“You fought them off?” I had never heard of anyone doing that.
“Did you hear what I said? I ran. I hoped they would follow me, and that Shandon would reach the safety of the woods. What a disaster that turned out to be. I’m so sorry.”
Shandon shook his head. “Let’s talk about how the Book helps us. Each Elemental can be damaged, if the correct element is applied. The most obvious example is fire, which is drenched by water. But water is not without a check. Water is held back by earth, just as a dam controls a river. Earth in turn is susceptible to wood; the roots of wood, after all, tunnel through the earth. Fire melts metal, and metal cuts wood. Once we know the affinity of an Elemental, we can use the correct defense against each attacker.”
“Won’t someone have to read all the names, though?” I thought that might be hard in the middle of a pitched battle, especially since the enchanted writing flickered in and out.
“Once our spell of uncloaking is performed, the names will be visible to anyone for a time. Most of the Yellow Robes know that spell,” Shandon said.
“You’ll tell the Council tomorrow so we can begin making the specialized weapons?” Hirschi asked.
“I will.” Shandon turned to me. “We have swords, pikes, and bows and arrows, but we’ll have to make pitch torches for the Metals, and bags of sand, with an augmenting spell, for the Waters.”
“And bags of water, to drench any Fire Elementals,” I added.
“Maybe you can make more allies among them, since you have fire affinity.” He turned to Hirschi. “A Fire Elemental came to Berona’s aid.”
“I was about to tell you. He wants me to come to the Western Wilderness. I don’t think I’d better call on him anymore.”
The two men exchanged glances.
“What?”
“That’s odd. The Elders live in the Western Wilderness,” Hirschi explained. “I wouldn’t expect an Elemental to linger in their lands.”
“Unless they’re all dead,” Shandon said thoughtfully. “We may have to press the Council. The twins know things about the Elder Race they won’t reveal.”
Both men seemed to remember I was there around the same time. “We’ll talk tomorrow morning,” Hirschi said crisply. “Perhaps you can ask the Cabinet of Mysteries about the Elders?”
“Perhaps.”
Shandon waited until the door was shut and said, “Or perhaps not. She’s been terrorizing me.” He smiled wryly and held out a bruised finger for me to inspect. “She offered me a scroll and then slammed the drawer shut on my hand before I could pull it out. I have pushed her too hard since I got back. I fear you will end up in that Forest of Bones yourself, but I can find no hint of what you are to do there…”
A coughing fit interrupted his words. “Pardon. The vapors affected my lungs.”
I handed the tea to him, and he took a few gulps and made a face. “I can’t believe he brought me this. He knows me.”
It was a petty thing to complain about. I wished I had friends like Hirschi to stand by my side, even if they brought me tea I didn’t like.
Shandon made a few curious gestures with his hand. “Warding spell. Berona, we need to look at the Book tonight. I want you to find the name of the Elemental you summoned. Don’t say it out loud. Just point to it. I haven’t decided how to present your experiences with the Council yet.”
“Kendall and Biruac suspect. She also knows the Demon appeared to us.”
“Then…” Shandon shook with another cough. He grabbed the tea, making a grimace. I scouted around and found an empty pitcher. Another spasm shook Shandon like he was a rag. Hadn’t Hirschi said he was always thirsty?
“I’ll fill up a pitcher with water for you. I’ll be right back.”
* * *
I ran down the steps and entered the courtyard. A sickle moon hung in the sky. Sprigs of stars garnished the deserted battlements, and a chill wind rattled around the stones. I went to the dining-room door, but it was locked.
If I needed water, it was going to have to come from the well. As I watched, a lamp brightened the men’s dormitory window, and I glimpsed Kea stretching as he pulled off his tunic, revealing a broad chest. A flash of longing shot through me.
Shandon was waiting, and we had lots more to talk about. I tore my gaze away and forced myself to approach the well. The winch creaked. Wind blew, raising a shiver along my neck. Down went the bucket, into the black hole.
