by Anne Bishop
He knew that voice. He knew that hand. He hated them.
*Daemon, reach for me. I can show you the road back.*
Words lie. Blood doesn't.
The hand shook with the effort to reach him.
*Daemon, let me help you. Please.*
Inches separated them. All he had to do was raise his hand and he could leave this island.
His fingers twitched.
*Daemon, trust me. I can help you.*
Blood. So much blood. A sea of it. He would drown in it. Because he'd trusted that voice once and he'd done something. . he'd done. .
*liar!* he screamed. Til never trust you!*
*Daemon.* An anguished plea.
*never!*
The hand began to fade.
Fear swamped him. He didn't want to be alone in this sea of blood with the words circling, waiting to slice into him again and again. He wanted to grab the hand and hold tight, wanted whatever lies might ease this pain for a little while.
But he owed someone this pain because he'd done something. .
Butchering whore.
That voice, that hand had tricked him into hurting someone. But, sweet Darkness, how he wanted to trust, wanted to hold on.
*Daemon.* A whisper of sound.
The hand faded, withdrew.
He waited.
The words circled and circled. The island crumbled a little more.
He waited. The hand didn't return.
He pressed himself against the pulpy ground and wept in relief.
Saetan sank to his knees. The threads of the tangled web were blackened, crumbling. He caught his ring as it fell from the center of the web and slipped it on his finger.
So close. A hand span at most. A moment of trust. That's all it would have taken to begin the journey out of that pain and madness.
That's all it would have taken.
Stretching out on the cold stone floor, Saetan pillowed his head on his arms and wept bitterly.
3 / Kaeleer
Saetan looked at Lucivar and shook his head.
"Well," Lucivar said, his voice tight, "you tried." After a minute he added, "You're wanted in the kitchen."
"In the kitchen? Why?" Saetan asked as Lucivar herded him toward Mrs. Beale's undisputed territory.
Lucivar smiled and dropped a friendly hand on Saetan's shoulder.
The gesture filled him with foreboding. "How was your trip?"
"Traveling with Cat is an experience."
"Do I really want to know about this?"
"No," Lucivar said cheerfully, "but you're going to anyway."
Jaenelle sat cross-legged on the kitchen floor. A brown-and-white Sceltie puppy tumbled about in front of her. Her lap was full of a large, white. . kitten?
"Hello, Papa," Jaenelle said meekly.
*Papa High Lord,* said the puppy. When Saetan didn't answer, the puppy looked at Jaenelle. *Papa High Lord?*
"Kindred." Saetan cleared his throat. His voice went back to a deep baritone. "The Scelties are kindred?"
"Not all of them," Jaenelle said defensively.
"About the same ratio of Blood to landen as other species," Lucivar said, grinning. "You're taking this a lot better than Khardeen did. He sat down in the middle of the road and became hysterical. We had to drag him over to the side before he got run over by a cart."
A muffled chuckle-snort came from the direction of the worktable where Mrs. Beale was busily chopping up some meat.
"And with that one little explanation, the humans suddenly realized why some of the Scelties matured so late and had a longer life span," Lucivar added with annoying cheerfulness. "After Ladvarian made it clear that Cat belonged to him-"
*Mine!* said the puppy.
The kitten lifted a large, white, furry paw and squashed the puppy.
*Ours!* said the puppy, wriggling out from beneath the paw.
"- we fixed a strong sedative for the Warlord who had just discovered that his bitch was also a Priestess."
"Mother Night." Saetan switched to a Red spear thread. *Why does a male Sceltie have a name with an Eyrien feminine ending?*
*That's what he said his name is. Who am I to argue?* "After that," Lucivar continued, "Khary dragged us to Tuathal to see Lady Duana, who had a few pointed things to say about not being told there were kindred in her Territory."
Yes, he was sure the Queen of Scelt would have had quite a few things to say – and would have a few more to say to him.
Jaenelle hid her face in the kitten's fur.
Lucivar, damn his soul, seemed to be enjoying this now that he could dump it into someone else's lap.
