hold, but let’s walk in a circle around the Councilor. We don’t have to get close to her. She’ll be in no danger.”
“No. Arrest her for espionage and for attacking me,” Tama
ordered.
“You’ve been guarding her for half a season. Something
isn’t right. Trust yourselves,” I said.
“Once around and then down to the cells,” the guard on
my left said.
“No tricks,” the other said.
Wedged between them, I stepped to the side, keeping the
Councilor in front of me. I reviewed my plan. Magicians
pulled threads of magic from the blanket of power surround-
ing the world. They aimed these strings of power at people
or objects. Since the magic around Tama wasn’t from anyone
in the room, I needed to find the direction of power. After
that, it would be pure guesswork.
She glared at us as she turned to follow our progress. I hoped
the magician wouldn’t spread his inf luence to the guards. In
that case, I would be screwed.
Three-quarters of the way around, I started to worry. What
if the magician was in the room above or below? And when
did I decide it wasn’t Zebb?
After a few more steps, I entered a stream of magic. It
pushed against my back. I stopped.
Confusion spread on her face. She reached toward me.
“Opal? What…”
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Maria V. Snyder
The magic moved and she jerked. “Get her out of here!”
she yelled. “She’s a spy and should be locked up.”
“I blocked it for a moment,” I said. “You saw her change!
I need to get closer.” I dragged the guards three feet and I
stepped left and right, searching for the stream. Once again
the magic slammed into my back.
The Councilor sagged into her desk chair. “Listen to Opal,”
she said in a weak voice.
When the magic moved, I stayed with it. “Get Zebb,” I
ordered the guards as I shrugged them off. “Hurry!”
I expected Tama to protest, but she pulled her knees to her
chest and hugged them, making herself into a smaller target
either by instinct or intelligence. It didn’t matter. By this time, I stood close to her and shielded her with my body.
The magical pressure increased and I used every bit of
energy to keep from being f lattened. Where was Zebb? Gasp-
ing for breath, I strained against the attack. My calf muscles
burned with the effort. Sweat stung my eyes.
When the door banged, I yelled, “Null shield!” without
bothering to see if it was Zebb.
Two things happened at once. The onslaught stopped, and
Zebb’s magic pushed me away from Tama. I staggered and
dropped to the f loor, panting with relief.
“What the hell was that?” Zebb asked.
I let the guards explain.
“This
is
exactly why I need to be near the Councilor at all
times,” Zebb said. “I knew you’d endanger her.”
He continued to rant about her safety, but I tuned him out.
I wondered again if the magician had been after her or me.
When I felt stronger, I climbed to my feet. “Zebb, shut
up.” I resisted smirking when he listened to me. See? I could
be mature. “Can you sense another magician nearby?”
“No, but I was on the first f loor.”
“How about when you entered the room?”
He shook his head.
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I sighed. “Help me out here. Where would a magician need
to be to reach her?”
“It depends on how strong he is.”
I noted his pronoun choice. Habit or did he know more
than he was telling me? “Can we narrow it down to inside
or outside the building?” I asked in exasperation.
“Outside. No one with powers can get by me.”
Ignoring his boast, I asked, “Can you take a few guards out
to search?”
He sneered. “I know you’re used to hanging out with the
Master Magicians and the Soulfinder. They can walk the
streets and sniff out any magicians. The rest of us can’t.”
“But you just said—”
“Line of sight. Everyone coming into the Council Hall has
to pass by me. If I can reach their thoughts, they don’t have
any power.”
I thought it through. “Then the magician who attacked
the Councilor is stronger than average. He didn’t need line
of sight.”
His lips parted in surprise. “But he would have to know
she was in her office.”
We both turned to the picture window at the end of her
office. Sunlight streamed through the large pane of glass. Tama had located her U-shaped desk close enough to it so she could
enjoy the view while she worked.
I moved closer, looking outside. Her first-f loor office was a
mere twelve feet above the street. Below, townspeople strolled
or hustled by either on horseback or on foot. Wagons bounced
along the cobblestones. From this distance, I could see clearly.
No one seemed interested in the window. No one lurked in
the shadows. At least not now.
Zebb joined me.
“Would curtains help protect her?” I asked.
“To some extent. The magician would have to guess if
the Councilor was here. Or risk alerting me by sweeping
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the building. We could move her desk to make it harder for
him.”
“No curtains,” Tama said. Her first words since the inci-
dent. A touch of color had returned to her pallid cheeks.
“But—”
She cut Zebb off. “I understand your concerns. How about
a compromise?” She swiped the hair sticking to her face. “No
curtains and I’ll let Zebb and his null shield stay with me.”
