by R. A. Rock
Finn turned away from the wall to give her an insulted look. “Maybe I will give her the money, but I’m not going to allow her to just take it. What kind of lesson will that teach her?”
He pulled himself up and stuck his toe into a crack.
“I’m pretty sure all this trouble isn’t worth the amount of money that’s in that bag,” Tessa said, watching him carefully climb the wall and let himself down silently onto the balcony.
Tessa followed more quickly and with less care. Her foot slipped a couple times, but she made it up in only half a minute. She landed like a cat beside him on the stone balcony and wondered who built a balcony in an alley. Then she figured that the balcony had probably preceded all these other buildings. The growth of the village had eventually closed in the balcony and hid it. It seemed sad, but she ignored the melancholy feeling.
Finn pushed aside the wispy curtain covering the doorway. As soon as they stepped through, the thief tossed the moneybag to Finn, who caught it with surprise. The scent of incense lingered on the air.
“What the…” he asked, glancing at Tessa in bewilderment. She gave him a look and a shrug that said she had no idea what was going on, either.
The pickpocket disappeared, her footsteps clattering down the stairs. Then someone—a him—cleared his throat in the corner. Finn and Tessa whipped around, their hands on the hilts of their swords.
“You will not need your weapons,” the man said, and Tessa peered into the dimness to see who it was. “I mean you no harm.”
“No harm,” Finn said, and they both moved closer, cautiously assessing this new development. “What about the pickpocket? She took my money.”
“What is missing at this moment?” the man asked.
Finn gave Tessa a look and made a circling motion with his pointer finger near his temple to indicate that he thought the guy was crazy. They took another step nearer.
“What is missing at this moment?” he said again.
“Well, nothing,” Finn admitted. “She gave me my money back.”
“Wonderful,” the man said. “Will you sit down?”
In the gloom, Tessa saw that he was gesturing at the floor in front of him. That was when she noticed that there was no furniture in the room. He sat on a folded blanket, and he indicated two folded blankets across from him, where Tessa supposed he was asking them to sit.
Finn gave her a look that said, let’s get the heck out of here. But Tessa was intrigued by this odd man, and she wanted to know more about him. Who sends a pickpocket to invite guests into his house? A very interesting personality indeed. And considering the nastiness she had been through lately, she was looking for something to entertain and distract her mind. This looked to be perfect for that.
They both sat down rather awkwardly on the blankets facing him, and that was when Tessa noticed his eyes. They were filmy white. But she was soon distracted from his strange eyes by his classically handsome face. He could have been a prince, he was so gorgeous.
“Are you…” Finn trailed off, afraid of offending.
“Blind?” the man asked. “Yes. That is traditional for Seers, isn’t it?”
“Seers?” Tessa repeated faintly, taking in not only his face but also his body. He sat in a cross-legged position, wearing only white cotton pants. His hard chest and cut abs were on display for them to see.
“But aren’t Seers usually old women?” Finn objected.
The young man was incredibly handsome in a way that made Tessa’s womb tighten and her breath catch in her throat. His eyes were odd, but she soon ceased to notice that. He had a rugged jaw, brown hair that she wanted to run her fingers through, and lips that were full and sensuous.
Tessa was intensely attracted to him. And she suddenly wished that he was an ugly old woman.
“You doubt my word?” the man asked, though he didn’t seem offended.
“Uh, no, but why should we believe you?” Finn asked, clearly flustered by the pickpocket, the chase, this dark room, and this strange man—never mind the uncomfortable position he was sitting in.
“My name is Vorian,” the man said. “You are Finn. And she is Tessa.”
The Seer named Vorian turned his head to look at them as he said each of their names in a way that was quite uncanny.
“The vow you made will destroy this world, Finn. You are rash, unthinking, and will cause a lot of trouble before you fix all the trouble.”
“Vow?” Tessa asked, turning her head to frown at Finn. “What vow?”
Finn was giving the Seer a hard stare. “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Finn said.
“Really?” Vorian asked. “Have you forgotten Emmy already?”
Finn’s eyes grew wide with indignation, and he jumped to his feet, pulling his sword.
“How do you know about her? Do you have spies? Have you been having us followed? Who are you? Why did you bring us here?”
Vorian put out his hand to calm him, following Finn’s position with unerring precision though Finn was pacing back and forth. Tessa got to her feet and went to Finn, taking his hand and making him stop his pacing. She pulled him over to the balcony for a modicum of privacy.
“Is it true, what he said?” she asked in a soft voice.
“Yes. Yes, it’s all true.”
“About a vow you made that would mean the destruction of our world?” she asked, incredulous.
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” Finn said with a shrug.
Tessa took that in. “We’re going to have a chat about this vow of yours,” she said, and he gave a nod. They both looked over to where the Seer was sitting patiently.
“So, he can see things,” Tessa said.
“Well, we know he can find out things that happened in the past,” Finn said, unnerved. “Though how he managed that remains to be seen. He must have informants.”
“Or maybe he’s a Seer,” Tessa pointed out in a sarcastic tone, and Finn gave her an annoyed look.