Like the hole Shandon had fallen into and never quite climbed out of. Seeing him like this evoked my pity and made me realize how much I cared for him.
The bucket came up, the water dark in the night. It sure was heavy. I took the jug, bent over the well, and gasped.
It fell from my hands as she sprang from the bucket, unfolding in a fluid motion as she assumed her normal size. Her long pale fingers wrapped around my throat, holding me in a vise.
“Turn from your destiny now, and your new friends will be spared,” she hissed.
I couldn’t speak. Her grip was too tight. She released me. “How do I turn from my destiny?” I croaked.
“Renounce the Mannites. Flee Yassin and take the Book with you. Destroy it.”
I tensed. How could I do that? My conscience would not let me. I went limp with dread.
“That handsome young man and his loyal friend. They will be in peril if they follow your path. Abandon your quest, and their fate will change.”
“I don’t care about Kea,” I gasped, knowing in that moment that I’d already lost my heart to him.
I tried to scream for help, but weakness gripped me. I felt myself fading, my voice going first, then the blood in my veins chilling. So cold. My heartbeat slowed, time stopped, and darkness overcame me.
* * *
I woke up retching and pulled myself over the side of the bed. When I looked up from wiping the sick from my mouth, I saw Tovalen’s beady black eyes. He stood close to me. I was in a room with marble floors, as clean and white as fields of fresh snow. I caught a glimpse of an embroidered tapestry on the wall, showing unicorns and flowers. Then Soa and the twins crowded around, their purple robes swishing.
I must be in the Council’s quarters. I was safe.
Unless one of them was the traitor. For how else had the Demon known I was here? I dared not tell them too much.
“Yes, yes, yes. The poor girl.” One of the twins patted my cheek.
Soa stared. “I don’t see anything wrong with her?”
The other twin answered, “The little dear is frightened.”
“I’ll do the exam. I was a Green,” Tovalen explained as he grabbed my hand. I felt his bony fingers on my pulse. He looked at the mess on the floor and sniffed quickly, before commanding a nearby servant to get a bucket.
“Have you been drinking?”
“I had mulled wine at dinner time.”
“Stick out your tongue. Aha, it’s bluish.”
Another figure swam into view. Handsome face, curly black hair. Kea.
“Berona didn’t have much wine. Someone’s done something to her.”
“Someone?” I burst out. “She’s here. Get Shandon.”
I heard a nearby person, I didn’t know who, mutter that he wouldn’t be much help. Tovalen shushed him and dispatched a servant. In the meantime, the fat acolyte joined us. I’d seen him in the dining hall eating an apple.
“Malar,” Tovalen snapped. “Earn your Green Robe. Help Kea carry her to the infirmary. I won’t have her lying on my bed all night.”
I realized I was wrapped in a costly eiderdown. Someone had brought me to the Council. “What happened?”
Kea leaned in close, grabbed my hand. “I caught sight of you from my window, and then you fainted. I carried you to the Council. You were so pale and cold, like a corpse. Oh, you had me worried.”
“It was her, Kea. When we opened the Book…” I didn’t want to name her in front of everyone.
“What book?” Tovalen asked.
“Yes, what are you talking about?”
Soa demanded.
“Shandon will tell you,” I said, overwhelmed by the questions.
“Yes, yes, yes,” the other twin said. I thought she might have been the one who smelled the sickly sweet floral smell by the corpse at the farm and started crying. “The Book of First Naming. It found you.”
A tumult broke out. Several Council members crowded in, demanding to know how I had gotten it, what I had done with it. My breath came short. I was drowning. Darkness descended once again.
* * *
Though I lay in bed under two blankets and a down comforter, I couldn’t stop shivering. Mounted torches were lit in the infirmary, showing the long row of beds, empty except for a graybeard at the other end, coughing and muttering. The twins, Soa, and Kea crowded around. Oberin, whom I’d last seen at the farm, arrived as well. He stood slightly to the back, eyes alert, and smiled.
