“Hello, Miss Riana.” He kept his voice low, barely above a whisper. “I understand that Wizard Ash has fallen ill. Is that correct?”
“No’ quite,” she denied, standing aside and gesturing him into the small sitting parlor. “Truth told, it be a magical drain. He be recovering, though.”
“A magical drain,” the priest repeated in a tone of understanding. “Yes, I’ve seen that happen once before. It looks very much like a deathly illness. I now understand how other people were confused and gave me such a misunderstanding. But you say he’s recovering? Magical drains are usually very difficult to get over.”
“Ah, that? His sister did some magicking and it be helping him along.”
“I didn’t realize that could be done. Or is this something that is possible because they’re twins?”
Now that was a question she hadn’t thought to ask. “Mayhap? Ashlynn had no doubt of what she needed to do, just went about it. It could be too that it be because their magic be akin to each other’s.”
Graff looked as if he were filing this information away. “It is a very interesting thing indeed. Well, I came here to offer a blessing of recovery.”
Riana had gone without a priest most of her life so it hadn’t occurred to her that she now had a priest at hand to ask a blessing from. “Please do, sir.”
Pointing at the door, Graff whispered, “Is he still sleeping?”
“Aye, although it be no trouble if ye wake him. Man’s been asleep for a full day already.”
Seeming more at ease, he straightened and didn’t bother to lower his voice as much. “Then if you don’t mind, I’ll leave a quick blessing before going. I actually have four weddings this afternoon to get ready for.”
Riana didn’t doubt that one bit. She led the way to Ash’s bedside and watched as Priest Graff put a dot of oil on Ash’s head and spoke a prayer, asking for a blessing of renewal and healing. Riana had little experience with seeing things like this, but the blessing was shorter and more to the point than previous times. Maybe Graff was the sort to do short and sweet? Or he realized he really didn’t have time for a lengthy prayer, not with four weddings lined up.
That done, he backed off and gave her a smile. “I’m not sure how much our Goddess Regina does with magic, but hopefully she has some wiggle room to help him recover. Please do keep me updated on his progress. I understand that he is a pillar in this country and seeing him like this has disturbed everyone.”
“I will,” Riana promised.
Ash took two days to wake up.
If not for the fact that she could see him breathing and feel him in the back of her head, Riana would’ve been worried out of her mind. But Ashlynn assured her, several times, that deep rest like this was actually a good sign. It meant that his body was catching up with the sleep it needed and properly rejuvenating.
Riana spent those two days preparing various things that were good for the body, checking in with the settlement to make sure that people knew what to do, and scheming. Mostly scheming.
When Ash finally awoke late in the evening, she was more than ready for him. His eyes fluttered open, stubbornly, as if he still wanted to sleep. Riana was having none of it and poked him in the arm. “Ash.”
With a groan and inarticulate muttering, he finally rolled over to his side and propped himself up on one elbow. Only one eye was open, the other squinted shut. “Wha?”
Riana took a cup steaming on the nightstand and wafted it front of his nose, like a cat fanning cheese at a mouse hole. The mouse took the bait and Ash latched onto the mug with both hands, draining it in one long gulp. Then again, he hadn’t eaten in two days, he was bound to be thirsty at the very least. Once it was down, he lowered the cup and looked at her with more alertness. “That was wonderful. Lemon?”
“Lemon, cinnamon, honey, and a spruce of ginger,” she responded, smiling at his smile. “It be good for the body.”
“Yes, with those ingredients, it certainly would be,” he admitted. “It’s sure to warm the blood and help fight off sickness. Another?”
She took the mug from him and turned to her tray. Ashlynn had fixed this up for her, a way to keep water magically hot while waiting for him to awake. Everything else was fresh, and she squeezed and poured ingredients in before stirring it all thoroughly and handing it back to him. He didn’t drain this one, sipping it instead, and took more time savoring the flavor. His eyes studied her over the brim. “How badly did I scare you?”