Since Jaenelle wasn't jumping into the conversation, Lucivar continued the tale. "In the invigorating discussion that followed, it came out that there are also two breeds of horses who are kindred."
Saetan swayed. Lucivar propped him up.
The Scelts were noted horsemen. Khary's and Morgh-ann's families especially were passionate about horses.
"Imagine how surprised people were when they discovered their horses could talk back to them," Lucivar said.
Saetan knelt beside Jaenelle. At least if he fainted now he wouldn't fall so far. "And our feline Brother?"
Jaenelle's fingers tightened in the kitten's fur. Her eyes held a dark, dangerous look. "Kaelas is Arcerian. He's an orphan. His mother was killed by hunters."
Kaelas. In the Old Tongue, the word meant "white death." It usually referred to a kind of snowstorm that came with little warning – swift, violent, and deadly.
Saetan switched to a spear thread again. *I suppose no one named him, either.*
*Nope,* Lucivar replied.
Saetan didn't like the sober caution in Lucivar's tone. He reached out to pet the kitten.
Kaelas took a swipe at him.
"Hey!" Jaenelle said sharply. "Don't swat the High Lord."
Kaelas snarled, displaying an impressive set of baby teeth. The claws weren't anything to shrug off either.
"Here you are, sweeties," Mrs. Beale cooed, setting two bowls on the kitchen floor. "Some meat and warm milk."
Saetan eyed his cook. This was the same woman who always cornered him whenever the wolf pups chased the bunnies through her garden? Then he looked at the bowl of chopped meat and frowned. "Isn't that the cold roast you were going to serve for lunch?"
Mrs. Beale glared at him. Lucivar prudently stepped behind him.
Abandoning the kitchen to Mrs. Beale and her charges, Saetan headed for his suite. Lucivar went with him.
"The puppy's cute," Saetan said. If that was the best he could do, he definitely needed to rest.
"Don't let puppy cute fool you," Lucivar said quietly. "He's a Warlord, and there's a shrewd intelligence inside that furry little head. Combine that with a large Warlord Prince predator and you've got a partnership that needs to be handled with care."
Saetan stopped at the door of his suite. "Lucivar, just how big do Arcerian cats get?"
Lucivar grinned. "Let's just say you ought to start putting strengthening spells on the furniture now."
"Mother Night," Saetan muttered, stumbling to his bed. The paperwork on his desk could wait. He didn't need to look for trouble.
He'd just started to doze off when he felt eyes staring at him. Rolling over, Saetan blinked at Ladvarian and Kaelas. Someone – he snorted – had already taught Ladvarian to air walk. True, the puppy wobbled, but he was, after all, a
Puppy-Groaning, Saetan rolled back over, hoping they would
go away.
Two bodies landed on the bed. Well, he didn't have to worry about rolling over on the
Sceltie. He wasn't going to roll anywhere with Kaelas pressed against his back – except, perhaps, onto the floor.
And where was Jaenelle?
The Lady, he was told, was taking a bath. They wanted a nap. Since Papa High Lord was taking a nap, they would stay with him.
With grim determination, Saetan closed his eyes.
He didn't need to look for trouble. It had just
pounced on him.
chapter twelve
1 / Kaeleer
Carrying a glass globe and a small glass bowl, both cobalt blue, Tersa walked a few feet into her backyard, her bare feet sinking into ankle-deep snow. The full moon played hide-and-seek among the clouds, much as the vision had eluded her throughout the day. She had lived within visions for so many centuries, she understood that this one needed to be given a physical shape before revealing itself.
Letting her body be the dreamscape's instrument, she used Craft to sail the globe and bowl through the air. When they reached the center of the lawn, they settled quietly into the snow.
She took a step toward them, then looked down. Her nightgown brushed the snow, disturbing it. That wouldn't do. Pulling it off, she tossed it near the cottage's back door and walked toward the globe and bowl. She stopped. Yes. This was the right place to begin.
One long stride to keep the snow pristine between her shuffled footsteps from the cottage and the footsteps that would guide the vision. Placing one foot carefully in front of the other, heel to toe, she waited. There was something else, something more.