Tovalen demanded access to the bedside, forcing everyone else back. He dropped various potions onto my tongue to look for reactions, checked various pulses yet again, and pressed on my belly. With each test, his face darkened. Finally, he demanded I produce a beaker of urine.
Oberin helped me up, despite Kea’s challenging look, and took me to the privy, where he waited outside. I approached Tovalen on shaky legs, holding out my offering. “As you asked. But my malady comes from the presence of the Water Demon. I don’t think you’ll find much here.”
“Why would she come to you?” he scoffed, clearly not expecting an answer. Remembering Shandon’s warning, I stayed quiet.
Tovalen turned away. “I’m off to the laboratory.”
Soa took his place. “Shandon just confirmed that you have the Book of First Naming. It was lost for so long, we suspected it was a myth. Is it true that Georsi tried to burn it?”
“Yes. I snatched it from him when I saw him by the fire.”
Soa groaned. “But why, why would he do that?”
“He is cursed for his complicity, and he wishes an end to it,” the incoherent twin said. Apparently, she had moments of clarity.
“Hush yourself, Okane. That was a Session ago, and who remembers what arrangements were actually made?” Tovalen snapped. Then he turned to me. “I can’t find anything wrong with you. Malar’s brewing up some vervain and prunella tea, just in case you’re really sick.”
Kea looked angry. “She is sick.”
“I need to look at that book right away and confirm its identity,” Soa said. “It’s urgent. You can stay with her, lad, help her drink. Oberin, come with me.”
“Tell Shandon I need to speak to him. It’s urgent,” I said. It seemed that was all I ever had to say. I wanted to tell him of the Demon’s new threat.
“We have important matters to attend to,” Soa snapped, but Oberin gave me a quick nod as his uncle strode away. The twins and Tovalen followed.
The room was blanketed in silence. The patient at the other end of the infirmary had fallen asleep. I shook from grief and shock. Should I be making my plans to leave Yassin now?
Kea stood awkwardly besides my bed. There was no chair. He looked tired. It had to be after midnight. I was lonely and miserable, and the cold chilled me to the bone.
“You look terrified,” he said. “Shall I climb in the bed and put my arms around you?”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak without crying. We were alone. Surely, I could enjoy the comfort of his company without putting him in more danger.
He smiled broadly and began to strip off his tunic.
“You’d better keep your clothes on.”
“Of course. Malar might be here any moment.” He got in, hugging me tightly. A healthy smell, like warm earth, came from him. I let myself touch his cheek, still browned from the sun. His blue-gray eyes were full of emotion. Warmth spread through my loins, and I felt an aching desire. It overrode my fear.
His voice was husky. “A pity it took this for you to be in my arms. I’ve wanted you for so long.”
I wanted that too. But the Water Demon’s warning haunted me. I shouldn’t let Kea get close.
His lips felt so good on mine. I couldn’t bring myself to push him away.
Not even when his hands traveled down my shift, brushed my breast. I was drowning in honey. Only the sound of the door opening stopped what might have happened next.
Shandon came in. The dark shadows under his eyes looked like bruises. Oberin followed, looking concerned. Something flickered across his face when he noticed Kea in the bed, and then his expression turned blank.
“I was so cold. I feel better now,” I explained, my face burning.
“I see,” Oberin said, his voice neutral.
Kea glared at Oberin. “What are you doing here? Berona’s had enough people bothering her today.”
Shandon’s eyebrows rose at his comment. “Kea, perhaps it’s time to depart the pleasures of the bed. Berona’s cheeks are pink. I take it she’s warmer now and much improved by your care.”
Kea grudgingly got up, adjusting his trousers as if they didn’t fit well. “How did the Demon get here?”
“We’ll discuss that later. We need to talk to Berona alone now.” Shandon was on edge, not even bothering to sound polite.
I stole another look at Oberin, trying to figure out what had happened. His face was immobile, giving him the look of a noble statue with an inner intelligence. Only his strange, luminous eyes glowed.
