“If you do that one more time, I’m leaving,” I said to Mara. I sat in their small kitchen, sipping tea. They had decided to stay in Leif’s quarters at the Keep for now, but when I had told them about my new place, they planned to talk to Fisk.
“Do what?” Mara asked, attempting to appear innocent.
“Get all kissy and lovey-dovey. Can you at least stop pawing each other while I’m here?”
“Jealous, Opal?” Leif asked.
“No. Nauseous.”
They broke apart and sat on opposite sides of the table. “Happy?” Mara asked, but she still made moon eyes at Leif.
Newlyweds! Not fit for company for… Well, longer than the fourteen days it had been since their wedding.
“So what’s going on around here?” Leif asked.
I filled him in about Teegan, Reema and the First Magician’s decision not to inform the Council about my immunity.
“Bain’s been under a ton of pressure lately. With Zitora’s retirement and no other students showing potential to reach master level, he’s been grumpy.”
Leif was kind enough not to mention how both those problems were my fault. Pazia Cloud Mist had been the first student magician in ten years to be strong enough to take the master-level test. Until I had siphoned most of her magic, during an experiment. She had attacked me with all her power, intending to harm me, but I should have had more control over my response.
“Opal.” Leif swatted my arm. “Snap out of it. Zitora and Pazia made their own choices—whether good or bad. You didn’t cause Bain’s problems.”
“I thought you couldn’t sniff my moods.”
Leif’s unusual magic allowed him to smell emotions, read people’s intentions and determine their prior deeds. Handy for interrogating criminals.
“I don’t need magic to read your mind. You get this little crinkle between your eyebrows when you’re feeling guilty.”
I rubbed the spot with two fingers, smoothing the skin. Even if I claimed I was among family, Valek would still fuss at my betraying body language. “I don’t know how Bain plans to keep my immunity a secret. If I hang out here long enough, any magician interacting with me would discover it.”
“Unless you claim you have a null shield woven into your clothes for protection. No, that won’t work.” Leif tugged his shirt down, looking guilty.
“Does the Council know how malleable null shields are?” A sick feeling roiled.
“No.”
“Why not?”
He fiddled with the fabric of his sleeve. “The Master Magicians decided to keep it quiet for now. Plus the Councilors are protected by magicians who can create null shields when needed.”
“But wearing shielded clothes would give them protection all the time.”
“Yes, but…” Leif’s gaze swept the room, avoiding mine.
“Eventually another magician is going to discover how to graft shields onto fabric and walls. You know it’s inevitable, and once the Council finds out, they’ll be upset.” An under-statement. They would be livid, feel betrayed and be suspicious of Bain and Irys, but if all the Councilors were shielded by Bain’s magicians… I followed the logic. Those magicians reported everything to Bain. “Master Bloodgood’s wading in dangerous waters.”
Leif rubbed the back of his neck. “I know. He says it’s temporary. Knowing how blood magic can switch people’s souls, Bain is worried another person might try to take over one of the Councilors’ bodies. If they’re shielded all the time, he can’t tell if that has happened. With a magician guarding each Councilor, he knows—”
“Everything. The magicians are loyal to Master Bain and are spying on the Councilors for him.” But Zebb hadn’t informed Bain of my immunity. He cared about Councilor Moon enough to keep his bargain with me. As for the others, there would be no way to tell.
Leif grimaced. “Spying is such an ugly word.”
“It’s an ugly situation.”
“I tried to explain it to him, but he threatened to assign me as a guard dog for Councilor Greenblade.”
“That doesn’t sound like Master Bain. Perhaps…”
“Don’t even go there, Opal. Not many people know the whole blood magic switcheroo. Besides he’s too strong for anyone to do that to him.”
I had learned nothing was impossible. Not when it involved magic. Ulrick and Tricky were gone, and we had won the battle against blood magic. But the war was ongoing.