Using Craft to sharpen a fingernail, she cut the instep of each foot deep enough for the blood to run freely. Then she walked the vision's pattern. When it brought her back to her first footstep, she leaped to reach the snow disturbed by shuffled footsteps.
As she turned to see the pattern, the journey maid Black Widow who was staying with her for a few weeks called out, "Tersa? What are you doing outside at this time of night?"
Snarling, Tersa whirled back to face the young witch.
The journey maid studied her face for a moment. Fetching the discarded nightgown, she tore it into strips, wrapped Tersa's feet to absorb the blood, then moved aside.
Urgency pushed Tersa up the stairs to her bedroom. Opening the curtains, she looked down at the yard and the lines she had drawn in the snow with her blood.
Two sides of a triangle, strong and connected. The father and the brother. The third side, the father's mirror, was separated from the other two and the middle was worn away. If it broke fully, that side would never be strong enough again to complete the triangle.
Moonlight and shadows filled the yard. The cobalt globe and bowl that rested in the center of the triangle became sapphire eyes.
"Yes," Tersa whispered. "The threads are now in place. It's time."
Receiving Jaenelle's silent permission, Saetan entered her sitting room. He glanced at the dark bedroom where Kaelas and Ladvarian were awake and anxious. Which meant Lucivar would be appearing soon. In the five months since he'd begun serving her, Lucivar had become extraordinarily sensitive to Jaenelle's moods.
Saetan sat down on the hassock in front of the overstuffed chair where Jaenelle was curled up. "Bad dream?" he asked. She'd had quite a few restless nights and bad dreams in the past few weeks.
"A dream," she agreed. She hesitated for a moment. "I was standing in front of a cloudy crystal door. I couldn't see what was behind it, wasn't sure I wanted to see. But someone kept trying to hand me a gold key, and I knew that if I took it, the door would open and then I would have to know what was hidden behind it."
"Did you take the key?" He kept his voice soft and soothing while his heart began to pound in his chest.
"I woke up before I touched it." She smiled wearily.
This was the first time she remembered one of those dreams upon waking. He had a good idea what memories were hidden behind that crystal door. Which meant they needed to talk about her past soon. But not tonight. "Would you like a brew to help you sleep?"
"No, thank you. I'll be all right."
He kissed her forehead and left the room.
Lucivar waited for him in the corridor. "Problem?" Lucivar asked.
"Perhaps." Saetan took a deep breath, let it out slowly. "Let's go down to the study. There's something we need to discuss."
2 / Kaeleer
"Cat!" Lucivar rushed into the great hall. He didn't know what had set her off, but after talking with Saetan last night, he wasn't about to let her go anywhere by herself.
Fortunately, Beale was equally reluctant to let the Lady rush out the door without telling someone her destination.
Caught between them, Jaenelle unleashed her frustration with enough force to make all the windows rattle. "Damn you both! I have to go."
"Fine." Lucivar approached her slowly, holding his hands up in a placating gesture. "I'm going with you. Where are we going?"
Jaenelle raked her fingers through her hair. "Halaway. Sylvia just sent a message. Something's wrong with Tersa."
Lucivar exchanged a look with Beale. The butler nodded. Saetan and Mephis would be back at any moment from their meeting with Lady Zhara, the Queen of Amdarh, Dhemlan's capital – and Beale would remain in the great hall until they arrived.
"Let me go!" Jaenelle wailed.
Thank the Darkness, it didn't occur to her to use force against them. She could easily eliminate what amounted to token resistance.
"In a minute," Lucivar said, swallowing hard when her
eyes turned stormy. "You can't go out in your socks. There's snow on the ground."
Jaenelle swore. Lucivar called in her winter boots and handed them to her while a breathless footman brought her winter coat and the belted, wool cape with wing slits that served as a coat for him.
A minute later, they were flying toward Tersa's cottage.
The journey maid Black Widow who was staying with Tersa flung the door open as soon as they landed. "In the bedroom," she said in a worried voice. "Lady Sylvia is with her."
