s what they did. As they left the garden, the bush behind the fountain moved ever so slightly as a large snake slithered out of it. There has been some debate on whether or not snakes smile. This one did.
Maya was easy to find, but not easy to convince to go back to the rooms. She was convinced that she would find something soon and didn’t want to waste precious time eating. Part way through this argument, Gavin came looking for them.
“You got out of bed,” said Lucy.
Gavin smiled in return even though he still looked rough around the edges.
“Are you ready for some food?” Justin asked him.
“I think I’m ready to try some food,” amended Gavin.
“See,” Justin addressed Maya, “this is a great time to take a break, eat some food, and discuss what we’ve discovered.”
“You’ve found something?” asked Gavin looking interested.
“No,” responded Maya looking confused.
“Lucy has a story that led to a thought that’s turned into a possible explanation. It’s going to take some time to get through so I thought we could do it over food,” said Justin.
“Sounds reasonable,” agreed Gavin.
“What about the scrolls?” asked Maya. “We are on a time limit here. Can’t you bring something here that I can snack on while I look through them? I can eat, read, and listen at the same time.”
“I’m sure you can,” said Justin. “However, Lucy’s thought might make any further research obsolete.”
Maya arched an eyebrow at that, but didn’t argue further and allowed herself to be led back to their rooms. Once there, they found Tenna and requested lunch. A variety of fruit, bread, nuts, and cheese appeared shortly after their request. Despite Gavin’s earlier reservations, he dug into the food with gusto and ate more than all of them.
After Lucy had managed to get in a few bites, she began her explanation. It was both harder and easier to explain to Maya and Gavin. It was easier, because she had already tried to explain it once before. This time, her explanation sounded stronger and more cohesive with less pauses for thought development. It was more difficult, because she was explaining to someone other than Justin. Maya found the whole idea not totally believable and was still sure the answers were in books or scrolls somewhere. Gavin simply had a hard time wrapping his mind around the obscure idea. Much to Lucy’s relief neither she nor Justin brought up happy talking puppies. Much discussion followed.
“I have an idea,” said Justin when he felt the same things were being said again and again. “It will take us one more day to go through all the scrolls we’ve already pulled out. I don’t think it would hurt to take one more day to let Maya finish. However, I don’t think we should pull any more scrolls after that. I propose we leave tomorrow afternoon or the morning after that depending on how people feel about it.”
“I might agree to that, but where are we going?” asked Maya.
“I’ll leave that up to you.”
Maya looked skeptical.
“In a sense. You can pick which library or town you would like to head for next. On the way there, once we’ve reached a deserted area, I propose that Lucy is given a chance to try to call Kleth to us. We won’t lose much time and it doesn’t hurt anyone to let her try. If she fails, we haven’t lost anything and if she is successful, we’ll have only lost a day here and I don’t think a day is going to make or break our quest.”
“I’m glad you said that, because if you truly believed a day would make or break our quest, it certainly might,” said Lucy.
Gavin groaned, “And someone was finally starting to make sense,” he joked in mock desperation.
Everyone smiled.
“Does everyone agree to this plan?” asked Justin.
“Sure,” said Maya, “I’ll see you later. I’m not saying I don’t believe you, Lucy, but I’ll feel better once I read through some more scrolls, continue to not find anything, and have some time to process your ideas.”
Lucy nodded as Maya walked off to the library once more. Justin glanced at Gavin.
“Lead me where you will. I didn’t come along to read through scrolls or do the heavy thinking. As long as you aren’t planning on taking on an army without my input, I’ll be ready to leave when you are. Although, I think sooner rather than later might be good before Kaliea either gets bored with me or worse, decides to keep me. I’ll check on the horses.”
“And what do you think we should do in the meantime?” asked Lucy.
“I honestly think you’re right,” he began.
“Good, then I might be,” replied Lucy.
Justin smiled, “If you plan on doing that for the next few days, I’d rethink that if I were you.”
Lucy smiled, “I’ll consider that.”
“Good. As I was saying, I think you’re right, and I think any more time spent with those scrolls isn’t going to help us on this. However, the quicker we work through them the sooner we’ll be able to go, so I think I’ll help Maya.”
“You don’t like it here?”
“I’m not comfortable here. It’s too hot, too humid, and I’m not sure what the word is, but almost too ripe? Does that make sense? These people live on the edge of extreme pleasure and boredom. It’s not a feeling I like, and I’ll feel more comfortable away from it.”
“I can agree with that,” said Lucy.
“Besides, I think Gavin has a point about Kaliea. She’s been a wonderful hostess and we should make sure she feels appreciated, but she has taken an unusual interest in Gavin. She’s smart, and I’m not sure that rousing her from her almost bored state or enticing her anger is good for any of us.”
Again, Lucy nodded.
“If it will get us out of here faster, I’ll come help with some of the scrolls. Although, I do want to take advantage of the baths here again before we tramp back through that fetid jungle,” said Lucy wrinkling her nose in disgust at the memory.
This time, Justin nodded in agreement, and they walked towards the library together.
