by Brondos, Pam
A knock sounded and the door opened. Annin walked into the room with a steaming bowl in her hand. A strip of blue-tinted leather held back her curly hair, exposing both her human and Nala eyes.
“The Head Sister said she was finally awake.” Annin handed the bowl to Ethet. “Took you long enough,” she said to Nat.
“Good to see you, too, Annin,” Nat said weakly. She swallowed the spoonful of broth Ethet offered her.
“You’d better have a phenomenal explanation.” Annin crossed her arms and scowled.
“For what?” A throbbing pressure pulsated in Nat’s head. She wasn’t sure if it was the bump or the realization that Soris’ problems as a duozi extended far beyond fighting off the Nala’s venom.
“Why you led a Nala to our boundary.”
“Annin, she just woke up,” Ethet scolded and held another spoonful in front of Nat.
Nat pushed it away and broth dribbled onto her tunic. “I didn’t lead a Nala anywhere. The creature was chasing me, and I jumped into a river to shake it off.” She took a few quick breaths, trying to settle her racing heart. “And what boundary are you talking about?”
“Is that what I think it is?” Annin asked, ignoring Nat’s response. Her eyes locked on Nat’s orb.
“It’s mine,” Nat said, reaching protectively for her orb. Ethet placed another spoonful of broth in her mouth.
Annin let out a low whistle. “If you went to the trouble of making that, you must have a good reason for coming back to Fourline.”
“Annin, leave Sister Natalie to rest.” Ethet rose from the bedside. “We’ll have plenty of time to ask questions later.”
“No, let her stay.” Nat slumped back in her bed. Annin could pepper her with as many questions as she wanted as long as she told her what had happened to Soris.
Annin shrugged and plopped into the chair. She reached for the spoon and shoved broth into Nat’s mouth.
Ethet looked skeptically at her. “Make certain she rests, Annin,” she said, her eyes narrowing.
“Of course,” Annin replied innocently.
“Hmm . . .” Ethet paused once more at the door, looking at the two young women so vastly different from one another, then closed the door behind her.
CHAPTER TEN
“Is he here?” Nat asked.
Annin pursed her lips. “He’s here.” She fidgeted with the spoon in the bowl.
“Is he . . . ?”
“Is he what? Fine? Normal? No, at least not what you’d consider normal. He’s a bit more on the Nala side than I am.” Annin gestured to her face. “He’s much better at communicating with our little friends, and his reflexes are, well, amazing. But enough about him, why are you here?”
“I’m here because of him,” Nat said, wondering who the “little friends” were.
“You came back for Soris?” she asked with a note of surprise in her voice.
“I messed up.” Nat stared at the rough-hewn planks of the ceiling. She filled Annin in on her wound, her dreams, and her training with Barba. Her voice caught when she told her about killing the Nala.
“And you’re sure you didn’t behead it?”
“Yes, I’m sure,” she said. “Do you really think I’d forget doing something like that?”
“That’s a problem. For both of you.” Annin pushed the chair away, and it scraped the worn wooden floor. “I need to tell Ethet about this. Why don’t you get some . . . Well, some rest,” she said and awkwardly patted Nat’s head.
Nat’s vision began to blur slightly. “Annin, what about Estos and Andris? Where are they?” she asked, wanting to distract herself with more information before Annin left her alone.
“North. They went north to meet with Gennes and his camp of rebels.” Annin turned toward the door and paused. “Andris doesn’t hate you, by the way. You did the right thing when you brought Soris through.”
“That’s hard to believe after what happened,” Nat said, feeling the familiar crush of guilt.
“You saved his brother, Nat. How could he be angry with you?”
Nat stared at the ceiling. Her lids grew heavy. “He’ll find a way to be angry with me. He always does.”
“It’s not what Andris thinks that matters, though, is it?”
Nat’s eyes fluttered closed, and Annin’s words echoed in her mind.
When Nat awoke, an orange glow filled the small window across from her bed. She eased the cover off and sat up. The room stayed in place instead of swirling in a dizzy spin. That’s an improvement, she thought. She clutched the back of the chair and stood.