The next day, I took Reema shopping. She trailed behind me with her gaze on the ground. She hadn’t said anything to me since the day at the library, but at least she stopped ignoring me.
When we reached the crowded market, Reema stepped closer to me. I headed in the direction of the clothing and fabric stalls, determined to purchase a few items for Reema and her brother.
“Lovely Lady, can I be of assistance?” a young girl asked.
She wore a comfortable-looking shirt over loose pants and cinched with a leather belt. I guessed her age at fourteen. Perfect.
“Yes—”
Reema grabbed my arm, digging her fingernails into my skin. “You promised,” she whispered.
“I know. Relax.” I turned back to the Helper’s Guild girl, who had been staring at us in confusion. “What’s your name?”
“Amberle.” She played with a silver pendant hanging around her neck.
“I’m Opal and this is Reema,” I said, pointing. “Amberle, I’d like to know where I can find clothes like yours.”
She brightened and led us to a small shop near the northern edge. “Jane makes practical clothing from durable fabric. Your sister will grow out of them before she wears them out.”
I didn’t bother to correct her as we entered the cozy shop. The shopkeeper smiled her thanks at my guide. I paid Amberle a copper, but asked her to help Reema choose garments while I shopped for Teegan.
Reema shot me a shrewd look. She understood my real reason for having Amberle stay. By the time we were done, both Reema and Teegan had two new sets of clothes and I found a couple pairs of sturdy travel pants. Both dark brown in color. Drab, as Kade’s mother would say, but the color hid stains and road dirt.
Loaded with packages, we returned to the street. Amberle flagged down two more members of the Helper’s Guild. The boy and his friend ran over to us. They both wore the same pendant as Amberle’s—two hands together with the fingers spread out. At first glance the design looked like wings. I asked her about it.
She touched it reverently. “Master Fisk gifted all his helpers with the symbol for the Helper’s Guild. It serves many purposes. A way for our customers to know we are legitimate, a reminder to us of our tasks and as inspiration for us.”
One of the boys said, “The wings mean if we work hard enough, anything is possible.”
Nice. I handed the boys each a copper and the packages, instructing them to deliver them to the Magician’s Keep.
Reema’s face whitened. “You’re trusting them? Just like that?” she asked me.
Insulted, Amberle snapped, “That’s my brother and cousin. They would never steal from a customer. Master Fisk would throw them out of the guild.”
“Has he thrown many out?” I asked.
“A few,” she acknowledged with a sad shake of her head. Amberle touched her pendant. “Is there anything more you need today?”
“Yes.” I pulled a list from my pocket.
Reema groaned, then said, “I’ll meet you back at the Keep.”
“No. Some of these things are for Teegan, and I’ll need your opinion on them.”
She eyed me with suspicion. “What for?”
“He’s going to be enrolled as a student and he’ll need some basic items like paper and ink.” Plus I needed a few comforts for my apartment.
Not happy, she grumbled and dragged her feet. I ignored her as Amberle guided us to various stalls and stores in the market. She answered all my questions about working as a guild member, but I could tell she wondered why I was so curious. Reema, though, saw r
ight through me. She shot me so many poisoned glares, I stopped counting after ten.
In the rug store, Fisk appeared next to me as I browsed through a collection of small remnants.
“Don’t scare me like that.” I had grabbed my switchblade, but hadn’t triggered the blade.
“Sorry,” he said, but his smirk countered any genuine remorse. “Your reflexes have improved. Been training?”
“Always. Once you stop, you lose your edge.” I rubbed my shoulder, remembering Sarn’s vise grip as he had tossed me to the ground.
He nodded to Reema, who sat in a corner with her arms crossed over her chest, staring at the floor. “Is that her?”
“Yes.”
Amberle hustled over to us in concern. “Lovely Opal, I hope I—”
“Relax,” Fisk said. “I have some business to discuss with Opal. Can you take Reema to the bakery?” He handed her a silver coin. “Buy her a dozen of those delightful cinnamon cookies Barb makes. We’ll meet you there.”
