The Sleeping Life (Eferum Book 2) (14 page)

They'd tucked her back in bed by the time the Pest showed up with hot soup, which Sukata tipped into a mug and held it for Rennyn to drink. Rennyn barely managed two swallows before she passed out again.

"There are city officials downstairs wanting to talk to her," the Pest whispered, after they'd all withdrawn to the door to discuss what to do next. "One of them speaks Tyrian, and doesn't plan to be fobbed off. They have a healer mage with them."

He'd no sooner told them then there was a brisk knock at the door. Sukata and the Pest slipped back into the corridor, but Kendall wasn't surprised when the door opened again and a skinny, grandfatherly sort bustled straight across to Rennyn. Sukata could stop anyone getting in if it was really necessary, but Lieutenant Meniar had told them not to make too much of a fuss.

A short, plump woman wearing a half-mask followed. In Kole, nobles, bureaucrats and people getting above themselves wore these masks to honour their creepy-sounding Emperor, who never took his off. The very plain masks covering the top half of the face seemed to be the style that meant 'official'. Despite the mask, Kendall could see the woman's dark eyes flicking left and right, checking out everything lying about the room.

Kendall left her to Sukata and the Pest, and went and stayed obstinately at the healer-mage's side. Lieutenant Meniar had given Rennyn a thorough examination and done what he could for her before he and Lieutenant Faral had headed out with a troop of the local soldiers to go bug hunting and find Captain Faille, and he'd said there wasn't much that could be done beyond keeping her warm and fed and casting the fortifier he'd taught Sukata. Fortunately the healer-mage just checked her over, and Sukata and the Pest had no problem with the official, who was more curious than suspicious. Their reason for visiting Kole was real enough—it was just the whole thing about hunting Rennyn's demon uncle down afterwards that they weren't broadcasting.

After they left, Sukata stayed by the door a little while, clearly listening, and finally said: "They are very interested because of the strength of the light casting, which is still active. The official has been specifically instructed to report directly to the Emperor's…to the palace intelligence network? Any incidents relating to mages, particularly mages of strength, is to be reported."

"The whole town is talking of nothing but lightning spirits and mages," the Pest said. "Though it's as much Lieutenant Meniar as the Duchess they've been discussing. He saved a lot of lives."

So much for keeping a low profile. If demon princes could read Kolan newssheets, then they'd just told him exactly where Rennyn was. Kendall didn't think that was much of a problem until the day stretched into the next, and they were still waiting around in the inn.

Rennyn never once asked where anyone was as she progressed to being able to sit in bed reading and napping, and tottering about for short distances. She'd glance around the room each time she woke, but that was all. She knew as well as any of them that Sentene were incapable of leaving something like a Kentatsuki out there, no matter what country they were in.

When Rennyn finally ran out of newssheets, she had them clear one corner of the room and spent her time dictating sigils for Sukata to write in a circle that curved across both walls and the floor.

From Kendall's careful consultation of the Sigillic dictionary, this circle had something to do with making sounds louder, which was an odd thing for someone with a persistent headache to be caring about. Sukata and the Pest couldn't work out much more than that either, and Rennyn wasn't in an explaining mood.

It was all very dull. Kendall longed to go exploring, but the Kolans' silly language and Rennyn's babysitting needs made a jaunt more trouble than it was worth. And the longer the day wore on, the harder it was not to fret about bugs.

One sting. That's all it would take.

oOo

The scent of rain, and oil on metal. Damp wool. Hints of sweat and horse and leather.

"Illidian."

As Rennyn climbed from her blankets into his lap, the cold knot in her stomach finally unwound. She'd spent the past day pointlessly angry at him, for not being with her, for being in danger. And yet she would have wanted him to do exactly as he had, should she have been conscious enough to have any choice in the matter. The damnable weakness made her selfish. On the bad days her hatred of being so incapable splashed over onto everyone and everything, and all she could do was bite her tongue and endure.

