The Elder Blood Chronicles Bk 1 In Shades of Grey (40 page)

He gave an amused snort and shrugged. “I
fight by the rules that are not always honorable. I don’t stab in
the back, if that’s what you mean. But today, that wasn’t
honorable. Devron couldn’t have beaten me if Fortune himself had
appeared to grant him luck.” He took another pull from the glass,
draining the contents and turned to pour himself another. “I can
stand Cassia’s little mess, and I can handle as many duels as they
throw at me. What I can’t stand is the thought of my presence
disgusting you.”

She pulled the cloth from her head and sat up
slowly, pressing herself back against the headboard. Her stomach
had settled now. With a raised eyebrow at him, she took the freshly
filled cup from his hand and took a long pull, instantly regretting
the action as the liquor burned its way down her throat. She
managed to keep from gasping but couldn’t stop her eyes from
watering. “What in the name of Fortune is that?” she demanded, the
words she had planned on speaking forgotten.

He was trying hard not to laugh, and had to
look away to gain his composure. “Firewater,” he answered, when he
had mastered his expression again. “Firym pepper wine,” he
added.

She gave him a dubious look and glared at the
glass. “Do you eat or drink anything normal at all? Snakes with
pepper sauce, and pepper wine. Do you have something particular
against a good, honest grape?”

“I tend to prefer the unusual,” he answered
with a smile and brushed a lock of curls back behind her ear. “A
moment,” he said, holding a finger up to keep her still. She
watched him cross to the table once more and retrieve another
decanter and glass. He brought them back and poured a half glass
before handing it over to her carefully. “Jimpa Brandy. You seemed
to like it at Sovann’s,” he explained when he noticed her
suspicious stare.

“We have school tomorrow,” she reminded him.
They had already missed a day due to the trip to Merro. She paused
and shook her head. Had that really only been a day ago? She rubbed
her face and took a sip from the brandy. The rich flavor filled her
mouth and she closed her eyes, enjoying the flavor and the memories
they called up. “This has to be the sweetest thing I’ve ever
tasted,” she said with a sigh. She opened her eyes and found him
watching her with a bemused expression. “The decanter is almost
full, don’t you like it?” she asked, more to break his silence than
anything else.

He glanced at the decanter and gave a slight
chuckle. “It’s a new decanter, I bought it from my father a week or
two ago, but now that you ask, no I don’t really care for it
because it’s a bit too sweet for me. I kept the flask on me out of
habit. Wisp is fond of the stuff, though she doesn’t drink it
often.” He left the rest unsaid, though she could understand it
without words. He had bought the decanter because she liked it, no
matter that he had no idea she would be in his company enough to
enjoy it.

She stayed silent just watching him, noticing
how, in this light, his eyes seemed more black than green. How his
hair looked gold in the sunlight but seemed a dark chestnut brown
now. She watched his muscles move as he raised his glass and took
another pull from the firewater, and noted how the glass left his
lips looking so moist and so soft.

A loud knock sounded at the door and she
jumped, the spell of the moment broken. Not even realizing she had
been leaning forward she banged her head against the headboard and
gave a muffled curse. Finn let out a curse of his own, not quite as
muffled, and sat his glass down with a loud thump on the table.
“What?” he called, his tone filled with annoyance.

“Don’t snap at me, Finn Sovaesh, there is a
boy here with food for you,” Wisp’s voice called back.

With a sigh of exasperation, Finn rose and
crossed the room. Leaning on the door frame, he opened the door
just enough to accept the food. “Thank you, Wisp. I’m sorry I
snapped,” he said and, once food was in hand, he closed the door
before she had a chance to reply. “Feel good enough to eat?” he
asked as he crossed the room again, dropping heavily down onto the
foot of the bed and spreading the neatly wrapped parcels between
them.

“Is it snake?” she asked, poking one of the
wrapped bundles cautiously.

He gave a half-hearted shrug and smiled at
Marrow’s head poking up over the side of the bed. “Meat of some
kind I’m sure and from the looks of it, more than enough for the
three of us.”