“I might be having a few grey hairs with yer name on ‘em.”
He winced. “Sorry?”
“Aye, ye best be that. Sorry enough not to repeat this foolishness.”
“Ahumm,” he mumbled, wisely drinking and not responding to that. “Is Ashlynn trying to build everything?”
“No,” Riana denied gently, taking his cup from him. “Another? No? Tierone sent over Parlan and the man tackled what ye left undone and be maintaining the ward. I heard from yonder this morning and he be making good progress.”
“That’s a relief,” Ash responded, tone sincere. “I assume Ashlynn told you that my magical core has been badly drained and I’m not to lift a magical pinky for another two weeks?”
“She said a week, but aye.”
“You’re holding me to that, aren’t you.” It wasn’t a question.
Riana gave him a serene smile, one that was sweet on the surface and pure steel underneath.
“I thought so.” Ash didn’t seem surprised by this, only resigned. “Hopefully the work will wait a week, then.”
“Oh, belike it will wait a mite longer than that.”
He blinked at her, not understanding that cryptic statement. “How so?”
Rising from his bedside, she directed, “Wash up. I’ll fetch dinner for ye. While ye eat, we’ll explain.”
“Have you been plotting? Without me?” Ash objected.
“Yer fault for sleeping,” she caroled at him, not the least bit repentant. She nearly skipped out the door, calling to people as she went that Ash was awake again.
In short order, the wizard was washed up, in clean clothes, and a proper dinner was set in front of him. Riana had him settled near the balcony doors so he could enjoy the breeze and he was not arguing about being ensconced in his favorite armchair. Ashlynn and Broden were already entrenched in their chairs, although both were working, each having their own reports to write or review. Riana had not commented on the fact that Ashlynn chose to work here instead of her office until her brother woke up.
Edvard came in with his own plate in hand, sitting in the only other vacant chair, and pointed a stern finger at Ash. “No more collapsing. You gave me heart failure.”
“Note how he acts like he played no part in this,” Ashlynn said to the air, not looking at anyone in particular.
“I hear that, aye,” Broden rumbled with a dark look at Edvard. It was enough to make the king flush. “A better topic to visit, me thinks, be how to prevent this from happening again.”
Edvard latched onto this like it was a lifeline. “Quite so. Ash, while you were sleeping, we’ve been discussing this and have decided that our best bet is to go talk to your master.”
“Master Gerrard?” Ash sounded intrigued by this idea. “It has occurred to me before, but it’s a dangerous trip, and it’ll take three weeks. At least. If any of his students decide to move here and take up the fight, maybe longer. Who do you propose to send?”
The whole room looked at him pointedly.
Ash nearly choked on his biscuit. Coughing, he pounded a palm against his chest. Words strangled, he objected, “Me?”
“Give it two days for your strength to return,” Ashlynn ticked off days on her fingers as she spoke, “then another day for journey prep, and by the time that you reach the border you should be able to work magic without much issue. But stay here, and you’re likely to fall back into old patterns and overwork yourself again. Best you go.”
Shaking his head adamantly in denial, he corrected, “Y
ou need to go talk to Master Gerrard and convince him to send some of his students here.”
Ashlynn blinked at him. “Me? Why me?”
“He likes you better,” Ash responded as if it were the most obvious fact in the world.
“Nonsense.”
“I’m serious. He only smiles at you. I have to do the equivalent of slaying a dragon just to get an approving nod from him. Hence, you need to go talk to him.”
“Ash,” there was a note of forced patience in Ashlynn’s voice, “Did you forget that I have a whole city to govern?”
“Those problems have surely died down now that the settlement is started,” he protested.
“No, darling, the problems have not magically gone away. We just have more places to put people now. If I don’t keep tabs on this city, it’s like to tear itself apart. I can’t leave.” She stabbed a finger at his chest. “You go.”
“Me?” he objected. “But he won’t be convinced by anything I say!”