She limped to the window and gasped. In front of her spread a massive garden. Trellises covered in vines provided cover and shade for row upon row of herbs, flowers, and vegetables. People worked the rows, pulling and moving the rich soil with small hand tools. The three-storied Healing House encircled the garden like a massive log fortress. How had Head Sister Ethes rebuilt this House?
Clean mended clothes hung from a hook on the back of the door. She removed the loose tunic and dressed. Her fingers fumbled with the buckle on her belt. She eased open the door to her room and found a common washroom halfway down the hall lit by high, narrow windows. She splashed cold water on her face, avoiding the bandage on her forehead. The remaining grit from her ride down the river fell to the bottom of the washbasin. Her hair was full of tangles, which she tried to smooth out with her fingers as she peered at her reflection in the dull mirror.
When she opened the door, she scanned the hall and froze. Soris stood under one of the windows. His sinewy arm was pressed against a rough-hewn log wall. He stared at a beam stretching across the ceiling. With his chin tilted up, his blond hair brushed his shoulders. A whirlwind of emotion passed through her as she unabashedly stared at him. She wanted to call out to him and run away at the same time. She pressed her trembling hands to her sides and stepped into the hallway. Soris dropped his gaze and his eyes met hers.
“Hello, Natalie.” He wore a shirt of brown fabric with a notch at the neck exposing blue skin. Her heart lurched at the sight of a Nala eye marring his face. “So it’s true.” He walked toward her with long strides.
“What’s true?” she asked, struggling to find her voice. His beautiful green eye and the Nala eye blinked. This is my fault, she thought as she stared at his face. She glanced at the floor, feeling wretched.
“You’re a Sister now.” He regarded Nat’s orb hovering over her head.
She looked up at it and let out a bitter laugh. “Yes, but a little late to do either of us any good.” She reached for his hand, readying an apology. Two of his fingers were fused together into a point. Shocked by the sight of his transformed hand, she dropped hers as if it were made of lead. Soris’ expression soured and he looked away.
“It’s in the past.” He crossed his arms, tucking his deformed hand under his other elbow, hiding it from her view. “If you hadn’t brought me through to Ethet, I wouldn’t be alive. Thank you for that, Sister.” His voice held a formal tone.
“Soris, I didn’t know how much danger we were in from the Nala.” Her heart felt sick when she saw the cold expression on his face.
“It doesn’t matter, Natalie.” He turned away and moved down the hall. Nat fell in step next to him, not knowing what else to do. She wished she could rewind the last few moments. He must think she was horrible, the way she pulled her hand back.
They passed under an arched doorway. “Ethet sent me to get you,” he said curtly. He gave her a sideways glance. “Why are you here?”
Nat’s throat tightened. She couldn’t meet his eyes and pretended to examine a frieze of the sun, the Healing House emblem, carved into the wall. The last thing she wanted to do at this moment was tell Soris what a huge mess she’d made.
“I think Ethet can explain it better than I can. It’s complicated,” she said, hating that she was evading his question but not knowing how to explain the problem without fouling things up even more with him.
He pinched his full lips
together. “Complicated? It must be to bring you back to Fourline.”
The comment stung Nat. She bit her lower lip, knowing she deserved much worse. They walked in awkward silence down more hallways and up flights of stairs. Soris paused frequently, letting her catch up or politely helping her manage the stairs with her wounded leg. But his hand would drop away as soon as she’d balanced herself. She tried to focus on the changes in him instead of his coldness toward her. She had no recollection that he was so fast. She was always the one who’d waited for him when they were running through the forest.
They reached an enormous meeting room. Massive log beams crisscrossed the ceiling, and thick wooden posts rose high from the floor to the curved supports. Portraits hung on the walls, and Nat scanned their faces as she walked past.
“Who are these women?” she asked, examining a few of the portraits. Maybe talking about something ordinary would help ease the tension.