Illidian could say a great deal without speaking. An initial close embrace. A soft breath stirring the strands of hair on the crown of her head. Then slight shifts, as he inspected as much as he could see of her without relaxing his arms. One hand smoothed a short distance along her spine, and then he moved her so she was not so tightly held, lifted her effortlessly, and took her out and down to a steam-soaked room on the lowest floor of the inn.

In the short months of their marriage Illidian had quickly learned that one of the things she hated most was the sense of grime that came with being bedridden. That and the humiliating necessity of being carried to the privy—or collapsing trying to get there alone. They'd had several discussions about Kolan bathhouses, and it was typical of Illidian that once the Kentatsuki was out of the way he'd reverted to their original plan for enjoying the first one they came to. They were certainly more convenient than a beaten metal tub manually filled.

If only she could revert to the physical condition she'd been in two days ago. At least with Illidian there the probability of passing out in the bath was not so great an issue. And it was wonderful being very warm and slippery clean and able to see that he was completely uninjured, only a little worn and tired. She fell asleep, woke snug in bed, and watched him reading for the short time before Kellian senses alerted him to her gaze. With him safely under her eye she finally felt able to question what had happened.

"Could it have been coincidence?"

"I lean toward the view." Illidian glanced briefly at the nearest window, which showed only that it was still night outside. "The Kolan commander we worked with told me that this is not the first Eferum-Get of unusually high calibre they've encountered in the past month. They may be remnants of the incursions caused by the Grand Summoning, since the impact of that stretched well past Tyrland's borders. Merely bad fortune that we encounter a Kentatsuki. Yet, given Prince Helecho's abilities, not impossible that he could arrange such a thing. I could not find any trace of him, amongst the swarm."

"How far did it spread?" The length of his absence had already told her that containment hadn't been simple.

"Two of the nearby farmsteads were completely lost. Three more with some survivors. When we could no longer track any roaming Kentatsuki, the soldiery recalled the small bands searching the area. They will commit a very large force and sweep the entire region to ensure none escaped. It's a methodical approach, and they'll clear any other Eferum-Get in the area at the same time. And the settlements have been warned."

There was a hint of dissatisfaction in his thin voice. It was one thing to be unable to find any Kentatsuki in the immediate area, and another to be certain none had escaped.

"What was the Kolan attitude toward your involvement?"

"Relief, primarily. A little unease and surprise when witnessing our inhuman aspects, but the Sentene are not unknown outside Tyrland's borders, and of course the Grand Summoning has been widely discussed in many countries. The commander was also aware of the role we both played, and the recent debates regarding Kellian. Any hope we had of travelling unremarked is completely lost, but our reasons for journeying to Koletor are not openly doubted. They are unlikely to interfere with us, but will certainly keep us under observation. It is more the possibility that, trap or not, Prince Helecho will hear of our presence and come here. If that had been anything less than a Kentatsuki, I could not have risked leaving you so long with only Sukata as protection."

Her Wicked Uncle had already demonstrated that travelling via the Eferum made it easy for him to keep a step ahead of them, though the lack of Grand Summoning-related breaches from the Eferum might make that no longer so true.

"We leave at dawn, then?"

"Yes. A very large caravan, since this emergency has kept almost everyone from the roads. They were very careful to reserve space for us." His voice was dry, for Kellian were used to being seen as convenient. "What is it you're trying to hear?"

She shifted to look at the Sigillic barely visible in the muted light of the partially covered glows. "I don't know. Something magic-based, because if it was simply sound, it would be you, not me, trying to track it down. Three times now, since we approached port, there's been snatches of music too distant for me to properly hear. I've yet to construct something I would risk casting, since the subject is so vague to me, and I can barely stay conscious to concentrate. It is possible that it's simply area noise—part of the land's natural magic—but I don't like to ignore it."

The way Illidian's arms tightened told her that he didn't, either. She could only hope that the solution wouldn't be delayed too long by her interminable need to sleep.

CHAPTER TWELVE

"Very different from the Little Mutching house," Sukata said, studying the building that would be their home for the next week.

