Page 103 of The Study of Magic
“Thank my cousin, Ambrose. He’d be displeased with me if you died. Frankly, I think death is the best cure for stupidity.”
“Noted.”
After she left, Valek thanked his agents, Brigi and Gabor. “How did you find me?”
“After Ambassador Signe alerted us to your capture, we just followed Cahil from the Council Hall. He tried to be stealthy, but…” Brigi shrugged.
“We found his house without trouble,” Gabor said. “But the amount of people he had guarding the place made it impossible to get you out. We had to wait until they moved you. And wait for an opportunity to attack. Which was when all their focus was on you.”
“And we only had seconds to act,” Brigi added.
“Why did you endanger the Ambassador for this mission?” Valek asked.
“She insisted. And, damn, she has great aim and speed.” Gabor mimed blowing multiple puffs with his blowpipe.
“You are extremely lucky on multiple accounts.” Brigi unwound her long brown hair and combed her fingers through it. “First, that the Ambassador knew where this safe house is located. Second, that Cahil waited to hang you and chose a remote location. Third, that we had just enough sleeping juice for everyone. However, it wasn’t enough to keep them down for long. The manhunt for you has probably started. I suggest you bunk with us until you can escape back to Ixia.”
That was an excellent suggestion. However, he couldn’t leave without finding Yelena and killing Ferde.
They helped him treat his wounds. With all the adrenaline of almost being hanged, Valek hadn’t noticed any pain. Now, as Brigi cleaned and bandaged the raw abrasions on his neck and wrists, Valek gritted his teeth. Gabor made him a cup of tea and a bowl of soup laced with pain powder. His throat burned with each swallow, and not because of the temperature.
Valek raided the closet for a set of soft clothes to sleep in. Inspecting the other garments and disguises, he searched for inspiration. He’d need a damn good disguise if he was going to go out in public.
Gabor offered his bed to Valek, but he settled on the couch with the conviction he’d fall asleep instantly. Except, the images Yelena had sent him when he’d been trying to escape Cahil’s noose resurfaced as soon as he closed his eyes. Now that he wasn’t fighting for his life, Valek tried to slow the visions down so he could examine them. In one, an older woman who resembled Yelena clung for dear life to the upper branches of a tree. The limbs swung wildly in a storm. Either Yelena imagined her life would never be calm, or it was her mother.
The next flash was of Ari and Janco sitting next to a campfire and arguing. Surrounded by long grasses, they appeared to be camping in the Avibian Plains. No doubt lost due to the Sandseeds’ magic.
Many visions of Kiki surfaced. The horse talked to Yelena, giving her advice:Trust is peppermints. No stool in wild. Moon Man smart. Magic Lady.Valek wondered if Yelena’s magic allowed her to communicate with her horse. That would explain how they had been so in sync in the pasture.
Another mental image showed a woman brandishing a knife. Valek sat up in alarm. He recognized the gray-eyed magician. Alea. Had she been the one to capture Yelena? Was she working with Ferde? It made sense. Alea hated both him and Yelena for killing her brother, Mogkan. She wanted revenge. And the siblings had longed to rule Ixia and Sitia. What better way to achieve those goals than for one of your members to gain enough magic to conquer the Sitian Council and then Ixia? Same objective, different path. Valek added her to his list of people-he-must-kill.
Valek eventually laid back down. Not all the images were disturbing, and he clung to the one of Yelena climbing through a village in the tree canopy. Happy and relaxed, she laughed at the little monkeys that flew and swung through the branches with a nimble dexterity. He remembered the statue of one that he’d admired in her rooms at the Keep. It’d been well crafted with a bunch of colored stones. He wondered if he could do the same with his rocks. Finally, he drifted off to sleep.
* * *
The scent of fried eggs woke him...later. The curtains remained closed, but slivers of sunlight peeked through the gaps. He found Gabor crouched in front of the kitchen’s small hearth.
“Breakfast?” Valek asked hopefully.
“Lunch.”
He groaned. The morning had been wasted.
Gabor dumped the eggs on a plate and gestured for Valek to sit down at the table. “Eat.”
“I am the boss,” he grumbled as he sat.
“So the rumors claim. Personally, I think Kenda runs the show.”
Valek would have responded, but he was too busy shoveling eggs into his mouth. Gabor added a cup of tea and buttered bread to the meal. When Valek finished eating, he leaned back.
“I’ve news,” Gabor said. “Brigi works as a horse trainer in the council’s stables. This morning, the master magicians mounted up with a full cavalry of armed guards to search for Yelena in the plains.”
“At least they didn’t waste the morning,” Valek said.
Gabor smiled. “They didn’t get far. Yelena and her horse were apparently on their way back to the Citadel.”
Valek straightened. “Why didn’t you start with that! Is she okay?”
