“Wait. You’ve lived here for what…forty-odd sun jumps, but I grew up here. I lived here for eighteen circuits. Why didn’t I know?” Was she that obtuse?
“You were a child for most of your time here,” Rendor said. “I’m an adult and trained to investigate when things don’t add up. I can put the clues together.”
Shyla liked to believe she was capable of the same thing. She had earned a living these last two circuits uncovering lost ruins, ancient temples, and artifacts. Yet she missed it. “Why didn’t you tell me?” she asked Hanif.
“Because you never swore the oath and became a monk.”
That was his go-to excuse for everything.
“And…uh…can’t you just…” He tapped a finger on his temple.
“I can read your mind. But I respect your privacy. Unless you’re saying I shouldn’t?” She leaned forward.
Hanif stepped back, holding up his hands. “No, no. That’s an admirable policy.”
Score one for her. But she still couldn’t help feeling like an idiot because, once she actually thought about it, the clues were always there. “You have your own growing cavern.”
“We do. It’s small, but it will provide enough for the monastery if the Heliacal Priestess ever decides to cut us off.”
Excited now, she asked, “Can you show me?”
Hanif hesitated. “I suppose. Why do you want to see it?”
“I’m curious.” She told him about her plan to start one in their headquarters, which wasn’t as original of an idea as she’d thought.
“All right. We can grab that other torque and swing by the Fourth Room of Knowledge on our way.”
“Aftershe eats,” Rendor said. Then to her, “You’ve been asleep for an entire sun jump.”
Now that he mentioned it, her stomach growled with hunger. Although she was quite capable of standing up, she let Rendor pull her to her feet. He frowned when she wobbled.
“Didn’t Jayden tell you where I was going?” she asked him.
“No. Only that you’d be back soon. I woke him up when you failed to return by darkness.” He crossed his massive arms.
Boys. To say the two of them didn’t get along was being kind. Jayden considered Rendor to be a low man in the Invisible Sword’s hierarchy. Rendor was used to giving orders, not taking them.
There was nothing she could do about it at the moment. The three of them stopped in the empty dining cavern for a meal. Since they were alone, she asked Hanif about the water. “Do you have your own well, too?”
“No.” He squirmed then sighed. “We exaggerate our numbers to the Water Prince so he sends us more water than we need. We stockpile the rest just in case. If he cut us off, we have enough to last until we can get word to the King of Koraha.”
That explained why he could spare a few jugs when the Invisible Sword moved to their new location. “Smart.”
“Not if the prince figures it out,” Hanif said, glancing at Rendor.
“The prince doesn’t keep track of things like that,” Rendor said. “The water accountant does. As long as you’re not being greedy, he probably won’t pick up on it.”
“That’s good to know.”
“I wonder if the Heliacal Priestess does it as well,” Shyla said. “She can’t be happy relying on the prince for water.” The two of them were supposed to share equal power in the ruling of Zirdai, but the prince held a slight advantage since people couldn’t last more than three sun jumps without water. He also lived one level deeper than the priestess—another sticking point.
“I suspect the priestess has tapped into the aquifer,” Rendor said.
“Can we tap into it as well?” she asked. Being able to access the underground cavern filled with water would solve one of their many problems.
“No,wecan not.” Amused, he leaned back as if waiting.
Had he been expecting her to ask about the prince’s water supply by now? Why wouldn’t he volunteer the information when she mentioned they were running out? She suspected it was due to his pride. If they treated him like a grunt only capable of shoveling sand, then he would act the part. “The aquifer is not within the city,” she guessed.
