“I don’t need you to trust me.”
“But you want me to. I can read it all over your face. Ugh! Did they even try to teach you how to false-face in that barbaric land of yours?” The man grimaced, his face somewhere between a wince and a snarl. Despite herself, Kaiya regretted the words.
“You’re better at the Sight than you let on. You have not yet been wrong.”
“So what are you hiding? Tell me.” The demand in her statement burned the air between them. “Tell me!”
“You would not believe me if I did. Look at me. Tell me yourself what you see.”
“I see eagerness . . . frustration . . . apprehension . . .”
“No!” The Croeli’s pale eyes narrowed as he stared at Kaiya from across the corridor that separated them. His voice rose in pitch as he spoke. “Don’t look at the emotions in the face! Look at the face itself! Look at the bridge of the nose, the angle of the ears, the apex of the eyes! What do you see, Kaiya?” Kaiya tensed at the casual use of her name, but stared hard, searching his features. Her gaze roamed his face, his ears, his nose, his eyes . . .
And she saw it.
Broken blade. No . . .
The shock came almost like a mortal blow, and Kaiya stumbled backward, landing heavily on the floor. She stared at the base of the door that separated her from something she did not quite want to admit out loud.
“You . . . you look like me. You’re . . . my cousin? My uncle?” The words sounded foreign as they passed her lips.
“No, Kai—” He caught himself and tried again. The words were low, but clear, and each new phrase hung in the air between the cells. “You don’t know me, but I’ve known you since you were
born. I watched our mother drop you off at that monastery before bringing me to the Croeli grove north of here, near the Blackfeather Wilds. I have always known you.” The Croeli’s voice was low, almost a whisper. “I went to your monastery every chance I could, and I watched you grow. I wanted to know the sister I was never allowed to see. I was supposed to hate your kind, and a part of me did. A part of me loathes everything you are and everything you stand for, but I still watched. I watched you learn to walk and sing. I watched you learn to fight and dance. I watched you become a goddess in your own right—a warrior goddess and a strong woman that knew nothing of the plight of my people. I watched you become an embodiment of all the things the Croeli despise.
“When our father sent me to watch your temple, I knew my people would try to breach the gap that your kind had forced between us. I had hoped that future negotiations would allow me to speak to you as a brother and an ally rather than as an enemy. I never knew that one of my superiors had meant to destroy a people that, despite our differences, were truly beautiful. The Faoii were majestic. I realize that now. I thought that all of my people were in agreement—that they were planning to strengthen both races by offering an alliance. Had I known . . .” he drifted off, but Kaiya could not get her mouth to make any sounds that could serve as a proper response. “I am sorry, Kaiya. I always wanted to be nearby so that I could protect you. I did not realize I would need to protect you from me.”
Kaiya tried to scream that she didn’t need his protection. She didn’t need a brother. She tried to tell him to stop saying her name, because by the eternal blade, he did not deserve to speak to her at all.
Instead the words came out differently. They were strained, barely louder than a murmur.
“What should I call you?”
“My name is Croeli-Tendaji.”
Tendaji.
She had a brother named Tendaji.
There was silence for a long time, and Kaiya knew he was waiting for a response. She could not come up with any. After several minutes, she heard a weak groan as he lowered himself to the ground once more. She realized now why it had taken him so long to bring his face to the window in the door. Her heart clenched involuntarily.
“You are injured,” she said. It was a statement rather than a question.
“Yes.” It was an equally simple statement, and Kaiya was surprised at his honest response. She felt that she would have tried to hide weakness from a stranger. An enemy.
But a brother?
Kaiya leaned her head against the wall and looked at the ceiling. The blackness of the cell hurt her eyes.
“And that makes Thinir . . . what?”
“Our uncle. A traitor. An enemy.”
Kaiya shut her eyes. She didn’t want to hear any more. Not while she was trapped here, in a cell next to a man she didn’t want to know, imprisoned by the hands of everything she despised. She couldn’t sit here listening to stories that changed everything while all that she’d ever loved lay forgotten and desecrated somewhere beyond these barred walls. She let the darkness and the quiet envelop her.
Eventually the solitude of her own mind became too much to bear, and Kaiya licked her lips. “How long have you been down here?” she finally asked the darkness. There was a rustle of cloth, and Kaiya could almost visualize the shrug that accompanied it.
“I have lost count. It was spring when I arrived in Clearwall. It could not have been more than a few days later that I woke up in here.” Kaiya pinched her brow. It was almost autumn now. He had been left to rot here for months. He could have died from the cold and damp. As though reading her thoughts, Tendaji coughed dryly from his cell, but the hiss that followed was one of pain rather than illness.
“How bad is it?” Kaiya whispered. She did not want to admit to herself that she cared about the response, but she waited in nervous anticipation for the reply.
“It . . .” A pause. “It is not good, Faoii.” Kaiya frowned, thinking hard.
“If I can get us out of here, would you be able to walk until we got somewhere safe?” That slight chuckle again. Kaiya wasn’t sure whether she was beginning to like it or hate it.
“If you can manage that, I can manage to hold my own.”
“Good.”
