As Kiki grazed, I hauled myself higher, climbing until I reached my mother. I settled on a branch below her, but she appeared next to me in an instant, hugging me tight. When her body started shaking with sobs, I had to grab the tree’s trunk to keep us both from falling.
I waited for her to calm before gently pulling her away. She sat next to me, leaning against my shoulder. Her face was streaked with dirt where her tears had mixed with the dried mud on my clothes. I offered the one clean spot on my shirt, but she shook her head, taking a handkerchief from her pocket. Her dark green cloak had many pockets, and the garment had a slim tailored cut, eliminating the bulky excess of material. It wouldn’t make a good blanket, but it was perfect for keeping warm while traveling through the tree tops.
“Is this one of Nutty’s designs?” I asked her, fingering the cloth.
“Yes. Since I hadn’t left the jungle in fourteen years…” She gave me a rueful smile, “I needed something for the cooler weather.”
“I’m glad you came,” I said.
Her smile fled. A look of terror touched her eyes before she took a few deep breaths. “Your father gave me some Eladine to keep me calm during the trip, and I was doing so well, until…” She put a hand to her neck, grimacing.
“Bad timing,” I agreed. “But I’m fine, see?” I held out an arm. My mistake.
She gasped, staring at the bloody bruises around my wrist. I pulled my sleeve down to cover them.
“They’re just scratches.”
“What happened? And don’t sugarcoat it for me,” she ordered.
I gave her a condensed version with only a slight dusting of sugar. “He won’t be bothering me again.”
“It won’t happen again. You are coming home with us,” she declared.
After this morning, I wanted to agree. “What would I do there?”
“Help your father collect samples or help me make perfumes. The thought of losing you again is too much to bear.”
“But you have to bear it, Mother. I’m not going to run or hide from difficult or dangerous situations. And I’ve made some promises to myself and others. I have to see things through, because if I ran away, I couldn’t live with myself.”
A breeze rustled the leaves, and the sweat on my skin felt like ice. My mother pulled her cloak tight. I could sense her emotions as they twisted into knots around her. She was in a strange place, dealing with the realization that her daughter would willingly put herself in harm’s way for others, and she could lose her again. She struggled with her fear, wanting nothing more than the safety of her family and the familiarity of home.
I had an idea. “Nutty’s cloak reminds me of the jungle,” I said.
She glanced down at the garment. “Really?”
“It’s the same color as the underside of an Ylang-Ylang Leaf. Remember that time when we were caught in a sudden downpour on our way home from the market, and we huddled under a big Ylang-Ylang Leaf?”
“You remembered.” She beamed.
I nodded. “My childhood memories have been unlocked. But I wouldn’t have them now, if I hadn’t taken a risk and followed Irys to the Avibian Plains.”
“You’ve been to the plains.” The horror on her face transformed to awe. “You’re not afraid of anything, are you?”
“During that trip, I could list at least five things I was afraid of.” Especially getting my head chopped off by Moon Man’s scimitar, but I was smart enough not to tell that to my mother.
“Then why did you go?”
“Because we needed information. I couldn’t let my fear stop me from doing what I needed to do.”
She considered my words in silence.
“Your cloak can protect you from more than the weather,” I said. “If you fill the pockets with special items from home, you can surround yourself with the jungle whenever you’re feeling overwhelmed or afraid.”
“I hadn’t thought of that.”
“In fact, I have something you can put into your pocket now that will remind you of me. Come on.”
Without waiting to see if she followed, I climbed down. I hung from the lowest branch before dropping to the ground.
As I searched my backpack, I heard a rustling and I looked up in time to see my mother shimming down the tree’s trunk. I found my fire amulet in one of the pack’s pockets. Considering my recent run of troubles, the amulet would be safer with my mother.
“I won this during a time in my life when fear was my constant and only companion.” I handed it to her. It was the first place prize for an acrobatic competition at Ixia’s annual Fire Festival. What followed after was the worst time of my life, but I would have competed for the amulet again, even knowing the outcome.
