Cursed (11 page)

“What was that for?” I asked.

“Not supposed to touch the merchandise,” he said with a dark chuckle. “But that didn't count.” He clicked his tongue at me like I was one of his horses.
Unbelievable.
I half raised my fists, ready to slam my manacles into the side of his head.

“Don't mind him,” said Nan quickly. “Just move along.”

I forced myself to take in some calming breaths.
Remember Sunday and your curse. This driver is still your best way into the Midnight Cloister.

The man scratched his dirty cheek and eyed me warily. “You've a sassy mouth. What type of Commoner are you?”

Nan stepped protectively to my side. “She's a thief, like me. We've gutted bigger men than you for a laugh, so watch yourself.”

“Sure, you have,” said the driver. Still, the words came out as more of a question. He took a step backwards and pretended to find the horizon line fascinating.

I liked Nan more by the minute.

The other girls started mumbling behind me, and I realized that I was blocking them from leaving the wagon. I marched forward and scanned the desert around us. Golden sand stretched off in every direction. Not a soul in sight.

“You're not here to enjoy the view,” said the driver. “Do your business and get back on the wagon.”

Along with everyone else, I started the odd work of shimmying off my underclothes, hiking up my skirts, and relieving myself on the sand. We were all still tied in a line, so it made for an odd picture. The driver watched everything with a level of interest that could only be described as creepy.

“Where's our food and water?” asked one of the girls.

“I'm a driver, not a tavern. You'll be at the Cloister in an hour. They can take care of you there.”

My heartbeat sped up. I had no idea we'd reach our destination so soon. Five years of work was now behind me. An eternity of pain stretched forward as my possible future. Five days were left to fight it. And in only an hour, the real work started. My pulse sped up.

“Make sure you do your business out here.” The driver sniffed and spat on the ground. A disgusting blob of white goo landed by his black boot. “I don't want no piss or puke in my carriage, you hear?”

Nan groaned. “What did I tell you?” she whispered.

I stared at the nasty little man. “And you were right.”

We all shuffled back into the carriage. The driver threaded the rope ends through holes in the wagon's wall, knotted them tight, and slammed the doors shut once more. Soon, we were rumbling on our way. With every passing mile, my pulse beat faster.

Almost there.

The hour flew by and before I knew it, the wagon was wobbling to a stop once again.

The Midnight Cloister. I made it.

More footsteps and voices sounded outside. There were men out there, and a lot of them. Guards, maybe? A sinking feeling ran down my rib cage. This wasn't a good sign. There were never any guards at the Zelle. With all the magick guarding this place, why would they need warriors?

The back doors swung open. Late afternoon light flooded into our small space, revealing a woman who stood framed in the doorway. She was wiry and petite, with pale skin, long silver hair, and the black robes of an Apprentice Sister. Her exotic, almond-shaped eyes scanned us each of us before gazing over her shoulder. The quick, bird-like movement reminded me of a mother hen. No question about it. This woman was looking out for someone.

Which was puzzling. Did she think the other girls and me were a threat? And who was she trying to protect, anyway?

One of the guards marched up to the Sister's side. He looked ridiculously tall and armored next to her tiny frame.

“We finished our search,” he said.

“And?” The lines of the elder woman's face were drawn tight with worry.

“We found no one.”

“Which is what I said would happen.” The Sister's concern drained away. “Now, I must return to my duties.” Her voice and manner suddenly became hollow and rote. Like Hestia, she'd clearly done all this before many times.

The Sister refocused her attention on us. “Welcome to the Midnight Cloister,” she said in an empty voice. “I'm Sister Sophia. I'll be in charge of you while you're here.” She untied the rope from the carriage walls. “When I ask you to do something, you perform. Now, step down from your carriage.”

We all shuffled outside and stood in a makeshift row. There had been a lot of men's voices around, but only one guard stood by Sophia. He was in full black armor with his face covered by a helm. He untied the rope from my waist, but I was too distracted to care about a stranger being so close. This was my first full look at the famous Midnight Cloister.

It wasn't at all what I expected.

The Midnight Cloister was legendary for having the prettiest architecture, the best Novices, and the most Sisters. Its four white towers were famous, with one standing at each corner of the grounds. Everyone knew how the great blue Basilica loomed by the front gate, as simple and lovely as a gemstone. The low wall that encircled everything was a marvel of delicate crystal.

I blinked hard, hoping that this was some illusion of the desert sun. It wasn't. Viktor had changed things here, and not for the better.

The Midnight Cloister that stood before me today was nothing more than a fortified pile of rubble. To my left, the crystal barrier was gone, replaced by a massive guard wall. Soldiers in black armor patrolled along the top, glaring out at the desert like an opposing army might appear at any second. Those were the voices I'd heard before.

To my right, the changes were even worse. A cluster of dilapidated buildings stretched off into the distance, all of them rickety and off center. Many of the windows were boarded up. There was no one around, unless you counted a few Sentinel spirits who lurked in the shadows, their shoulders slumped.

This was wrong. Very wrong.

The deep bong of church bells filled the air, attracting my attention to the huge Basilica. The building was supposed to be elegant and spare. The Basilica before me was covered in statues of terrifying skeletons. There were hundreds of them, all made from black rock. Unlike the Zelle, they weren't dancing to celebrate the joy of eternal life. These figures seemed to prowl along the rooftop, their arms outstretched and jaws opened. Hundreds of empty eye sockets glared at us, watching our every move. A shiver rolled down my spine.

This wasn't a welcoming Cloister. It was a frightening prison. And that meant my experiences at the Zelle wouldn't be as useful as I'd hoped. A place like this would have different rules, schedules, and ceremonies. A ball of dread weighed down my stomach. They might even have us sleep in the dungeon rather than the Sister's dormitory. A fresh sheen of sweat covered my skin, and it wasn't from the heat.

