His Cure For Magic (Book 2) (10 page)

Just because she wasn't interested in any romance with him, that didn't mean she didn't enjoy making him blush. Straightening her cuffs one more time, she knew these clothes were going to put his jaw on the table. She decided that she would go out through the back and come in the front of the inn so she could sneak up on him. She knew he watched the entrance from the stairs like a hawk, just waiting for her to appear.

She laughed at the thought and exited her room. She put her ear to Silas' door once more, not hearing any sound. He was either asleep or meditating. She kissed her fingers and pressed them against the door before hopping down the three flights of steps.
 

"My, my," Urla said when she walked into the kitchens. "Amman has blessed you in all the right ways, child."

Eryn felt herself blush. "It's the dress."

"The dress is fine, I agree, but it's only an enhancement to what you have naturally."

"You're too nice to me, Urla."

The big woman laughed. "Nonsense."

"Where are you going?" Patina asked. She was helping her mother roll dough.

"Just out the back and around to the front. I want to sneak up on Wilem."
 

Patina laughed at that.

"You've spent a lot of time with the boy," Urla said. "He and his father are both very nice. Always polite, always chatting with the other patrons. Be careful, Eryn."

She was surprised. "What do you mean by that?"

"Two things. One, it's clear he has his heart set on you. Even a blind man could see it. Two, they've been here for four days, and haven't mentioned the rebellion a single time. Even when I overhear others going on about it, they never say anything. It's like they don't know what it is, or maybe don't agree with it and don't want to cause a ruckus. Anyway, I'm probably being an overprotective ninny, but considering who you are..."

Eryn smiled. "Thank you, Urla. Maybe they don't agree with the rebellion, but I think they're harmless, and anyway Silas and I will be gone in the morning."

"We'll miss you," Patina said.

Eryn walked over to her and stroked her hair. She was fond of the child. "I'll miss you, too."

She slipped out the kitchen door and made her way around to the front entrance: two tall, heavy doors that needed a winch to open and close. A young man worked the system, and even he stared at her when she entered.

She ducked off to the side of the common room, which was only half full today. She scanned the guests, looking for Wilem and Kelkin.

She found the older man at their normal table near the back of the crowd, leaning back with his feet up on one of the other chairs. His box of tinctures was laying open on the ground next to him, and she could see it was filled with vials of dark liquid. He had one of the vials in his hand, filled with a golden colored syrup.
 

She watched while he glanced around the room, and then reached over to Wilem's mug and poured it in. The moment the last drop had cleared the vial he slipped it up into his sleeve and started coughing. She saw Wilem then, walking back to his father and sitting down. Kelkin said something to him, and then they both raised their mugs and drank.

What was going on? She moved quietly from her place in the back of the inn, winding her way around the support columns so that Wilem wouldn't see her until she was right on top of them. She considered saying something about the vial, but decided that it was none of her business. Wilem and his father seemed to be close, and he was likely just giving him some medicine. Perhaps if the boy had known he might not have downed it so willingly.

"Good evening, Wilem," she said, stepping out from behind a column a few feet away. He looked up at her and his face turned beet red.

"Ah... uh..."

"He says hello," Kelkin said with a laugh. His eyes examined her with a measure of amusement. He knew what she was doing, and why she was doing it. He thought it was funny.

"Do you mind some company?"

"Ah... Of course not." He got to his feet and pulled out a chair for her.
 

"That's a fine dress, Eryn," Kelkin said. "It must have cost your father a small fortune."

"Indeed. He spoils me, Master Kelkin, if only to see me in a skirt instead of riding leathers."

"You are well worth it," Wilem said. "I have never seen a more dazzling sight."

"Thank you, Wilem. You are looking well yourself."

Wilem looked down at himself in disbelief. "In this? You must be joking."

"You are very handsome."

His red face turned a deeper shade of red. "Have you eaten?" he asked.

"I have, but I don't mind sitting with you while you eat."

