Page 29 of The Seeker
Rhys spoke softly. “I have no interest in exposing you. I came to help.”
“Then leave me alone.” She stood, tossing a ten-dollar bill on the table. Her fingers were shaking. “Go back to Istanbul, Rhys. Go back to your books and your scrolls and leave me alone.”
He calledDamien as soon as he arrived back at the guest house.
“Rhys—?”
“Tell me what is going on. Do you know who this woman is? Why am I here? So I can find the Wolf? What the hell is really going on?”
Damien was quiet.
“Damien?”
“I’ve told you as much as I can tell you about Meera. And as far as I know, your assignment is exactly what was told to you: find the Wolf and record her magic in whatever way you can so it can be shared and spread to martial singers around the world.”
Rhys tried not to grind his teeth.How to get more information?
“Okay, tell me about Patiala.”
Damien released a breath. “She’s a friend. One of Sari’s closest friends, though they’ve never met in person. Patiala went into hiding with Anamitra for some time after the Rending. They weren’t in Udaipur when the Grigori attacked, which is why the fortress was lightly guarded and so many singers were killed. Eventually they reemerged, and the library resumed its former activities, though Anamitra, her family, and the Tomir order never left its walls again. They weren’t hidden like other havens were, but they as good as disappeared.”
“And her mate?”
“Maarut of the Tomir. He wasn’t drafted into the order. Like me, he is the heir of its commander.”
“Mikael’s line?”
“No. The Tomir descend directly from Uriel. Theirtalesmtraditions are different than Mikael’s, though no less martial. There are very few records of their battles because they don’t fight many.”
“With a reputation like they have, that’s surprising.”
“They have a different mindset. The Tomir believe that if a battle must be fought, a failure has already occurred. Though they never shrink from protecting those under their guard, they prefer to work in stealth, and negotiation is always their first tactic. Their relationship to the singers of Udaipur is long-standing.”
“Bodyguards?”
“It’s more than that. They are symbiotic, a hidden community within a hidden community. Very, very secretive. The Tomir don’t train in Udaipur—their historical home is in Kashmir—but they all serve Udaipur for part of their life. It’s considered a very high honor, and most of the singers of Udaipur take their mates from the Tomir scribes.”
“Like Patiala and Maarut, Meera’s parents.”
“Yes. I’m fairly sure that Patiala and Maarut’s mating was arranged, though Sari says they are completely devoted to each other. If you encounter Maarut, don’t treat him like a warrior; he is a guardian. The Tomir revere Anamitra and her line. Their prime directive the past two thousand years has been her protection. And of course that protection would extend to her heir.” Damien paused. “And… that’s all I can tell you about that.”
Translation: Sari is listening and I’m not allowed to spill any more secrets.
“Understood,” Rhys said.
The next night,Rhys was tapping away on his laptop, answering email inquiries regarding the Istanbul library while he enjoyed the cool evening in the courtyard of the guesthouse. He’d just finished answering the last message when he sensed another scribe approaching.
The magic was strong and it was not familiar.
The scribe made no attempt to conceal his power, and his magic heralded his arrival like a forward guard sounding trumpets. Rhys felt it approaching from beyond the gate, and the two humans lingering in the courtyard moved away, back into the rooms that surrounded them, without a single word.
The scribe who walked into the courtyard was not only magically impressive but physically imposing. He was as tall as Rhys but broad at the shoulder with a heavy beard and long dark hair braided down his back. Histalesmwere wrought with immaculate precision on his forearms, neck, and collar, and Rhys knew a warrior of this man’s power would likely have spells inked from his neck to his knees, if not farther down his legs.
Rhys met the man’s eyes and didn’t look away.
Seeing Maarut made Rhys twice as glad he’d already spoken to his watcher. If he hadn’t known anything about the Tomir order, he would have assumed the scribe was coming to kill him, that was how intimidating the man felt. After all, if Rhys was right and Meera was the heir of Anamitra, he’d been badgering the woman with questions and intruding on her privacy.
The Tomir were charged with Meera’s protection, and if Rhys’s suspicions were correct, this particular warrior was Meera’s father. But though Maarut’s expression revealed nothing, his magic didn’t feel aggressive. It announced his power and nothing more.
