Fire Study (36 page)

Wannabe King’s hands.”

Valek knelt in front of me, and would have taken my hands in his had I not kept

my arms crossed. Anger simmered deep within me. I had lost five days. Five days

for the Fire Warper to grow stronger.

“This wouldn’t have happened at all if you told me about your meeting with

Porter,” he said.

“A calculated risk. Like it or not, I’m a magician, and if there’s a way to help my

colleagues I’m going to try. I wasn’t going to tell the Commander’s magician killer

about it.” Still, a small, guilt-inducing thought about killing magicians being preferable

to using them to increase the Fire Warper’s power pulsed in my mind.

Valek sank back onto his heels. His expression hardened into his metal mask.

“Magician killer? Is that what you think of me?”

“That is one of your duties for the Commander. I know how you operate. You

like to stalk your prey before you pounce. Allowing Porter’s network to continue is

part of your modus operandi.”

His expression turned flat and emotionless; my anger had ruled my tongue. My

fury, though, remained.

I changed the subject. “How did Star get us into Sitia?”

As if reporting to the Commander, Valek said, “Put you into crates, stacked

boxes of goods on top, and dressed as traders. They had the proper papers. The

border guards did a cursory check and off you went.” He paused as extreme

irritation flashed through his eyes. “The border guards will be taken to task and

retrained.”

Valek stood. “I was going to suggest we get a few hours’ sleep and try to rescue

those girls. But since I’m the magician killer, I guess I won’t concern myself about

their fate.” He left the room.

THE LIFE DRAINED from the room after Valek’s departure. I blamed fatigue

for my harsh words, but knew it was wrong. I had lost control of events the moment

we crossed into Ixia. But the real truth was I had never had control. From the instant

the Fire Warper stepped from the fire in the jungle, I’d been ruled by fear. Which

had kept me alive, so far, but it had certainly made a mess of things. Valek was just

the latest in a long list.

I sighed. There was a good reason for the fear. The Fire Warper’s power

surpassed my own, and I didn’t think a bucket of water would douse him. Curling

up on the couch, I made plans to free those girls. I couldn’t counter the Warper, but

at least I could try to stop the Vermin from gaining more power.

But what about the next shipment of young magicians from Ixia? From what

Valek told me, I guessed Star had tapped into Porter’s network, kidnapping his

charges and selling those adolescents for the Vermin to use in the Kirakawa ritual.

After a few hours of restless sleep, I went to the stables. Kiki dozed in her stall,

but she woke to my call.

Do you have enough energy for a trip? I asked.

Yes. Where?

Back to where you found me.

Bad smell.

Yes, but I need to go back and pick up their scent. They’ve probably moved into

the plains by now.

We go fast.

That’s what I’m counting on. Not bothering to saddle her, I hopped onto her

back. All I had was my bow. I glanced at the farmhouse. If I had apologized to

Valek, he would have come with me, but I wasn’t ready to admit I needed to

apologize. At least he would be safe for tonight.

We were soon near the border of the Avibian Plains. Evidence of the Vermin’s

campsite littered the ground, and from the number of items left behind, it appeared

Cahil had left in a hurry. Only a few hours of darkness remained.

Kiki, which way? I asked.

She headed south, and I let her choose her speed. She trotted until we reached

the plains, then broke into her gust-of-wind gait. The air sped past my ears as the

ground blurred. She didn’t maintain the pace for long, slowing when the smell of

wood smoke and horses strengthened.

The Vermin’s magic waited on the plains. Unlike the Sandseeds’ net of

protection, the Daviians preferred to lay traps, which would spring on the

unsuspecting victim. Kiki sensed these hot spots and avoided them.

A faint glow of firelight shone through Kiki’s eyes. We stopped and I was

considering my next move when Kiki reared and danced to the side. The sizzling

odor of blood burned in Kiki’s nose. She would have bolted, but I steadied her with

a soothing hand while my mind turned numb with shock.

They hadn’t waited for the next moon. Guilt slammed into me. I hunched over

Kiki’s back, rocking with anger and frustration.

Girls hurt? Kiki asked.

Yes.

Go. Stop.

What? But she didn’t wait. She galloped toward the camp.

Kiki!

Help. Fix. She ran through the camp. Rearing and jumping as if crazed with fear.

Her sudden arrival surprised everyone. The guards scattered and dodged her

flailing hooves and my bow. Kiki knocked down Cahil’s tent, kicked the wagon over

and sent the horses running.

I froze in horror when I spotted the two Warpers stooped over the still forms of

Liv and Kieran. Blood coated the Warpers’ arms up to their elbows. They each

cradled a fist-size lump of meat in their hands, lovingly stroking the object. I gasped

with recognition. They each held a human heart. Liv and Kieran’s hearts.

Kiki knocked me to my senses when she dumped me onto the ground. I gained

my feet, ready for an attack, but the Warpers remained engrossed in their ritual.

Help, Kiki ordered as she made another loop of the camp.

I glanced at the fire. No Fire Warper yet. I mentally kicked myself for even

worrying about him, and drew a thick strand of power. The Vermin defensive magic

tried to clamp down on my connection, but I had pulled such a fat rope it failed to

cut even a thread.

I launched my awareness at the Warpers. A fog of magic surrounded them.

Instinctively, I knew in order for them to consume and maintain the power, they had

to milk the blood from the hearts and inject it into their skin.

The Kirakawa ritual had its own power and I couldn’t interfere with the Warpers.

Their black lust for magic sickened me and for a moment my vision filled with

blood.