"We've just finished," Kelkin said, lifting his mug. "We were just enjoying a drink or two before we retire for the evening."

Wilem picked up his mug and took another drink. He didn't seem to notice if anything was wrong with it.
 

"Master Kelkin, I couldn't help but notice that your sample box is open. I was curious about the makeup of its contents."

Wilem almost spit out his drink, and she could tell by his hesitation that Kelkin had been caught off-guard. He coughed again, and then leaned over and lifted one of the vials from the box.
 

"It looks like blood," Eryn said. The liquid was a thick, deep red.
 

"It does, at that," Kelkin replied. "It has some fish blood in it, but it is mainly composed of sap and a mixture of ground herbs and berries. If you were with fever, this tincture would see you well within two nights."

"Remarkable," Eryn said. She couldn't stop herself from staring at it.
 

Sap and berries. It looks just like blood.
 

He passed it to his other hand, and then leaned over and shifted the box at his feet. He put the tincture away and closed it. Eryn was sure if she could see it open now, there would be an empty vile resting inside.

They continued talking. Eryn kept a close eye on Wilem, to see if his demeanor changed at all from swallowing whatever Kelkin had put in his drink. When it appeared he was unaffected, she stopped worrying about it.

"Well, I'm going to go to bed," Kelkin said, getting to his feet and picking up his box. "Wilem, remember what I told you. Goodnight, my dear." He lifted Eryn's hand and kissed it before vanishing up the stairs.

"What did he tell you?" Eryn asked.
 

Wilem looked at her in silence. He picked up his mug to take a drink, discovering it was empty. "I need some air. Will you join me outside?"

Eryn pushed back her chair and stood. "Are you well?"

He got to his feet. "I will be. I'm just a little nauseous." He started walking towards the front doors, Eryn trailing behind him.

Once they were outside, he made his way to the alley that led to the stables. He put his hand against the side of the inn and leaned over, taking deep breaths. Was it the tincture?
 

Eryn wasn't sure what else to do, so she started rubbing his back. His breathing relaxed and he straightened up, so she started to pull her hand away. He caught it with his.

"Eryn," he said. She could see he was nervous. Very nervous. "I..."

She had never held a boy's hand before. It was larger than hers, but soft and warm and strong. She liked the feel of it, but not the situation. She had an idea of what he might be about to say.
 

"I'm leaving tomorrow morning," she said.
 

It was as if she had hit him in the head with the flat of her sword. The redness of his face fell away to white, and his hand went limp in hers.
 

"Oh."

"My father's business is done. I'll be returning to Portnis with him. Maybe you can visit me there."

He looked stricken. "I would but... I can't. Not for a while anyway. Mas.. My father's business is here, and then further south."

She smiled at him. "Well, whenever you are in Portnis, then. You can come for di-"

Before she knew what was happening, Wilem's face was right up to hers, and his lips were on her lips. Her eyes widened in surprise, and she had to fight every instinct to punch him in the gut and throw him to the ground.
 

She just stared at him when he backed up. She fought to disguise her anger. He was a friend, just a friend. Her first kiss, and it had meant nothing to her.
 

"I just wanted to say goodbye," Wilem said. "My apologies if I offended you."

She took a deep breath and forced a smile. "You didn't offend me. I just wasn't expecting that. I like you Wilem, I do, but I have to leave tomorrow, and my father would never approve of me consorting with anyone who wasn't my betrothed."

It was a good lie, and it calmed the awkward moment.
 

"Of course, I understand." Wilem returned her smile. "I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you, too. Tell your father I said thank you for his wonderful tales. Thank you for your company. You've made my visit here worth wearing these clothes."
 

He gave a weak laugh at that. Eryn turned on her heel and went back into the inn, up the stairs to her room.
 

It took three hours for her swordplay to put her to sleep.

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Eryn

"I have everything you asked for," Davin said.
 