After five long days on the road, Kendall was more interested in stretching than looking, but glanced up and nodded. "You'd not guess it belonged to the same family." The Claires' house in Little Mutching was bigger than Kendall's own family's had been, but of much the same type. This place was something else.

"We won't be short on room," Rennyn commented, critically eyeing four levels of windows, every one of them lit.

There was only a low bit of fence separating the straight-up rise of the house from the paved walkway, and the houses on either side were all the same type, with little in the way of gaps between them, so at first glance it all seemed to Kendall like a single endless building stretching down the street. There were other entry doors to show that wasn't true, but it was still a proper huge mansion, very near to the centre of Kole's capital, Koletor. The kind of place a Duchess might live in.

The shrivelled-up turtle of a man of business they'd collected continued his endless Kolan gabble, leading the way up the nearest short set of stairs. He'd been acting like Rennyn was some long-lost niece, but with just a touch of deference, and a lot of twittery excitement only dimmed when he noticed how very hard it was to see some of Rennyn's companions in the evening gloom.

"Mr Witteseer engaged servants after Her Grace's letter arrived," Sukata said, translating. "The house has been fully turned out, although some of the linens had decayed and needed to be replaced." She paused, struggling to understand, then added: "He is glad to see it open again after so many years."

"I'll be glad if he'd just get us inside," Kendall said, as the thin rain threatened to return. "Think these servants will have anything on hand to eat?"

"The agent said he engaged a household," the Pest said, coming up to them. "That will have included a cook." He was looking entertained. "Estimates of the remaining Surclere fortune have been over-modest. Do you suppose the library here is as extensive?"

"Probably," Kendall said shortly, though the Pest never could catch a hint.

Nor could he hide the avid note that crept into his voice whenever the Surclere libraries came up. Since one of the reasons Rennyn was here was to check this house for things she didn't want people to see, there was a good chance there would be some juicy magical secrets for him to poke his nose into. More fool Rennyn for giving him the chance.

The front door of the house opened almost as soon as the turtle put his hand on the shiny knocker, but Kendall hadn't a chance to do more than see how warm and welcoming the inside looked before Sukata abruptly moved to stand by Rennyn's carriage door. Captain Faille turned from where he was waiting at the turtle's elbow, and then came down the stair as a squad of uniformed people on horses clattered to a halt as close as the carriages would let them. A round dozen extra-fancy soldiers looked at them through masks of leather panels and loosely-swinging chain veils of black and silver. Their clothes were coloured the same, and even the horses were done up to show they were special and important.

More gabble, as one of the riders dismounted and came to talk to Captain Faille. It was unfair that everyone except Kendall could understand. Still, she could read tone and gesture well enough. Stern statement. Polite question. Uncompromising command. Glance at Rennyn. Request. Grudging agreement. The upshot of all that was that their luggage was quickly unloaded before they all had to pile back into the carriages, leaving the turtle behind to explain to the wide-eyed servants.

"Are we being arrested?" Kendall asked, as soon as the carriage door was safely shut.

"Summoned to audience," Rennyn said. "Having waited for us to reach Koletor after making ourselves so interesting, it seems the Emperor's of no mind to delay any longer."

"He doesn't sleep," the Pest put in, sounding more excited than anything else. "He conducts Court business at any time of the day or night."

"Must be really annoying to work for," Kendall said.

"There is a Day Court and a Night Court," Captain Faille said, his creepy, whispery voice unexpected just because he usually didn't pipe up in the middle of conversations. "Two Chancellors, two Masters of the Guard, two Lords of Ceremony. The Night Court is smaller, but a great deal happens there."

Only one Emperor, though: getting on toward three hundred years old and probably meaning them no good. Kendall glanced at Rennyn, who was gazing out the lowered window. Was this summons just because of them helping out at the border? Or because the Emperor had heard of Rennyn's power and current vulnerability? What would they do if he wouldn't let them get on with chasing Rennyn's nasty uncle about, but instead wanted to use her knowledge for himself?