They came to the end of space near the front porch and turned to promenade back to the fence. “I . . . feel free.” He narrowed his eyes. “So free I could live with you in Multiplicity.”
He winked at her. She stared.
“It could be our own little love nest.”
“No. It is my home and studio.”
“Hmm. I could use a studio for my wind chimes workshop. I’ll have to include that in my Multiplicity home. I could live there. We could live there. Unwatched by anyone, even the house.” Hop. Turn. Pick her up and spin . . . and don’t put her back down. Pull her close so he could feel her heart beat against his chest, let her sense his own racing pulse.
With every moment his sense of freedom expanded and he could hear chunks of the heavy-rock burden he’d carried and had never considered, falling away.
Avellana sniffed. “I know very well that T’Vine Residence adores you. It will always back you in any Familial discussion or dispute.”
Vinni grinned. “Because I am T’Vine, the Prophet of Celta, the Oracle of Celta. And I have been an excellent GreatLord. I have fulfilled all my duties. I have been responsible. I have brought gilt to our coffers and favors and fame to our name.” Now he wanted real music. “Calendar sphere, play a selection of dance compositions.”
The orb appeared and cheerful music poured into the air. A couple of minutes later, Vinni felt eyes on them, swung Avellana around in a curve, and saw two silhouettes standing close together. Bicknell and Perna. Through his newly strong bond with them he felt a slight astonishment, but increasing trust and warmth. Excellent.
And good for them to see that he and Avellana were simple and human, just like them.
On the first note of a quiet, lilting waltz, he drew Avellana down to the ground with him to lie next to him, murmuring aloud a spell to banish lust.
They lay there quietly for three full songs, sides touching, hands clasped.
He enjoyed the feel of the thick grass, the gorgeous spirals of multicolored stars, the night sky of Celta that showed galaxies, his love beside him.
“I can’t do it,” he said.
“I know, Muin.”
She did, but he wanted to put it in words anyway. “I can’t give up my title.”
“Of course not.” Her hand stroked his chest.
“I like being T’Vine. Not so much being the Head of the Family, but I like using my Flair and interacting with other FirstFamilies. I love my Residence.”
“Of course. You cannot give up your life. Your identity is as T’Vine.”
He grunted. “Yes.” Then he grinned. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t threaten the Family with it.”
He heard her head shake. “Oh, Muin.”
“They need shaking up.”
“I am sure we are doing a good job of that now.”
“Maybe. Not sure who all in the Family might have recognized my knowledge of a new Vine with excellent Family Flair, or my reaction to that notion.”
“But some of your closest Family members would have felt echoes of your emotions.”
“Yes.” He paused. “I’m not sure whether they’ll make the right and logical connections or not.”
“And whether, if they make those connections, Floricoma will be in danger.”
“Yes.” He sighed. “We have to leave tomorrow . . . after we raise a better shieldspell around the manor.”
“Yes, Muin.”
“We’ll continue on to check out the house in Gael City.”
“All right.”
A rustling noise came and Flora hopped from under a bush and onto Vinni’s chest. I felt your joy at the new young one, she said.
Did you FEEL that she is strong in power and could be the next Head of the Household? he asked telepathically.
No, Flora said. Just your joy.
He petted her. You are closer to me than anyone except Avellana. But Flora wasn’t a thinking, scheming human, not as smart as a human.
We continue our travels and to another place that smells of Family.
“Yes,” Avellana said out loud. Then he heard her telepathic call to her own Fam. Enjoy your night here, Rhyz. We will be leaving in the morning.
A quiet mental assent and a feeling that Rhyz waited at a rat hole, hunting.
Avellana convinced Vinni to continue the no-lust spell so that they could sleep together that night. Just to be together, as friends, not lovers. He hadn’t wanted to do it . . . but thought he might like the novelty.
He supposed he could get used to the feeling of no-lust when he was with her. Occasionally. Once a decade or so.
Thirty-three
The next morning, after a breakfast at the manor house with Bicknell and Perna—and Floricoma in a high cradle—Vinni and Avellana stood on the front porch, hands joined, bond open and flowing between them. Flora and Rhyz sat on their feet.
“Ready to raise a shieldspell?” Vinni asked.
“Yes.”
He began the chant, then as she formed her part of the shield, he let his spell collapse. “Stop.”
She did, staring at him.
Gritting out the words, Vinni said, “Your spell is old, not current. I did not notice that when we worked on your home.”
She raised her brows. “I was one of many in Multiplicity and followed your lead. My shieldspell is the latest I have been taught.” She paused. “Two years ago.”
He dropped her hands, paced down the sidewalk to the gliderway, then back. “Cave of the Dark Goddess.” He let out an unamused laugh. “Guess we know how your house shieldspells were breached.”
“I suppose so,” she said stiffly. “As far as I know, no one else reinforced my own spells on my house in Multiplicity. The very best shieldspells are slated for next week.”
“Damn. I’ll relay this information to Garrett Primross and Ilex Winterberry.” His teeth snapped together. “Why haven’t you learned—”
“Because I have been away. Usually in small towns where you introduced me to people, and they know me and watch out for me, as you asked. You have always boosted the shieldspells on my domiciles.”