9
It couldn’t have been much past midnight when Kaiya heard a single pair of boots make their way down the stairwell. She wasn’t sure, but it seemed like the newcomer was trying to move stealthily. She listened to see how Tendaji would react, but heard nothing. Warily, she stood and waited for what would come.
“Faoii?” The whisper was louder than necessary, and sounded awkward in the silence. Kaiya raised an eyebrow.
“Harkins?” She moved to the door and looked through the window there. Harkins stood uneasily in the torchlight, peering through the darkness. He straightened when he saw her.
“You can call me Emery, ma’am. I tried to come earlier, but I could only get this night shift. They don’t like young soldiers watching the prisoners.”
“Don’t apologize, Emery. I was not expecting any aid at all.” She peered at the young man. His steel-grey eyes were wide with nervousness and fear. No, not just fear. Absolute terror. She sighed through the bars. “Emery, are you sure about this? You can go back upstairs, and no one would ever know. You don’t have to commit treason.” He gave her a slight grin, and some of the fear faded away.
“In my opinion, Faoii, the real treason is following that . . . thing.” Emery undid the bolt as silently as he could, but the rusted metal rang through the room. They both froze and listened for sounds on the stairs. After a moment, Emery eased the door open.
“You knew about Lucius’s usurpation?”
“I knew that the man who was giving me orders was not the man I’d sworn fealty to. And after I watched him kill the Faoii that came before you . . .” He shook his head. “I would have been gone by now if I didn’t have a feeling there was still something I could do.” Emery cut the rope that bound Kaiya’s wrists, and she rubbed her hands together, trying to bring the circulation back. She smiled at him as she did.
“That was the Goddess speaking to you. I’m sure you’ve made Her proud.”
“Thank you, ma’am, but I think we should go.” He fumbled with his sword belt and removed it hastily. �
��I brought your fao . . . fan . . . I brought your sword, Faoii.” He handed her the belt with the too-large scabbard attached, but Kaiya recognized the fantoii’s hilt. She buckled it over her worn tunic as Emery moved toward the stairs. “Follow me. I’ve loaded up a wagon with your armor. We should be able to make it there before anyone realizes that no one is on guard.”
“Wait.” Kaiya moved to Tendaji’s cell. Emery pulled at her wrist.
“Don’t, Faoii. Do you know who’s in there? He’s one of them.” Emery’s hiss was shrill and desperate, but Kaiya didn’t pause.
“I know who he is, Emery. He’s coming with us.” Emery eyed the door warily but said nothing. Tendaji’s bolt loosened with less of a screech than hers had, and Kaiya swung the door open.
Tendaji was almost a head taller than Kaiya, and she’d been one of the tallest girls in the monastery, despite her young age. He was thinner than she had expected, but as she looked at his high, jutting cheekbones and gaunt features, she wondered if that was from malnourishment. His ragged tunic hung limply on his atrophied frame. The stained and bloodied side of the tattered cloth also hinted at a man who had suffered for too long at the hands of a captor who showed no mercy. Despite herself, Kaiya pitied the Croeli. Even the nomadic Danhaid Tribes to the south took care of their prisoners.
Tendaji’s pale blue eyes were piercing and steady, but he stooped more than was comforting and kept an arm carefully wrapped around his middle. Even so, when Tendaji moved, he flowed more than walked, and his steps were light and silent. Kaiya was impressed. She could move in shadows with the grace and prowling instinct of a cat if she wanted to, but this Croeli seemed capable of becoming the shadow itself. A world of difference from the horned demons that had attacked her home.
Tendaji glided into the central part of the prison before inclining his head thoughtfully to Emery.
“I thank you for this release. I hope I may prove to you that I am not the traitor you think I am.” Emery did not reply but looked to Kaiya. She drew her fantoii a short way from its borrowed sheath.
“We’d better get moving. Croeli, will you be all right?” Tendaji nodded once, straightening his shoulders without so much as a grimace. Kaiya nodded to Emery. “Lead on, soldier.”
*~*
Emery was no thief, but he did a decent job of sneaking as he led the two prisoners from the dungeon. His movements were quick and sometimes awkward, but not bad for an untrained youth. Kaiya and Tendaji followed him like panthers stalking their prey, watching in all directions for trouble. They were lucky. With Emery’s guidance, they turned down several empty halls, and other than one heart-pounding minute of crouching behind a low-set table as an unexpected servant passed, they reached a rather barren room without incident.
“Where are we?” Kaiya whispered after Emery closed the worn wooden door.
“In an overstock pantry, ma’am,” Emery whispered back, pulling an unlit torch from the wall. “It’s not being used right now, but it’ll be filled by the end of the season.” He lit the torch care- fully and crept to a trapdoor at the far end of the room. Kaiya and Tendaji followed close behind and peered down into the blackness. “I’m afraid it’s going to be cold. It would have looked suspicious if I’d grabbed cloaks.” Kaiya glanced at Tendaji, who was hunched over the trap door, still clutching his side. The tremors in his arms and legs were more pronounced, but Kaiya couldn’t tell whether they were from fever, exhaustion, or pain. Maybe it was a mixture of all three. She frowned.