“Finally,” Zebb said. “It’s what I’ve wanted from the
beginning!”
Not a diplomatic response and uncertainty filled her eyes.
“You’ve made a smart decision,” I said. “Zebb may be a
pompous ass, but he’s trustworthy.” The background check
on him hadn’t found anything.
Faith rushed in before he could retort.
“Tama, are you all right?” She gathered the Councilor in
her arms. Tama leaned into her.
“What happened?” Faith demanded.
I let Zebb handle the explanation while I mulled over a
possible reason for the attack.
When he finished addressing all her questions, I asked Tama
about her enemies. “Any other relatives that might be trying
to usurp you?”
Faith answered for her. “No. Akako is her only sister. Her
parents died years ago and she has one aunt and a couple of
cousins on her father’s side. They live in the Krystal lands and she’s never even met them.”
Tama pulled away. “My father was from the Krystal Clan.
He met my mother while here on business.” Her colorless
lips formed a wan smile. “He claimed love at first sight, but it took him a few seasons to convince her. The clan wasn’t happy
about their heir marrying an outsider. But he won them over
just like he did with my mother. Ev
eryone loved my father.”
A sweet story, but no help for our current problem. “Can
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you think of anyone who might be after you? Or a reason
someone wanted to control you?” I asked.
“Perhaps we missed one of Akako’s people,” Faith said.
“Only Tama can release Akako from prison.”
“Then why did he force me to arrest Opal?” the Councilor
asked. “I was convinced she was a spy and I’d only be safe
once she was secured in Wirral.”
“Basic strategy,” Zebb said. “Eliminate the person’s sup-
porters so no one protests when the person changes her
behavior.”
A logical argument, yet an uneasy chill swirled. Being in-
carcerated in Wirral would be a waking nightmare.
For now, at least the null shield protected Tama, and I had
my immunity. Faith declared she would go over Akako’s files,
searching for any insurgents who may have been missed.
I returned to my desk and the thick file on the hotshots in
the SMU. Perhaps Akako had managed to bribe one of them
or one could already be loyal to her. I would have laughed
at the irony if I had the energy. The creative reasoning that
netted me the file in the first place might lead to an answer
and to something to prove to the warden that his prison wasn’t
perfect.
I read through the files until I was cross-eyed with fatigue.
After spending the entire afternoon studying the information
on the hotshots, I had nothing to show for it. Finn’s matched
his story. Complete background checks with confirmations
from two different sources had been attached to each CO’s
dossier. Even the rookie Lamar’s papers had been included.
His letter of recommendation from the Iolite Prison’s warden
had been verified twice.
When the words swam together, I stopped for the day. Tama
had retreated to her suite for the night, but Faith remained in her office. I debated. Should I skip supper and get a few extra hours of sleep or go to the Pig Pen for a bowl of stew?
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Preoccupied, I left the Hall and paused. The black sky meant
I had missed the late-afternoon training again. Nic and Eve
would harass me about it.
“Working late?” a voice asked from behind me.
I drew my sais, whipping around. Finn leaned on the Coun-
cilor’s Hall. He spread his hands. “Easy there.”
“Sorry.” I slid my weapons back under my cloak.
“Are you always this jumpy?” he asked.
“No. It’s been a long day.” I gathered my scattered wits.
“What are you doing here?”
“Waiting for you.”
“Why?” The question popped out without censure.
Finn laughed. A nice rumble. “I enjoyed our conversation
the other day and wanted to continue it.”
“Oh.” My tired brain finally caught up. This was good.
Right? I wanted to get closer to him and find out more about
the prison. Kade would understand. I was working undercover.
But what if our roles were reversed? How would I feel if he
had to seduce another woman? Horrible. I shook my head.
Ridiculous speculation. I didn’t plan to seduce Finn.
“Would you like to have dinner with me?” he asked in an
uncertain tone.
“Of course. I’m sorry. I’m tired and—”
“We can go another time then.”
“I didn’t mean that. I’m famished. How about I pick
the place this time? I know a tavern with the best stew in
town.”
He f lashed me his slanted smile. “Any angry officers?”
“We shouldn’t need a distraction in order to leave.”
He swept his arm out. “Lead on.”
The jumble of voices reached us before we entered the Pig
Pen. Nic’s brother served drinks, and Nic and Eve sat at their
usual places. Not good. I thought they were on duty. Fulgor
soldiers filled every table and people crowded the bar. I was
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about to retreat to another tavern when Ian waved me over.
He snapped his fingers a few times and two stools next to my
friends emptied. So much for a quiet conversation.