“Different Sisters, apprentices, and temporary students of the Houses. The portraits were salvaged from the ruins of other Houses, and Sister Ethes had them smuggled here. Cassandra’s here somewhere,” Soris said as he drew closer to a small portrait. “Here she is.” Cassandra’s image, free of the flaming scar, stared back at Nat.
“I would never have guessed this was her.” She looked at the Warrior Sister’s confident expression. A wave of sadness swept over Nat as she thought about the contrast between the portrait and the insane woman living in the mining pit at Gennes’ camp. Wanting to move on, she studied the next portrait in a large gilt frame. She stopped short.
“Soris, who is this?” Nat asked in wonder as she stared at the portrait of a raven-haired girl with startling blue-gray eyes. Her heart beat a little fast.
Soris’ voice broke. “That’s Estos’ sister, Emilia. She apprenticed with each—”
“Soris, that’s the woman!” Nat said excitedly. She reached for his arm.
“What woman?” He glanced at her hand tightly clutching his sleeve.
“The one in the Chemist’s lab, the one who helped me. That’s the woman who helped me destroy the tracking device.”
“Are you certain?” he asked, his voice growing as excited as hers.
“Absolutely.”
“We need to tell Ethet—now.” He wrapped his hand around hers and pulled her, limping as fast as she could, out of the room.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
“Are you certain it’s Emilia?” Ethet eyed Nat. Nat and Soris sat in Ethet’s private quarters around a square wooden table inlaid with a golden sun.
Nat nodded, and Ethet settled back in her chair. “If true, this is the most amazing news,” she said. She tapped her fingers against one of the sun’s rays.
Soris stood and gripped the back of his chair. “We need to get word to Estos. He needs to know.”
Ethet’s expression held a hint of irritation as she replied, “Annin will be here momentarily. She is the most successful in dream-speaking with Estos. I’m sure she’ll do everything she can to inform him. But right now, I have a more pressing concern.”
“What?” Soris released the chair, and it tipped slightly from the force.
“The Nala that bit you,” Ethet said. Nat felt her cheeks flush.
The door, carved with two identical suns, opened, and Annin stepped into the room. She wore a sleeveless green tunic over a tight shirt that covered her neck. Soris spilled the information about Emilia before Annin could even sit down. She stared at him in disbelief and asked him to repeat what he’d said.
“Emilia? In the Chemist’s quarters?” She looked dumbfounded when she turned to Nat after Soris finished speaking.
“Yes,” Nat confirmed. “I saw her.”
“I’ll try to reach Estos tonight.” Annin walked toward a window and gazed out the sectioned panes. “After all these years . . .” Her voice trailed off. “What about Nat and Soris’ problem?” Annin asked, now facing Ethet.
“I was getting to it,” Ethet said, looking pointedly at Soris. “As I was saying, Soris, the Nala that bit you was not finished.”
“What do you mean ‘not finished’? Natalie killed it.”
“She didn’t behead it.” Annin broke in. “It left remnant in her through a small wound that won’t heal, and it’s getting into her dream space. That’s why she’s here.”
“Wait, let’s back up a second,” Nat said, wanting to explain that there was more to her coming back than saving her own skin.
“You didn’t behead it?” Soris turned to her before she could say anything else. His eyes were wide with disbelief.
“No, I didn’t behead it. I didn’t know I was supposed to. Now I do,” she said, keeping her voice level. She met his eyes. He thinks I’m an imbecile. She felt as if they were a million miles apart when she saw his confused expression. For a moment, the only sound was the ticking of the glass-encased clock on Ethet’s mantel. Soris shifted away from Nat and stepped toward the window.
“It explains some things, doesn’t it, Sister Ethet?” he said after a moment. “Why the venom keeps progressing through my body despite your efforts. Why I have the dreams about the creature.”
Ethet nodded.
“You have the dreams, too?” Nat asked, wanting desperately to engage with him.
“Nat let the Nala into her dream space.” Annin leaned against the window casing. Her face held a knowing look. Nat longed for a strip of duct tape to bind over her mouth.
“Why would you do something so stupid?” Soris stormed over to Nat. “Don’t you know what could happen to you?”
