Page 63 of The Eyes of Tamburah
“Yes, it has to do with the symbol. But it’s probably just a legend.”
“So we’re no closer to finding The Eyes?”
“The diggers—”
“No leads.”
She cursed. “Then that vial is all we’ve got.”
“And the symbol?”
“According to Banqui, it represents a secret group who claim they have magical abilities. He believes they stole The Eyes.”
“I haven’t heard of an organization like that.”
“Of course not. It’s a secret!”
He glared at her.
“Sorry. But they don’t have magic. No one does.”
“The Heliacal Priestess—”
“Think about it. Have you truly seen her or her deacons do anything magical?”
“The monks—”
“I lived with them for eighteen circuits. No magic.”
“The Eyes—”
“Artifacts. Valuable not magical.”
“If magic doesn’t exist then this group shouldn’t exist either,” Rendor said.
“I said theyclaimto have magic. I can claim to be the Queen of Koraha, but it doesn’t mean it’s true. Regardless, I need to follow up.”
Rendor fingered the hilt of his sword. “Then we have a problem. I’ve orders to arrest you.”
She tensed. The desire to bolt pumped through her heart, but she’d have to climb over Rendor. Instead she remained sitting. “In that case, he will never get The Eyes.”
“But you said they didn’t have magic.”
“It doesn’t matter if they do or not. My deal with the prince was The Eyes in exchange for Banqui.”
“You care for him,” he said a little too casually.
“He’s my only friend. He gave me a chance when none of the others would acknowledge my very existence, so, yeah, I care for him.” She stood and glanced down at Rendor. “Are you going to arrest me?”
His shoulders drooped. “This is probably going to get me killed, but no. Not yet.”
The wave of relief almost knocked her over. “Then I need to return to the monastery.”
“Weneed to. I’m not letting you out of my sight.”
She was smart enough not to argue. “Let’s go before it gets too hot.”
Rendor grabbed his things. They took the lift. Rendor remained quiet the entire trip up to level twenty. But as they traveled to the surface, he asked her, “Why are you protecting those vagrants? They tried to kill you.”
