Page 88 of The City of Zirdai
The ribbon of magic glowed inside him. Once again it resembled a druk lantern only opened a crack. The edges around that gap were sharp and ragged. Shyla reached toward the glow as if seeking his thoughts. She grasped the ends of the lantern and pulled them apart.
Memories gushed from the opening as it widened.A vagrant woman lies broken and mutilated, blood pooling under her body. Her head lolls to the side and she meets Mojag’s gaze right before the light in her eyes dies. A man—no, a guard—straddles her, raising his knife for another unneeded strike. An anguished cry slices the air as another man tackles the guard to the ground. They fight until two more guards arrive and drag the man to his feet. Then they beat him to death right in front of his son who is hiding in a dark corner.
“Mom! Dad!” Mojag cried as the scene repeated. Pain and grief surged through his body, rubbing him raw.
“What’s going on?” Gurice demanded. She grabbed her brother, hugging him close.
Shyla reversed her efforts, closing the lantern.
Mojag’s hand shot out and clutched her wrist. “No. Don’t. Keep going. Let it out. Let itallout.”
She exchanged a look with Gurice, seeking his sister’s permission.
“Please,” Mojag said.
Gurice nodded and Shyla pulled the lantern wide open. Mojag jerked as more memories poured from the rift. Horrible images of all the terrible things he’d witnessed since his parents’ murder. Then came the guilt over what he’d done in his short life, including when he sold Shyla to the deacons.
The poor boy thrashed and wailed and cried. Tears streamed down his face and he clamped onto his sister as if she alone could keep him from being washed away. Sobs racked his body. Then the images faded. The painful memories dulled to a throb. Mojag sucked in a deep breath, relaxed, and fell asleep.
Gurice held him tight. “Did it work?”
“I don’t know.” Shyla wished she could forget Mojag’s terrible memories. She understood why he’d want to get rid of them. Despite the purge, they still remained with him. At least they weren’t nearly as sharp. “We’ll find out when he wakes up.”
“Son of a sand demon, you did it, didn’t you?” Jayden demanded from the doorway. “He’s just a boy.”
“No, he isn’t,” Shyla said. “He hasn’t been since his parents died.”
Jayden glared at her. Then he swooped in and picked Mojag up in his arms, cradling him to his chest. “If you harmed him, we’re leaving.” He turned his anger on Gurice. “And you’re not invited.”
Fourteen
Jayden carried Mojag from Shyla’s room. Gurice stared at the doorway. “After our parents died in one of the Water Prince’s raids, Jayden helped us so much. Mojag was unruly, sullen, prone to angry outbursts, and I didn’t know what to do with him. Mojag considers Jayden his brother.” She huffed. “A better sibling than me, that’s for sure.”
“No.” Shyla put her hand on her shoulder. “You’re doing a good job. He had a traumatic experience at such a young age. Witnessing your parents’ murder is not something you recover from without some permanent scars.”
“Wait.” Gurice turned to her. “He saw them being killed?”
Oops. “You didn’t know?”
She slumped. “We found him hiding in a trunk. I’d assumed our dad told him to stay there and not to come out no matter what. He wouldn’t come out for a long time. And, when he did, he didn’t talk for a circuit afterwards. I never asked if he saw anything.”
“He’s been holding that inside for a long time and needed to release it. You did a good thing, Gurice.”
“I hope so.” She tilted her head at the wall. “It’s dry. Does that prove something?”
Shyla added heat to her gaze. Her name shone on the wall. “It does!” She grinned at her friend.
“Uh-oh. Why do I have a feeling I’m not going to like what’s next?”
“How would you like to be the first person to take the oath for the new archive of the Invisible Sword?”
“Like a new beginning?”
“Yes. Exactly.”
“Is it going to hurt?”
“I’ve no idea.”
