Storm Glass (25 page)

  “Do you know what it says?” she asked.

  “No.”

  “Fisk knows who to trust.” She tapped a finger on her desk, lost in thought.

  Dismissed, I headed to the stables. Stable Master greeted me with his usual gruffness. Quartz was saddled and ready to ride. She bumped her head against my chest, looking for sweets.

  “After,” I whispered in her ear. “I’ll steal a couple of milk oats for you.”

  “Mount up,” Stable Master ordered.

  He put me and Quartz through the paces. We made figure eights until I was dizzy. Quartz trotted and galloped around the training ring, following his shouted orders faster than I could direct her. I cursed my luck in getting Stable Master for my teacher as my legs and back twinged with pain. All those days of hard riding still didn’t prepare me for an hour’s worth of jumping small obstacles. Next session, I would bring a Barbasco yam.

  “That’ll do for now,” he said. “You’ve improved. But you still have a long way to go. Clean your tack and give her a good rubdown.”

  I muffled a groan when my feet hit the ground. Grooming Quartz was enjoyable, but cleaning the stiff leather tack with a rag and saddle soap was a nightmare.

  By the time I finished my chores, the stables were empty of students. I led Quartz into her stall, checked her water bucket and fed her the promised milk oats.

  Ulrick arrived to escort me to my rooms. My annoyance over his wrong assumption that he could defend against a magician better than me faded when he smiled. His concern was unexpected and nice. No one else in the Keep had worried about me before. I enjoyed his company. And there remained the chance he might link his arm in mine again.

  My thoughts flicked to Kade. I had shared his mind. The Stormdancer saved my life twice; I still owed him one. But he was wrapped in his own stormy world. A world where I didn’t belong. While I fit right into Ulrick’s world.

  In a bold move, I linked my arm in his. He pulled me close and I could have happily walked for days with him by my side.

  Too soon, we stopped at the bathhouse so I could wash off the grimy horsehair clinging to my sweaty skin. He escorted me to my quarters and even checked inside for intruders.

  “See you tomorrow,” he said. “Lock your door.”

  “Yes, sir.” I saluted.

  “Opal, this is serious. You could be hurt or worse.”

  “I know
that.
It’s just easier sometimes not to think too much about it, or I’ll never leave my rooms.”

  “Good plan. Never leave your rooms without me.”

  “Now who’s joking?” I teased, but his seriousness failed to diminish.

  “I’ll wait outside until I hear your lock click. Good night.” He left, but, as promised, he stood with his arms crossed just past the threshold.

  I closed the door. As I turned the bolt on the lock, I couldn’t suppress a slice of worry. His overprotectiveness might infringe on my freedom to come and go as I pleased-one of the best perks in being an apprentice. But my emotions flipped. It could also be a sign of his wanting to become more than friends-an appealing prospect.

  Three solid days were spent assisting Aydan and teaching his new assistant, Leda, how to handle the hot glass in the mornings. Once I’d let Fisk know Aydan sought a helper, Leda had arrived the next day.

  Quick to learn, the young woman, much to Aydan’s annoyance, beamed as she worked. Her demeanor remained placid despite his bursts of ill humor. Calluses lined her fingers and palms. Leda was no stranger to physical labor. I should have talked to Fisk sooner.

  I suppressed a grin. Aydan would have a difficult time chasing Leda away, and he might even enjoy her company in time. When we were confident she could handle the glassmaker’s demands, Ulrick and I left the workshop to spend the afternoon talking with suppliers.

  Ulrick and I had ordered all the glass equipment we could from the Citadel’s craftsmen. The next step would require a trip to Booruby to purchase a kiln.

  Ulrick had been my constant companion these past days. I already missed him and I hadn’t even finished packing. My saddlebags bulged with supplies and with the small orb I had taken from Sir and his group. I wanted to show my father the glass spiders. Zitora had been too busy for us to discuss the strange magical incident further, and I wanted to wait until the glass shop at the Keep was finished to experiment with magic. It seemed safer.

