by Lisle, Holly
And when she had done those things, she and Hasmal would take the Mirror to the Reborn, wherever he might be. They would give it to him, and then they would witness the birth of an age of love and enlightenment.
Chapter 32
When they neared the bay, the party became cautious. Kait didn’t let on that she knew the crew expected an attack against her and Hasmal. She remained on alert with her sword loose in its scabbard and her other hand near her dagger. The lively conversation the five of them had shared during the trip back died to silence—a silence unbroken by any human noises at all.
“They’ve either planned an ambush or they’ve done nothing at all and are far afield hunting for treasure,” Ian said at last. “I don’t hear anyone.”
Neither do I, Kait thought, and I think I would. She braced herself for the attack.
They kept moving forward through the forest. At last they reached the rise that led down to the bay. Silence. Kait wished they could find a clearing, but the thick forest offered no view of what lay ahead.
Her nose picked up an unmistakable scent, though, and no sooner did she stop and sniff the air than the rest of the party followed her example. The reek of death and decay blew through the forest, and the buzz of flies grew very loud as the five of them put the Mirror of Souls down and carefully worked their way to the bay.
Four bloated bodies sprawled on the rocky beach. Ian ran to them, with his men close behind.
“Daverrs,” Ian called, identifying the first corpse.
Turben said, “Seeley and Smith’s Son.”
“Bright,” Jayti said. “All the ones with the most reason to be loyal to you.”
Kait had been looking at the bodies with the rest of them, but suddenly her heart thudded painfully in her breast. She looked out over the water and asked softly, “Ian, where’s the ship?”
The five of them stared out at the empty bay, then back down at the bodies.
Ian looked as dead as the corpses. “Rrru-eeth convinced them to take my ship. My ship.”
Hasmal paled. “We’re the only humans on this continent?”
Turben and Jayti looked at each other and then at the other three. Jayti said, “We have no supplies besides the little we have left in our packs.”
Kait stared out at the bay and at the thin line of the ocean that lay beyond. “It doesn’t matter,” she said. She lowered her shields, and instantly she felt Ry Sabir, still hunting her, getting closer. “It truly doesn’t matter. Our problems are bigger than that. Night falls, and the hunters are coming.”
About the Author
Holly Lisle, born in 1960, has been writing fiction and fantasy full-time since November 30, 1992. Prior to that, she worked as an advertising representative, a commercial artist, a guitar teacher, a restaurant singer, and for ten years as a registered nurse specializing in emergency and intensive care. Originally from Salem, Ohio, she has also lived in Alaska, Costa Rica, Guatemala, North Carolina, Georgia, and Florida. She and Matt are raising three children and several cats.