“Be charming.”
“Charming? Really? That’s what you’d advise?” Like a petulant five year old he whined, “Ashlynn.”
“No. You have to go, Ash, there’s no one else that can. You know him—”
“That’s rather half the problem—”
“Don’t be silly, he likes you fine, I don’t know where this idea came from—”
Riana’s eyes darted back and forth between the two, feeling as if she was starting to lose track of this verbal ball. They were going back and forth so quickly that she couldn’t quite understand every word they were saying, and was picking up as much from the tone and body language as anything else. With each exchange, they were speaking more quickly, trying to get their point across before the other interrupted.
“You’re only saying that because he dotes on you, Ashlynn, the whole school knew it and—”
“He dotes on all of his students, you’re just not as good at seeing past that gruff façade of—”
“Ah, no, that was not a façade, he’s blunt to the point of—”
“Blunt is not the same as—”
“I’m not arguing that, all I’m saying—”
“It’s fine—”
“—you’re not seriously thinking—”
Riana gave up on keeping up with the twins and leaned in closer to murmur to Edvard, “Be you following this?”
“Just fine,” he assured her with a twinkle in his eye. “But then, I’ve had decades of practice.”
“But—”
“No—”
“Is not—”
“You’re—”
“—easy for you—”
Riana completely gave up when the words started melting together. She could swear they were speaking another language entirely. Twin-speak, maybe.
After several minutes of this, the twins stopped cold and just glared at each other. This standoff lasted a full ten seconds before Ash’s shoulders slumped and he heaved a sigh heavy enough to dent the earth. “Fine. I’ll go.”
Ashlynn beamed at him, completely confident that she had her brother where she wanted him, and patted him lightly on the shoulder in a consoling way. “You’ll do fine. He likes you. Truly.”
“Let’s hope you’re right,” he grumbled, mopping up the rest of his gravy with his biscuit. “Otherwise finding other magicians to help us is going to get a lot harder.”
Riana cleared her throat in a pointed way. “Afore we go off wizard hunting, there be something else we need to do.”
Ash gave her the blankest stare she’d seen all month. “We do?”
“Aye. We do.” Her mouth went into a flat, determined line. “We need training, ye and I, about how to find each other. When ye went down, I could no’ find ye. It scared me, Ash, that ye be down and I could no’ find where ye were. Ye said once that if the bond be strong enough and we have practice in it, that we can find each other by feel alone.”
“I did,” he agreed. He reached out and gripped her hand, touch warm and reassuring. “I did, and that’s a very good point to make. Yes. Before we go harrying off, we should certainly be able to find each other.”
A thought occurred and she asked uncertainly, “This will no’ take magic to do, will it?”
“No, none,” Ashlynn assured her. There was a contemplative gleam in her eye as she looked at Broden. “But it is a very good notion to explore.”
Broden was matching her look for look. “Lass. Seems to me these two have the right of it.”
“Oh yes, I agree wholeheartedly. Let’s practice in this as well. We’ll start somewhere safe and then go to a more complicated environment. Ash, Riana, I suggest you do the same.”
“At the moment, the settlement area is the safest to do this in,” Edvard offered. He had been quiet until that moment, letting the two pairings work through things on their own. “Ash, I think that you can take a week to recover and practice with Riana, get a good grounding on this, before you need to leave. I’d rather not have one of you go down and become lost to us. If there’s anyone that can be considered ‘indispensable’ then the four of you qualify.” With a self-mocking smile—more of a grimace, really—he added, “Even more than me some days. Now. I have things going apace and I need to check on a few things before bed. Ash, no more collapsing and giving me unwanted grey hairs. Ashlynn, learn from your brother’s bad example and don’t do what he did. If I start overloading you with work, complain and charm your way out of it.”
Ashlynn gave him a mocking bow. “Understood, sire.”
“Good, good.” Groaning up to his feet, Edvard carted off his empty plate with him, leaving the room as abruptly as he had come in.