  I packed the spiders in a leather bag and left the orb empty just in case I was ambushed on my way home, hoping I would be able to defend myself.

  Zitora promised to assign an escort for me, but couldn’t say who it would be. At dawn the next morning, I arrived at the stables. Unease over the trip rippled in my stomach until I spotted my companion. Leif.

  He adjusted the straps on Rusalka’s saddle. “How’s my favorite glass wizard this morning?” he asked.

  I laughed. He said the same thing to me every time I saw him. Quartz poked her head out of her stall and I hurried to get her ready for travel.

  “What did Zitora bribe you with to babysit me?” I asked.

  It was his turn to chuckle. “I volunteered once I heard
where
you’re going.”

  “You’re just using me to get to my sister.”

  “Of course. Otherwise I would hate you-you get way too much attention around here. And you know me, I…”

  “Like to be in the middle of things, getting in the way,” I teased.

  He pretended to be hurt. “Perhaps I should let one of those boring guards accompany you.”

  “As long as he is handsome. I hear Mara is rather lonely.”

  He gave me a rueful grin. “Touchй.”

  I threaded my new sheath through Quartz’s saddle. While traveling on horseback, I would save time by having my sais on each side of the saddle instead of fumbling for them through my cloak. The need for the weapons dampened my playful mood.

  “Did Zitora tell you why I needed a companion?” I asked Leif.

  He mounted Rusalka and nodded.

  “There could be five of them trying to get to me.”

  “I hope I’ll sense them before we stumble into an ambush, and I’ve learned a few things from Valek.” His hand rested on the hilt of his sword. A machete also hung from his belt. “And a few magical defenses from Yelena.”

  Yelena’s name reminded me of the discussion the Masters had about the Moon Clan’s troubles. “Why aren’t you with your sister?”

  “Politics.” He said the word as if it tasted rancid. “I’ve had my fill. Besides, she has plenty of help. Master Jewelrose is with her and I’m sure Valek will appear if she gets into trouble.” He huffed in amusement. “
When
she gets into trouble. Actually I’m looking forward to the trip. It’ll be like a vacation for me.”

  “Leif, those men could-”

  “Don’t worry. The road to Booruby hugs the western border of the Avibian Plains. If we’re outnumbered, we can detour into the plains. No shame in outrunning the bad guys.”

  “Outrunning?”

  “Have you taken Quartz into the plains yet?”

  “No.”

  Leif grinned. “Then you’re in for a treat. These Sandseed-bred horses fly like the wind in the plains.”

  Our first day on the road passed without incident. With only a few weeks left of the cooling season, the temperatures hovered near freezing during the day and dropped at night. Since Booruby was five days south of the Citadel, it would be a little warmer.

  There weren’t many towns along the main road. Farm fields dominated the landscape to the west and the plains stretched to the east.

  We stopped for the night in a roadside shelter. A crude wooden building with bare bunks, a fireplace and a large, fenced pen for the horses, it could house up to twenty people. Six fellow travelers were already inside. A fire blazed in the hearth. Lanterns were also lit outside the building to light the way for any late-night travelers.

  Leif cooked our dinner, while I tended the horses. As we ate, Leif reminisced over the various meals he had eaten at my house.

  “Do you think your mother will tell me the recipe for her bread pudding?” he asked.

  “I’m beginning to wonder if your interest in Mara is just for my mother’s cooking.”

  He faked being insulted, then said, “Oh no, I love Mara’s cooking, too.”

  I swatted him on the shoulder.

  After we settled in our bunks, I listened to the quiet murmur of the others, the popping of the fire and the rustling of horses, straining to hear any sounds out of the ordinary. I touched my sais, checking they were within reach. “Leif?”

  “Hmm?”

  “Should we take turns keeping watch?”

  “No. Rusalka will whinny if someone approaches the shelter.”

  “What if you don’t hear it?”

