Legacy of the Blood (The Threshold Trilogy) (13 page)

Something had to be done, and she would spend her last couple of
days in the city figuring that out.

She would not abandon them again.

“So, you leave in the morning.”

Adesina looked up as Jahan Lirit sat down next to her at the table
in the common room of The Black Cat.

“Yes,” she replied casually.

“I am glad that you do not have to wait any longer, but I will be
sad to see you go. I have enjoyed our conversations together, and I would have
liked to learn more about your people.”

The young woman smiled. “I sometimes feel that you know more about
the L’avan than I do.”

He chuckled. “I doubt that. I do ask a lot of questions, though,
and there is always something new to learn. Perhaps it will be a relief to
Than’os and Mar’sal to be free of my pestering.”

“We have taken great pleasure in talking to you,” Adesina said
with sincerity.

The old man was grateful to hear her say so. “I might follow your
example and move on from Emerald Harbor. I have been in this city much longer
than I planned.”

She leaned forward with interest. “Where will you go?”

He shrugged. “Oh, the world is a large place. There are many lands
I have not yet seen.”

“It sometimes sounds as though you have seen everything,” she
laughed.

He joined her, “Ha! Yes, I suppose that my stories make it seem
that way.” Jahan became more serious. “I am still looking for a place that can
keep my interest. I do tire of wandering, and I would like to find a home.”

“Why not return to the village where you grew up?”

Jahan shook his head immediately. “Oh, no. I could never go back.
It is nothing more than a bunch of farmers with no desire for music or art. It
is far too practical a place for a man like me. I thought so when I was
fourteen, and I still think so today. Besides, I have no family there—my
parents died in an epidemic when I was young—so I would be among strangers.”

“You are among strangers whenever you travel,” Adesina reminded
him. “It is easy for you to make friends.”

“Yes,” he admitted, “but at least when I travel I know that my
skills will be appreciated. I want to find a place where I will be valued, and
I can value those around me.”

“You do not value farmers?” she teased him.

Jahan laughed again. “No, I value them. My parents had a farm, and
I never saw anyone work so hard. However, I do feel that there needs to be more
to life than simply surviving. It is good to work hard during the day, but
there needs to be enjoyment in the evening.”

Adesina gave the old man a fond look. “You are probably right.”

“I know I am.”

“So, where will you go?”

He studied her carefully, keeping his voice casual. “I have not
spent much time in this land, other than here in Emerald Harbor. Perhaps it
would be good for me to see more of Sehar.”

She nodded. “That sounds reasonable. There are many beautiful
places.”

“I would want to find a community that appreciates music and
storytelling, but one that also is a culture that I can take interest in
observing.”

Adesina had an idea of where he was going with his hints, and she
decided to open up the conversation. “Like the L’avan settlement?”

Jahan grinned. “Like the L’avan settlement.”

It was certainly an interesting idea. They had never had a
non-L’avan actually live with them, but she didn’t think there would be any
objections. Jahan was a friendly and amusing man, and he would provide a bridge
between the settlement and the outside world.

“They would welcome you with open arms,” she assured him, “and I
think you would be happy there.”

The old man was vastly pleased. “Good. All I need is a few
directions, and I will easily find my way.”

An idea entered Adesina’s mind, and she considered it carefully.
It was something that she had never thought about before, and now she could not
believe she had overlooked such a simple solution.

The excitement in her chest grew, and after a moment she turned to
her friend and said, “Would you excuse me? I have some very important business
that needs my attention.”

Jahan Lirit waved a wrinkled hand. “Of course, of course. I will
speak to you later about the details of my journey, yes?”

She nodded as she rushed out of the inn.

Adesina hurried through the streets of Emerald Harbor towards the
section of the city where the destitute lived. She was never more aware of the
dilapidated buildings or the shabby inhabitants, but now she felt a sense of
hope at the sight. It was no longer the prison that held her friends from the
High City.

She had found a way to set them free.

Deasa was sitting in the sunlight outside the main building,
washing the clothes of a stranger. Her youngest sibling, Belen—a boy of six
years—was helping her by wringing out the excess water.

“Deasa, where is Hass?”

Her friend smiled in greeting and gestured to one of the smaller
buildings to the side of the complex. “He is repairing a chair for Master
Quinlan.”

The L’avan gave a returning smile and hurried onward. It was good
that Hass and Quinlan were together. If she could convince both of them to
agree to her plan, then the rest of the community would follow.

The two men were chatting amicably, one repairing the chair and
the other repairing a harness. Quinlan was fortunate in the fact that his
skills as a blacksmith were valuable to Emerald Harbor. He was not given any of
the high-paying work that the native blacksmiths received, but he was able to
do the menial tasks that they were too busy to accept.

Hass saw her and greeted her warmly. “Adrie, come in, my dear.”

Quinlan also welcomed her and asked his petite wife, a woman he
had met after leaving the High City’s ruins, to bring their guest a glass of
water.

“I am glad to find the two of you together,” began Adesina. “I
have something important that I want to discuss with both of you.”

That piqued their interest immediately, and they waited patiently
for her to continue.

“I know that my time in the High City was based off of a lie, but
the affection that I developed for all of you was genuine. I am so glad to have
found all of you again and renewed our friendship.”

The sincerity in Hass’s eyes told Adesina that he felt the same.
Even Quinlan had overcome his original doubt and nodded his agreement.

