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Aurelius’s brow furrowed. “I don’t have much left of her. She wouldn’t want me to gild it. She hated gold.”
“See? You can think and do whatyouwant.”
Jari poured in the salt and took a handful while Aurelius clicked the locket shut. Before he could drop it, Jari took his hand.
“Palm up.” He sprinkled in a little. “Anything?”
“No.”
Jari filled his palm. A little fell to the floor, but the extra seemed to work since Aurelius stilled for a second and drew in a breath. “Keep that there. It…helps. It’s clearer.”
“Whatever is in you, it has a weakness, so…try eating some.”
“I’ve eaten salt before.”
“Aurelius, please just do it. That was then. This is now.” Jari leaned over so he could poke his other finger into the grains and put it against Aurelius’s lips.
The tip of his tongue flicked out to catch the specks.
“Well?” asked Jari.
“No.”
“Did your Father ever put salt on his food?”
Aurelius squinted. “No.”
“That’s why.”
“But the cook seasoned everything quite well with other spices, and I’m sure she added a little salt while cooking.”
At the Palace, Jari had never felt his meals needed more salt or anything, and a little added during cooking would dissolve in the juices and moisture of the food. Once placed in the mouth and stomach, it would be dissolved like the rest of the food as it was used for energy. Also, it simply must not be enough.
The Prince couldn’t turn the salt cellar, so that substance was a weakness to him. The problem was that Aurelius couldn’t keep a bunch on him. Holding a handful wasn’t a logical solution, andhe couldn’t eat a pile of it because too much salt would kill a person.
“I need you to stay with me. Don’t try to grab the rose.”
“I need to carry it,” said Aurelius. “Should we leave it there as a fun surprise for someone to find?”
“No-”
“I’m also not risking you. Not even for a second.”
“I’ll wrap it-”
“You will let me carry it,” hissed Aurelius. “I’m thinking more clearly than I was a few minutes ago. As long as I have some salt on me…”
“You can’t hold a handful of salt forever, and that’s what works better, but…fine.” Jari released him, and Aurelius dropped the salt before wiping his palm on his trouser leg. “Don’t try anything. I’ll wrap it in cloth and put it in your pocket. If I think you can’t handle it, I’ll take it.”
As soon as the grains were off of him, his gaze went to the gold pieces all over the floor. More was better in his case, but what was Jari supposed to do long-term?
He hacked off a piece of the tablecloth, picked up the rose with it, wrapped it, and gave it to Aurelius to tuck in his pocket.
“Maybe if you also don’t use your power, that will help,” said Jari.
“I’m already too far gone,” said Aurelius. “I had the key, and I can’t recover. Not at this point.”
Jari told himself they’d figure something out. He wasn’t letting Aurelius go. “We still have to leave.”
