“What happens if you lose Azriel?” I asked.
“I’m not certain,” Thomas admitted. “If Clara marries Justin, and he does seem to be fond of her, it might be fine. I also have to ensure that Mediera marries someone who won’t stand in my way. So you see, so much hangs in the balance. Lord Varett of Courtshire is also growing concerned that the furies will cross the mountains. He may turn his cloak and vote with me. That helps.”
“Do you want me to ask Azriel to stay?” I asked slowly. “Is that why you’re telling me this? Do you think you need him?”
“A good question. Unfortunately, all of this,” he said, motioning to the map, “is only one-half of the problem…”
A knock interrupted us, and Erlich opened the door. “Lord Weston has returned. I told him you were occupied, but he insisted you see him.”
“Let him in. He may as well join us,” Thomas said.
Within moments, Azriel was at the door, smiling as he entered. He wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on my head. I closed my eyes and leaned against him, feeling relief at being near him and not having to hide our relationship.
“Thomas, you had me worried when you shooed me away this morning.”
“I told you I just wanted to let her rest. How did everything go with Justin?” Thomas asked.
“He cried when he saw me. He thought I had died. He admitted what he had done immediately. I have never heard such regret in anyone’s voice. We talked for a long time, and I told him I would give him back his rightful place as father’s heir as soon as he turned eighteen. I told him as much as I felt I could about what happened to me after I left Farshire. I think I might have finally gotten my little brother back.” He laughed. “This whole time I’ve been fighting for a chance to find common ground with him and all it took was a botched murder attempt.”
“I’m glad for you.”
“And Cedric?”
“He left this morning. As much as I hate to see him go, it is something of a relief. It hasn’t been easy having him here and not being able to help him.”
Azriel looked at the map on the desk. “Have you been boring Ani with talk of politics?”
“Possibly,” Thomas admitted.
Azriel sighed. “I know you need Farshire, but I’m not staying. There is more to this war than just amassing soldiers.”
“Of that, I agree. I was about to tell Anais that Merdin claims that even if we could gather the greatest of armies and are able to push the furies out of Barriershire and Brightshire, it won’t be enough. If our men cross the line into the Southlands, they will grow sick and eventually turn into furies. Merdin says that mere force won’t defeat the furies and that we must rebuild the barrier between Brightshire and the Southlands. He says it’s the only way. Anais is one of only a few living blood mages. Merdin will need her if he is to succeed.”
“Do you trust him?” I asked. “Merdin or Thellium or Grayson or whatever his name really is?”
“I fear I must. He’s the only living witness to the old war.”
“But that’s not true,” I said. “The fat man was there too.”
“Did he tell you that?” Azriel asked. “I knew he was old, but do you really think he’s that old?”
I nodded. “He told me that he and Grayson were friends and then enemies back in the days of the old war.”
“It does us little good, though. There’s no way the fat man could have crossed the mountains,” Azriel said. “We can’t talk to him.”
“But maybe we can.”
“Fynn?”
I shook my head and sighed. “No, I burned out Fynn’s ties to the fat man as I did for you and me.”
“There should be skins in Courtshire,” Azriel said. “The fat man sent his people all over the Seven Shires. I just don’t know where we could find them.”
I closed my eyes and remembered. “There’s a girl. Suzanna. She’s in the employ of Aimsly Clark. Or at least she should be.” Aimsly was Jacarda’s son, I thought, as I remembered the kindness of the woman who had chosen to stay and help us in Barriershire instead of return to the safety of her son’s house.
“I know Aimsly,” Thomas said. “We can call on him today. If there is another mage who lived through the last war, I’d like his input. We can go now.”
“Anais and I have another engagement. Why don’t you go and speak with the girl? I’m sure she would be thrilled to have Lord Thomas call on her.”
“All right,” Thomas said. “You aren’t leaving the city?”
“We’ll stay at least until Justin comes of age. I’m not promising anything after that.”
“Anais, are you in agreement?” Thomas asked. “Will you wait? I can make sure the two of you travel with a scouting party if you must leave before Merdin returns. I don’t want you to just throw yourself away.”
I nodded slowly. I didn’t wish to leave without Azriel. Three weeks was not such a long amount of time.
Azriel and I left the magistrate’s office arm in arm. It was hard to believe that getting married could be as simple as signing a piece of paper in front of a magistrate.
“If the lord’s council finds out, they may overturn it,” Azriel warned me. “I didn’t gain permission from my father or the council.”
“The Abbey might resist as well, as I am not in the path of love.”
“Well, I’m willing to take the risk.”
I smiled at him. “So am I.”
He leaned over and kissed me in front of the world. I felt thrilled and terrified as I considered what had just happened.
“Get a room,” a voice boomed.
We separated and found ourselves looking at Fynn, who was grinning from ear to ear. He plucked the marriage certificate out of Azriel’s hand. “Sweet Sisters of Mercy, the two of you just got married.”
We nodded.
