Page 87 of The Rebel's Prize

"It's not an Andalyssian temple," Chloe countered.

"No, it is not. And I will confess I miss the scent of proper incense, but given the goddess had not seen fit to object to how you Illvyans do it, it is hardly my place."

"You must miss home."

"I will see it again," Silya said, sounding confident. "It has not been so long. And the goddess has not told me to leave."

Sparks drifted up from the fire, catching Chloe's attention. "You saw ravens flying north," she said slowly. "But we didn't make it all the way north."

"No, but that was the direction our quarry lay." Silya made a soft noise Chloe couldn't interpret. "A vision is a guide, not a map."

"I will take your word for it."

Silya tilted her head. "You have never had a message from the goddess? I thought water mages had the skill."

"Some," Chloe said. "Some have foretelling. But not me." She shivered briefly. It wasn't entirely true. She'd had moments of knowing. Of seeing something in the glint of water or glass. But she had never pursued that part of her magic. She would never claim to know the future. She wasn't sure she wanted to. That was more for people like Deandra.

"Are you sure?" Silya asked. "There is something—" She broke off, shaking her head suddenly.

"Have you seen something? Anything that might help?"

"No. The goddess is quiet. Perhaps she is waiting for the Anglion queen to arrive before she shows us the way. Or perhaps we will find it without her. Where is your husband tonight?"

"He was called back to the palace."

"To see the prisoners?"

"I think so."

"Without you?" Silya looked surprised.

"I'm not a Truth Seeker."

"You are bonded to one. And clearly you are bound up in this matter. It has shaped your life, has it not? Whatever these plotters want?"

"I suppose," Chloe said. "Though not by my choice."

"Though you could choose now," Silya said softly. "Ask the goddess to show you a path. Perhaps she will answer."

Chloe shivered. "Why would she talk to me when she won't speak to her own seer?"

"That is not for me to know. But one thing I have learned in my time in her service is that she finds it easier to speak if you are listening."

"Perhaps," Chloe said. She stared at the flames. "Illvyans use liquid for scrying."

"Do you truly think that matters to the goddess?" Silya asked. "Just quiet your mind and see what happens."

There was no graceful way to get out of at least making an attempt. Or the semblance of an attempt.

She closed her eyes. The glimpses she'd been granted before, so fleeting she'd never been sure they weren't imagined, had required water, yes, but maybe she should trust Silya.

Help me, she thought for want of anything more eloquent.Help me bring peace to your lands.

There was no immediate answer. No voice tolling like a bell through her mind to offer her wisdom. But still she held for a moment, knowing if she gave up too quickly it was likely that Silya would just tell her to try again.

Her thoughts wandered, thinking of everything that had happened. Lucien and Charl and Deandra. Magic and mayhem and love lost and found. Death and beginnings. Lucien. Always back to him.

He was still too far away for her to truly feel the bond, but in her mind, she could almost see it. A river of sparks, stretching from her heart, twining through the air. Like part of the ley line had floated above the earth, perhaps. Or at least part of it seen through Lucien's eyes. There was no sound, just light, light that flickered and danced at first and then solidified into an arc so bright that she felt dazzled even though it wasn't real.

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