“I think we should listen to him,” Tessa said, gazing into Finn’s eyes. “It is no accident that we ended up in Balington, Finn. What you were concerned about when we got here was this. This Seer predicting your future. Because you don’t want to know.”
“You’re right. I don’t. Why would we want to know the future?”
Tessa sighed. “What if it could help us? What if it could save us? At this point, we can use any help we can get.”
He stared at her a moment longer and then nodded. They sat down on the blankets again. Vorian didn’t seem to be waiting at all but simply looked contented to be.
“She will not be yours to keep, Finn.” The Seer indicated Tessa with his hand. “But you may love her for a time.”
Finn’s eyes got big, and he looked away. Tessa cleared her throat, a little embarrassed that this blind man had picked up on the electricity between them.
“And though the vow means the destruction of our world, you will actually be our salvation.”
“I will?” Finn asked, surprised out of his embarrassment.
“Yes, but it will cost you your life.”
“Vorian,” Tessa said sharply. “No one wants to hear of their own demise.”
The Seer defended himself. “I said it would cost him his life, not that it would mean his demise.”
Tessa and Finn scowled at each other.
“Can’t you speak plainly?” Finn asked.
“Ah, but I thought you wished for stereotypes? Old women Seers? Finding out about the future but the language is so obtuse so as to be entirely useless until the event comes to pass?” He paused and laughed.
“I didn’t mean to offend you with the old woman comment,” Finn said, sounding as if he was forcing the words from his throat.
“You did not offend me,” Vorian said.
“Oh,” Finn said, looking thoroughly stymied.
“And you, blade wielder,” he said, turning his sightless eyes on Tessa. “Though it is not forever, his love will heal you and make you stronger.
He will help you end the Severance.”
Tessa’s eyebrows drew together in consternation.
Was he talking about Finn?
“But the music man,” Vorian smiled, and she was almost blinded by it. “He will be your true love. Your forever.”
Finn’s face clouded, and he gave her an unreadable look.
“Don’t worry, Finn. When the end comes, neither of you will be sad.”
Tessa held up her hand, a little tired of hearing about her love life. Especially since she didn’t quite know how she felt about Finn.
“But that is enough about your double love line,” Vorian said.
“What?” Tessa asked.
“Your love line. It is doubled. There’s two of them. Give me your hand.” Vorian reached out, and Tessa crawled forward and gave him her palm. Vorian peered down at it and nodded sagely. “See this line that swoops down across the top of your palm? In most people, there’s one line. But you, Tessa, have two.
Tessa looked up at the blind Seer.
“It means that two men will hold your heart,” he said. “But look here, how the one line ends abruptly and the other continues and continues? It confirms what I have said. It’s just as I expected.”
Tessa gave Finn another confused glance.
“You can see that?” she asked, looking up into Vorian’s seemingly blind eyes.
“No,” he said and laughed hard.
Tessa withdrew her hand, annoyed.
“Oh come now, you two,” Vorian said. “Can’t you take a joke? I’ve been blind since birth. I can’t see a raven in a cave in the dark of the moon.”
“But no one could see—” Finn stopped and shook his head as if to clear it. “Never mind.” He stood. “Tessa, I think we should go. I’ve heard more than enough.”
“Wait,” Vorian said, holding up his index finger. “One more thing. A warning.”
Finn turned back to face Vorian, his attention once again caught by the odd Seer.
“Tessa, you will end the Severance. And you will get the thing you want most.”
“What?” Tessa gasped, putting her hand to her chest in shock. “That can’t be. In Perdira’s Mire, I—”
Vorian cut her off.
“I know of those events. They were necessary. And it is true that that particular dream will never come true because—” He stopped.
“Because?” Tessa asked impatiently.
“Because in the end, that is not the thing you truly want most.”
Tessa blinked, puzzled, and the Seer smiled benevolently at her.
“Thank you for coming, Tessa, Finn,” Vorian said, placing his hands together in prayer position and speaking the ritual Faerie words of farewell to travelers, as if he knew they were on a journey. “May the Stars guide your way.”
They were dismissed.
“If you’ll follow the stairs down, they lead out into the street. Perhaps an easier exit than the way you came in.”
“Thank you, Vorian,” Tessa said, still feeling completely perplexed and bewildered. “May the Stars shine upon you.”
“May the Stars shine upon you,” Finn repeated, already turning toward the stairs. It seemed that he couldn’t get out of that close, dark little house fast enough.
They walked quickly out of town, not talking till they reached the forest.
“So that’s what you were getting a bad sense about. The Seer. You knew that he was looking for us.”
Finn glanced at her with a frown on his face. “I sensed danger. I felt it in my gut. It wasn’t like I saw the future or something crazy like that.”
“You know that there are Seers, Finn. They’re real.”
“Of course, but that man was a charlatan. I hope you didn’t believe a word he said.”
Finn blushed a little, and Tessa’s eyes widened in surprise. Did he mean what the Seer had said about their love life? She supposed that was Finn’s way of telling her that he didn’t have feelings for her. Well, that was just fine with her. She didn’t need a relationship. That would just complicate things.
“We can get provisions elsewhere,” Finn said, and he was walking so quickly she could hardly keep up.