Finn whistled. “Wow. You must be a good customer.” He
nodded to a couple of people as we claimed the stools. I made
sure to sit between Finn and Nic.
“Have you been here before?” I asked him.
“No, but I know a few of Fulgor’s security forces. All part
of the job.”
Hoping Nic and Eve wouldn’t blow my cover by men-
tioning Kade, I introduced them to Finn. Nic sized him up
and gave me a questioning look before Eve elbowed him in
the ribs. If Finn noticed he didn’t react. Two bowls of stew
appeared in front of us, and I turned Finn’s attention to Ian.
When Finn made the connection between the brothers, I felt
a strange sense of pride.
“Is he the reason you’ve missed four training sessions?” Nic
asked me.
“I’ve been busy with work.”
“No excuses,” Nic said. “It’s too important. Does
Kad—Ow!”
“Time to go,” Eve said, standing. She pulled Nic off the
stool. “Nice meeting you, Finn. We’d love to stay and chat,
but we’re on duty tonight. Opal, we’ll see you in the morning.” Her pointed gaze warned me she would question me
thoroughly.
Eve hustled Nic out the door. Confusion creased his face,
but he followed his partner.
Finn and I ate our stew. He pushed his empty bowl aside
and drank his ale. “You’re right. It is the best in town.”
The food revived me, and cleared my mind. “It’s better than
my mother’s, but don’t tell anyone I said that or she’ll disown me.”
“Your secret is safe with me. Although I could blackmail
you with it.”
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Maria V. Snyder
I smiled at his teasing tone. “You could try.”
“You never did answer my question.”
“Which
one?”
“If you think you can beat me with those sais of yours?”
He touched my arm, resting his warm fingers on my forearm.
“Think about it. You did miss a few training sessions.”
“How much training have you had?” I asked.
“Ten
years.”
I had gotten serious about improving my own skills only a
year ago. “I doubt I could win a match against you.” Unless
I cheated and used those pressure points Devlen had inadver-
tently taught me.
“You may surprise yourself. From what I hear, you’re rather
resourceful.”
“What have you heard?”
“There wasn’t much information in the gossip loop, and
you didn’t give me a whole lot, either.”
“I hardly know you.” Yet I didn’t pull my arm away.
“True. But you’re in a powerful position, working so close
with the Councilor and the First Adviser.”
I couldn’t argue with him without telling him why I took
the job. “And?”
“And I knew someone in security had to know som
ething.”
He leaned his elbow on the bar with a smug casualness.
“Who ratted me out?”
“Do you know a Captain Alden?” He gestured to the still-
empty stools. “Your friends’ boss?”
“I’ve met him once or twice.” Nic and Eve had reported
everything they witnessed in Hubal to him. Their report had
lacked a few important details. “How do you know him?”
“Friend of a friend.”
“Are you proud of yourself ?”
“Of course. Plus I feel better knowing you are with the Councilor, and I can tell the warden good things about
you.”
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“The warden asks you because…?”
“I know everyone in town.”
“You didn’t know Alden.”
“Miss Logical. I see you’re going to keep me on my toes. I
didn’t know Alden personally, but if I passed him on the street, I could tell you his name, rank and his position on Fulgor’s
security force.”
We talked about random things until I steered the conversa-
tion to the SMU and the hotshots.
Finn leaned close. “I know why you’re so interested in
them.”
“You do?” My mouth felt dry, and I resisted the urge to
gulp my ale.
“No one is escaping from the SMU, Opal. No one. Stop
worrying. Those men who stole your magic won’t hurt you
ever again.”
Covering my face with the mug of ale, I tipped it up and
took a long drink. Did he know about the file on my desk? I
decided to tone down my focus on the hotshots in Finn’s pres-
ence for now, and pretend he had guessed everything right.
I placed my hand over his and gave it a light squeeze.
“Thanks.”
Our conversation returned to more mundane topics. When
I couldn’t stif le a yawn, Finn stood. “Time to go. I have an
early day tomorrow.”
“Me, too.” I grimaced. Nic would be extra hard on me and
Eve would pepper me with questions. Ugh.
Finn grasped my hand when we reached the street. Our
footsteps echoed along the empty road. I hadn’t realized how
late it had gotten.
“The day after tomorrow is my day off,” he said. “Would
you like to go riding with me?”
I hesitated. Quartz would love the exercise, and I hadn’t
taken any time off since I arrived.
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Maria V. Snyder
“There’s a pretty little waterfall in the forest north of the
city,” he said.
“Sounds fun.” But guilt welled. I tried to rationalize my
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