The Voice: An Ephemera Novella(An eSpecial from Roc)

by Anne Bishop

  Which was why he needed to patrol and stay vigilant. But he couldn’t deny that Yoshani’s suggestion was prudent.

  “All right,” he said. “I’ll use my island to reach Glorianna’s and Mother’s landscapes so I’m not spending a lot of time on the roads alone. And every second day I’ll return here and give you or Brighid my itinerary for the next bit of journeying.”

  “Fair enough.” Yoshani smiled. “Travel lightly, Lee.”

  Giving the man a terse nod, Lee walked to the stream and the small island that sat in the middle of it. His own personal landscape, it existed on the bridge of his will when he imposed it over other landscapes. Because of that, Sanctuary—and safety—was never more than a step away.

  Nimbly walking across the stepping stones, he jumped to the island and staggered, off-balance.

  Had there been a moment when the island hadn’t been under his feet? But he was in Sanctuary, where the island actually existed. How was it possible for it not to be there?

  Lee went to the center of the island and left his pack near the fountain—a bowl of black stone with a hollowed-out piece of cane that drew fresh water from the stream. He carefully inspected every section of the island to be certain nothing about it had changed. Then he shifted it to a landscape held by his mother.

  Let your heart travel lightly. Because what you bring with you becomes part of the landscape.

  Heart’s Blessing was one of the first things he had learned, but this was the first time in his twenty-nine years that the words made him uneasy.

  Also by Anne Bishop

  The Black Jewels Series

  Daughter of the Blood

  Heir to the Shadows

  Queen of the Darkness

  The Invisible Ring

  Dreams Made Flesh

  Tangled Webs

  The Shadow Queen

  Shalador’s Lady

  Twilight’s Dawn

  The Ephemera Series

  Sebastian

  Belladonna

  Bridge of Dreams

  The Tir Alainn Trilogy

  The Pillars of the World

  Shadows and Light

  The House of Gaian