Fire Study (23 page)

“Not anymore. They’ve gone beyond your problem,” Bain said. “We will keep

the texts here. You’re welcome to study them with us.”

But Gede wouldn’t back down on his claim and Bain refused to give in.

Eventually Gede rose to leave. He paused before me and scanned me with cold

calculation in his dark eyes.

“Did you know Guyan was a Soulfinder?” Gede asked me.

Surprised, I said, “No. I thought he was the first Story Weaver.”

“He was both. You know nothing about Soulfinders.” He glared at Moon Man.

“Your education is pathetic. I can teach you how to be a true Soulfinder.”

My heart jumped in my chest. The prospect of learning more about Soulfinders

both thrilled and terrified me.

Gede must have seen the indecision on my face. “You do not need these books

to defeat the Fire Warper.”

Too good to be true, I knew there had to be a catch. “I suppose you’ll guide me

with some cryptic nonsense.”

“Bah!” Again Gede shot Moon Man an annoyed look. “There is no time for that.

Interested?”

Logic warred with emotion. “Yes.” Emotion won.

“Good. I am staying in the Citadel’s guest quarters. Come at twilight. The moon

should be up by then.” Gede swept out of the room, with Moon Man trailing behind

him.

Irys raised one slender eyebrow at me. “I don’t—”

“Think it’s the best decision.” I finished for her. “Think I should rush into the

situation and hope for the best.”

She smoothed out the sleeves of her tunic, giving me a wry look. “No. I don’t

trust him.”

I lingered outside Roze’s tower, debating. This meeting with her, Bain and Zitora

could be a trap. She could either trick me into confessing to conspiring against Sitia,

or it could be my chance to redeem myself. Nice to have choices.

Bain opened the door and said, “Come in, child. It is cold outside.”

Decision made, I followed Bain into Roze’s home. A huge fire crackled and

popped, spitting out sparks, which would have burned the threadbare carpet if Roze

hadn’t doused the errant embers with her magic. With the memory of her fire attack

seared in my mind, I chose a hard wood chair as far from the hearth and from her as

possible.

Spartan and bare, the room lacked the cozy comfort of Irys’s living area and the

scholarly smell of Bain’s study. Zitora, Third Magician, perched on the edge of her

seat, another straight-backed chair without cushions. She kept her gaze on her

hands. They were laced together in her lap. Bain occupied the only comfortable seat.

Overstuffed and worn thin, the chair’s fabric was close to tearing, and by the

annoyed frown on Roze’s face whenever she glanced at Bain, I guessed he had

taken her favorite spot.

“Let’s get this over with,” I said into the awkward silence.

“Nervous?” Roze asked.

“No. I have a meeting in an hour and I need to wash my hair.”

Roze drew a breath.

“Ladies, please. This is difficult enough as it is,” Bain said. “Put your differences

aside and let us assess the situation.”

Roze kept her comment to herself. Impressive. She gave Bain a stiff nod. He

smoothed the wrinkles in his robe before continuing. “Yelena, you have shredded

Ferde’s soul.”

“I—”

“No commenting until I am finished.”

The stern tone in Bain’s voice raised the hair on my arms. He was the second

most powerful magician in the room. “Yes, sir.”

Satisfied, Bain resumed his lecture. “Your rash actions have set off a ripple of

discontent within the Council. First you acted without their permission. Second,

your ability to shred a soul alarmed the Councilors, including me. You have lost their

trust, and therefore the information you uncovered through Ferde is invalid.”

I tried to meet Zitora’s gaze, but she averted her face.

“You are hereby ordered to stay out of Sitian affairs while we deal with this new

Daviian threat. Roze has agreed to let you work with Gede to discover the extent of

your powers and we will reassess how you can aid our efforts in the future.” Bain

gestured for me to comment.

Protests pushed in my throat, but I swallowed them down as I wrestled my

thoughts into a logical response. This meeting was an ambush. They didn’t want to

question me, just dictate to me.

“What about Cahil? You can’t believe him?” I appealed to Bain.

“There is no proof he lied. First Magician supports him.”

“He’s always been selfish,” Roze said. “He wants only one thing. To aid the

Daviians against Sitia runs counter to his desire. He needs our help to launch his

campaign to claim Ixia. A country in the midst of a civil war wouldn’t be able to aid

him at all.”

Roze’s reasonable logic worried me more than her anger. “How about the Fire

Warper?”

A bright fireball erupted from the fire, and hovered above us. I squinted into the

harsh light. The heat of the flames fanned my face. Roze curled her fingers into a fist

and the fire ball disappeared. Opening her hand, she gestured and snuffed out the

hearth fire, casting us into cold semi-darkness.

“I’m First Magician for a reason, Yelena. My command of fire is my best ability.

You need not fear the Fire Warper. I’ll deal with him.” Flames ignited. Once again

heat and light emanated from the hearth.

I couldn’t suppress my skepticism.

“Do you really think I would let the Daviians and this Fire Warper take control of

Sitia? They wouldn’t take proper care of my country. No. I will do all I can to keep

them from power, including protecting you from the Fire Warper.”

Now she was outright scaring me. “You want me dead.”

“True. You’re a threat to Sitia, but there is no proof. I can’t obtain the Council’s

support to have you executed. But once I have evidence, you’re mine.”

This was more like the Roze I knew and hated. We glared at each other.

Bain cleared his throat. “Child, by listening to the Council and working with Gede

Sandseed you will regain the Council’s trust.”

Learning about my powers was what I had desired all along. Ferde was no longer

a threat and the Council knew about the Daviians. If they wished to believe Cahil,

why should I care? The Commander’s army would prevail against Cahil. I had

sought to avoid a war, but I held no sway within the Council. Why couldn’t I be

selfish for once and stay out of politics while I explored my powers?