Chapter 46
Dinner that night was similar to the night before. Kaliea provided outrageous outfits. Lucy again chose the more conservative style, and Maya was barely decent. The food was much the same and still slightly decadent. Lucy would miss the food. She loved fresh, ripe fruit. Again, the wine was amazing and Lucy drank sparingly. She noticed that Gavin made a point of drinking more slowly than he had the night before and grinned at him over her wine goblet. He returned her grin with a wink.
The musicians warmed up their instruments after dinner, and Maya asked if she could sing. Kaliea looked surprised, but nodded her acquiescence. Maya directed the musicians to play the beat she wanted and began to sing. Lucy had heard Maya sing spells before, but this was nothing like that. This was amazing. Her voice was low, melodic, enthralling, tempting, sad, and provocative all at the same time. Lucy, who could sing a little, but not well, was impressed, and she could tell that Kaliea was too.
“That was beautiful. Thank you,” said Kaliea when Maya had finished. “You honor us.”
“Thank you. It is poor repayment to deprive a fine hostess of such talents as one has. You honor us in letting us stay with you,” replied Maya.
“I hope you will stay with us many days and entertain us with your singing,” said Kaliea.
Maya nodded her head and sat back down. Lucy looked at Justin, wondering if they should mention they were planning to leave soon. Justin squeezed her hand as if to let her know that he knew what she was thinking and he thought it best to stay silent for now. Kaliea implied she wanted them to stay, and Lucy wasn’t sure how she would respond to
them leaving soon. The music continued, and the dancing started. Lucy watched Maya get swept up by an appealing looking man. Maya was a novelty to begin with and had shown some talent. There was no lack of admirers, and she danced with one man after another. A few men asked Lucy to dance, but after she turned them down, they assumed she did not wish to dance and left her alone.
“You don’t want to dance?” asked Justin. “I thought you enjoyed it.”
“I do. I don’t want to give any of these men the wrong idea.”
“This place is all about pleasure. You could dance with all of them, go home with none of them, and not offend any of them.”
“It seems safer to sit here.”
“Afraid of getting swept up in the music and doing something you otherwise wouldn’t?”
“I believe that is a completely valid fear in this place.”
“It is,” agreed Justin. “Shall we?” he asked as the musicians struck up a particularly lively tune.
“Shall we what?”
“Dance.”
Lucy looked at him as he stood up and held out his hand.
“You won’t give me the wrong idea,” he added with a smile.
Lucy smiled back and accepted his hand. True, she thought but what about getting swept up in the music and doing something I otherwise wouldn’t? Justin led her to the dance floor. Maya smiled and winked at her as she swept by in the arms of yet another partner. Lucy loved music and dancing. The beat was a fast one, and soon she was laughing and swinging around with the rest of them. The next few songs were also fast, and they continued to dance. Then the music slowed down. Lucy started to walk back to the table to sit down, but Justin grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms.
Lucy didn’t really want to stop dancing, but it seemed almost too intimate to dance so close to Justin so slowly. With some guys, you could lean your head on his shoulder or stare at his chest because he was so much taller. Even then, you had to crane your neck to look at their faces and that was less intimidating. Justin was only a couple of inches taller than Lucy. They were face to face, eye to eye, and that was a very intense situation.
They moved well together. Lucy felt that the best course of action would be to say something. Talking would break the tension. Well, it wasn’t really tension. It was the tension created when you realize you are so comfortable with someone that there isn’t any tension. It felt good and right to be dancing with Justin, and that was scary. Lucy noticed her mind was spinning in dizzying circles and hoped she wasn’t thinking loudly enough for Justin to read her mind because she was sure it was mental babble. Besides that, she was sure that anything in there that wasn’t babble was complicated, and they didn’t need complicated right now. In the end, Lucy decided to enjoy the moment rather than agonize over it. She smiled and continued to stare into his soft brown eyes while they danced.
The song ended, and another started. Lucy pulled back and smiled.
“Thank you for the dance, but I think I’d like to go. It’s stuffy in here.”
Justin nodded in agreement.
“Definitely stuffy. The breeze off the water helps, but it doesn’t stop the humidity. I’ll walk back with you. I think I’d rather be on the balcony than in here.”
Lucy nodded, and they walked back to the room. Lucy grabbed a strip of leather and tied her hair back with a sigh. Again, she had worn it down to cover her bare back, but with the dancing, the heat, and the humidity, it felt good to put it up. She joined Justin on the balcony and looked out over the city.
“I wish we could leave tomorrow,” said Lucy.
“So do I. I wonder if we could talk Maya into it.”
“It’s worth a try. I’m beginning to think that Kaliea is waiting for the right moment to ask us some more questions. She seems more than casually interested in what we are doing here. I don’t think I want to be around when she starts asking more questions or coming to her own conclusions.”
“I’d like to be gone before then,” added Justin. “I’d avoid using any power here if I were you. The less she knows about us the better.”
“Is it always going to be like this?” asked Lucy.
“Like what?”
“Hiding who and what we are, and what we are doing, and where we are going? Showing up, keeping our heads down, and leaving before too many questions are asked?”