“I didn’t mean to. It looked like you,” she explained, feeling more and more defensive.
“How did it look like me?” He gestured to his body. “Am I that repulsive in your eyes?”
“Children!” Ethet yelled, and the volley came to a halt. “And yes, I do use that word in the pejorative sense.” She pressed her hands against the table. “Stop acting like fools bickering amongst yourselves. We have a problem. Work toward a solution.”
“What do I need to do?” Soris turned his back on Nat and addressed the question to Ethet.
“Not you, me. It’s my problem, not yours.” Nat touched his shoulder. He flinched, and she dropped her hand.
“Wrong. It is my problem.” He brought his hand to his chest. “Do you understand what remnant does to a duozi?” His single green eye bored into her.
“Yes,” she replied. “Why do you think I came back?”
Ethet cleared her throat. “Sister Natalie has less of a connection with the Nala than you, Soris. Her tie will allow her to find it, and as a Warrior Sister, she is unquestionably the better choice to sever the neural path. We know remnant and proximity to the Nala can impact a duozi’s behavior.”
“Don’t even think about telling me not to go, Sister.” Soris’ voice was cold. “Natalie may have become a Warrior Sister and walked through the eastern forest on her own, but she’s not attempting any of this without me.”
“You’re free to make your own decisions when they don’t pose a risk to others. But your tie may create significant problems.” Ethet looked over her glasses at Nat. “Sister Natalie, do you want Soris to accompany you?”
Nat felt as if a heavy weight had descended upon her. What did she want? The thought of searching for the Nala on her own was beyond daunting, but what if something happened to Soris? She would never forgive herself.
“What if I go?” Annin plucked at the edges of her sleeves. “In case Soris gets overwhelmed,” she added.
Ethet considered her apprentice. “You would be in a unique position to assist him, Annin, but the choice is yours.”
“They are better off with me than without. I’ll go.”
“Sister?” Ethet addressed Nat.
“That works for me,” Nat said, feeling relieved Annin had volunteered to come.
“It’s settled then. Nat’s wounds will have healed sufficiently by tomorrow. There is no time to waste with this task.”
“We leave tomorrow, first thing.” Soris stood.
“One question.” Nat held up a hand. “How do I find the body?”
“Your dream space, Sister. Your dream space.” Ethet tapped her forehead. “You will grant Soris and Annin access so they can assist you and then”—she paused and placed her chin on her folded hands—“you will let in the Nala.”
Nat propped herself up on her elbow on the lumpy bed. Her muscles felt rigid and tight. She held the vial of sleeping syrup in one hand.
“This will put me in a dream state?” she asked Annin, who perched on the edge of a chair shoved next to the bed.
“Your head will hit the pillow before the last drop slides down your throat.” Annin gave her a mischievous smile. Nat flicked her gaze to the end of the bed, where Soris sat, waiting to create a physical link with Annin before they approached Nat’s dream space.
“Are you ready?” he asked. Deep lines were etched into his face. Nat stifled an urge to reach out and brush her hand against his skin to ease the lines.
“Yes.” She took a deep breath. He set one hand on Annin’s arm and slipped his other hand around Nat’s bare ankle. His touch sent a shiver through her body, and she felt a flush spreading across her cheeks. She lifted the vial to her lips and swallowed the sweet liquid in one gulp, hoping neither Annin nor Soris had seen her blush. Her eyelids grew heavy and her arms relaxed beneath her. The last thing she heard before slipping into her dreams was Annin saying, “Why, Soris, I believe you’ve made her blush.”
Yellow flowers hung from vines, cascaded over boulders, and covered each inch of ground under and around Nat’s body. She opened her eyes and inhaled deeply, smelling the crisp scent of the meadow. She gazed past the field of flowers toward the forest, reached for a vine dangling near her face, and started to climb.
Nala after Nala jumped from the treetops at the edge of the meadow. Hissing filled the air as she climbed, hand over hand, into the sky. When she looked down, the flowers evaporated and the Nala raced into the center of the field toward the vine.
