Page 49 of Forsaken Secrets

"No more than you're an old man," Eli said, tilting his head to the side as his lips turned into a devious smirk. "Then again, that does have a certain ring … old man."

Lynk growled, but Eli just turned back to me, face serious. "What do you think, Kaiya?"

Nope. I was not getting involved in this weird showdown between the two of them. They could do that on their own time.

I shook my head and turned to Lynk. "That still doesn't explain why you've been following us around enough to hear our plan. We don't have information on the monsters you're hunting."

He grimaced. "Trust me when I say that following you two around would not be my choice. I'm practically just keeping the area safe from the havoc you two cause. I've never met two mages so reckless with their use of magic." He stood up and started putting his papers into his bag as my brain scrambled at his use of that word again. "Besides, who's to say that I've not been coming here to listen to the weeping cliffs and work in peace?"

"The weeping cliffs?" Eli asked, looking between the two of us.

My mind remained stuck on that word, though … mages …

And the way he'd said it, as though it were obvious.

"Listen, lordling," Lynk said, gesturing towards the ocean, "and you'll hear what I mean."

They couldn't find out about me, though. What if they worked for the Empire and turned me in? What would happen to my aunt? She'd surely lose the estate!

A low wail echoed in the distance, half roar, and half cry. I barely heard it.

"Holy — what is that?" Eli turned to us, eyes wide.

"It's the vrytra in the bay," I muttered, mind still on Lynk's words.

Eli stared, jaw agape, out at the water. "But why? Why are they crying?"

"People say that they're mourning something, but no one really knows what." I stepped to Lynk's side and crouched, helping pick up papers and passing them to him. "It started after the last plague and has gotten worse in the last year."

My heart thundered in my ears as I debated how to ask my question. We'd always assumed my magic was broken. That's the only way I could have passed the Seeker's tests! But if he knew …

Could I just let it pass? I mean, Eli hadn't brought it up …

"I know what you're thinking, little thief," Lynk whispered, voice low enough that only I could hear. The gravelly timbre sent a tingle down my spine. "But, you aren't broken. Your magic just hasn't fully matured yet. Eventually, you'll need to learn to shield, too."

My jaw dropped. "I — I don't know what you're talking about. Seekers have tested me at least a dozen times and I've been clean each time."

Stuffing the last paper into the sack, we both stood, and he knotted it closed. "I've seen this before. Your powers are just numb, but that numbing won't help protect you from wraiths."

I stepped back, heart pounding loudly in my ears. "Wraiths? No — there are no wraiths around here. Our city is blessed!"

Lynk laughed bitterly. "Blessed with me, little thief. Though the two of you have made that job much harder lately. Damn shades are especially drawn to you."

He was a mage. He knew I was a mage. Eli was a mage.

Brow lifted, Lynk shifted his glare to Eli, "You, at least should know how to shield better than you do. What do your employers teach anymore if not basic skills like that?"

Eli grumbled some response, but I couldn't hear it. My mind just kept repeating the same words over and over … he knew. He actually knew.

"Whoa. Kaiya, you okay over there. You're looking a little pale …" Eli said at the same time as I felt a pressure on my shoulder.

I looked between the men, mind racing. Eli just looked worried, and Lynk wore his normal, angry scowl.

They'd just discovered that I was a mage and weren't running away screaming …

Then again, both were mages themselves, so perhaps that was what made the difference?

Who were they, though, to be free? Were they free?

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