Charm paced across the path for the third
time, his silent steps making no sign of his crossing. His arms
were folded behind him as he listened for approaching steps. He
didn’t really expect to hear Isador, but he would notice Lex from a
good way off. The moon was well past the mark of midnight, and that
meant both of his erstwhile companions were late. He frowned and
turned to cross the path a fourth time. The area of the Academy he
waited in was remote and mostly unused. The chance of someone
stumbling across him at this hour was so remote he didn’t bother to
keep himself hidden.

The day had been a very long one for him,
beginning at dawn when Christian Morcaillo had arrived at the
warehouse, and as of yet it was still not over. He stifled a yawn
and turned for another crossing of the path. It hadn’t been hard to
stay awake last night, knowing Hemlock had been lurking nearby.
Now, however, in the relative safety of the Academy, he had to move
to keep alert. He didn’t care much for the magic some Immortals
used to keep themselves awake. The mind needed sleep to remain
healthy or at least he believed so. A body could be pushed, but a
mind, for the most part, was a far more delicate thing.

“Are you working on a new path?” Isador
asked, her voice a whisper in the shadows.

He started slightly at the sound, more out of
instinct than anything. He had known he wouldn’t hear her approach.
“I believe I have it mostly done, by the time young Lex shows I’ll
likely be finished,” he replied in a light jesting tone.

“Interesting day, wasn’t it?” she commented
idly as if speaking of the weather and not of the death of Devron
Rivasa. With a deep breath, she stepped from the shadows, her eyes
half-mast. She let the breath out slowly and leaned back against
the wall. She wore the same grey silks he was used to seeing her
in, but her hair was up and styled, and faint breaths of perfume
rose on the breeze.

“Any interesting gossip tonight?” he asked,
assuming she had been at the bar previous to this appointment.

“Oh, the Gold Penny was fairly bursting
tonight with interesting people,” she said in a wistful voice.
“Valor Hai’dia, Amelia Faydwer, Jail Han’shy, not to mention Cassia
Avanti and Christian Morcaillo. I must say the latter two make
quite the beautiful couple, despite how they dislike each other.
Their children will no doubt be beautiful if not mentally scarred
from listening to Mommy and Daddy try to kill each other.” She
paused and cocked her head.

Charm nodded, for he had heard the
approaching steps, as well. Lex would be here shortly. “I assume
the gossip on everyone’s lips was the duel?” he asked.

“I’m afraid I might have missed the best of
the gossip. Marcel Rivasa was leaving the inn just as I arrived,
and Cassia seemed to be in very high spirits when I joined her at
her table.” She shrugged as if nothing could be done for it. That
was true enough, though, Charm supposed, there really was nothing
they could do about any of this. Neither of them had been in a
position to stop the duel, without revealing themselves. Cassia
had, of course, mentioned it the day before to Isador, but neither
of them had expected such quick action.

“My apologies for my lateness, it’s been a
rather hectic day,” Lex said softly as he took a place on the wall
near Isador. He wore his customary leathers, as well as the heavy
leather coat he favored, and Charm found himself wondering how the
young man wasn’t smothering to death. It wasn’t exactly hot out
tonight, but so much clothing on a summer night seemed a bit
much.

“No bother, gave us a chance to chat a bit,”
Isador replied with a casual wave of dismissal.

“So, what word have you received?” Charm
asked. It was a bit rude to push the conversation so bluntly, but
he was tired and had it not been for Lex’s requested conversation,
he would have been asleep hours ago while Jala was safely tucked
away with Finn and Marrow. With the addition of the Bendazzi, he
had found himself wondering if she actually needed a babysitter
anymore. The girl had obviously found her strength to be able to
control such a creature.

“Symphony contacted me,” Lex began and gave
them both a brief glance to ensure he had their full attention.
“You are needed elsewhere, Charm, and you are to remain in
Sanctuary with your ear to the ground, Isador. It is believed that
Jala no longer needs constant guarding and times are getting rather
troubled.”

“How so?” Isador prompted when he fell silent
again.

“Hawk and Solace have gone missing in Gaelyn,
and there have been quite a few deaths reported there on the border
with Glis.” He turned his gaze to Charm. “You are to travel to Glis
and meet Lutheron to investigate further.”