Ash caught himself in a yawn mid-way, lifting a hand to cover his mouth. “Why am I still so tired?”
“Yes, I wonder,” Ashlynn drawled sarcastically. “Riana, tuck him back into bed, will you? Broden and I need to check in with a few people as well before bed.”
“I will,” she promised, already pulling Ash to his feet.
“I’m not a child,” Ash protested good-naturedly, “I can see to myself, y’know.”
“No, I do no’ know,” Riana answered back smartly, pinning him in place with her eyes. “Show more sense than a child would and do no’ over-do and then I may believe ye.”
Ash winced, putting a hand to his heart as if wounded. “Ouch. Alright, I may have deserved that.”
“You did.” “Ye did.” Broden and Ashlynn were in perfect sync, even tones matching.
Getting no help from any quarter, Ash did the safe thing. He went promptly back to bed.
Chapter Thirteen
“Ash! Visitor!” Bria smiled as she said it, ushering Gwen into the small sitting room.
Looking up from his book, Ash took in his sisters with a blink and then grinned, setting the book aside. “Welcome visitors. Hello, my pretty little sister.”
Gwen beamed at him, happy for the compliment, and lugged over the wooden box she had in her arms. “Ash, Bria said you were sick.”
“I am sick, my magic is very low, but I’m getting better,” he assured her gently. “In fact, in a few days, I’ll be back to my usual self.”
“Oh.” Satisfied, she put the box in his lap. “Then, can you play with me?”
“I would love to play with you, dear heart.” Ash honestly meant it. After being cooped up in the room for three days with nothing but sleeping and reading to do, he was interested in any diversion that came his way. “What did you bring with you?”
“Go and Kensington.”
Ash’s interest went up another level. “Oh-ho, plan on beating me today, are you?”
There was a wicked smile on Gwen’s face. “Yes.”
To Riana, Ash explained, “I’m terrible at both games, barely can remember the rules, and it always takes me a round or two to warm up enough to stand a chance against her. If you want to know who the natural strategist in the family is, it’s Gwen. She beats the pants off of us on a regular basis.”
“Ah,
I see.” Riana wasn’t that surprised to learn that Gwen was a good strategist. Seeing the way that she maneuvered her siblings around to grant her every wish had told Riana who really had the brains in this family. She and Bria helped set up a table in between them, and dragged a chair closer so Gwen could comfortably sit. Then she sank onto her haunches so she was eye-level with the little girl. “Gwen, can ye promise to keep an eye on our boy, here? Make sure he do no’ over-do it.”
Gwen gave her a serious nod, woman-to-woman. “I can. I promise to play with him all day.”
Ash choked and Riana could feel him laughing on the inside. It made it hard to keep her own face straight and she felt like kicking him. “Good. There be things I need to do and I did no’ want to leave him by himself.”
Really, Gwen was just as happy to have some one-on-one time with her brother as that had been in short supply recently. It was Ash that questioned it. “What are you wanting to do?”
“We have quite a few things that need to be mended,” Riana started ticking things off on her fingers, “traveling clothes to have made up for the road, and I have a craving for certain chocolates.”
“Chocolate cordials?” Ash wasn’t asking, he knew good and well what she was referring to. “I see Ashlynn was right, she really did get you addicted to those things.”
Not bothered by that in the least, Riana shrugged, a sense of anticipation filling her. She’d been craving those chocolates all week.
“And I will go with you,” Bria told her, not about to be dissuaded. “You haven’t been in Estole for a while, the city has changed quite a bit; you’re likely to get lost.”
Riana had never had a chance to learn more than the main streets even before she had gone to work on the settlement. She was more than willing to have a guide if it prevented her from being lost all day or, worse, having to get one of the guardsmen to rescue her. “That be fine by me.”
“I’ll watch him for you,” Gwen promised her seriously.
Arrows of Promise (Kingmakers Book 2) Page 11