“Yes, sir.”
As Amberle went to collect Reema, Fisk pulled me outside and led me to an empty alley. I scanned the area, remembering the last time Fisk had shown me a back door and I had walked right into an ambush.
“Looking for rats?” he asked, smiling.
“I still owe you for that.”
“Master Bloodgood already paid me.”
I stared at him.
“It was business, Opal. Nothing personal.”
“Yeah, right.” I let him fidget for a moment. “Any news?”
“Not on your boy, Finn. He hasn’t come through here and no one has heard of him.”
Not like it was a big surprise. Yet disappointment still welled. He waited and I realized he had more information. “Well?”
“I found out more on those pearls.”
“Good or bad?”
“Depends. If you’re looking to buy a pearl, the prices have dropped significantly. There are so many available, it’s a buyer’s market. However, if you make your living harvesting oysters for pearls, you’re out of luck. And income.”
“Have farms closed?”
“The smaller ones have, but a couple of the bigger ones are in trouble.”
Interesting discussion, but I wondered why Fisk cared, so I asked him. “And don’t tell me it smells fishy.”
I surprised a laugh from him, but he soon returned to being serious. “I think someone is messing with the market on purpose, driving those others out of business. Once the supply is controlled by one farm, then they can withhold pearls and drive the prices up as high as they want.”
“Again, why do you care?”
He jabbed a hand toward the market. “They’re messing with my customers. Already a few jewelry stores are putting pearls aside, waiting for the price increase.”
“How can I help?”
“Can you talk to Councilor Bloodgood? The oyster farms that are closing are along the Bloodgood coast. Maybe he can do something about it.”
Remembering Bain’s comments, I said, “I’m not sure the Councilor would agree to talk to me. Have you tried Master Bloodgood?”
“Yes. He has to remain impartial unless there is evidence of foul play.”
“I’ll try to see the Councilor. Do you have any idea which farm is harvesting all those pearls?” I asked.
“I just got a name today. They must be located close to the Jewelrose border. They call themselves—”
“The Bloodrose Clan.”
20
“HOW DID YOU KNOW?” FISK ASKED.
“When you said they lived close to the Jewelrose border, I guessed. I’ve been to their compound.” A stark, dreary place.
“Why?”
I told him about Quinn.
“You saved another magician from flameout?”
“No. He managed to gain control of his powers, but Quinn wanted to stay so we left him there. We didn’t have much choice. They weren’t doing anything illegal.”
Fisk considered. “Where is their compound?”
On the tip of the Lion’s Claw Peninsula, but I wouldn’t tell Fisk. He tried to hide his interest behind a casual question. “Do not send any of your guild members to spy on them. Don’t even pretend you weren’t thinking it.” I waggled a finger at him.
He conceded defeat. “Your observation skills have improved, as well. Who’s been teaching you?”
“A friend,” I hedged. I wasn’t ready to tell him about Valek’s training.
“What about these Bloodroses?”
What indeed? “I’ll look into it.” I expected a dubious look or for him to question me on how I planned to investigate.
Instead, he nodded. “Good. Let me know what you find out.”
I smiled at his bossy tone. “Do I get a necklace, then?”
“You like those?”
“They’re pretty.”
“Unfortunately, they were necessary. This other group is becoming a problem.”
“Do you need help with them?”
“No. This is my world, Opal. I need to deal with them.”
I almost reached out to him. He should be dealing with the problems of being a teenager—girls, raging hormones, schoolwork—not rival gangs and a monopoly grab. “Fisk, when you have a few free days, find me. I have another job for you.”
“Sounds intriguing. But it might be a couple months before I have the time.”
“That’s fine.”
We exited the alley. As we searched for Reema and Amberle, Fisk glanced sideways at me. “You’re not going to tell me anything about this new job, are you?”
“Nope.”