I handed the amulet to my mother. “This is one of only four items I hold dear. I want you to have it.”
She examined the fire amulet. “What are the other three?”
“My butterfly and snake.” I pulled out my necklace, and I showed her my bracelet.
“Did someone make those for you?”
“Yes. A friend,” I said before she could ask more.
She raised a slender eyebrow, but only asked, “What’s the last thing?”
I rummaged in my pack while I decided if my mother would be shocked to know I held a weapon dear. Far from being the perfect daughter, I figured she wouldn’t be surprised at all. Handing her my switchblade, I explained what the silver symbols on the handle meant.
“Same friend?” she asked.
I laughed and told her about Ari and Janco. “They’re more like older brothers than friends.”
My mother’s smile felt like the sun coming out after a storm. “Good to know there are people in Ixia who care about you.” She tucked my fire amulet into a pocket of her cloak. “Fire represents strength. I will keep it with me always.”
Hugging me tight for a moment, Perl pulled away and declared, “You’re freezing. Put your cloak on. Let’s get inside.”
“Yes, Mother.”
Esau and Irys waited for us in the Keep’s guest quarters on the west side of the campus. I endured a bone-crushing hug from my father, but had to decline an invitation to dinner with my parents. My desire for a bath and sleep overrode my hunger. I had to promise to spend most of the next day with them before they allowed me to leave.
Irys accompanied me to the bathhouse. Dark smudges lined her eyes and she looked as tired as I felt. She seemed in a contemplative mood.
“Did you use magic on your mother?” she asked.
“I don’t think so. Why?”
“She seemed at peace. Perhaps you did it instinctively.”
“But that’s not good. I should have complete control. Right?”
“I’m beginning to think that not all the rules apply to you, Yelena. Perhaps it was your upbringing or the fact that you started controlling your magic at an older age that has made your powers develop in an unusual way. Not to worry, though,” she added when she saw my expression. “I believe it will be to your benefit.”
Irys and I parted at the baths. After a long hot soak, I dragged myself to my rooms. My last thought before drifting off to sleep was to marvel over the fact that Irys had trusted me enough not to assign more guards to me.
It seemed a mere moment that I had sunk into a dreamless slumber when Irys’s mental call woke me. I squinted in the bright sunlight, trying to orient myself.
What time? I asked her.
Midmorning, Irys said.
Morning? That meant I had been asleep since yesterday afternoon. Why did you wake me?
An emergency Council session has been called, and your presence is required.
Emergency session?
Goel was murdered, and Cahil is claiming Adviser Ilom is Valek in disguise.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Goel murdered? Valek caught? My groggy mind couldn’t quite understand Irys’s comment and her attention pulled away before I could question her. I changed as fast as I could and ran toward the Council Hall.
/> Did Valek kill Goel? And if Valek really was in custody, he just gave the Sitians one more reason to execute him. Should I act surprised by Valek’s presence or admit I knew about him? Would I be considered an accomplice to Goel’s murder? Perhaps they suspected me. I only told Irys where to find him; I hadn’t mentioned the others to her.
Questions without answers swirled in my mind. I paused before the steps to the Council Hall, smoothed my braid, and adjusted my clothes. I wore one of the new shirts and skirt/pants that Nutty had sewn for me. Glancing at my surroundings, I checked to make sure no one had followed me. Irys trusted me to take care of myself. I couldn’t let her down.
The Council’s members, four Master Magicians, a handful of the Keep’s guards, and Cahil had assembled in the great hall. The noise of their various arguments reached deafening levels, and I spotted Cahil gesturing wildly to the Sandseed’s Councilman. Cahil’s flushed face contorted in anger as he replied.