  “There’s no sleeping through that racket. And if I don’t come out to see what the matter is, she’ll break the door down trying to come inside.”

  “What if the person is disguised by magic?”

  “Magic fools the eyes, not the nose. She’ll smell a…wrongness. I’ll smell it, too. It’s hard to explain.” He paused. “Opal, go to sleep. You’re safe here.”

  “Thank you for coming with me.”

  “Anytime.”

  Leif was right about Rusalka. The high-pitched and loud neighing woke everyone in the shelter. Leif bolted from his bunk with his sword in one hand and his machete in the other. I followed, holding my sais.

  The outside lanterns cast a weak yellow light. My relief at seeing the cause of the trouble didn’t last long. A pack of wild dogs surrounded the horses. Low growls emanated from bared teeth as they circled Quartz and Rusalka. From time to time, one would brave the horses’ hooves and dash in to bite a leg.

  Leif shouted and waved his sword, but there were a dozen black dogs. They were smart enough to stay out of range of his weapons. Too smart, in fact. The dogs widened their circle to include Leif, moving as if one intelligence directed them.

  “Open the gate so the horses can get out,” Leif called.

  I rushed to comply. When the way was clear, he told the horses to go to the plains where they could outdistance the dogs. A good plan, except Rusalka wasn’t going to leave without Leif.

  The other travelers joined me by the fence.

  “Rocks,” one man yelled.

  We scurried around, finding and throwing rocks at the dogs. My aim was horrible, so I passed my rocks to the man.

  Eventually, we drove the dogs off. Two lay dead, kicked and killed by the horses. Leif checked the horses for injuries, while I dragged the dogs’ bodies out of the enclosure. The man helped and the others kept watch, still clutching their rocks.

  I knelt beside one dog. Its clean coat was free of fleas. I checked the other. Well fed. These weren’t wild dogs. I reviewed their behavior during the attack. Yelena could communicate with horses. If the pack’s owner was a magician, perhaps he directed the dogs’ actions. He might try again.

  Leif joined me. Besides a few cuts, the horses were fine.

  “Guess we should have scheduled a watch,” Leif said. “I didn’t think we needed to protect the horses.”

  The man who had helped us frowned. “We never had a problem with dogs before,” he said. “I’ll talk to the locals, get a hunt organized or maybe set up a few traps with poisoned bait.”

  I kept my suspicions to myself. We thanked the man and his friends. They filed back inside.

  “Go back to sleep,” Leif said. “I’ll take the first watch.”

  The attack bothered me. “Do you think the dogs were sent as a distraction?”

  “It’s possible. I thought I smelled magic. But why didn’t they take advantage of the situation?”

  “The horses didn’t panic. Besides Rusalka’s horrible squealing, they were calm. And she woke everyone. Perhaps the magician didn’t want to try anything with six other witnesses around.”

  “Good point. We’ll just have to be more vigilant.”

  I thought I would never get back to sleep after all the excitement, but I did. Leif woke me two hours before dawn.

  “It’s been quiet. But stay close to the horses,” he said.

  “What if the dogs come back or…” I couldn’t say Tricky’s name out loud.

  “Tell Rusalka to cry, and she’ll wake everyone again.”

  “Magical attack?”

  “Same thing, but if you can’t talk, the horses are sensitive to magic and she’ll let me know. Sandseed horses are very protective. Keep them between you and an attacker and I’ll be there in no time.” Leif yawned.

  I checked the enclosure. The horses leaned together, sleeping. Scanning the road and surroundings, I paced. Jittery anxiety pulsed through my veins. I didn’t like feeling as if danger stalked me. Nothing I could do about it, which added to my conviction of not being in control. My hands twitched for a punty iron with a slug of molten glass on the end-a formidable weapon.

  Instead, I pulled my sais. Flicking the blades out and in, I practiced offensive strikes and defensive moves. The activity warmed me and I removed my cloak. Before I knew it, the dark sky paled, announcing dawn’s imminent arrival.