“Most likely,” replied Justin with a shrug. “Generally, we’ll leave politics to Maya and try to help without being a bother.”
“She looked like she was having fun out there.”
“Certainly. Maya likes to dance. She also likes to feel beautiful, and she loves male attention. I wouldn’t worry about her though, she can take care of herself.”
Lucy nodded, and they sat in silence for a while. They could hear the music from the after dinner entertainment they had left and in the distance, music and revelry from other houses as well.
“There is one thing I’ll miss,” said Lucy.
“What’s that?”
“The baths. They are wonderful. I intend to take another one tomorrow morning. Then I’ll help with scrolls.”
Justin smiled. A bath sounded much more enjoyable than helping Maya dig through obscure scroll references. Lucy stood up, stretched, and sighed.
“I think I’ll go to bed,” she said.
“Lucy,” said Justin, standing up too.
She turned and looked at him with a questioning expression. He was very close. Part of her wanted to know what he was going to say, and the other part of her didn’t want to deal with whatever he might say. Justin opened his mouth to continue, but Maya entered the room.
“Ok, whether or not I agree with this crazy theory you have, I think we should leave tomorrow. I think we should figure out the best time to do it with as little exposure as possible.” She finished saying this and then noticed how close Justin and Lucy were. Her face got that look on it that could often be interpreted as ‘oops’. Whatever she might have said next was cut short as Gavin came into the room.
“Ok, I don’t care if we leave to find another library or to try out Lucy’s idea, but I think we should leave tomorrow. Or tonight for that matter. What are you doing in about five minutes?” Unlike Maya, he was oblivious to the fact that he might have interrupted something. They stepped into the room and everyone sat down.
“Both of those similar announcements have to be related to some kind of story, so figure out which one of you is going first and start talking,” said Justin.
“Ladies first,” said Gavin.
Maya shrugged. “It’s not a big deal, and perhaps I’m making more of it than is really there. I was dancing with a man who turned out to be Kaliea’s cousin. Kyphen asked if I wanted to take a walk to cool down, and I accepted. As we walked, he started asking questions. His questions seemed innocent enough, but considering how interested he was I got suspicious. He wanted to know who we were, where we were from, why we were here, what we were looking for in the library, when we were leaving, and where we were going next. He asked the questions casually as if he only wanted to learn more about me, but he kept wanting more details and when you look at all the questions together, he was searching for information. He seemed frustrated when I sidetracked his questions and his advances.
He wasn’t making small talk. He made me nervous and uncomfortable. Kyphen didn’t threaten, but he has a coldness about his eyes that implies things I don’t want to think about and I think he has a habit of getting his way. He was too interested in our plans in a general sense and much too interested in my plans for tonight for my taste. We aren’t finding much here anyways so I feel like it might be best to leave as soon as possible.”
Justin, Gavin, and Lucy all nodded. Then, Gavin told his story.
“You may have noticed that Kaliea has been giving me some attention,” he started casually. “Tonight she also started asking questions. She was subtle about it, and it was hard to answer carefully.” At this Gavin blushed.
“It is dif
ficult to concentrate while someone is kissing your neck,” commented Maya casually, and Gavin’s blush deepened.
“Her questions were similar to the ones Maya was asked, but they also concentrated on my training. She noticed my physique and wondered what I was trained for, asking about my skills with weapons. She also wanted to know where Maya learned to sing. She asked if Justin had skills similar to mine or if he had different interests. Magical interests perhaps? Her questions wanted to know more about us, but I also get the distinct impression that she sees me as a possible stud horse to put it bluntly.”
The rest of them laughed, but couldn’t help agreeing. Kaliea had been blatant in her admiration of Gavin’s body.
“She might be looking for information, or she might be looking for enjoyment, but I’m most worried that she’s looking for someone with an acceptable gene pool for her future children. If that’s the case, I think we should leave tonight. I’m not comfortable with a woman pursuing me when her hobbies include assassination.”
Again, they laughed.
“I think leaving tonight would look suspicious and make them more inclined to follow us. I think we should sleep tonight and look in the library tomorrow. Then, we should either say we’ve found something and leave in the afternoon, or say we need to look in another library and leave tomorrow afternoon,” said Justin.
Everyone agreed, and they all went to bed. However, it took them all a while to fall asleep. Each of them had personal concerns. Gavin was trying to figure out how to stay away from Kaliea all morning. Maya was wondering what their story would be and where they should head next. Lucy was worried about getting out of there without any problems, and how she was going to manage to call Kleth to them. Justin was worried about Lucy.
Chapter 47
The next morning, they acted as if they had no intentions of leaving, although Lucy did have the suspicion that they were being watched. Gavin checked on the horses, like he had the day before, and then went to a practice yard to spar with anyone who was willing. Maya and Justin went to the library to read through scrolls. Lucy took a bath. She had offered to help Maya and Justin, but they thought it best if Lucy appeared comfortable here. Lucy deeply enjoyed her luxurious bath. She wasn’t sure when she would get to experience a bath like this again so she took full advantage of it. Then she packed all her things.
The Eye of Elicion: The Kinowenn Chronicles Vol 1 Page 36