“I cannot express my sorrow at the fate of the High City, and I
wish I had been there to help in any way that I could.”

Hass took her hand and patted it gently. “The past in gone, child.
There is nothing that can be done about it.”

“But there is something I can do now,” she asserted. “It pains me
to see you reduced to such circumstances—to be treated like outcasts because of
something out of your control.”

“What did you have in mind?” asked Quinlan.

She took a deep breath. “I want you to come and live with the
L’avan.”

The shock on their faces was almost comical. The stunned silence
stretched out for several moments before Quinlan found his voice again.

“We cannot do that.”

Adesina stared at him. “Why not?”

“We do not belong among magic-users.”

She shook her head. “We are trying to build a diverse community.
If we wanted to isolate our race, we would not have left our homeland. The
purpose of our new settlement is to create a city where L’avan and Seharans can
live in peace.”

“There is still a great amount of prejudice against magic-users.
The others would never agree.”

“If the two of you support this idea, then it will be considered,”
insisted the young woman.

Quinlan continued to shake his head, and Adesina turned to her
foster father.

“Hass, you could be a carpenter again. All of you would be
accepted, and you would be able to rebuild your lives as they were before the
High City was destroyed.”

There was a glimmer of hope in his eyes, but it disappeared almost
immediately. “How can you know that we would even be welcome among your people,
Adrie? What if your leaders turn us away? We will have given up our lives here,
and we would be homeless again. We wandered for almost a year before we found a
home here, and I do not want to put my family through that again.”

Adesina had avoided telling them about her new position as queen
of the L’avan. It was not something she that made her ashamed, but she didn’t
want them to treat her any differently.

“I…have some influence among the L’avan. I could write a letter
for you to take to the regent. Even without that, I know that they would accept
you. We are all eager to build friendships with the people of Sehar.”

“We are a proud people,” admitted Hass. “I do not think that the
others would be enthusiastic about accepting the charity of magic-users.”

“It would not be charity,” Adesina said quickly. “There is a lot
of work to be  done, and we need able hands to do it. The High City was filled
with skilled artisans, and we would appreciate your talents and dedication to
make our new city all that it can be.”

There was a pause as the two men considered her proposal.

“It would be nice to make something beautiful again,” mused Hass.
“Something that fills me with pride and satisfaction.”

It was clear that Quinlan agreed, but he kept silent as he weighed
the possibilities. His wife was sitting next to him quietly, and she gave a
hopeful smile.

“I, for one, would love to meet these magic-users. And I would
love to see what my husband is really capable of making with his skilled
hands.”

Her simple statement was enough to make up Quinlan’s mind. He
looked at her with love in his eyes and nodded. “You have stood by me through
many hardships, and you have braved the scorn of others to be my wife. I would
like for us to have some happy, productive years to recall in our old age.”

Hass was nodding as well. “I want to support my family again. I
want Fia to return to school instead of hauling water for the quarry workers.”

Adesina gave his hand a squeeze. “The L’avan have a fine school,
and Fia would excel as a student.”

“We will speak to the others,” he said in a decisive tone. “Not
all of them will wish to come, but I will strive to convince all that I can.”

She gave him an impulsive hug and he chuckled with affection.

“I will write the letter for the regent, and I will draw you a map
to the settlement. There is a bard at the inn where we are staying, and he has
decided to go to the settlement as well. He is an experienced traveler, and he
will help you on your way.”

This news appeared to set their minds at ease. Adesina knew that
neither of the men felt comfortable traveling.

“The ship that is taking us to Zonne leaves tomorrow morning, but
I will see you again in a few months when I return home with my husband.”

Tears glimmered in Hass’s eyes, but he swallowed them with effort.
“Go and prepare the papers. I will speak to everyone, and tonight we shall have
a special dinner in your honor. Bring your friends, and we will celebrate your
departure.”

***

Later that night, Adesina and Ravi walked back to The Black Cat
slowly. The celebratory dinner had been modest, to say the least, but she had
been deeply touched by the gesture. Jahan, Mar’sal, and Than’os had all been
present, and the bard had been pleased to entertain such an avid audience.

Now the queen and her guardian were alone, and her mind was filled
with fears and doubts. Only half of the refugees had decided to go to the
L’avan settlement. The others were unable to overcome their prejudices about
magic-users, and preferred to stay in Emerald Harbor.

“How will they survive in this awful place?” asked Adesina in a
quiet voice. “They are on the verge of starving as it is.”

“Some of them will not survive,” admitted Ravi, his expression
sorrowful, “but that is their decision to make.”

“It is the wrong choice,” she insisted.

“Perhaps,” the Rashad allowed.

“Is there anything we can to do make them all go?”

He shook his head. “No, dear one. The choice may not be the one
that you would have them make, but it is important that it be their own.”

“Even if it results in their deaths?”

Ravi inclined his head. “Even then.”

Adesina clenched her fists in anger and frustration. She did not
know how Ravi could be so calm in the face of such stubborn ignorance. “So many
of them have died already. Thousands. How can I turn my back on them again?”

“The attack on the High City was not your fault, Ma’eve,” he
reminded her.

She folded her arms across her chest. “I know, but I cannot help
but wonder if I could have saved them.”

The feline quirked an eyebrow. “From an entire squad of Shimat?
Not likely.”