Page 66 of Joy Guardian

“But it makes no sense,” I argued. “What pleasure can they feel when they’re caught and sold like cattle? There’ll be no joy to sell. They hurt those humans for no purpose.”

“What do we care?” Malis tucked her little blade into a loop on the net of cords and belts over her chest. “We don’t have the gold to pay for any joy anyway—not to Joy Guardians, not to the pleasure traders.”

“But we don’t charge for Joy,” I winced at the idea. “Anyone is free to come to the temple and connect to our Source.”

“Oh yeah?” Malis scoffed. “No one can even come near your fucking temple without jingling a fat purse of gold.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Trade me your fancy gold skirt for my rags,” she challenged. “See if they’ll let you in your own temple as a commoner.”

“Everyone is welcome to come and pray,” I protested, even as a heavy feeling descended into the pit of my stomach. “Are you telling me you’ve been denied access to the Source at some point?”

The temple was open only six days a week for a few hours a day, since many needed the night to travel there. The space was limited, of course, and the Joy Guardians relied on the offerings brought by the visitors. But I never heard of anyone being denied entry even if they didn’t bring anything.

“At some point?”Malis repeated my words mockingly. “Theyneverlet someone like us in. We’ve never been inside the temple, not to mention ever tasted your precious Joy.”

“One has to pay a lot of money before they even allow you to go on a pilgrimage,” Gefred explained.

“But it can’t be true. I never knew…” I sank to the sand, weighted down by this discovery.

Only how could it be true?

Yes, the Joy Guardians lived solely on donations. We survived on the food brought to the temple by the worshipers. But we didn’t need much. With hundreds of people passing through six days a week, we had more than enough food for ourselves and often even donated it to various cities, including Kalmena. We kept no servants and had few possessions.

To my knowledge, we didn’t need any money. But even if we did, the connection with the Source of Joy was every shadow fae’s birthright. No one had the privilege to charge money for it.

Gefred twirled my dagger between his fingers.

“Good weapon.” He clicked his tongue approvingly. “Real iron. But it looks rather plain. With all the money the temple has been raking in, one would think you’d have everything covered in gold and precious stones.”

“The riches of a Joy Guardian are not in what he has but in what he knows,” I replied mechanically, steel reeling from my most recently acquired knowledge about the temple’s operations.

“So, what is it you know that is so valuable?” Malis snapped.

“Right now, I just know that I need to find those who took Ciana. Then I’ll have to bring her back.”

“Good luck with that.” Malis turned around to leave.

But Gefred lingered.

“What if I knew where the pleasure traders were right now?” he asked, kicking the sand. “How much would that piece ofknowledgecost, you think?”

“Gefred.” Malis tugged him by his skirt. “Stay out of it.”

“Do you really know where they are?” I asked suspiciously. “Ifso, take all of this.” I offered him my entire satchel. “I’ll trade everything I own for their location.”

“What good is your bag to me?” He scowled at the satchel. “I don’t have the skills to use any of your gadgets. And even if I did, I can find my way back home to Teekse without your crystal that shows stars in daylight.”

“Exactly,” Malis chimed in. “As long as we stay on this side of that rock…” she pointed at a tall boulder sticking out from the sand to our right, “we know where we are. And if we need to go anywhere farther, we travel at night like all normal people do.”

“But I have nothing else to trade,” I said.

“Oh yes, you do.” Gefred inched closer. “If I tell you where their camp is, I want you to let me into your temple.”

Malis’s eyes flared with interest.

“Us,” she added quickly. “You’ll have to let both of us in.”

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