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“I…” Back to the Keep and to the feelings of isolation? Back to being feared for my abilities? Or back to spy on Sitia so I could eventually return to Ixia? Or just being on my own, exploring Sitia and spending time with my family?
“I think you’re afraid to go back to the Keep,” Leif said.
“What?”
“It will be much easier for you to stay away, and not have to deal with being a Soulfinder, being a daughter and being a sister.”
“I’m not afraid.” I had tried to find a place in Sitia, but I kept getting pushed away. How many hints did I need? I wasn’t a glutton for punishment. What if they decided that a Soulfinder equaled evil and they burned me alive for violating their Ethical Code?
“You are afraid.” Leif challenged.
“Am not.”
“Are too.”
“Am not.”
“Then prove it.”
I opened my mouth, but no sound came out.
Finally, I said, “I hate you.”
Leif smiled. “The feeling is mutual.” He paused for a moment. “Are you coming?”
“Not now. I’ll think about it.” It was a delay tactic and Leif knew it.
“If you don’t come back to the Keep, then I’ll be right. And every time you see me, I’ll be insufferably smug.”
“And how’s that different from now?”
He laughed and I could see the young carefree boy he had been in his eyes. “You’ve only had a small glimpse of how insufferable and annoying I can be. As the older brother, it’s my birthright.”
Leif mounted Rusalka and galloped away.
Valek and I walked with Kiki toward the north. Toward Ixia. He held my hand and I felt content as my thoughts mulled over the last few hours.
“Valek. What did you say to Alea?”
“I told her how her brother had died.”
I remembered how I had trapped Mogkan with magic, immobilizing him so Valek could cut his throat. Alea died the exact same way.
“We had no time to take Alea with us, love. I wasn’t going to let her have another chance to hurt you.”
“How do you always know when I need you?”
Valek’s eyes flamed with an intensity that I had rarely seen. “I know. It’s part of me like hunger or thirst. A need that must be met to survive.”
“How do you do it? I can’t connect my mind to yours with my magic. And you don’t have magic. It should be impossible.”
Valek remained quiet for a moment. “Perhaps, when I feel your distress, I relax my guard and allow you to connect with me?”
“Perhaps. Have you ever done that for anyone else?”
“No, love. You’re the only one who has caused me to do the oddest things. You have truly poisoned me.”
I laughed. “Odd, eh?”
“It’s a good thing you can’t read my mind, love.”
A sapphire-blue fire smoked in his eyes, and I noticed a tightening in his lean muscles.
“Oh, I know what you’re thinking.” I stepped into his arms, putting my hands under his waistband to where his thoughts had traveled, making my point.
“I can’t. Hide. From you,” Valek panted.
I heard Kiki snort and move away as my world filled with the feel and smell and taste of Valek.
Valek and I spent the next several days walking the plains and enjoying being together without any worries or problems hovering over our heads. We would discover small caches of food and water along our path. And while I didn’t have the feeling that someone watched us, I felt that the Sandseeds knew where we were, and the provisions were their way of extending their hospitality to a distant cousin.
Eventually, we left the plains. Skirting east of the Citadel, we headed north through the Featherstone clan’s lands. Careful to travel at night and hide during the day, it took us three days to reach the Ambassador’s retinue.
I had lost track of the days and been surprised to see their camp, but Valek had known they would be about a half-day’s walk to the Ixian border. After determining where the Sitian “spies” hid, Valek changed into his Ilom disguise, and slipped into the camp in the middle of the night. I waited and approached the next day. There was no reason for me to hide, and, if I went back to Ixia, the Sitian spies could report back to the Keep and the Council that I had left.
The Ixians had begun to pack up their equipment when I rode in on Kiki. One tent still stood, but Ari and Janco rushed over to greet me before I could reach it.
“Didn’t I tell you, Ari? She’s come to say goodbye after all. And you were pouting and miserable for days,” Janco said.
Ari just rolled his eyes, and I knew if anyone was miserable it was Janco.