You always sent us away and played with such spells yourself, FamCat Rhyz said at the same time.
“All right.” He flung up his hands. “All right.”
She removed her hands from her sleeves where they’d gone. Vinni figured she might have made fists. Or maybe she’d been tempted to use a spell against him, or punch him.
He rocked, heel-to-toe, sending his irritation into the ground. Several times. When he knew he contained the steadiness needed for a strong spell, he held out his hands and linked with Avellana, noting that she’d banished her annoyance, too. Probably quicker than he had.
“Ready?”
“Yes, beloved.” She smiled.
Better than steadiness, the warmth of being loved rose in him, and when he focused on the house, he sensed the people within, and recalled the joy and gratitude he’d felt last night, and let that rise, too.
With him guiding her, teaching her the new spell, all four of them tapped into the Vine energy of the estate and fit an excellent shield around the house.
Until pain traveled through his Family bonds and bit at the back of his mind and he let Avellana finish the spell as he crumpled to the ground.
Vinni awoke on a gel couch in the mainspace of the cottage, with Avellana holding his hand, looking worried, Flora snuffling on his chest, and Bicknell and Rhyz staring down at him.
“I got you in here,” the man said.
Carried, most likely, and to the cottage, not into the other Vine’s home, the manor house.
“Thanks,” Vinni said. Sitting up and rubbing the back of his neck, he met Bicknell’s eyes. “Did you feel it?”
“Feel what?”
“Bifrona collapsed. Some major health prob
lem, I think.” Touching his temples, he checked his bond with her, dim and unresponsive. And he began to grieve. She would not recover from this physical outrage, and it had occurred sooner than he’d anticipated.
“Oh, no!” Avellana cried.
“Bifrona Vine? The head of the staff of T’Vine Residence?” Bicknell asked flatly.
“Yes,” Vinni confirmed, swinging his feet down to the floor, but holding Flora close. She grieved, too.
Bicknell had stiffened. “Neither Perna nor I have close bonds to her.” After a moment of stolid silence and with surprise dawning on his face, he concluded, “The closest bond we have with the Vine Family is you, GreatLord—”
“Vinni,” Vinni insisted.
“Vinni.”
Avellana blinked rapidly. “Do you know who will step into Bifrona’s place as Head of Staff and Housekeeper?”
He cleared his throat. “No. I don’t. She has deputies, secondaries—” He made a cutting gesture. “I suppose we must have contingency plans in case of such a situation—”
This time a harsh laugh came from Bicknell. “I doubt it. There are people in T’Vine Residence who definitely think they are better than others and are indispensable.”
“Then, Muin, your household might be in disarray. We must leave immediately,” Avellana stated.
“We’ll ’port to Gael City airpark, hire a fast private airship to Druida City, rent a glider there. I think we could even get there today.” He gazed at Bicknell. “I can leave my glider here for you, Perna, and the babe, or program it to go back to Druida City.”
“We don’t need a fancy glider.” He curled his bottom lip.
“All right, then—”
“Waste, Muin,” Avellana scolded. “Let us find out if anyone we know needs a glider ride to Druida City.”
He didn’t like the idea of some unknown in his personal glider, so just grunted in response.
Avellana rose but squeezed his hand. “Thank you for your hospitality, Bicknell.” She dropped Vinni’s fingers to curtsey to the man. “We will leave shortly.”
“Good, that is, all right. We’re glad you were here to be Oracle, T’Vine. Our gratitude.”
“You’re welcome.” Vinni stood and inclined his torso. “Please consider being our guests at Samhain.”
Bicknell jerked a nod. “Guess we might. Changes are coming to the Family, for sure.”
“Absolutely,” Avellana said. “Of course you will be invited to our wedding.”
A smile-grimace. “Thank you.”
“All will be settled by then,” she reminded him quietly.
“Okay.” He turned on his heel and left.
Flora whuffled, curved in on herself. I am sad. Bifrona is good to me. She gives me treats.
Rhyz actually jumped from the curved arm of the sofa to walk over and stretch against Vinni and lick the bulge of Flora’s stomach. I am sorry you are sad. We will go back today.
“Yes,” Avellana said. “Rhyz and I will take care of our house and each other at Multiplicity and at D’Hazel Residence, and Muin will take care of his Family at T’Vine Residence.”
Vinni stepped up to her and hugged her. “And we’ll see each other every day. That’s a promise from me.”
She met his eyes. “Yes, I promise, too.”
Rhyz said, I can spend time with Flora. Helping her. His tail waved. I like T’Vine Residence very much.
All cats enjoyed status, and it looked like Rhyz would be making his move to become the primary Fam of T’Vine Residence.
On a private telepathic stream to the Fam, Vinni warned, You must watch out for Avellana.
Rhyz’s whiskers twitched as the tip of his tail flicked. I always do. Better than you.
Then he teleported outside as Vinni stroked his housefluff.
