“What? I have no magic. The Council has no use for me.” My tone sounded harsher than I wanted. “I’m needed here.”
“The Councilors are idiots. Just because you have lost your magic doesn’t mean you are no longer valuable,” he said.
“I stole your magic and here you are, moving dirt.” I gestured to the full wheelbarrow.
“You see it as moving dirt. I see it as a worthy project. A way to help atone for my misdeeds.”
“Even after you’ve spent time in prison?”
“More so, because I would rather be here than sitting in my cell with nothing to do.”
I pished. Silver lining and all that nonsense—he could deceive himself. I preferred to look at my situation more realistically.
“Back to work, Devlen,” a big guard called as he hustled over.
“Come on, Pellow. She’s a friend,” Devlen said.
“You know the rules. Go on or I’ll report you.” He rested his hand on the hilt of his sword.
Devlen turned to me. “He’s all bluster, but I don’t want him to get into trouble.” He grabbed the handles of the wheelbarrow, then shot me a look I had never seen on his face before—vulnerable. “Visit me?”
Unable to speak, I nodded. He beamed and delivered his load of dirt to the growing pile.
“Ma’am, you’re not allowed to fraternize with the prisoners. It’s against the rules,” Pellow said.
I glanced at the guard. As tall as Devlen, his oversize muscles strained the seams of his uniform, but his doughy face contrasted with his solid build. I wondered if the Dawnwood COs had nicknames for their positions, as well. Would Pellow be called a babysitter?
A hardness in his gaze belied his pleasantness. “And it’s dangerous. We’re not in a controlled environment.”
“Is any environment truly controlled?” I asked him.
Pellow conceded the point. “Better to stay away altogether.”
Sound advice, yet as I moved through my day, my mind kept returning to Devlen. The shock of seeing him wore off by nightfall, and then I realized my stupidity. I could have questioned him about my blood. He had been with Tricky and Ulrick, he might know if they had saved a vial.
Guess I would visit him after all.
Not quite a strip search, but the female CO ran her hands all over my body—an unpleasant experience. I had already surrendered my weapons, and my identity had been verified. Dawnwood’s prison walls didn’t press down as hard on my shoulders as Wirral’s, and I could breathe in here. The brightness and cleanliness masked the buildings true purpose for a little while, but the double sets of solid doors still slammed with a tone of finality.
Visiting hours spanned late afternoon to early evening each day. After completing my tasks for the Councilor, I had practiced with Nic and Eve and walked home with them. I had waited until they were out of sight before heading to the prison.
Once through security, I was escorted into a visiting room. Iron bars separated the square space into two sections. On my side, an uncomfortable-looking chair faced the bars. But on the opposite side, a sturdy metal chair had been bolted to the floor.
My escort ordered me to sit and said in a monotone, “Do not approach the bars. No touching and no inappropriate language or topics of conversation. Any of these things will result in your immediate ejection from Dawnwood. You have ten minutes.” He stood by the door with his arms crossed and his face devoid of emotion. His bored demeanor an act to make me relax and forget he existed so I might blab something important.
The door across the room opened and Devlen entered, followed by Pellow. Devlen’s hands were manacled behind his back, but he smiled at me. Pellow unlocked the cuffs, pushed Devlen into the chair and then shackled him to the chair’s arms. The guard stationed himself behind Devlen.
“I thought this was low security,” I said.
“It is. But you’re my first visitor, and they don’t know how I’ll react. Better safe than sorry.”
His first visitor? A pang bounced in my chest. He wore another short-sleeved blue jumper and black boots. A number had been printed across the front of the shirt with Dawnwood written underneath. I noted he’d kept in shape. The uniform clung to his powerful frame.
Pulling my thoughts to the present, I asked, “So if you play nice, then you won’t be cuffed to the chair next time?”
“Yes. I earn points for being well behaved.” He tilted his head. “I told you back in Hubal I’d cooperate fully.”
“I was still having trust issues.”
“And now?”
“It’s better, but it will take me a long time.”
“I’ll be patient.”
Another oddity about him struck me. “What happened to your Sandseed accent?”
“Gone for now. I already stand out in here so I don’t need another…quirk.” He leaned forward. “Now, tell me why you’re really here in Fulgor?”
“My answer hasn’t changed since this morning.”
“What about your Stormdancer? Does he know why?”
“Of course. Kade is in Ixia. The Commander has agreed to allow him to harvest the blizzards.” I spotted the next question in his eyes and explained why I wasn’t with Kade. “Cold season. Northern Ice Sheet. Icy wind.”
He nodded. “You hate the cold. You use to shiver at night and I’d—”
“Don’t go there. Working on trust, remember?” Memories of my time with him when I had thought he was Ulrick threatened to bubble to the surface. I squashed them deep down where they belonged. “Sorry.”
We kept on safe subjects for a few minutes, catching up on news. He leaned back in his chair, looking relaxed despite his situation. And happy. Robbed of his freedom for the next four and a half years, his magic gone and yet he seemed at peace. Was it his Sandseed heritage?
“How do you do it?” I blurted, interrupting his description of lights-out.
“Do what?”