“You don’t have to walk so fast,” she protested.
“I just want to get out of here.” He shuddered. “This Shadow-cursed place gives me the shivers.”
She continued to walk slowly, putting her hand on his arm and forcing him to slow down.
“Do you believe what the Seer said?” she asked him, needing to know what he thought.
Finn gave her a serious look. “I think that he knew what he was talking about.”
“Really?” Tessa asked, a little surprised that he would say that, considering he had just called him a charlatan.
“Really,” Finn repeated, his face solemn. He stopped walking. “There’s just something about you, Tessa. If I was going to pick a Faerie to end the Severance, it would be you.”
“Really?” Tessa asked again, unable to believe that he actually believed the Seer.
“No,” he said, suddenly getting a sarcastic look on his face. “But only because nobody can end the Severance, Tessa.”
He huffed out his breath and began walking again.
“But back at the inn near Perdira’s Mire, you said…” She jogged a little to keep up with his fast pace.
“I was half asleep and mostly joking, Tess. And I said that it would solve the problem. Not that it was possible.”
She pressed her lips together, feeling annoyed. Finn didn’t seem to notice.
“Let’s go get provisions in the next village over. And find a tavern. I need an ale. Badly.”
“May you fall in the Chasm, Finn.” Tessa caught up to him. She punched him hard in the shoulder, the joint making a loud crack. “I thought you were serious about me ending the Severance.”
“Ow,” he said, clutching his arm and starting to move away from her. “It’s not that I don’t think you particularly can’t do it. It’s just that everyone knows that no one can do it.”
Tessa scowled but said nothing.
“Don’t blame me,” he said. “It’s not my fault that some pickpocket led us to a crazy blind guy that’s too good looking for his own good and thinks he’s a Seer. Who then told us a bunch of nonsense.”
“Actually,” Tessa said, slowing down and letting him get ahead of her. “You left your money in a far too obvious place. I think it is your fault.”
Finn’s laughter echoed back to her, and she shook her head. The man was maddening. Tessa meandered along a lot more slowly, letting him pull ahead and thinking about what the Seer had said.
She lifted her hand to examine her love line, and Tessa’s breath caught in her throat.
The Seer hadn’t been joking around after all. Whether he could see them or not, there were two lines sweeping across the top of her palm. The upper one ended shortly after it began. Was that really Finn? Sure, she was attracted to him, and she liked him. She might even care about him as a friend. But love him? She wasn’t so sure about that. It would be foolish to fall in love with Finn. Especially since he had just implied that he didn’t have feelings for her.
And then there was the second line that ran right off her palm. The music man, the Seer had said.
Forever.
The Seer who couldn’t see had been right about her palm lines. He had been right about Finn’s vow, which she needed to ask him about sometime. She watched Finn’s back moving away from her.
“Come on, Tess,” he said, turning and giving her that charming grin that made her heart stop. “Get moving.”
Stars alight. The Seer might have been right about her feelings for Finn, too. Though she hoped not.
Tessa thought about that.
And she wondered what else the blind man might have been right about.
Chapter 19
They had been traveling nonstop ever since they had met the Seer, and Finn had been pushing Tessa harder than ever with her training. The time to be ba
ck at Direwood Castle was nearly upon them, and he wanted her to be ready. If she wasn’t, they both might die.
One evening as they walked across the Great Plain, the wind began to blow. Finn and Tessa walked slowly across, Finn refusing to suggest it was time to camp. And the reason he didn’t want to suggest it was time to camp was because he didn’t want to admit that he shouldn’t have insisted that they start across the endless plain so late in the day in the first place.
Finn turned his head to look at the foothills of Tartarus that led into that terrifying withered land. Tartarus was to the north, and straight ahead to the east lay the Direwood Forest—still another three days’ ride. Just gazing at Tartarus from this far away made the hair on his neck stand up. He couldn’t imagine what it would be like to actually go there.
He gave his head a shake to clear the thought. He would never go there.
That was the land of the Dark Mages and their monsters. Blood magic abounded. It made his skin crawl to think of it.
It was another dangerous place in Esper—like Perdira’s Mire—from which many who ventured in never returned.
Tessa followed his gaze and shuddered visibly, her curls pulling out of her braid as the wind picked up speed.
“I wish we were past Tartarus,” she said. “Whenever I travel near it, I always get the feeling that someone or something is watching me the whole time.”
“Can you not give me more spooky thoughts about that place?” Finn asked, disgruntled. “I have enough of my own fearful thoughts to fill my nightmares. And for good reason. That place is—”
“Let’s just keep on,” Tessa said, interrupting him. “Perhaps we’ll reach the edge of the Great Plain before nightfall.”
Finn gave her a pitying glance. Sure. They would make the edge of the Great Plain by nightfall. The edge that he couldn’t even see at the moment.
He puffed out his breath in mild irritation. He probably shouldn’t have made her train the extra hours that morning. If he hadn’t, they probably would have made it to the other side by sunset.
But no. It had been the right decision to train more. They were getting closer to the Dark Court every day, and the time was nearing for Tessa’s demonstration of the Unity Blades for the queen. Because of that, they had been spending as much of the day as possible training.