Thirty-four
The moment Vinni arrived at the entry gatehouse of T’Vine Residence late that afternoon, he’d been swarmed with people. Even more awaited him when he’d teleported to the public area. T’Vine Residence had already told Bifrona’s deputies to continue in their areas, but Vinni figured shadowy turf wars had begun.
Looking thin and too pale, Bifrona rested comfortably in her suite, in a coma and with little brain activity. The Family had three Healers, two SecondLevel and one ThirdLevel, and they rotated staying with Bifrona and keeping her comfortable. She was expected to pass on to the Wheel of Stars and her next life within the next several days.
The Healer of Celta, FirstLevel Healer Ura Heather, had examined Bifrona shortly after she’d collapsed. And when Vinni arrived, the Healer spent a few minutes with him after he looked in on Bifrona.
Bifrona had suffered a syrthio attack, an unexpected, fatal brain blip. A Celtan phenomenon that occurred when the Earthan human reached some sort of level of disbelief about their planet or their culture.
Or their idea of Family.
Vinni could only suppose Bifrona had been forced to confront evidence of betrayal within the Family. Someone who’d broken his Loyalty Oath to Vinni, smashed a Vow of Honor.
She might have been playing games to manipulate Vinni with regard to Avellana and her status as D’Vine. His cuz would prefer to continue to hold the staff’s reins, and establish that upper hand before Vinni wed. So Bifrona would be open to being maneuvered with regard to insisting that Vinni and Avellana lead a First Quarter Twinmoons Ritual and visit Saille T’Willow.
But she would never have countenanced violence to Avellana or him.
What had she learned, and how? He asked the Residence to recite her movements and found she’d collapsed in her suite after reviewing the list of people who would be having gilt deducted from their salaries for payment of T’Willow’s matchmaking fee.
Had she realized, then, she’d been used? Was the betrayer’s name on that list, or, more likely, not on the list?
So Vinni sat down and read reports. First, he compared the people on her list with ones who’d been in his tower the day he’d felt evil, and crossed some names off.
Then he matched those who’d been out of T’Vine Residence during the attack at the baths. Eleven.
That particular exercise did not help in determining who in the Family could be the villain.
Next he turned to the reports of the investigators of the assaults on Avellana and the kidnapped Phae Thermarum—who GraceLady D’Thermarum stated remained alive though missing.
Before Vinni, Avellana, and the Fams had left on the trip, he’d given Garrett Primross permission to interrogate his staff. Listening to his Family members talk of the man, and reading his report, he found that Primross had spent a couple of days in casual conversation with the Vines. Hadn’t ruffled many feathers, except Duon’s, the Chief of Guards.
Primross had discovered no evidence of villains but had left three of his stray FamCats slinking about as observers of the Vine Family.
The Captain of the Druida City Guards, Ilex Winterberry, had also visited, but the Family had closed ranks against him.
No help from those reports.
Vinni’s allies in the FirstFamilies continued to send accounts of checking out their own Families for the secret Traditionalist Stance leader. Some of the small FirstFamilies had informal gatherings; others, apparently, instituted more formal questioning. Nobody reported any disloyalty.
His allies who’d managed to maintain ties with those who’d broken contracts with the Vines reported that those two Families no doubt contained members of the Traditionalist Stance. However, the conservative Heads of those Households didn’t like violent fanatics any more than any other powerful FirstFamily Lord or Lady. They, too, scrutinized their Family members, and reported no villain.
Vinni continued to experience the awful dread that the leader was a Vine.
Of all the people on this side of Celta, Avellana could be considered the outlier in the type of
her primary Flair.
Vinni knew most believed he was odd, too, since he’d demonstrated such strong Flair at an early age—and he’d never suffered through the dreamquest Passages to free that gift. His Flair had always been available to him. But his type of Flair, prophecy, had been known and accepted since the most ancient of days on old Earth.
Avellana, the strength and type of her Flair, scared people. In a population who continued to evolve in psi power, Avellana stood out as an evolutionary jump.
And that was the basis of this whole mess.
The Traditionalist Stance people didn’t want progress, to accept that children manifested newer and stronger Flair. That, maybe, the Earthan humans had finally begun to adjust to their new home planet.
Kill the mutant, and before she breeds, and before she breeds in OUR bloodline. Yes, he could sense that sort of warped thinking smearing his relatives.
Much as he hated to think it, he thought the Vine guards might be tainted. They’d been infected by dissent, by anger, by fear of the different before. That group tended to be more conservative than the rest of the culture, and were trained to defend and attack.
After dinner, Vinni couldn’t settle, so he walked the Residence. Only once a season did he walk through all the corridors of his home, look through every room except private bedrooms, check on everyone there, working or at leisure.
He kept his usual easy manner, greeted everyone by name, but watched their reactions to him, and if he sensed disapproval, he checked on his bond with that member. Naturally some disliked being watched, having the Head of the Household in their area. Those who would be paying a fee for the matchmaking session—going to a common Vine fund, but being charged all the same—grudged Vinni’s presence.
Heart Sight Page 33