I searched for the proper words. “Be so…calm…so…” I waved my hands as if trying to pull what I wanted to say from the air and shove it into my brain. “Be so…content without your magic?”
He considered my question. “I’ve lived a year now without magic. A…difficult year. At first, I was furious, and I vented my anger on you. That’s one difference between us. You sacrificed your magic. No one stole it. So you believe you have no one to be mad at but yourself.”
“But—”
“Listen. How could you be angry at yourself when you did the right thing? You can’t. Instead, you swallowed that resentment, and are pretending to be fine. However, that emotion is smoldering inside you, burning a hole in your soul.”
“You’re an expert now? Do you do group therapy for your fellow prisoners?” Sarcasm laced my voice. How could he know how I felt?
“I trained as a Sandseed Story Weaver. Magic was but one of the many tools we learned to help others.”
“That was long ago, before you turned into an evil Daviian Warper who tortured me.” A small part of my mind was shocked by my cruel words, another part cheered me on.
But he remained calm. “There’s your anger. Good. Now direct it at the proper place. I said you believe you have no one to blame but yourself because of the person you are.”
“According to you, I’m a nice accommodating doormat.” I spat his words back at him. No reaction.
“You’re tenacious, intelligent and kind, but you’re hard on yourself. You believe there was something you could have done better or smarter at Hubal. If you had only been quicker, you wouldn’t have had to make your sacrifice.”
I sucked in a breath, feeling as if I had been slapped.
“You need to realize you did your best in an extremely difficult situation. Most people wouldn’t have survived at all. Your anger is valid and needs to be directed at the men who forced you to make a sacrifice.”
“Time’s up,” my CO said.
Devlen said in a rush, “Allow yourself to be furious at Ulrick and Tricky. Purge it from your
soul and come back to see me.”
“Why?” I stood before the CO could grab my arm.
“Because I will help you take the next step and fill the emptiness inside you.”
“How?”
“Like I have. You motivated me to be a better person and in the process the emptiness filled. We need to find something or someone who will encourage you to move past it.”
The correctional officer hustled me from the room. With my thoughts on my visit, I had no memory of the trip through the darkening streets of Fulgor. Devlen’s words swirled in my mind. He had always been an expert at twisting logic and playing with my emotions. If I repeated our conversation enough times, the flaw in his argument would appear.
He had been right about one thing. One thing only. I hadn’t been clever enough in Hubal.
By the time I reached home, I failed to find the gap in his logic, and I realized I had forgotten to ask him about my blood. Idiot.
After unlocking the four complicated locks Nic had insisted on installing, I entered the front room. Lighting a lantern against the increasing gloom, I spotted my first surprise. A letter had been slipped under my door. I carried it upstairs to read and encountered my second surprise.
Valek sat at my kitchen table, eating a bowl of stew.
The aroma of ginger and garlic hung in the air. Valek was eating Ian’s beef stew, which meant he had been following me and had already visited the Pig Pen.
“How long have you been here?” I asked.
“Hello to you, too,” he said. He pointed to a second bowl. “Sit. Eat. You must be starving.”
I joined him at the table. He had lit all the lanterns and the room glowed with a cozy yellow light. Heat radiated from the meat, yet the coals in my hearth remained banked. He must have arrived only a short time before me. We finished the meal in silence.
When he leaned back, I asked him again, “How long have you been in Fulgor?”
“Long enough to confirm what you’re trying to do.”
I acted nonchalant. “Good, then I don’t have to explain anything.”
An eyebrow quirked. He had darkened his pale skin and was unshaven. His plain and stained clothing resembled those worn by the construction workers.
“Nice try. What I don’t know is why you called for help.”
“Then why did Yelena tell me you were already on the way?”
“Good timing. I heard you traveled to Fulgor after our chat and guessed the reason you came here. I figured you would encounter trouble.”
Annoyed, I asked, “Are you sure you guessed right?”
“Unless collecting blueprints of Wirral is a new hobby of yours?”
I slouched in my chair. “You’re right. I encountered trouble. Again.”
“It’s the nature of this business,” he said.
When I failed to perk up from his “pep” talk, he asked, “Remember when I told you I make mistakes?”
“Yes.”
“This—” he swept his hand out, indicating the room “—is all due to my mistake in underestimating you.”
“Go on.”
“I thought I was being subtle when I asked you about your blood. I must be losing my touch.” He gave me a wry smile.
“If it makes you feel any better, it took me several hours to put it together.”
“I’ll hold off on my retirement then.” He waited.
I sighed. “When exactly did you arrive in town?”
“First day of the warming season.”
I made a quick mental calculation. “A few days before then, I had a humbling encounter.” I detailed my experiences with Finn and his pack. “I have to assume he knows the reason for our immunity, about blood magic…everything. I’d like to know what game he’s playing, but I can’t touch him. You, on the other hand, won’t have any problems getting to him.” I grinned in anticipation. Finn was in for a nasty surprise.
Valek had remained silent as I talked, staring into the distance. He played with his spoon, spinning it around and around on the tabletop. “I agree. Finn must be dealt with, but not by me.” He met my gaze.
“You don’t need to worry. He’s not in your league,” I said.
