Page 43 of The City of Zirdai
“We keep a close eye on the acolytes. They tend to reveal themselves by being just a bit more curious than their fellows, a bit more observant, a bit more…standoffish as if they’re better than the rest of us. They also tend to be found in places that are off-limits to acolytes. These three, though, have not shown any of those signs, but the timing of their arrival also coincides with when the current Water Prince came into power.”
“You want me to read them,” Shyla said.
“Yes.”
An uncomfortable twinge gripped her stomach. On the one hand, she wanted to help Hanif and keep the Water Prince from learning about the monks and, by association, her, but on the other hand, what if they were innocent? She’d hate to invade their privacy.
“Do they know she has woken The Eyes?” Jayden asked.
“Unfortunately, everyone in the monastery knows.” Hanif shrugged. “Something that momentous can’t be kept a secret for long.”
“Then as soon as they see her, they’ll know you don’t trust them. You might lose three good people. But if they’re working for the Water Prince, they might try to kill her.”
Oh, she hadn’t thought of that. And she needed to make eye contact to read a soul. Perhaps she could wear a turban and veil to hide her identity.
“She could assess their fighting abilities. The acolytes have a final match with a veiled monk before taking the oath.” Hanif seemed to follow her train of thought.
Except she hadn’t been practicing the Ways of the Yarin lately. “I don’t know if I’ll be a worthy opponent.”
“It doesn’t matter. Iknowthey’re good fighters, but I don’tknowif they’re trustworthy.”
In that case… “All right. But this is worth more than you getting the torques for me. You owe me another favor.” A pause. “How about admittance into the Third Room of Knowledge?”
Hanif laughed. “Nice try. I agree to another favor, but not that. Pick something else.”
“How about when the time comes, you allow Kaveri to help us with starting our own garden?”
He shot her a probing look, but she kept her expression neutral. Did Hanif really believe she hadn’t figured out Kaveri was her mother?
“Okay, but that doesn’t include providing plants,” he said. “For that I’d need you to do another task.”
Still a victory. She’d expected to have to do more for the plants. “Do you have a task in mind?”
“No, but I’m sure something will come up.”
Jayden just shook his head over their negotiations. “Can you get the torques before the fights?”
While Hanif fetched the necklaces, Shyla changed into a monk’s uniform. The stiff tan fabric was more tailored than what the acolytes wore—the tunic was shorter and it had a matching fabric belt that she tied around her waist. Shyla studied her reflection in the mirror.
She’d spent her entire childhood insisting she’d never become a monk. Not that she was one, but wearing the uniform and being a part of an assessment came close. At least the idea of being a monk no longer caused her to panic. She’d learned being a part of an organization was really just being part of a family.
She wound the turban around her short hair, keeping it small and tucked in close. Then she secured the veil so the material would not come loose while she fought.
Jayden waited for her in the training room. He met her gaze when she entered—the only part of her exposed. “I’m still having trouble getting used to your new eye color. Do any of the monks have blue eyes?”
“A couple.” It was a good thing that blue eyes weren’t that uncommon among the people in Zirdai.
Hanif returned with the torques. He gave them to Jayden and then shooed him from the room. “Only monks are allowed.” After Jayden left, Hanif turned to Shyla. “You’re going to need to be on the offensive. Can you do that?”
Before her adventures with the Invisible Sword, she’d had a hard time being an aggressor since the Ways of the Yarin focused on defense—block and then punch versus punch and then block. However, she’d learned how to attack first and ask questions later. “Yes.”
“Good.” He left but soon came back with an acolyte and two other monks.
The two monks sat on stools along the far wall. The acolyte faced her. Shyla didn’t recognize the monks, but she knew the acolyte—her name was Durva. It made sense once she thought about it. Durva and the other acolytes would have come to the monastery when Shyla was still living here.
Hanif served as the referee. “To me.”
They bowed to him.