Jaenelle raced up to the bedroom with Lucivar right behind her.
Seeing them, Sylvia sagged against the dresser, the relief in her face overshadowed by stark concern. Lucivar put his arm around her, uneasy about the way she clung to him.
Jaenelle circled the bed to face Tersa, who was frantically packing a small trunk. Scattered among the clothing strewn on the bed were books, candles, and a few things Lucivar recognized as tools only a Black Widow would own.
"Tersa," Jaenelle said in a quiet, commanding voice.
Tersa shook her head. "I have to find him. It's time now."
"Who do you have to find?"
"The boy. My son. Daemon."
Lucivar's heart clogged his throat as he watched Jaenelle pale.
"Daemon." Jaenelle shuddered. "The gold key."
"I have to find him." Tersa's voice rang with frustration and fear. "If the pain doesn't end soon, it will destroy him."
Jaenelle gave no sign of having heard or understood the words. "Daemon," she whispered. "How could I have forgotten Daemon?"
"I must go back to Terreille. I must find him."
"No," Jaenelle said in her midnight voice. "I'll find him."
Tersa stopped her restless movements. "Yes," she said slowly, as if trying hard to remember something. "He would trust you. He would follow you out of the Twisted Kingdom."
Jaenelle closed her eyes.
Still holding Sylvia, Lucivar braced himself against the wall. Hell's fire, why was the room slowly spinning?
When Jaenelle opened her eyes, Lucivar stared, unable to look away. He'd never seen her eyes look like that. He hoped he'd never again see her eyes look like that. Jaenelle swept out of the room.
Leaving Sylvia to manage on her own, Lucivar raced after Jaenelle, who was striding toward the landing web at the edge of the village.
"Cat, the Hall's in the other direction."
When she didn't answer him, he tried to grab her arm. The shield around her was so cold it burned his hand.
She passed the landing web and kept walking. He fell into step beside her, not sure what to say – not sure what he dared say.
"Stubborn, snarly male," she muttered as tears filled her eyes. "I told you the chalice needed time to heal. I told you to go someplace safe. Why didn't you listen to me? Couldn't you obey just once!' She stopped walking.
Lucivar watched her grief slo
wly transform into rage as she turned in the direction of the Hall.
"Saetan," she said in a malevolent whisper. "You were there that night. You. ."
Lucivar didn't try to keep up with her when she ran back to the Hall. Instead, he sent a warning to Beale on a Red spear thread. Beale, in turn, informed him that the High Lord had just arrived.
He hoped his father was prepared for this fight.
3 / Kaeleer
He felt her coming.
Too nervous to sit, Saetan leaned against the front of his blackwood desk, his hands locked on the surface in a vise grip.
He'd had two years to prepare for this, had spent countless hours trying to find the right phrases to explain the brutality that had almost destroyed her. But, somehow, he had never found the right time to tell her. Even after last
night, when he realized the memories were trying to surface, he had delayed talking to her.
Now the time had come. And he still wasn't prepared.
He'd arrived home to find Beale fretting in the great hall, waiting to convey Lucivar's warning: "She remembers Daemon – and she's furious."
He felt her enter the Hall and hoped he could now find a way to help her face those memories in the daylight instead of in her dreams.
His study door blew off the hinges and shattered when it hit the opposite wall. Dark power ripped through the room, breaking the tables and tearing the couch and chairs apart.
Fear hammered at him. But he also noted that she didn't harm the irreplaceable paintings and sculpture.
Then she stepped into the room, and nothing could have prepared him for the cold rage focused directly at him.
"Damn you." Her midnight voice sounded calm. It sounded deadly.
She meant it. If the malevolence and loathing in her eyes was any indication of the depth of her rage, then he was truly damned.
"You heartless bastard."
His mind chattered frantically. He couldn't make a sound. He desperately hoped that her feelings for him would balance her fury – and knew they wouldn't, not with Daemon added to the balance.
She walked toward him, flexing her fingers, drawing part of his attention to the dagger-sharp nails he now had reason to fear.
