by T J Muir
“Besides,” Ben continued, “you don’t know what he’s been through. He wasn’t always like this.”
Diya suspected he might not have been that bad but that his basic personality wasn’t that changed. Then she reminded herself that she didn’t know anything about his life or what serving in the army was like. “You’re right,” she admitted. “I don’t.”
From his brief moment of befuddlement, Diya guessed that Ben hadn’t expected that concession from her.
It was still early when they decided to stop. Diya couldn’t help but look out across the valley to where Bajan’s shop was.
“What are you staring at?” Esha asked.
“I was just wondering if the magickan was working. I thought I noticed a bit of a glow but it’s still too light out.”
“Hoping to learn some more magic?” Esha asked, with the kind of tone Diya’s friends would use when she was chasing after a boy.
Diya felt her face grow warm, and imagined her face must be beet red. She hated to admit it but she was becoming infatuated by the novelty. She sighed and looked over at Esha. “I can’t. Tilly--”
Esha cut her off before she could get another word out. “I’ll watch Tilly,” she said.
Diya looked at Esha, suspicious. Am I missing something? What was the girl planning? It had been a while since either of the twins had pulled any pranks.
“Ben and I can take Tilly down to the barn for the rest of the afternoon,” Esha said, and then turned toward Ben. “You wouldn’t mind, would you?”
Ah, Diya realized. Esha had her own motives. She looked back and forth between the two, wondering if she should be concerned, but she hadn’t noticed Ben paying any particular attention to Esha. That was something she would have spotted, especially after the incident with Roe.
“Are you sure?” she asked, looking back towards the house. It felt strange. She was used to going where she wanted and doing as she pleased for her entire life. So far, at Dunwood, she hadn’t had anything she wanted to do. Until now. She didn’t resent her responsibilities to the children, but this was the first time she was aware that she couldn’t come and go whenever she liked.
“We’ve been watching Tilly since long before you got here,” Esha said, rolling her eyes. “And if you’re going to go, you’d better go now. Otherwise you’ll be walking home in the dark.”
That decided her. She ducked inside long enough to grab her coat and let Korina know she was going down to the village, asking if the woman needed anything. Diya was grateful that the answer to her question was no. She didn’t want to get delayed by stopping at the shops and placing orders.
She did pop into the baker’s, just long enough to pick up some candies. Partially because she was hungry but mostly because she didn’t want to come back with empty hands.
She found Bajan hammering away at a piece of metal, and startled him when she knocked on the open door. Diya wasn’t sure, but it looked like he was wearing the same clothes as the last time she had visited.
She had hoped the man would be more at ease this time. She began to suspect that he didn’t get many visitors and didn’t spend much time talking to people. Trying to be polite, she complimented him on the manak-jir that he had crafted. This led to a long explanation from him that was similar to her previous trip, with Bajan going into great detail about things she didn’t understand, or jumping from one topic to another without any warning cues.
She offered to demonstrate how far she had progressed with the previous spell he had taught her. He seemed satisfied with her improvement using the push spell and she convinced him to teach her another.
She asked him, “If you can make manak-jir, then you must know a spell to do that, right?”
Bajan nodded, confirming what she already knew. “So, could you teach me that? How to warm up my tea?”
The man nodded, looking pleased to have someone to share his passion for magic with. He handed her a piece of copper and coached her through the spell. Diya spent a while repeating the spell, until she could feel the metal in her hand grow warm.
“I can feel it!” she exclaimed, surprised.
Bajan nodded. “Keep at it,” he said. “Again. See if you can make it a little warmer this time.”
Diya did, although it took longer than she expected. Sometimes she got it right, and other times it felt like nothing happened. Finally, she looked up and realized it was getting dark. “I’d better go,” she said. “I’ve got a long walk back and it’s getting late. Thank you, though. Very much. I’ll practice this some more, and come back soon.”
Bajan nodded, already fiddling with the tools on his workbench.
