Page 96 of A Fractured Song

“Never mind that,” Zev said impatiently. “What are we going to do about Jade?”

Kiarana shrugged. “That’s your own affair. She’s no danger to us.”

“But she spoke like she intends to start some kind of war with the Council of Singers in Oleand,” Marieke said.

Kiarana just stared back, her expression polite but disinterested.

“And she’s been usingyourtalismans to help carry out her plan!” Marieke said, frustrated.

“Any trades were conducted with full circumspection,” Kiarana said. “Her use of the talismans has nothing to do with us.”

Marieke ground her teeth in frustration, and judging by his next words, Zev felt it, too.

“And I suppose her threat to kill Marieke has nothing to do with you, either?”

“That is correct.” Kiarana nodded, pleased with their comprehension. She tilted her head to one side, the movement making the tips of her ears wobble as she examined Zev again. “I will confess to some curiosity regarding this enchantment, though. It seems sophisticated.”

Neither of the humans responded, and after another moment’s reflection, she gave a swift nod.

“It’s worth the use of power.”

With the words, Kiarana pulled out what appeared to be a magnifying glass. It was similar to ones Marieke had seen in the academy’s library, except that it was ringed with gold, and magic pulsed faintly from it as Kiarana twisted it. The elf held the glass up to Zev, clicking her fingers imperatively until he bent down so that she could reach his head.

She didn’t linger long on the area, moving the glass to his chest instead. She sent Marieke a cheeky wink as the glass hovered over Zev’s admittedly impressive muscles.

“It’s concentrated on his feet,” Marieke said, unimpressed.

The elf shifted her focus down to Zev’s boots, her green eyes lighting with interest at whatever the glass was telling her.

“You’re quite right, so it is.” She frowned in concentration for a moment, then let out a melodious whistle. “That’s sophisticated, all right. And powerful. Root and bedrock, she’d better not try to use that on any of us, or Grandmama will expel her permanently.”

“What is it?” Marieke demanded, alarmed. “What’s she done to him?”

“It’s a tracking enchantment,” Kiarana said, straightening up. “And it’s a work of art, frankly.”

“So she is planning to follow us,” Zev said, his tone grim but unsurprised.

Kiarana shook her head as she stowed the glass back in her pocket. “Not by use of that enchantment, she’s not. This one is much fiddlier. I know a little of your human ways of magic, and I suspect it’s part of the storytelling song Grandmama talks about.”

“What do you mean?” Marieke asked, uneasy.

The elf folded her arms behind her back, quite at ease.

“It tracks in reverse. It doesn’t show her where you go next, it shows her where you’ve come from to get here. She’s probably following the trail right now.”

Chapter

Twenty-Three

Fear washed over Zev at the elf’s words, time seeming to freeze as all the implications broke on him at once.

His family.

“But we came straight from Zev’s home,” Marieke said, aghast. “Do you mean she can track her way back there using just magic?”

Marieke’s eyes flew to Zev’s, a shadow of his own fear in them. They hadn’t acknowledged it aloud in their recent moment of revelation, but he knew she’d realized the same thing he had.

Jade knew who he was. Or at least, strongly suspected, like the Imperator clearly did. And Jade hadn’t seemed surprised by the information. She knew about heartsong already, whatever that meant to her.

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