Roze Featherstone, First Magician pounded a gavel to bring order to the meeting. Conversations ceased as the Councilors took their seats. The decorations from the greeting ceremony had been removed, and a U-shaped table had been brought in. Roze and the other three Magicians sat at the bend, while the clan Elders sat along the straight sides. Six on one side, five on the other with Cahil taking the sixth seat. A wooden podium had been placed in the middle of the U. I stood with the Captain of the guard and his men near the side wall, hoping to blend in with the white marble.
“Let us address the matter of Lieutenant Goel Ixia,” ordered Roze.
I glanced at Irys in surprise.
All the northern refugees are given Ixia as their clan name, Irys explained in my mind. Cahil is considered their clan leader. It is an honorary clan and title. He has no lands and no power to vote in the Council.
That explained Cahil’s resentment toward the Council and his continuing frustration of not getting their support for his campaign against the Commander.
“Lieutenant Ixia was found dead in a fallow field east of the Citadel in Featherstone Clan lands,” Roze recited. “The healers have determined that he was killed with a sword thrust through his heart.”
Murmurs rippled through the Council members. Roze stopped them with a cold stare. “The weapon was not found at the scene, and a search of the surrounding fields is currently in progress. According to Fourth Magician, Yelena Liana Zaltana was the last person to see him alive. I call her to the witness stand.”
Sixteen pair of eyes turned toward me. Hostile, concerned and worried expressions peppered the group.
Don’t worry, Irys said. Tell them what happened.
I walked to the podium, guessing that was the witness stand.
“Explain yourself,” Roze demanded.
I told them about the kidnapping and my escape. A collective gasp sounded when I explained about taking control of Goel’s body. Whispers about the Ethical Code started to spread.
Irys stood and said, “There is nothing illegal about using magic to defend yourself. In fact, she should be commended for extracting herself without harming Goel.”
The Council members asked an endless amount of questions about Goel’s motives. Only after the guards that had been assigned to protect me confirmed they had been drugged did the Council run out of inquiries.
“You left Goel chained in the shed, and that was the last time you saw him?” Roze asked.
“Yes,” I said.
“She’s telling the truth.” By Roze’s sour expression, I knew that statement had been hard for her to say. “The investigation into Goel’s murder will continue. Yelena, you may sit down.” Roze gestured to a bench located behind her and the other Master Magicians. “That leaves us with the other matter. I call Cahil Ixia to the witness stand.”
As I moved toward the bench, I passed Cahil. His blue eyes held a hard determination and he refused to meet my gaze. I sat on the edge of the wooden bench, and, even though I braced myself for his accusations, Cahil’s words made my heart squeeze with fear.
“—and compounding Valek’s deception is the fact that his soul mate and master spy is Yelena Zaltana.”
The room erupted with a cacophony of voices. Roze pounded her gavel, but no one listened. I felt the force of her magic when she ordered everyone silent. She held them quiet for only a moment, but it was enough to get her point across.
“Cahil, where is your evidence?” Roze asked.
He motioned to one of the Keep’s guards. The guard opened a door in the back wall and Captain Marrok and four of Cahil’s men entered the hall, dragging Adviser Ilom with them. Ilom’s arms were manacled behind his back and the four guards had their swords pointed at him. Ambassador Signe and a handful of Ixian soldiers followed the grim procession.
I strained to catch Valek’s eye, but he looked at the Council members with an annoyed frown.
Ambassador Signe was the first to speak. “I demand an explanation. This is an act of war.”
“Cahil, I told you to release the Adviser until this matter was settled,” Roze said. Fury flared in her amber eyes.
“And let him escape? No. Better to bring him here and unmask him in front of everyone.” Cahil strode to Ilom and yanked on his hair.
I cringed, but Ilom’s head jerked down as he cried out in pain. Undaunted, Cahil pulled Ilom’s nose then clawed at the flesh under his chin. Ilom yelped and blood welled from the scratches on his neck. Cahil stepped back astounded. He reached toward Ilom’s face again, but Marrok grabbed him and held him. Cahil’s mouth hung open with astonishment.