“Can you even do that? I thought the nobility had to jump through all sorts of hoops before they could wed.”
“Probably not,” Azriel said.
Fynn laughed. “To be young and in love.”
“Why are you visiting the magistrates?” Azriel asked him.
“I just registered myself as a journeyman artist. We’ll see if the guild will have me. But one step at a time. I think I am going to enjoy myself here. I have five commissions for portraits and more dinner invitations that I can accept.”
“I can probably help you out with the guild,” Azriel offered.
Fynn smiled. “Why don’t you let me buy the happily wedded couple a drink and we can talk about those connections of yours.”
Azriel laughed. “What do you say, Ani?”
“I think we are definitely in need of a few drinks,” I said with a grin.
The three of us disappeared into a pub to celebrate our successes.
CHAPTER 20
THE WEEKS BEFORE Justin’s birthday passed slowly. Thomas feared that Merdin would not return in time and had talked with General Errol about sending Azriel and me with the next scouting party. The general was skeptical but agreed once I demonstrated for him exactly what I could do. He didn’t enjoy it when I locked his feet to the floor, but he had to admit I would make a useful ally. In the meantime, Thomas had found Suzanna, but she failed to contact the fat man, and I feared that he might be lost to us. Thomas and Evie planned their wedding, which would be held in the Abbey in a month’s time. Clara and Justin were growing closer, and Thomas hoped that they would eventually marry. Mediera decided she did not wish to marry and was unsuccessfully battling to have the right to attend council sessions on her own. And though my marriage to Azriel was a secret, most of those close to us knew. I was still living in Thomas’s house, but Azriel and I would be on our own once Justin turned eighteen.
Sophie opened the door to my room and slipped in as I was practicing balancing my brush and hand mirror in the air.
She gasped. “Madam, how did you do that?”
“Magic,” I said as the brush and mirror clattered to the ground.
“But there is no magic,” she protested.
I snorted. “The world is filled with impossibilities, Sophie. Is there something I can help you with?” I asked her.
“Yes madam, Erlich told me to tell you that there is a man here. He wanted to speak with Lord Thomas, but Lord Thomas is not in at the moment. So he asked to speak with you.”
“Me?” I asked.
“Yes, he was insistent.”
“Do you his name?”
She shook her head. “I don’t know.” She shrugged. “He’s waiting for you in the morning room.”
I left her and walked down the stairs. As I entered the morning room, I found myself facing Thellium. He looked different. Older. Tired. But it was more than that. He wasn’t what he was pretending to be. There was someone else underneath his facade. Someone terrible.
A sudden intrusion hit my defenses. Threads of energy were trying to pierce into my mind. Instinctively, I forced lines of power out of my skin to tackle the intruders. I wanted to grab my necklace, but I couldn’t seem to move my hands. As our threads grappled each other, I thought of Sister Zilla and her words about the power in the path of light. There was something in her words that I had never understood. But the idea was pounding at my mind now. I let a few stray strands of energy pull at the light streaming through the glass windows, and the light lent strength to my threads. It was as if Zilla was guiding me toward an avenue of strength I didn’t know existed. I ripped Thellium’s threads from his hands and burned them. Before he could generate new threads, I froze him in place. And when I looked at him, I saw a skeleton with no skin - just bones with rotten flesh hanging off and big black eyes devoid of any white. And then I knew the truth. He had never been the affable, charming, handsome scribe I had known in Brightshire. That was just a costume. This was the real him.
Slowly, I let him have his threads of energy back, and his façade crept back into place. I didn’t want to see his hideous true self any longer.
“Well, well, well. It appears you have a bite to you.”
“Stop it,” I said. “Stop talking.”
He laughed. “The truth is never pretty, little girl.”
The door opened again, and Thomas stepped inside. “Erlich said you were back Merdin. Your timing is impeccable. I feared Anais would have left us before you arrived.”
“I try my best to serve the realm,” Merdin murmured.
“And I appreciate your assistance. Did you find any help in Candel?” Thomas asked.
Merdin nodded. “I have six mages and a seer. They’re staying at the Rockside Tavern, as they did not wish to enter this far into the city. Magic is still forbidden within the city walls, as you well know.” Merdin looked at me, a harsh smile on his face. “You might be interested in one of the mages I found. Her name is Anabella, and she claims to be your mother.”
I tried to flee the room, but Thomas caught my arm.
“Wait. Where are you going?”
“To Rockside Tavern. I have to see her.”
“I’ll take you,” Thomas said. “We can all go. I’d like to see these mages too. There is much to discuss.”
Although I didn’t want to go anywhere with Merdin, it seemed I had little choice. It would be faster if Thomas took us in his phaeton, and I had no wish to delay.
Once inside the main room of Rockside Tavern, I scanned the area. Most of the tables were empty as it was still hours before dinner would be served. In one corner, near a large fireplace, three men and three women, sat around a wooden table. The hood of one of the women’s capes was down, and her long curling blonde hair spilled onto her shoulders. Anabella. I walked in their direction, taking slow purposeful steps.