“Thanks for the vote of confidence. I’ve no doubt he’s a classic overgrown bully. But he’s not mine to deal with.” His flat tone revealed no emotion. “He’s yours.”
10
“DID I HEAR YOU RIGHT?” I LEANED ON THE TABLE, propping my elbows near the edge. “Me? Weren’t you listening when I described Finn’s speed and his goons and that serum? I can’t fight him.”
“Then why are you in Fulgor?” Valek asked.
“I told you.”
“How committed are you?”
“I’m here. And I have blueprints of the prison, files on all the hotshots—”
“That isn’t what I asked.”
“Very committed.”
“Then why are you helping Councilor Moon? Why did you purchase this building? Why are you hanging out with your friends?”
I didn’t answer.
“Halfhearted spies tend to die, Opal. In fact, you’re lucky Finn decided you weren’t a danger to him or the prison. Otherwise, you’d be dead by now.”
“I’m making progress. Being Councilor Moon’s aide gives me access to data I wouldn’t normally have. It’s just spying, lying and deceiving others go against my nature.”
“Then I’ll ask again. Why are you here?” His matter-of-fact tone irritated me, but he continued as if having a pleasant conversation. “Why not ask someone to find the information for you?”
“I’m being smart. I can’t handle Finn—”
Valek raised his eyebrow. I hadn’t answered his question.
“It is too important to trust anyone else,” I said.
“Now we’re making progress.”
I groaned and rested my forehead in my hands, closing my eyes. Was it lecture Opal day? First Devlen, now Valek. Did I miss the announcement? All I needed was my mother to pop up and berate me for not delivering the wedding samples to Mara for the mess to be complete.
Valek said, “And you’re right.”
I was right? I glanced up.
“It is too vital to send another in your place, but you lack the skills for this type of occupation. Being able to work undercover and hide your intentions and emotions doesn’t happen overnight. You can’t just rush off and jump right in.” He snorted with amusement. “Well, you can and you did, but that’s the fastest way to blow your mission.”
“I recognized my inexperience and sent for help,” I said. Which brought us back to the beginning. “I wanted you to keep Finn occupied, while I talked to Ulrick.”
“A reasonable plan.”
“But?”
“Think about it in glassmaking terms. You’re given the task of producing a complicated sculpture for the Sitian Council Hall. It’s a difficult job and you’re going to need an assistant. Who would you rather have helping you? Your father or me?”
My father. Why? He had over thirty years of glassmaking experience, while Valek had spent one day playing with the glass. So who would Valek sneak around a maximum security prison with? One of his corp, like Janco, or me?
I mulled over his comments. His question about my commitment now made sense. I’d been pretending, playing dress up, and in the process sacrificed my magic and gotten Janco into trouble. In order to do it right, I needed to know things—things only Valek could teach me.
Valek watched me.
“Will you teach me?” I asked.
“You’re willing to give everything up?”
I swallowed, thinking of Kade. “Everything?”
“For now. The rest of your life is on hold.”
“How long?”
“Four months. Maybe less. You did pretty well so far, considering you’re a rookie.”
“Then, yes. I’m in one hundred percent.”
Valek smiled. “Good. First, send Kade a reply, asking him not to come.” He pointed at the
unopened letter on the table.
I had forgotten about it. Sealed with wax, the message appeared to be secured.
Valek shrugged. “I was bored.”
“Second?”
“We’ll review your visit to Devlen, and decide what to ask him next.”
“And the rest of the time?”
“Spy training.” He grinned.
“You don’t really call it that, do you?”
“No.”
Kade’s sweet letter almost broke my resolve. He had planned to stop in Fulgor on his way back to his home in the Stormdance lands, spending the rest of the warming season with me. In my carefully worded reply, I asked him not to come. Instead, I told him I would meet up with him at the end of the warm season for Mara and Leif’s wedding in Booruby.
One half of me expected an angry reply, the other waited for him to show up on my doorstep.
Valek moved into my spare bedroom. We boarded up all the windows on the ground floor for security and privacy, and Valek converted a window on the ground floor into a hidden exit to the alley behind the building. He also rigged a way for us to descend from the second story.
“Always have alternate escape routes. The more, the merrier,” he had said.
He brought in various gadgets and weapons and equipment for training, filling the ground floor with them. He even ordered me to fire up a kiln and return to working with glass, insisting the effort of creating would enhance my training.
I asked Faith to begin interviewing new assistants for the Councilor. In the meantime, I continued to help Tama and I joined Nic and Eve every morning. Evenings I worked with Valek, sometimes late into the night.
After reviewing my conversation with Devlen, Valek sent me to Dawnwood for another chat. It was three weeks into the warming season and the late-afternoon sun warmed my shoulders. Fourteen days had passed since my previous visit. Even though Devlen worked on the construction site next to the training yard, I hadn’t talked to him.
And since Finn and his goons hadn’t shown up at all, my security escorts had stopped. Although I was quite sure Valek tailed me just in case.
A strange little sensation bubbled in my chest as I headed toward the prison. Expectation? Dread? Worry? None of them. It was more like pleasant anticipation. Oh joy.
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