“Both Gaelyn and Glis are practically
wilderness. Granted, Gaelyn has quite a few villages, it’s still
rather rustic, I’m not exactly a ranger,” Charm protested. He could
track well enough, but there were dozens of Fionaveir that could do
it better. His strength lay in cities amongst crowds, not in the
wilds.

“And I’m not exactly a council member. I pass
on orders, not make them,” Lex pointed out. He turned to Isador
then and gave a slight sigh. “You are to continue to gather any
rumors that occur around Jala, but your main focus is to be on the
troubles in Glis. If anyone seems to know too much, you are to take
note of them and make an immediate report to me.”

“I’m not going anywhere until I’ve slept,”
Charm grumbled.

Lex gave a brief snort of amusement. “Suit
yourself. Just so the both of you are aware. Jala will be leaving
the city in four days. I received word from Shade on this.
Apparently the two of them are taking a trip from Sanctuary, and he
won’t tell anyone where they are going. I’ve already reported this
to Symphony, and she didn’t seem bothered by the news, so don’t
concern yourself with it, Isador.”

“No idea where they are going?” Isador asked
with a frown.

“A suspicion, but nothing more. I overheard
Shade questioning Madren about the Tolanteer Forest, but that’s
about the best guess I have.

“The Tolanteer? Did they not receive the
notice that it’s rather cursed, and the witches there tend to eat
trespassers?” Charm asked in disbelief.

“Apparently not.” Lex gave a brief shrug.
“Leah will be going with Shade. I can’t, for my duties keep me
rather close to the Academy. Can’t exactly keep an ear for gossip
from the middle of a forest.”

“You don’t sound too regretful,” Isador
pointed out with a smirk.

Lex gave a dramatic sigh. “Alas, I won’t be
able to traipse across bug-infested forests seeking out
cannibalistic witches. How horrible for me. I suppose I shall just
have to settle for manicured lawns and no tick bites in remote
regions of my body.”

“Poor thing,” Isador comforted him with a
gentle pat and an amused smile.

Charm grumbled quietly to himself at the
boy’s words. What a delightful description of what he had to look
forward to himself. Without the cannibalistic witches of course. He
apparently had homicidal maniacs or some ravenous beast in their
place. “Enjoy your manicured lawns, and thank you for relaying the
message. I’m going to get some sleep now if you both would excuse
me,” he said in a voice that was perhaps a bit too curt, though he
was truly too tired to care if he had offended them.

Charm heard Isador give a slight chuckle as
he left. “He is just contemplating where exactly ticks might care
to bite him. Don’t be concerned with his snapping,” she said to
Lex, her words barely audible as he climbed the building to the
first available hiding spot where he could rest.

Charm gave a sigh and lay back against the
tiles of the roof. With a practiced ease he rolled his cloak into a
makeshift pillow and considered his current assignment. There had
to be a reason they were sending him to Glis. All he had to do was
figure out what exactly, it was that required his particular brand
of skills. With luck, Lutheron would explain on the morrow, though
he doubted it. Lutheron was not exactly the talkative sort. Most
likely he would have to remain patient until the moment presented
itself. That he could worry about tomorrow, however.

He woke to bright daylight and the heat of
the tiled roof beneath him. With a groan, he sat up and rubbed his
lower back. There was much to be said about the comforts a tiled
roof had to offer. On a normal night, he would have put a pallet
down. Last night he simply hadn’t cared. Today, however, his body
was full of complaints. “What a perfectly wonderful way to start a
perfectly wonderful day,” he sang lightly to himself, repeating a
song he’d heard Faramir singing to her children long ago. Despite
the cheerful words, his voice was grim and depressed to his own
hearing.

He looked around at the Academy and the city
spreading beyond its gates. The view from the Academy’s roof was a
magnificent one, though he much preferred it at night. Not only was
it cooler, the city was breathtaking at night with the mage lights
winking throughout the districts. The various House colors made it
seem a rainbow of civilization. Warm summer sun washed down over it
now and everywhere he looked was bustling with activity. From the
school paths below him to the distant central market, everyone
apparently had something to do today. As did he. He sighed at the
thought and gathered his cloak. Everything he needed was stored
inside it. No excuses there to gather provisions. The multiple
pockets of the cloak were enchanted and held everything from apples
to wine skin.