“It’s not payback for that ambush I organized, is it?”
“Nope. Don’t worry, you’ll enjoy it.” I suppressed a grin. I planned to send him on a vacation. Probably the first for him.
We found the girls sitting at one of the tables outside Barb’s Bakery. Crumbs littered the table and cinnamon sugar clung to Reema’s chin. Packages surrounded them. When the girls spotted us, Reema jumped to her feet and shot Fisk a terrified glare. Keeping his distance, Fisk waved goodbye.
After arranging for the packages to be delivered to the Keep and to my apartment, I paid Amberle for her help. Reema kept pace with me as we followed the procession of boys to my apartment building. Once there, I gave each boy a copper. They thanked me and hurried off. As they raced down the street, calls of “you’re it” and “am not” echoed. I smiled, but Reema frowned at them.
She helped me carry the bags up to the third floor. I unpacked and put my purchases away as Reema walked around the rooms. When I finished, I found her standing by the window in my bedroom. Her hair shone in the sunlight. I joined her. The Keep’s tall towers dominated the view.
She turned and gestured to the room. “Are you rich?”
Reviewing our shopping trip, I shouldn’t be surprised by her question. I debated. Naked truth versus it’s-none-of-your-business. “Yep.” I braced for her follow-up question and she didn’t disappoint me.
“Then why can’t I stay with you? You can afford it.”
I knelt down so I was eye level. “I may have to leave suddenly for a season or more at a time.”
“So? Hire a babysitter.” She put her hands on her hips.
A touch of magic brushed my face.
“Didn’t think of that, did you?” She dared me to correct her.
I hadn’t considered a sitter, but what concerned me more was the magic. Either a magician hid in my apartment or the power came from Reema.
“How did you know what I’d been thinking?” I asked.
She wilted a bit. “I guessed. I’m good at guessing people’s moods, but you’re the hardest person to read! Did you win all your money from playing poker?”
I laughed. “I wish.” If she was already displaying power at age ten, then she could be a powerful magician like her brother. I needed to talk to Irys.
“Then how did you get rich?”
“Another long and complicated sto
ry. One I’m still trying to figure out. It’s why I can’t make any plans for the future.”
“Then stop hanging around with me and go sort it out. I’ll wait.”
I peered at her. “Are you sure you’re not older?”
“My mother hated indecision. She told us she always let others decide for her until she became pregnant with me. She didn’t want us to be punished for her mistakes, so she took Teegan and ran away.”
Now I understood. “That’s why you won’t tell me your clan name. You’re afraid of them.”
“Mother made us promise to never tell anyone.”
“And you should always listen to your mother,” I said. “Do you?”
“No.”
“And?”
“Mixed results.”
She giggled, but then turned serious. “What would your mother say about your complicated future?”
“She’d tell me to stop procrastinating.”
“You should listen to your mother,” Reema said.
Easy to say, so hard to do.
“Come in, Opal,” Irys called before I could knock on her office door.
“How did you know I was there?” I asked as I entered.
She sat on the front edge of her desk. Her hair had been swept up and she wore a green tunic and pants. “Didn’t you feel my magic?”
“In the Keep, I’m always encountering magic. This place is saturated with it.” In fact, a bright bubble of it pressed on me at the moment.
“When you approached my door, I felt the…absence of magic, which tells me either you or Valek are in the hallway. Since Valek was last seen in Mica…” She swept her hands out as if to say “ta da!”
“Do you need something?”
“I wanted to talk about Reema.” I explained about her power.
“Interesting. We’ve been so focused on the boy. Are you sure? She hasn’t reached puberty yet.”
“And how many times have we discovered a new wrinkle with magic?” Both good and bad. “Good point.”
“Can you test her?”
“Of course.” She laced her fingers together. “Anything else?”
The magic in the room pulsed, but I sensed it came from behind the Master Magician. “What are you hiding?” I asked.
(Glass #3) Spy Glass Page 24