“Release the Adviser,” Roze ordered.
Ilom’s manacles were removed as Cahil, his face red with rage, and his men were escorted from the room. The session ended and Roze rushed to make amends and apologize to the Ambassador and Ilom.
I stayed on the bench, watching as Signe’s anger and Ilom’s pout transformed into more agreeable expressions by Roze’s words. I was afraid to call attention to myself, hoping no one would remember Cahil’s other accusations about me.
Cahil’s shock over Ilom had matched my own. Even knowing his tricks, Valek continued to surprise me. I scanned the Ixian guards, and, sure enough, one blue-eyed soldier looked mighty pleased with himself. Ilom probably dressed as a guard when Valek disguised himself as the Adviser, and they probably switched places when Valek needed to sneak around Sitia.
Eventually, the Council members and Ixians began to leave. Irys joined me on the bench.
Tell Valek to leave, Irys said. The danger is too great.
You know.
Of course. I expected him to be with the delegation.
It doesn’t bother you that he’s here. That he might be spying on Sitia.
He’s here for you. And I’m glad you had some time together.
But what if he killed Goel?
Goel was a danger to you. While I would have preferred to arrest him, I’m not upset by his demise.
“Go get something to eat. You look a little pale,” Irys said.
“That’s just great. I went from having none to having two mother hens.”
Irys laughed. “Some people just need the extra help.” She patted my knee and went in search of Bain.
Before I could leave, though, I saw Bavol Zaltana heading toward me. I waited for him.
“Ambassador Signe requests a meeting with you,” Bavol said.
“When?”
“Now.”
Bavol led me out of the great hall. “The Ambassador has been assigned some offices so she can conduct business while a guest here,” Bavol explained as we walked through the Council Hall.
The entire Sitian government was housed in the vast building. Offices and meeting rooms hummed with the daily tasks of running a government. An underground record room stored all the official documents, although the local records remained at each clan’s capitol.
I wondered about the Sandseed’s moving capitol. Did they haul their records with them as they traveled throughout the plains? Remembering
Irys’s lecture about the Sandseeds, I realized they kept a verbal record, telling history through the Story Weavers. An image of Moon Man painted blue and sitting in the Council’s underground room caused me to smile.
Bavol gave me a questioning glance.
“I was thinking of the record room,” I said. “Just trying to imagine how the Sandseed Clan reports information to the Council.”
Bavol grinned. “They have always been difficult. We indulge their…unusual ways. Twice a year, a Story Weaver comes to the Council and recites the clan’s events to a scribe. It works, and keeps peace in our land. Here we are.” Bavol gestured to an open door. “We will talk again later.” Bavol dipped his head and shoulders in a half bow and left.
The invitation had not included Bavol. I walked into a receiving area. Adviser Ilom sat behind a plain desk. The scratches on his neck had stopped bleeding. Two soldiers guarded a closed door.
Ilom stood and knocked on the door. I heard a faint voice, and Ilom turned the knob. “She’s here,” he said, then pushed the door wider and gestured me inside.
I entered Ambassador Signe’s office, noting the simple functional furniture and lack of decorations. Guards stood behind her, but she dismissed them. None of the soldiers had been Valek, and I wondered where he had gotten to. Ari and Janco were probably off-duty.
“You caused a considerable stir last night,” Signe said when we were alone.
Her powerful eyes scanned me. I marveled at her appearance. She had the same delicate features as the Commander, yet the long hair and the thin lines of kohl around her eyes transformed his face into her ageless beauty.
“I hope your sleep wasn’t interrupted,” I said, sticking to a diplomatic approach.
She waved away comment. “We’re alone. You may speak freely.”
I shook my head. “Master Magicians have excellent hearing.” I thought about Roze, she would consider eavesdropping on the Ambassador to be her patriotic duty.
Signe nodded in understanding. “Seems the Wannabe King has gotten hold of some wrong information. I wonder how that happened.”
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