Page 81 of A Conduit of Light
Hechuckled lightly and she finally brought her eyes to his face.Questionupon question swirled through her mind, and she attempted a steadiness to ask them.
“Yes.Isaid as much toBaronRevich, but…Iwished to discuss something else.”
Heraised his brows, sipping more black tea, his gloved hand a contrast to the delicate white porcelain cup adorned in blue and purple violets.
“It’saboutHyrithia.”
“Oh?Iwould think you know more of the subject thanIwould.”
“Imean about you andHyrithia.Hadyou ever been there before?Beforeyou came to take me?”
Henarrowed his brows from across the table, setting his cup down on its saucer with a clink before answering. “Yes,Ihave been toHyrithiaon occasion.Whydo you ask?”
“Whenwas the last time before you arrived to bring me here?”
Heshifted in his seat. “Manyyears before,Karus.TheBaronofFelgrendoes occasionally meet with the leaders of the isle outside of the forest.Wehave duties to attend to with the settlements.Tradeand conduit business as you can imagine.Whatare you leading to?”
“IrealizedI’venever asked you how you negotiated myOfferingwith theQueen.Itall happened so fast,Ididn’t have the opportunity to speak to her about it.”
“So, you’re wondering howIwas able to convince her to get you here?”
“Howdid you hear of theBlackFever?Didyou know about my presence inHyrithiabefore or after the outbreak?”
Herose from his chair, clasping gloved hands behind his back, gazing out the window of the bed chamber. “You’dlike to hear the story then, of howIcured theBlackFeverand received you as payment?”
“Iwould.”
“ThenIwill oblige you.Itis just as much your story as mine, after all.Onemore event that connects the two of us, my dear.And, perhaps you will remember,Itried to tell you this very story on your first visit toViridis.”Heturned to her and gave her a half smile. “You, of course, were not ready to hear it.”
“IknowRevichfound me.Iknow that he used his rhyzolm to discoverIwas inHyrithia.Iwant to know what happened next.”
“Yes, that is what happened in the simplest of terms.Yousee,Karus, when aBaronuses a rhyzolm to find a channeler, it’s not as if a beacon of light shines from their current place of residence.It’smore of a feeling, deep within his chest, a pull to the general vicinity.Whenthe saidBarongets closer, a face begins to appear with features becoming more distinct and prominent the closer he gets.Itis then that we are able to tell if it is a man or woman we seek as well as their hair color, skin color, eye color, and so forth.Questionsare asked around until we are able to discover a name to give an officialOffering.”
“But…you could not give anOfferingto a resident ofHyrithia, not one who was born within its walls.”
“No.Dueto theTreaty,Icould not just give you anOfferingas you were.Ialso understood after discovering more about you, that you would likely decline one.”
“So, theBlackFevergave you an opportunity—”
“Itwas months of letters with theQueenbefore theBlackFeverfell upon your city.Sherefused to let you go, andIrefused to back down from negotiations.”Heturned to her and smiled dimly. “Itwas a sorrowful affair, but my own good fortune when the fever spread throughHyrithia.”
“Becauseyou could cure it…for a price.”
“BecauseIsaw a way to bring you here.Now, that may make you think less of me, butIam a resourceful man.Andstill, it took almost three months to discover a cure.Donot think thatIwas not working withBaronRevichto help save your people, just as all conduits of the city were doing at the time.”
“Revichhelped find the cure?”
“Hedid.Heworked as tirelessly asIdid to bring you here.Hehas always understood the importance in you being brought here whether he believed you would be useful or not.Andnow we know that you are not just powerful, but have a connection to theBlightwhich we did not expect.Inmy eyes, it is just more evidence that you arrived just as you should, in the place you were always meant to be.”
Shelooked down to his black gloved hand upon her shoulder as he stood behind her.Ahaunting chill ran down her spine as her stomach threatened to purge its contents.
Hisstory made sense enough—but the timing still worried at her.Betweenthe ‘negotiations’, as he had called them, and theBlackFeverinfecting thePrincejust before he cured the city…
“Whendid theQueenfinally accept your terms?”
“Whenher son was infected, of course.Sheheld a strong front until then, weakened by the love of her child as most mothers are.”
“Howconvenient for you—that her son was infected and she had to choose between his life or mine.”