Sophia stared at us blankly. “So you all wish to become Novices?”

Veronique lifted her chin. “I've no desire to do anything of the sort. I want to go home.”

Sophia sighed. “Don't be rude.”

“I am a Royal. I'll be whatever I want.”

“Guard. Silence her.”

The guard stepped up and slammed his gloved fist into Veronique's temple. She shrieked and fell to the ground.

“Up,” said the guard.

Veronique clenched her fist to the side of her head. “No.”

“Get up or he'll strike you again,” said Sophia. Her words had all the heat of a Novice reciting a practice incantation for the hundredth time.

Veronique rose unsteadily to her feet. A thin trickle of blood rolled down her cheek. I cringed in sympathy. Sure, I'd been wanting to punch her for hours, but seeing it really happen was something else entirely.

“As you can see, our guards don't have magick, but they have other abilities that make them just as powerful. Do you understand?” Veronique nodded. Her ladies stared submissively at the ground.

Interesting.
For all their proud talk in the back of the wagon, Veronique and her ladies sure gave in easily. No wonder they'd been captured in the first place.

“Excellent.” Sophia kept on droning. “Now, you will all go through a brief ceremony that will make you Novices in this Cloister. Novices are provisional members. In a few days, our Mother Superior will make each of you a full Sister. The Initiation ceremony is when you'll receive the Tsar's mark and officially become part of our community. Any questions?”

No one said a word.

“The Tsar will arrive soon,” continued Sophia. “When he comes, there will be another ceremony, the Examination. He will review all of you. Some may be chosen to join his entourage.”

I frowned.
Join the Tsar?
Is that some kind of code phrase for being turned into an old woman and killed? Whatever it meant, joining the Tsar wouldn't be good. It was unsettling how easily Sophia rattled off a lie. I'd liked the fact that she was acting as mother hen before. But I was starting to rethink what I'd seen. Maybe Sophia wasn't looking out for anyone.

“One final item,” said Sophia. “If you are not chosen, then you will stay behind to serve this Cloister. Are we all clear?”

Another guard marched up to the first. The delicate wrinkles on Sophia's face crumpled with worry as the two guards started to whisper. Sophia was back to being a mother hen once more.

That's when I noticed it… Movement along the roof on one of the covered walkways. A little girl peeped over the edge, caught my gaze, and grinned. She was about six years old with shiny black hair and exotic almond-shaped eyes. Every inch of her radiated joy. She was like one of the baby goats the farm enjoyed each spring. You couldn't help but marvel at their boundless energy.

One of the guards snapped his attention to the covered walkway and the girl popped down out of sight. A nervous tic moved by Sophia's mouth as she stepped into the guard's line of vision. “What's with all this chatter? I'm supposed to be conducting a ceremony.”

Now, I knew who Sophia was protecting. She cared for the little girl on the rooftop.

“Mother Superior wants everyone inside today,” said the first guard. “You can't let your favorites run around.”

“No one is running around. I already told you that.”

The second guard stomped forward. “It's time someone taught that imp a lesson.”

Sophia's mouth thinned to an angry line. “If she was out of her dormitory, then I'd be the first one to administer punishment. But she isn't, is she? Now, if you don't mind.” She gestured to us girls. “I have a task to perform.”

“We're only following Mother's orders,” grumbled the first guard.

“As am I.”

Something moved in the corner of my vision, catching my attention.
Oh, no.
The little girl was shimmying down the side of the covered walkway. Her gray novice robes had caught on a nail and she was yanking them loose. Old shipping boxes had been piled on the ground below her. If the child could get down, then she'd have a safe enough hiding place.

If she could get down.

My eyes widened. That poor girl. Sophia followed my stare and a shiver rolled across her shoulders. Her gaze locked with mine. A panicked question hung in her milky eyes.

Will you expose the child?

I don't know what kind of person Sophia was used to joining this Cloister, but I'd never throw an innocent child before one of those monster guards. I shook my head.

A small ripping sound echoed through the air as the girl finally tore her dress free, followed by a thunk when she hit the ground behind the boxes.

“Did you hear that?” grumbled one of the guards. Alarm rattled long my nerves.

They're going to find her.

Normally, I'd cast a disappearing spell, but my powers were still cut off. So, I said something else.

“Hold it right there!” I cried. Every eye in the courtyard turned toward me. Even the guards along the top of the wall stopped their ceaseless inspection of the desert.

The second guard clomped closer. His gravelly voice reverberated through his helm. “Want do you want? Trouble?”

No, I wanted to distract you from the little girl.

Sophia stepped quickly to my side. “This potential Novice only wants to get on with the ceremony, don't you?” Her normally dead voice held an animated and encouraging tone.

I couldn't believe it.
Sophia was stepping in to save me. “That's exactly it,” I lied. “Mother Superior said this ceremony would make a Novice, and I want that to start.”

“As you should,” said Sophia.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw the little girl slip around the back of the building.
Thank the gods.
Her exaggerated tiptoeing was so cute, I couldn't resent that she'd almost gotten me beaten or worse.

“Back to work.” Sophia snapped her fingers.

The first guard stepped forward with a small blue box in his hands. Sophia turned to me. There was a flash of some emotion on her face—regret, maybe?—before she went back to her old sleepwalking self. With half-hearted motions she opened the box and pulled out a tiny snake about two inches long. My shoulders tightened. That serpent radiated the same solid energy that I'd felt from Rowan's dagger and Hestia's mark. More hybrid magick. I couldn't guess what it was for, but I knew it couldn't be anything good.