“Or have you decided that you can’t bear to be parted from us and are going to disguise yourself as a soldier and come back to Ixia?” Janco’s smile was hopeful.
“Beating you in a bow fight every day is really tempting, Janco.”
He scoffed. “I know your tricks now. I won’t be so easy to beat.”
“Are you sure you want me to come? I have a tendency to cause trouble.”
“That’s what I’m counting on,” Janco said. “Life has been so dull without you.”
Ari shook his massive head. “We don’t need any more trouble. The diplomatic niceties started falling apart between the Ambassador and the Sitian Council toward the end. Before we left, one of the Councilors had accused the Ambassador of bringing Valek to Sitia to assassinate the Council.”
“Not good,” I said. “The Sitians are constantly worried the Commander will want to take control of their lands. And I would be, too, knowing that Valek possessed the skills to assassinate the Councilors as well as the Master Magicians, creating enough chaos so there is little resistance to an Ixian attack.”
I shook my head, sighing. The Ixians and Sitians viewed the world so differently. They needed someone to help them understand each other. A strange feeling churned in my stomach. Fear? Excitement? Nausea? Perhaps all three; it was hard to tell.
“Speaking of Valek,” Janco said, “I take it he’s well?”
“You know Valek,” I said.
Janco nodded, grinning.
“I’d better talk to the Ambassador.” I slid off Kiki. Before I could move, Ari’s large hand grabbed my arm.
“Just make sure you say goodbye to Janco,” Ari said. “You think he’s annoying when he’s in a good mood; he’s worse when he’s in a bad mood.”
I promised Ari, but as I walked to the Ambassador’s tent, that odd feeling in the pit of my stomach became almost painful. Goodbye seemed so final.
One of the two guards outside the tent ducked inside to announce me. He came out and held the flap for me to enter. Ambassador Signe sat at a canvas table, drinking tea with Valek still dressed as Adviser Ilom. Signe dismissed him and I caught a look and the word “tonight” from Valek before he left the tent.
Bypassing the pleasantries, Signe asked, “Have you decided if you’re going to visit us?”
I took the Commander Ambrose’s order of execution from my pack. My hand trembled slightly and I took a breath to steady my nerves. “With this unfortunate clash of opinions between Ixia and Sitia, I believe you both will need a liaison. A neutral party who knows both countries and can facilitate negotiations, assisting them in understanding each other better.” Meaning I wouldn’t spy for Ixia, but I offered to help. I handed Signe the order. The Commander must decide what to do with it.
And there he stood in Signe’s uniform, studying me with his powerful gold eyes. I blinked several times. The transformation from Signe to Commander Ambrose was so complete that I could only see a faint resemblance to the Ambassador in his face.
The Commander rolled up the execution order and tapped it on his palm as his gaze grew distant. Considering all the options, I thought, he never made a hasty decision.
“A valid point,” he said.
He stood and paced the small area. I saw a bedroll on the floor behind him and a lantern.
The tent and table appeared to be his only luxuries.
Commander Ambrose stopped then tore my execution order into small pieces, sprinkling them onto the ground. Turning, he held out his hand to me. “Agreed, Liaison Yelena.”
“Liaison Yelena Zaltana,” I corrected as we shook hands.
We discussed the Commander’s plans for Ixia and how he wanted to expand trade with Sitia. He insisted I finish my magical training before becoming the official liaison. Before I left, I witnessed Ambassador Signe’s return. It was then that I felt, for a brief moment, that two souls resided within one body. That would explain why he had been so successful at keeping his secret.
I mulled over the interesting idea to keep my mind off the startling fact that I was going to return to the Keep. The Ambassador’s retinue finished packing. I told Ari and Janco that I would see them again.
“Next time, your ass is mine,” Janco sang.
“Keep your skills sharp,” Ari ordered.
“It was bad enough having two mothers, now I have two fathers,” I teased.
“Send word if you need us,” Ari said.