I agreed. But the slight rush of relief failed to ease the pang of doubt. Moon

Man’s comment about becoming a slave to another echoed in my mind.

I returned to my rooms in Irys’s Keep tower. She had given me three of the ten

floors to use. I trudged up the steps, anxious, worried and frustrated. Roze’s boast

she could handle the Fire Warper had better be true. Bain’s Efe books described

power symbols and blood rituals, but he had discovered nothing to counter them.

And there was no mention of a Fire Warper.

Dax had translated the bulk of the books, but a few chapters remained. He

planned to spend the afternoon working on them. My worry also stemmed from a

comment Dax had made about Gelsi. Bain’s other apprentice, Gelsi, had been

Ferde’s last victim, but I stopped him in time and revived her body and returned

Gelsi’s soul.

When I had inquired about her, Dax’s vague response caused me to question him

further.

“To tell the truth,” Dax had replied, “she’s different than before.”

“Different how?” I had asked.

“She’s harsher. Unhappy.” He moved his arms in a gesture of futility. “She no

longer enjoys life. She’s more preoccupied with death. It’s hard to explain. Master

Bloodgood is working with her. We hope it’s a condition she can work through and

not—” Dax shrugged “—permanent. Maybe you can talk to her?”

I promised to visit her. Thinking back, I had returned two people’s souls to

bodies that had been dead. Gelsi and Stono. And both came back changed. Were

their altered personalities due to something I did when I held their souls? My anxiety

grew over what I might discover about my Soulfinder abilities with Gede.

Uneasiness soured my stomach, and I remembered the attack Roze had sent me

where Flame Me made a soulless army. While it didn’t apply to Gelsi and Stono, I

recalled Stono’s offer to kill for me.

With those morbid thoughts, I reached my rooms. Even though I had three levels,

I only possessed enough furniture to occupy one. An armoire, a desk, a single bed

and night table looked lonely in the round room. I would need to do some shopping

when I had the time. Right now finding souls took priority over finding curtains.

Then I could be Yelena, the all-powerful Curtainfinder. Able to decorate a room in

one hour.

I laughed out loud.

“What’s so funny?” a heart-melting voice asked from behind me.

Valek leaned in the doorway, his arms crossed over his chest as if he visited me

every day. Dressed as one of the Keep’s servants, he wore a gray tunic and pants.

“I was thinking about curtains.” I moved toward him.

“Curtains are funny?”

“In comparison to all my other thoughts, yes, curtains can be amusing. But you,

sir, are the best thing that’s happened to me all day, all week and, now that I think

about it, all season.” Two steps and I was wrapped in his arms.

“That’s the best welcome I’ve had all day.”

I could only imagine what he had been up to. His ability to get into any building

undetected made him the most feared man in Sitia. And his immunity to magic

terrified the Master Magicians. He was Commander Ambrose’s best weapon against

them.

“Do I want to know why you’re here?” I asked.

“No.”

I sighed. “Should I know why you’re here?”

“Yes. But not now.” He leaned over and his lips met mine, and it no longer

mattered why.

The late-afternoon sun woke me and reminded me about my meeting with Gede. I

nudged Valek awake. We huddled under the blankets against the icy air.

Valek moved to get up. “I’ll make a fire—”

“No!” I grabbed his arm, stopping him.

He peered at me with concern. I marveled at the rich sapphire color of his eyes

and how they contrasted with his pale skin.

“You’ll need to reapply your skin-darkening makeup,” I said, brushing a black

strand of hair away from his face.

He held my hand. “Nice try, but you are going to tell me why you don’t want a

fire.”

“Only if you tell me why you’re here.” I countered.

“Agreed.”

I filled him in on the series of events with Cahil, Ferde and the Fire Warper.

“It’s ridiculous to think the Commander is working with these Vermin.” Valek

looked thoughtful. “So the Wannabe King has chosen to ignore the truth about his

birth. You got to admit his ability to dupe the entire Council is impressive.”

“Not the entire Council. Irys doesn’t believe Cahil and I’m sure there are others.”

I waved my hand in a shooing motion. “Doesn’t matter. It’s not my concern. I’ve

been told to be a good little student and mind my own business.”

Valek snorted. “Like you would listen to them.”

“I agreed.”

He laughed long and hard. “You. Not. Get involved.” Valek paused to catch his

breath. “You’ve been in the midst of trouble ever since you became the

Commander’s food taster, love. You would never walk away.”

I waited until he wiped the tears from his cheeks. “This is different. Then I didn’t

have a choice.”

“Oh? And you have a choice now?”

“Yes. I’ll let the Council deal with these Vermin and I’ll stay out of trouble.”

“But you know they can’t counter them.”

“They don’t want my help.”

Valek sobered and a hard edge glinted in his gaze. “What happens when the

Vermin win?”

“I’ll stay with you in Ixia.”

“What about your parents? Leif? Moon Man? Irys? Do they come with you? And

what happens when these Warpers with their incredible blood magic decide to

follow you to Ixia? What choice will you have then?” He studied my face. “You

can’t let your fear of the Fire Warper stop you from—”

Annoyed, I snapped. “The Council has stopped me. They’re the ones who are

against me.” Besides, I didn’t want to think about my family—they were all grown

people able to look after themselves. Then why did guilt tug at my heart and doubt

squeeze my chest?

“You just said there’re a few Councilors on your side. Once the Council hears

Marrok’s evidence tonight, they’ll believe you about the Wannabe King.”

“How did you know about Marrok?” Irys had just told me this morning. I had