But a movement from the corner of my eye caught my attention. Liv’s ghost

stood next to her dead body and she gestured to me, thumping her heart with a fist. I

squinted at the apparition. Her ghost or her soul? When I understood her motions, I

cursed myself for my stupidity.

I couldn’t affect the ritual, but there was one thing only I could do. Concentrating

on the girls’ hearts, I reached for their souls. The ritual had trapped them within its

chambers. I inhaled their essence, leaving behind dead flesh. The Warpers wouldn’t

gain any power tonight.

Kiki slowed near me. I grabbed her mane and hauled myself onto her back.

Within two strides she moved into her special gait.

When we reached the edge of the plains, I asked Kiki to stop so I could release

the girls’ souls. The sun began to rise, casting long shadows on the ground. I wished

I had known the girls better so I could make Sitian grief flags for them. The occasion

called for the fanfare of raising their flags to memorialize the girls’ short lives.

Without silk or a flagpole, I settled for expressing my deep regret for not saving

them. They felt content and relieved to be free. But what else could they say while I

held their souls?

A vile thought occurred to me. I wondered if my powers were enhanced while

they remained with me. Could I counter the Fire Warper if I increased my strength?

Shuddering in revulsion for just thinking about it, I released their souls to the sky.

They rushed from me. A lingering tingle of joy vibrated inside me before my body

sagged with fatigue.

I arrived at Valek’s safe house without any memories of the trip. Kiki headed for

the stable and I summoned enough energy to give her a good rubdown. The stack of

hay bales outside her stall appeared to be too inviting for me to pass. I lay down on

top of them and fell asleep.

An army of flaming soldiers chased me. My legs refused to run any faster as the

burning men advanced. Leif rushed to my aid but, as soon as he drew near me, he

burst into flames. Only Valek remained. He stood amid the conflagration, untouched

by the searing heat. A block of ice, he seemed indifferent to my plight.

“Sorry, love.” He shrugged. “Can’t help you.”

“Why?”

“You won’t let me.”

The fire soldiers closed in until a circle of fire surrounded me. Tongues of flames

licked at my clothes then grabbed the fabric.

“Yelena!”

Bright yellow and orange danced along my cloak. Their movements held my

attention in a bizarre fascination as they consumed my clothes.

“Yelena!”

Cold water splashed on me, followed by a drenching deluge. Steam hissed. I

yelled and woke, choking on the water. Valek stood next to me. He held an empty

bucket.

“What?” I sat up. My clothes and hair were soaking wet. “What was that for?”

“You were having a nightmare.”

“And shaking me awake seemed too tame?” He was still angry.

Valek didn’t answer. Instead, he pulled me to my feet and pointed to the

figure-shaped scorch mark on the topmost hay bale. The place where I had slept.

“You were too hot to touch,” he said in a deadpan.

I shivered. If Valek hadn’t been here, what would have happened?

“I take it your rescue attempt last night has angered some powerful people? I saw

you and Kiki create chaos in the camp, ruining my plans yet again. What else did you

do?”

Valek hadn’t gone to bed. He had left to help the girls. Kiki and I could have

gone with him. Together we might have reached the camp in time to save Liv and

Kieran. Guilt balled in my chest, souring my mood. I hadn’t managed to do anything

right. I didn’t find Cahil and Ferde in time. The Sandseed Clan was gone. Irys and

Bain were locked up. I had upset my friends and my brother. And Valek.

He stared at me with his flat expression, giving nothing away. An invisible wall

grew between us. Mine or his? I told him about the girls’ souls and how I had

removed the power from the ritual.

“I should have let you kill Cahil,” I said.

If the change in subject surprised him, he didn’t allow it to show on his face.

“Why?”

“It would have prevented all this.”

“I think not. Cahil’s involvement is recent. These Vermin are prepared. They’ve

been planning this move for a while. Cahil wants you dead and wants his throne. I

believe the whole Kirakawa ritual sickens him.”

“He helped with the kidnapping.”

“Because he wanted you. He wasn’t at the camp last night. He’s probably

heading to the Citadel.”

“How do you know?”

Valek gave me a tight, joyless smile. “When you stormed the camp, I stole into

the tent, intending to put the Wannabe King out of my misery. I had a few seconds

to determine he was gone before the tent collapsed on me.”

I suppressed a chuckle. From the annoyed frown, I knew Valek wouldn’t

appreciate it.

“But I found that.” He gestured to the floor. My backpack rested against Kiki’s

stall door.

A happy cry escaped my lips and I knelt down to check the contents. Before I

dug into the pack, I looked up to thank Valek, but he was gone. I considered finding

him to explain, but I wasn’t ready to breach the wall surrounding me. Inside my little

cocoon, I could pretend the Fire Warper’s threat to the people I loved didn’t exist.

My pack still held my switchblade, my Sitian clothes, my lock picks, vials of

Curare, lumps of Theobroma, jerky, tea and Opal’s glass bat. The glow from the

statue seemed brighter.

The intricate swirls of liquid fire drew my gaze. I marveled at Opal’s talent. The

whirlpool of light in the core of the bat transformed into a snake. The roar of a kiln

beat at my ears. Hands wielded a pair of metal tweezers to shape the thin glass body

before it cooled. The thoughts of the glassmaker reached me. Opal’s thoughts.

She dripped water on a groove in the glass near the end of the pole. The snake

cracked off. Using thick mittens, she picked up the piece and put it into another

oven to cool slowly. This one was not as hot as the first.

Opal, can you hear me? I asked.

No response.

When my awareness returned to the bat in my hand, I knew I had reached