Fire Study (32 page)

Opposite in appearance, Janco’s wiry build reflected his quick wit and lightning-fast

fighting style, while Ari’s strength could outmuscle most others.

“Alarming would work,” Valek agreed. “Taking out the Council wouldn’t result

in better leaders. In fact, it would have inflamed the citizens to all-out war. And they

have some new players who could potentially tip the battle in their favor.”

“Players? Try creepy men. Scary magicians. Evil demons.” Janco shuddered.

Valek shot Janco a warning look. “I need to obtain more information before I can

assess the true nature of the threat and determine the best way to counter it.”

“Why have you returned?” the Commander asked.

Another glance from Valek, but this time he aimed it at me. “I require more help.

Things were getting a little too hot even for me.”

So much for my plans to travel to Sitia alone.

The room fell quiet as Commander Ambrose considered. “What do you need?”

“A few more men, Yelena and her brother.”

I had suspected Valek would want me. By Leif’s grunt of shock, I knew his

surprise matched my own when hearing his name.

“She hasn’t agreed to be an adviser yet so I can’t order her to assist you,” the

Commander said.

“Then I will have to ask.” Valek looked at us.

“Yes,” I said the same time Leif said no.

“I’m a Sitian, remember? I can’t aid Ixia in overthrowing Sitia,” Leif said.

“I don’t want to take control of Sitia,” the Commander said. “I just don’t want

them to invade us and I will take preventative measures to stop them.”

“By helping us, you will also help your country,” Valek said.

“We can do it on our own. We don’t need you or Yelena.” Leif turned to me.

“You could never have been a true Liaison, little sister. Ever since we’ve been in

Ixia, you have revealed your true loyalties.”

Outraged, I asked, “Is that what you believe?”

“Look at the evidence. At the first sign of trouble, you run for Ixia. We could

have returned to the Citadel, and explained everything to the Council.”

His accusations stabbed me as if he held a knife.

“The Council will not believe us. I told you what Irys said.”

“But what if you lied? You know I don’t have the power of mental

communication on my own. You don’t trust us so why should we trust you?”

First the Council had turned on me and now my brother. “Believe what you want,

then. Valek, can we do without him?”

“We can.”

The Commander stared at Valek. “You will tell me your plans before you

disappear again.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Good. You’re all dismissed.” The Commander stood.

“What about us?” Leif gestured to Moon Man and Tauno. “Can we return to

Sitia?”

“Consider yourselves a guest of Ixia until this unfortunate incident is resolved,”

Valek said.

“What if we no longer wish to be guests?” Moon Man asked.

“Then you will be our first prisoners of war and your accommodations will not

be so luxurious. It’s your choice.” The Commander left.

Leif glared at me and I wanted to laugh. His current reaction mirrored the first

encounter I had had with him after fourteen years of being apart. Another full circle. I

felt dizzy. Perhaps this was a sign I should stay in this spot to avoid having to exert

time and effort to go around again.

Valek turned to Ari and made a slight movement with his hand.

Ari nodded and stood; his blond curls bounced with the motion. “We will be

happy to escort you to your quarters.”

A gamut of emotions flowed over my former companions’ faces as they

followed Ari from the room. Leif barely contained his fury, Tauno looked worried

and Moon Man appeared thoughtful.

Janco brought up the rear of the procession. He flashed me an inviting smirk.

“Training yard, four o’clock.”

“You need more lessons?”

“You wish.”

My smile faded when the door closed. Valek remained on the far side of the

table, his face serious. I felt awkward and uncertain.

“Is it that bad?” I asked.

“It’s a situation I’ve never encountered before. I’m worried.”

“About Ixia?”

“About you, love.”

“Me?”

“I’ve always been amazed at how you can draw unwanted attention and ire from

powerful people. This time, though, you managed to get a whole country upset. If I

was the Commander, I would wait out the political strife in Sitia and then offer you

to the victors in trade for Ixia being left alone.”

“Good thing you’re not the Commander.”

“Yes. And we should leave Ixia before the Commander figures it out. What were

you planning?”

I tried to look innocent. “Me? You’re the one with the plan.”

“And the adviser uniform you had Dilana size for you? You weren’t thinking of

sneaking off to Sitia without me, were you?”

Another betrayal. “Did she tell you?”

“I had ripped a hole in my favorite pants. When I dropped them off, she asked

me to deliver your uniform and gifted me with a leer. I would guess the servants were

already betting how soon one of them would spot us together.” He sighed. “If only

intelligence information worked through my corps as efficiently as gossip flowed

through the servants, then my problems would be minimal.”

In one fluid motion, Valek stood. He walked over to me, his smooth stride

graceful as a panther. Powerful energy coiled in his body. He leaned on my chair’s

arms, bringing his face inches from mine. His black hair hung to his shoulders; his

expression was lethal. “I’ll ask you again. Your plans include me, correct?”

I slumped deeper into my chair.

“Yelena?” His voice warned.

“You said you had never encountered this situation before. It’s an unknown. I

don’t want to risk…”

“What?”

“Risk losing you. With your immunity I can’t heal you!”

“I’m willing to take the chance.”

“But I’m not willing to let you.”

“Sorry, love, that’s not your decision. It’s mine.”

I grumbled. Events had spiraled out of my control. Again. I just spun in circles

and never gained any ground.

“Okay, I promise not to go to Sitia without you.” Which didn’t include my

meeting tonight with Porter.