“But why the pantry, Emery?”
“It’s the taxes pantry. It leads to the tax collector’s office. That’s where I left the cart.” He frowned. “I know it’s not fitting for a Faoii, but I didn’t know another route . . .”
Kaiya smiled. “It’s perfect, Emery.” He blushed a bit as he descended the steps. Kaiya followed, and Tendaji came last, reaching up to close the trapdoor behind him.
As he reached upward, Tendaji’s tunic shifted, and Kaiya saw the true extent of his injuries for the first time. Blood caked his tunic, and shiny crimson flowed from a wound that must have been aggravated in their escape. With a sickening twinge, she eyed the bulge of a rib that had not been allowed to heal properly and a back covered with the crisscross markings of a whip. She couldn’t imagine the pain a rib like that would cause Tendaji every time he shifted, and for the first time in her life, she wished that she had trained to be Cleroii instead of Faoii.
Tendaji stumbled a bit on the last step, but Kaiya refrained from assisting him. It seemed wrong to damage the man’s pride when he had apparently made it this far on will alone. She did, however, hum the slightest hint of a tune under her breath, gathering pale ribbons of strength and encouragement to her estranged ally. She might not know how to heal someone, but she did know how to use war magic to bolster soldiers.
Tendaji straightened again, eyeing her with a look that was neither gratitude nor repulsion. Kaiya did not try to read his features but turned to follow Emery, who had started down the hall.
The air was chilled by the enclosed stone and earth, and Kaiya shivered in her tunic. There was no sound besides that of Emery’s footsteps ringing off the walls, but she kept her hand on her fantoii hilt anyway. She did not expect an easy escape from the king’s prison, no matter who assisted. Next to her, Tendaji was rigid and tense, his arms held in a state of readiness. Even Emery had pulled out a long dagger and held it before him while he used the torch to illuminate darkened corners and shifting shadows.
They’d been in the tunnel for several minutes before Kaiya caught a glimpse of the stepladder at its end. She relaxed as they approached. Soon they would be out of the capital city and in a safe place. There, she could think about what she was going to do about . . . well, about everything. Her home’s destruction, the king’s usurpation, her brother . . .
She shook her head and pressed forward. They still had to make it through the twisted, broken streets at the center of a twisted, broken empire.
Emery motioned for the other two to remain at the bottom of the ladder as he climbed up first. Kaiya waited apprehensively as he disappeared into the darkness above.
It felt like hours passed before the soldier’s head appeared in the opening again. He set a finger to his lips and motioned them upward with his other hand before moving away from the trapdoor. Kaiya climbed up deftly, and Tendaji oozed after her.
The tax collector’s office was large and lavishly furnished. Plush couches and deep purple curtains contrasted with golden accents and silver candelabras. Kaiya heard Tendaji growl under his breath as he looked around. She glowered too and thought about the bony cow she had passed on her way to Clearwall. It wasn’t fair that so much wealth would be shared with only a few.
Scowling, she reached out for a heavy silver candlestick, testing its weight in one hand. She made a few bashing movements in the air and, satisfied, tossed it underhand to the currently weaponless Tendaji. He caught it easily.
Emery crept over to the window and drew himself up to it. Too quickly, he dropped back down, and Kaiya shook her head at him. Quick movements were more likely to catch someone’s attention. He would have done better to stay in the window and remain still than to jerk hastily out of the way. She released her breath slowly and dropped into a crouch, eyes facing the door. If someone had seen him, she wanted it to end quickly and with as little noise as possible.
She silently drew her fantoii from its sheath. Next to her, Tendaji dropped too, his stance matching hers despite the bulge on his ribcage that she could just see out of her peripheral vision. With a glance, she shifted her weight away from him. Tendaji mirrored the movement, and in a moment they were crouched back-to-back. The stance of shield mates.
There was a heavy knock on the front door. Kaiya’s heart sank. They’d been spotted. She tensed and centered herself on the balls of her feet. Emery sighed and reached out to unlatch the bolt with one hand. The door swung open forcefully, knocking the young soldier back as two armed warriors in studded le
ather armor pushed their way through. Their cloaks had King Lucius’s seal on them.
“What are you doing in here, Soldier?” one of the guards growled. “All off-duty militia are supposed--” He stopped suddenly, staring at Kaiya and Tendaji.
“Why, you traitorous—!” The guard stepped back half a step and opened his mouth to yell, but Emery rammed the hilt of his dagger into his throat, choking his airways. The older man sput- tered and fell to his knees.
The second guard was quick to act. His sword came loose with a forceful tug, and he swung it up toward Emery’s chest. Emery barely hopped out of the way in time, his eyes still focused on the downed man that was already trying to regain his feet. Without pause, the standing sentinel brought his sword up again, preparing to swing down from the shoulder.
Kaiya didn’t give him the chance to strike.
Biting back her battle cry, the Faoii rushed forward in a crouch, her fantoii at her side. Just as she reached the soldier, she spun on her toes, using the momentum to carry her body and outstretched sword arm in a half circle that sliced across the man’s chest. A bright red streak appeared, starting just below the exposed armpit.
The Last Faoii Page 7
