Page 79 of Deadly Maiden

“How?” I ask bleakly.

He gets to the root of my question immediately. “The etharum you carry. It’s like a lighthouse. One might be unremarkable, but whatever you have, it’s more than that. Two or three crystals?”

Neither of us replies. I decide to just breathe and see what he adds. Wyntre does the same.

“You’re lucky you came in the south gate. You would’ve been stopped at the others. I can give you a box to shield what you have.”

“For what price?” Wyntre asks.

“For nothing.” He smiles, looks from her to me. “I hope to cultivate you as, maybe, helpers.”

“Helpers?” I shake my head.

“I’ll let you guess our aims. We are the Church of the Usurper or, if you like, of the Chained King. The C of U. We formed twenty years ago.”

“You want to free him.” My guess is not exactly that. I shrug. “I’ve heard rumors.”

“Clever.” He reaches into his satchel. “Before I forget.” The box he places on the table is a hand’s width on all sides, and he unlocks it with a key. “It’s iron lined to shield the magik. Here’s the key. And here is my demonstration of how well it works. This is mine.”

When he opens the lid and removes something small, Wyntre makes anOwith her mouth. Lying on his palm is a green-hued warnite crystal.

“I’m an ice mage, though not very powerful. Yet.” His eyes shimmer a frosty, blue-white then fade back to blue. “Even so, I can feel the emanations of the etharum that’s in your room. This is yours. A gift.” He slides the box to Wyntre. “If you wish to chat, you can leave a note under the shattered goblin beside the lake at the Fromeaux Library. You know the place?” He asks that of me.

“A better question is how did you know we were going to visit those?”

“Libraries? Neils can lip read. You should take more care in public.”

“Noted. Yes, I know the library and the goblin sculpture in the gardens.”

“Good. We’ll check it daily. I want you on our side, you can see that. And you may have need of us. Your posters are everywhere. The AS want you badly.”

AS means the Aos Sin, but really, it’s King Madlin who wants us.

Wyntre inhales, evidently dearly needing to question him. I shake my head, but she speaks.

“Do you know why?”

“Knowing your skills…your potential skills. We think it’s to raise his daughter.”

Shite.She died twenty years ago.

Andacc lets that sink in then he continues. “You might think us foolish because our king is where he is, but consider this: the Aos Sin have grown worse since they won the war. Being immortal doesn’t make you wiser. It makes you more powerful. And too much power for too long has brought them to a bloody reign of evil. The things I’ve seen and heard give me nightmares. Sorry.” He directs that at me. “Not meaning you with that immortal comment.”

Then the smart bastard shifts back his chair, stands, and walks away with his friend.

“That stung. It does make you wiser, sometimes.”

“Yes, dear.” Wyntre pats my hand while struggling to hold back a smile. She waits for the two fae to leave through the front door then adds, “He could be useful.”

“And definitely dangerous to associate with.”

“So are we.”

“This is true.” I take her hand, counting and caressing her cute fingers while I think. “There’s no hurry. They’ve been waiting a long time.”

“Yes.” Her mouth twists. “For as long as the king’s daughter has waited.”

How could this Church of the Usurper be useful to us? We’re not looking to start a rebellion.

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