“Thank you.” Valek brushed his lips on my cheek. A tingle sizzled up my spine.

“What about your plan?” I tried to stay on topic, but I lost my motivation once

Valek’s musky smell enveloped me.

“This is my plan.”

He moved closer and kissed me. Warmth spread throughout my body. The panic

clutching my throat eased. I pushed away my worries and focused on Valek,

wrapping my arms around him. But the feel of his muscles through his shirt wasn’t

enough. I yanked at it, wanting to touch his skin, wanting to wear his skin.

He pulled away, straightening. “In the war room, love? What if someone comes

in?”

I stood and removed his shirt. “Then they’ll have a good story to tell.”

“Good?” He adopted the pretense of being offended.

“Prove me wrong.”

His eyes lit with the challenge.

Valek and I ended up underneath the war room’s round table. Lying together, I

felt safe for the first time in weeks. We discussed the events in Sitia.

“I could hardly move within the Citadel,” Valek said. “The air was so thick with

magic I felt like I swam in syrup.”

“But you weren’t detected.”

Valek’s immunity to magic remained a powerful weapon. Without it, I couldn’t

have defeated Ferde.

“No. Although it was only a matter of time. With that many—what do you call

them?—Warpers, my presence would have eventually caused a noticeable dead

zone.”

I considered how fast things had changed in the Citadel. Twenty-two days ago

Moon Man had speculated the Daviians had eight Warpers, but once he realized they

were performing Kirakawa we knew the actual number of Warpers could be much

higher, depending on how many victims they had used. And how far along in the

ritual they were. Plus only a victim with magical powers could make a Warper.

If they had been preparing for this offensive for a while, then who were the

victims? They wouldn’t have used clan members and the Sandseed Clan would have

noticed if a couple of their Story Weavers went missing. So would the other clans.

Unable to deduce an answer, I put the question to Valek.

“They’re probably targeting the homeless. Who would miss a few beggars in a

big city? No one.”

“What about the need for magicians?”

“The first year after a magician reaches adolescence is a difficult and vulnerable

year. Half the people don’t even realize they can access the power source, and the

other half don’t have a clue how to use it. The Warpers could be hunting the streets,

looking for someone in that precarious situation.”

My conviction to stop using it became stronger the more I learned about magic

and how others exploited it.

Valek and I mapped our return to Sitia and planned how to contact Bavol

Zaltana.

“I’ll leave Ari and Janco here. They won’t be happy, but security around the

Citadel is too tight and we’re better off just going ourselves. Two of my corps have

already been caught inside.” Valek sat up with reluctance. “I have some business to

attend to. I’ll meet you in my suite later tonight and we can finalize our time

schedule. I’ll have your belongings delivered there.”

I should retrieve my pack, but realized I had no desire to see Leif or the others.

But I remembered something. “Why did you want Leif to come with us?”

He shook his head. “You wouldn’t have agreed anyway.”

“To what?”

“To letting Leif get caught and using your mental connection to him to find out

what’s going on in the Keep. But now you’re mad at him—”

“No. He would be killed. I’m not that angry with him.” Besides, if I used my

magic anywhere near the Citadel, all the preparation in the world wouldn’t be able to

help me.

“She’s quick and fast, but she can’t get past,” Janco sang as he blocked my rib

strikes.

“You need to work on your rhymes. Either that, or I’m getting better.” I faked a

temple strike and swept his feet out from under him. Before I could press my

advantage, he rolled away and regained his feet.

“You hesitated,” Ari said from the sidelines. “Too busy talking.”

I renewed my attack and Janco countered with ease. We fought in the soldier’s

training yard, which had been filled with the sounds of practice until Janco and I

started this match. We had attracted quite a crowd.

“Can’t talk and fight. So much for being polite.” Janco spun his bow. His

weapon blurred.

I backed up and blocked the flurry of hits, keeping pace with his attack until he

changed the rhythm. I missed a connection. The air exploded out of my lungs as

Janco landed a solid blow to my solar plexus. I bent over, coughing and gasping for

breath.

“Funny,” Janco said. He smoothed his goatee with a hand. “You’re usually not

this easy to beat. Have I succeeded in hiding my thoughts?”

Once I regained my composure and straightened, he smiled sweetly at me. The

last time we had fought in Sitia, he had found out about my zone of concentration, a

semimagical state allowing me to notice my opponent’s intentions when I sparred

with them. This time I had tried to fight him without setting my mind into that zone.

“No. You’re still self-centered and overly cocky,” I said.

“They’re fighting words.”

“Do you need more time to rest? Now you’re management, you probably need to

expend extra energy moving that paunch.”

He swept his bow toward my legs in response and we engaged in another match.

I lost again, but kept challenging him until we were both sweat soaked and

exhausted.

“Your fighting improved as the matches went on,” Ari said. “But it wasn’t your

best.” He looked at me as if waiting for an explanation.

I shrugged. “I was trying something different.”

“It’s not working. Better go back to your old style.”

“I like her new style.” Janco piped in. “It’s good for my ego.”

Ari frowned and crossed his massive arms over his chest.

“Life or death, Ari, and I’d go back to using all my tricks. Don’t worry.”

He seemed mollified, and I hadn’t lied. When push came to shove, I knew I

would fall back on using my magic. Another problem. Magic made me lazy and

when I encountered a bad situation, I reached for it without thought. I needed to

improve my other skills, because magic wouldn’t help me against the Fire Warper.

I changed the subject and asked my friends about their new jobs. Janco regaled