Back in the village, Diya stopped at the fork near the widow Rualla’s. Should she try the shorter route through the woods or stick to the main road? If she went through the woods, she might make it back before it was completely dark. On the other hand, the main road felt safer. Realizing she could use a light spell, she opted for the quicker path and turned off the road onto the rutted path.
The light was fading by the time she reached the woods but there was enough light left for her to see. She was enjoying the hike up the hilly slope, imagining the ways she could use the warmth spell. She could warm up her shoes before putting them on or warm up the window seat when she wanted to nestle in. And she would never have to worry about her tea growing cold. She could warm up Tilly’s hands when they were red and raw from playing in the puddles. She ran through an entire day, imagining all the places where her new magic would come in handy.
Then she heard something behind her, off the path. It sounded like something behind the trees, in the shadows, probably just a squirrel or a raccoon, she told herself. Hopefully not a skunk. She walked a bit faster, just in case. She didn’t need to come home smelling worse than Pasha’s zoo animals.
Before long, she heard it again. The noise was louder now, but still about the same distance behind her. Was something following her?
“Who’s there?” she called out, hoping that one of the villagers was out in the woods. She knew there were loggers in the area but it seemed late for them to be working. Her concern grew to mild alarm.
She walked faster, until she began tripping over roots and rocks. What if it was a wild animal? She heard it again, closer this time. Whatever it was, it sounded larger than a raccoon. She came out of the wooded area into a clearing, not too far from the lane that circled the Applewood estate. Something was chasing her. Then she heard something that sounded like footsteps. Someone was following her.
Now she was really afraid, close to panic. She spun around, casting a push spell, hoping to scare--
Zaylin broke out from the trees, laughing. He was just in time to get hit by Diya’s spell. It threw him backwards and he fell on the ground. His laugher turned into an angry howl.
Diya didn’t think her spell knocked him over and suspected the man had been drinking. It only took him a moment to recover and get back to his feet. Now he looked angry and he lurched towards her, getting hold of her arm.
For the first time in her life, Diya felt like she was in danger. It was getting dark. She was too far away for anyone to hear her shout for help. And Zaylin was working himself up. Anything she did or said was only going to make it worse. She knew Zaylin was unstable and capable of becoming aggressive.
Worse, he seemed to resent her; verging on hatred. She saw it on his face and she could smell the alcohol. What might have started out, in his own mind, as a clever prank to put her in her place was about to become something worse.
Without thinking, she raised her knee, hard, slamming it into his groin. Zaylin dropped hard, grabbing his crotch, grunting and swearing. She didn’t wait around, but took advantage of her chance and bolted the rest of the way back to the estate.
When she got back, she went searching for Korina.
“What’sa happened ta you? Ye’re shaking,” Korina said.
Now, back at the safety of Applewood, Diya began to question the severity of t
he danger. Maybe she had over reacted. Had she? Now she couldn’t tell.
She shook her head, less sure now. “I had a run in with Zaylin, on the way home. I don’t think he intended any harm, at least at first. But he had been drinking. I could smell it on his breath and his clothes.”
“I’ll have Chak talk with the man,” she said, her tone sharp. “H’ain’t no matter, the boy had a rough time of things. Time he took responsibility and grew up.”
Diya nodded, grateful that Korina had believed her and that Zaylin might get a stern warning. She hoped it wouldn’t make things worse. If she was lucky, when he sobered up he would realize what he had done. Either way, she decided it would be best if she made sure she was home well before dark and to do her best to avoid Zaylin. That way he wouldn’t have a reason to make her life difficult.
CHAPTER Twenty-five
The next afternoon, Diya spent a while sketching. After a while, she felt restless and headed downstairs. The playroom was quiet and Diya took advantage of the free time to tidy up. Esha came in and settled down with her schoolwork. It was nice to have the company, even if both of them were absorbed in their own work. Diya took that as a sign of progress. She didn’t know if Esha was seeking out the company or if Diya was no longer an offensive intruder to be avoided. Either way, it was a small victory.