The people at the table stop talking as we approached and the blonde woman turned around. She gasped when our eyes met. Without a moment of hesitation, she walked up to me and enveloped me in her arms. “My dearest girl.”
“So you are my mother then? It’s really true?” I choked out the question.
“Yes, my dear. It is true.” She took my hand and held it. “I have missed you so much my darling girl. You cannot know.”
“How could you give me up?” I hadn’t meant to be so blunt, but the words fell out of my mouth unbidden.
She smiled sadly. “I had nothing to offer you. My family had disowned me. I had no money, no position, and I had been thrust unwilling into the sisterhood. There was also the matter of Robert. I feared if he found you, he would make you disappear. The lords never like a crimp in the line of descent. Magda and her husband agreed to spirit you out of Brightshire. They were good people, and I trusted they would take care of you.”
“You told my parents you would come back for me, but you never came.”
“But I did. Do you remember? I went with you to your friend’s funeral in Brightshire.”
I gasped. “That was you. Why didn’t you say something? Why didn’t you tell me you were my mother? Why didn’t you take me with you? I don’t understand.”
“I wanted to. I meant to. But it seemed selfish. You had a life of your own. You had just been given an opportunity to apprentice to a scribe. You were friends with young Cedric. You had the memories of a childhood with your parents and your brothers. How could I shatter your life?” She sighed. “I did mean to tell you. I was going to take you with me, so we could travel the world together. But, when the moment came, I couldn’t do it. It seemed horrifically unfair.”
“But what about the furies? You knew it wasn’t safe in Brightshire.”
“I didn’t know how bad it would get. When I heard that the furies had taken Brightshire, I despaired you must be lost. I feared I had made a terrible mistake in leaving you. A seer in Candel found you for me, but she could only give me a glimpse of you in Barriershire. Knowing you were unharmed consoled me.”
“Why did you leave? You could have stayed, even if you didn’t want to tell me who you really were.”
“Although I didn’t think the threat was imminent, I knew the border between Brightshire and the Southlands was fading. I went back to Candel to consult with the seers and to look for other mages. It took me years to find mages with real talent and convince them to help. Merdin thinks assembling this group was his work. But he merely showed up in Candel as we were ready to leave.”
“We met in the Abbey in Barriershire.”
She nodded. “I came back for a short time. I needed a book from the Abbey’s library. We’ve been studying how it can be done. How we can rebuild the border. It has taken some time and study to develop a workable plan. But we’re ready now. When I left you for the second time, I thought you would be safer in Barriershire’s Abbey than on the road with me. Again, I was foolhardy. I should have realized that Barriershire was no more secure than Brightshire.”
“It’s all my fault,” I whispered. “I practiced blood magic in Brightshire. I did this.”
“It wasn’t you, Anais. The border was damaged before you were born. I believe I may have been partially responsible for it. When I was young, I thought magic was some great toy to explore. I didn’t understand that there would be consequences. Everything comes at a cost. It’s also possible it would have torn apart even if you and I had never touched blood magic. The border wasn’t built to last forever. It was always going to weaken.”
“I can help,” I offered.
“I know you can, and we will need you.” She brushed my hair with her fingers. “There’s so much I need to tell you…”
The dull ache of Uthur’s loss was still with me. I would never forget him. I think it allowed me to understand how Anabella could have given me up so many years ago. Sometimes in a sea of uncertainty, there is no right choice.
One of the women at the table stood and almost floated toward us, her eyes closed. The hood of her cloak dropped as she moved and her long white hair flowed behind her. She looked impossibly old. When she reached us, she opened her eyes, which glowed a solid endless white. She pointed to a wrinkled finger at me.
Merdin smiled and stepped toward us, his teeth looking particularly sharp. “Finally, we’ll get our prediction. We’ve been dragging her around with us for months, and she’s said nothing.” He glared at her. “Talk.”
“She’s a seer, Merdin. A true one. She’ll only speak to one person,” Anabella corrected him. “And it seems like she’s chosen Anais.”
Merdin groaned. “Fine,” he hissed. “This prediction had better be useful. She’s been nothing but trouble.”
Anabella took Merdin by the elbow and pushed him towards the table. Once they were out of earshot, the woman took my hand in hers and leaned toward me and whispered in my ear. “When a man’s leg becomes infected, we cut it off. When a man’s heart becomes infected, we help him die.”
“I don’t understand. What do you mean?” I whispered.
Instead of answering, she closed her eyes and slumped to the floor. I fell to my knees and touched her throat. She had no pulse.
~ End of Part 5 ~
AUTHOR'S NOTE
THANK YOU FOR reading Anais and the Broken War. I hope you enjoyed the story. I am in the process of writing Book 6, tentatively titled Anabella’s Story.
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Anais and the Broken War (The Blood Mage Chronicles Book 5) Page 16