Kea sulked off, closing the door harder than he needed to.
They didn’t waste any time. “Where did you put the Book of First Naming?” Shandon demanded.
CHAPTER 27
Berona
Shandon and I argued back and forth. I pointed out that it had been lying on the table when I left, but Shandon said I must have taken it.
All the while, Oberin’s lips got tighter and tighter. Finally he laid a hand on Shandon’s sleeve. “Did she have it in her hands when she left?”
“Well, she must have.”
“Why would she take it with her on an errand to fetch water? Could someone have come in your chamber while you were asleep?”
Shandon buried his face in his hands. His back moved. It took me a moment to realize he was sobbing. I wanted to tell him that the Demon had threatened Moab and Kea, but now was not the time.
“It’s very late, Shandon,” Oberin said, not unkindly. “I’ll stay with Berona until morning.”
“I didn’t lose the book. The Demon keeps taking things. Things I need. They’re all…gone.”
He meant Bolin. I got cold all over again. I didn’t want to lose Kea, to be a prisoner of that same racking grief.
Oberin tried to soothe Shandon. “That must be terrible. Now go rest.”
“I don’t feel safe…up there. They got into my chamber once. They’ll get in again. You’ll find me scorched, like that Intercessor. Or suffocated, like that Red at the farm.”
Oberin’s brows drew together. “Then sleep here, old Master. There are spare beds. I’ll watch over you both. I’ll protect you.”
I’d been tingling with excitement in Kea’s arms, but now I realized how exhausted I was. I looked up at Oberin, noting once again the green sparkles in his blue eyes. Then mine closed.
* * *
I slept restlessly, plagued by bad dreams. When I woke up to a dreary morning, I considered packing a few things and slinking away. I didn’t want Kea and Moab to end up like Shandon’s friend Bolin.
But then what would the Demon do to the Heartland? I couldn’t run.
Not to mention that Oberin sat right next to me, immobile like one of the sentries that guarded Yassin from their beehive-shaped huts. I tapped him on the hand. “Merry meet.”
His eyes had already been open, but now his face snapped into alertness. “Feeling better?”
“Yes. But I won’t go near that well again.”
“Are you sure about what you saw?”
“It was the Water Demon. She seized me around the throat.”
“How do you know it was her?”
&
nbsp; There was no reason to evade Oberin’s concerned question. The Demon’s spy obviously knew who I was and had reported my presence already. “I’ve seen her before. She found me in my village shortly before Shandon arrived.”
Oberin looked surprised. “It seems we have yet to hear your whole story.”
I glanced over to the bed where Shandon slept. It was empty.
“He’s gone to his chamber,” Oberin said. As I snatched my clothes and struggled to get dressed under the covers, Oberin added, “But if that was the Demon, you do know that there are laws even she has to follow?”
“She can’t kill?” I whispered. It was hard to believe. She’d nearly scared me to death, popping out of the well.
“Yes. And she can’t leave the water.”
Just then, the sound of boots heralded a new arrival. Kendall popped into view. “What did you do with my acolyte?”
What a relief to hear her merry voice. “Kendall. You’re here!”
“Hirschi told you?” Oberin said.
She looked at the floor. “No, not him. Soa fetched me. I’ve barely talked to Hirschi.”
“Are you troubled by that?” Oberin said, sounding fatherly, though he had to be a decade younger than she was.
“It’s nothing.” She smiled at me. “Are you up for some training after a hearty breakfast? It won’t be official till the Council gives its approval at the meeting, but I’m accepting you as my student.”
* * *
It was late morning when Oberin came to fetch me for the meeting. I was still sweaty from my first practice, and my hand throbbed from gripping the wooden practice sword. Oberin fetched a pail of water from the well and set it down, hovering the palm of his hand over it. He gave it to me, satisfied. “It’s safe. Wash up, please. You need to make a better impression than you have so far.”
“What did I do?”
Girl of Fire Page 19