Just as she finished putting the books back on the shelf, she heard the back door close and looked up to see Pasha. A wave of relief washed over her. She couldn't ever imagine being so grateful for Pasha to impose himself on her peace of mind but Pasha seemed extra excited about something as he raced over to the table waving a piece of paper.
“Dad's on his way home!” he shouted before he even reached her. “Dad's on his way,” he repeated, excited. “He'll be here tomorrow. And he said he'll be staying at least a few weeks!”
Esha jumped up, squealing with delight as she hugged her brother. Suddenly, Diya saw them as young children rather than young adults. It was as if the masks had come off just for a moment and the weight of their worry would be taken back into their father’s hands for a while.
She hadn't met Ash. She wondered how it would affect her position there. She supposed she may have some added free time as the family would want to spend time together, at least she assumed as much. She remembered what it was like when her own father would come home after long absences. With her own family, it was never close family spending time together as much as it was a time for all members of the So’harat to convene but the joyous excitement was the same as what she saw in all three of the children’s eyes.
The rest of the afternoon went by with the twins talking excitedly about their father. Diya picked up bits and pieces but mostly left them to themselves. She knew they weren’t going to be productive until they had talked themselves into exhaustion. She just reminded them to make sure they finished their schoolwork before they went to bed and then spent the afternoon brushing Chiyu.
The house was quiet when she came back inside so they must have kept their word about working on schoolwork. Diya curled up in one of the fireplace nooks with a pot of hot mint tea, adding a tiny splash of brandy to it. She had her sketchpad out but once she’d shaken the chill, she drifted off to sleep against the warm clay. It was dark when she woke and the nook was beginning to lose some of its heat. She stretched up, rolling her shoulders and dislodged the house cat that had nestled on her lap.
“Sorry Shady,” she said, not really feeling sorry. She stood, working out the kink in her shoulder. Realizing she had missed dinner, she added water to the tea pot and put it back on the manak-jir. Then she went rummaging around and found some leftover lamb and barley stew as well as some hard cheese. Should she use her new spell to heat it up? Determined to practice her spell to heat up some dinner, she headed down the hall. She had heard Korina warn the twins repeatedly not to do any magic but that was during the day. Surely if there were surges, she would see it up in the sky.
She decided she'd better take a look first and moved over to the window. The stars were brilliant with reds, blues, yellows and thin wisps of star clouds. No magic colors were flowing though. It was peaceful, watching how the stars shone against the velvety black sky. Satisfied that it was probably safe, she used her magic to heat up the barley stew. Somehow it tasted much better than it normally did. Somewhere in the distance an owl hooted, reminding her that it was time for a warm bed.
Diya tossed and turned most of the night, waking up several times. She was anxious about finally meeting Ashok for the first time. By the time she did fall more soundly asleep, the black window had turned a dark dull grey. Not long after, she woke up to the smell of baking bread that told her Korina had started getting breakfast ready. Fortunately, she had set Tilly's clothes out at bedtime. She yawned and stretched, dragging herself out of bed and into her clothes. Hot tea and breakfast would wake her up.
Before she got to the kitchen, she heard voices. Ashok and Korina. She paused hearing her name.
“So the twins have been behaving then?”
“Like as I said afore, better than t'would be expected. H'ain't no love there for certain but they's found a bit of truce. This Cassie, she h'aint as big on meddlin with em and I think that helps. She's there just enough as they know not to get stupid or wild.”
“And Tilly?”
“Same as. But she done a wonder with the wee un, at's sure. Even got her doing letters and learnin readin.”
“Reading?” From his raised pitch, Diya could tell that Ash was both surprised and pleased. Her inner ball of pride glowed. She had done that, something no one else had managed. “What is she like, herself, then?”