They were in his true residence, a smallish mansion at the western edge of the Heart. They had travelled there separately through the streets, careful that none of them were seen together. The King of Hearts had wanted to use the underground tunnels, but he had been informed that the Overlord knew Silas was in the city, and he didn't trust that they wouldn't plant lookouts or ambushes in the underground routes. Even spiriting them into the mansion had been a calculated risk.

Eryn stood in Davin's study with Silas and Andreaus. A map was unrolled across the rogue's desk, showing them a more detailed depiction of the Washfall ore mine and its surrounds.
 

"You have the coin?" Andreaus asked.

"Ames is keeping an eye on it downstairs, " he replied. "He and Lance will carry it, and a carriage will meet the three of you outside the walls to take you to Portnis. It's almost everything I've saved over these last twenty years, so don't waste it."

Andreaus bowed.
 

Half of the gold was going to pay blacksmiths in villages throughout the region to start increasing their purchases of steel and iron ingots and begin fashioning them into swords and armor. The other half was going to be for more immediate use in procuring supplies for the rebellion, with the ultimate goal being to harry any of the armies returning from Elling should they try to return through the Killorn Pass. They would prefer the troops to have to take to the sea, because the route was longer and slower, but if they didn't, the rebellion would try to slow them as much as possible, providing time for Silas and Eryn to cut the head off the snake.

"How are you going to get that much gold out of the gates?" Silas asked.

"The same way I'm going to get you out. There's a fourth way to and from Varrow City. One that only my most trusted people and me know."

"Does your daughter know?"

Davin's face was grim. "No. It pains me to say it, but she can't be trusted. Building the tunnel came at the cost of many lives, lives that I don't plan to see wasted. I've saved more than I took in its making, and I intend to keep it that way."

"The setup?" Silas asked.
 

"Two old nags pulling a wagon laden with grain. I also found a dozen brave souls willing to bring themselves and their own supplies into your scheme. They'll be waiting in the woods between the city and the mines."

Silas nodded. He was the General right now, focused and intense. "Show us the mines."

Davin led them over to the table and pointed at the map. "The mines are a half-day's ride to the east of the city. They're below ground, dug out from a small mound of earth into a massive complex of caves. They are patrolled by soldiers at all times, a crossing pattern at the perimeter that never leaves the surrounding area out of their sight, and even more soldiers at various positions in the mine itself. The main entrance is here." He pointed to the side facing the city. "There's a guard station at the top of the mound, where a pair of soldiers and a Mediator keep watch." He looked up at them. "I never knew why a Mediator would be there, until yesterday."

Silas had told Davin all about the Mediators and their relation to the Cursed. The truth had made him livid.

"How many people are in there?" Eryn asked. All they were seeing was a map, a simple representation. It gave them only a vague idea of the size.

"It is hard to know for sure," Davin replied. "My estimate is at least one thousand."

"A thousand people?" Eryn tried to wrap her mind around the number.
 

"There are over four dozen ore mines in the Empire," Davin said. "Washfall is one of the smallest."

"The East Killorn mine has over ten thousand people in it," Silas said. "Or it did some time ago."

Eryn couldn't conceive of it. How many people were there in the Empire?

"What does
he
do with it?" Eryn asked. "The weapons are almost unbreakable, and I haven't seen the ircidium used anywhere else except the top of the palaces. If the mines have been in operation for years,
he
must have collected more of the metal than
he
could ever use."

"It's a good question," Silas said. "I don't know if I ever knew the answer."

What they did know about the metal was that it had an interesting relationship to magic. The power couldn't penetrate it from the outside, and yet it was able to be conducted from the inside. Was there a prison hidden somewhere, a place where all of the Cursed that didn't become Mediators were taken and held until the Curse killed them? Were the cells made of the metal? The fact that there were many more Cursed collected than there were Mediators had been a revelation.

"They won't be expecting you today, Silas," Davin said, looking up from the map. "If word has reached them of your presence in Varrow, they'll be even more on guard."