Diya heard Korina sniff. “Like you hear bout most of them southern types. Uppity. Fancy. Fancy clothes. Fancy speech. Ne’er a hair out of place.”
Uppity? She was crushed and her ball of pride collapsed into mush. Korina thinks I’m uppity.
The sound of chopping punctuated Korina's answer. “H'aint no matter though. My kitchens is peaceful like in a way they h'aint been in a long whiles. She's nice enough, s’pose. Keeps to herself mostly. Coulda done far worse in my book.”
The sound of a chair leg scraping against the floor startled Diya. The last thing she wanted now was to be found outside the door, eavesdropping. She scurried back down the hall and reapproached the kitchens, making a bit of noise this time. One of the house cats came to her rescue and she scooped it up. “Behind the ear? Yes? You like that, don't you?”
Once in the kitchen and acting surprised. she bustled to the fireplace, “Good morning, Korina. I don't suppose there is any hot tea?” she asked, trying to sound cordial with her eyes down. She set the cat on the heated ledge by the chimney and shifted the kettle over the manak-jir. Then she picked cat hairs off of her shirt. Never a hair out of place echoed in her head, making her painfully self-conscious. She forced herself to stop.
Then she walked around the corner toward the prep table that they all used for eating breakfast.
“Oh. Hello!” she said, seeing Ash seated on one of the stools. She stopped, straightening up, her eyes arched in her best mock-surprise.
“You must be Cassie,” Ashok said, standing up and turning to face her. “I’ve heard some wonderful things about you. You’ve done quite a good job looking after the children.”
Diya didn’t hear a word Ash said. She was staring past him to the man sitting on the other stool. “You!” She exclaimed, genuinely surprised.
Ash spun around, looking back and forth between the two of them. “Have you met Jaresh?” he asked, looking confused. “Oh, well, I suppose that’s nothing strange.”
Diya recognized the well dressed man who had come to Zaylin’s rescue down in the village. Or rather, her rescue. Zaylin hadn’t been in any danger.
Jaresh didn’t look the least bit surprised. From the look on his face, he must have known exactly who she was. He smiled politely. “Good morning. I don’t believe we’ve been introduced,” he said while he continued to cut hi
s sausage into bite sized pieces. “You must be Cazze’en. I’m Jaresh.” Having gone through the formality of introducing himself, he turned his attention back to his plate.
Diya noted that Jaresh had gotten the pronunciation of her name correct. Whoever he was, though, he had terrible manners, Diya decided. She noted the cut of his clothes with the expensive fabrics. Perhaps he was a local merchant or perhaps he was another builder who was working on Ashok’s mystery project. Diya’s mind raced, trying to come up with something snappy to say that would put this arrogant stranger in his place but Korina had bustled back into the kitchen before she could think of anything.
“Good morning Korina,” she said. “Have you gotten Tilly’s oatmeal ready yet? The twins will probably be sleeping in. They didn’t settle in until well after midnight. They were so excited about seeing their father, they just couldn’t settle down.”
Korina stopped, sweet rolls in hand and stared at Diya for a moment, looking puzzled. Then she glanced over at Ash and Jaresh, and just shook her head before proceeding about her own business.
Ashok poured more tea for himself and then sat back down. Whatever he was about to answer went unsaid. Esha and Pasha burst into the kitchen and ran up to their father— excited, out of breath and filling the kitchen full of questions. Esha threw her arms around her father’s neck, hugging him tightly. Pasha waited his turn and gave his father a slightly less enthusiastic hug.
“Are you staying long this time?”
“Are you working on the shell again?”
“Will you come look at my new otter? I’ve built it a cage.”
“Will you have time to help us with target practice?”
Diya blinked at the onslaught but Ash just laughed, wrapping an arm around each twin and hugging them close. He kissed each one on the top of their heads and squeezed them.
“Not sure how long but a little while. Yes, working on the shell again. Keep the otter locked up, and yes, we can find time for archery.”