To Kill a Wizard: Rose's Story (The Protectors of Tarak Book 1) (27 page)

“To save Tarak? You said so yourself, we can’t possibly win this war.”

“But The Fates can’t be wrong. If you fight with us, we’ll win. How? I don’t know.”

I couldn’t help but ask the question that sprung to my lips. “So I’m expected to fight in a war we can’t logically win, all because of a prophesy?”

Blair words were laced with regret. “If that’s not enough of a reason, then let me give you another one. The rest of your destiny says that you will be the one to save your parents, only you, and only after peace is brought to the Undead wizards.”

I sensed Meisha’s gaze on me as I sat, not sure what else to say.

“Just think about it,” Blair said, before turning and striding from the room.

Meisha led me back through the passageways and out into the halls of the castle. She took me to my room and closed the door behind us, before pinning me with her gaze.

“If you have other questions, this is the time to ask.”

Too many to process leapt to my mind, but I sputtered the first complete thought. “Why does everyone believe Blair’s responsible for killing the wizards?”

“Because her Protectors were involved in the slaughter, and she was their leader.”

I stored this bit of information away.

“Do you know where my mother is?”

She answered me without blinking, “No.”

Swallowing the lump in my throat, I let my final question squeak out. “How am I supposed to stop this war?”

Meisha opened my door. “If I knew the answer to that question, this war would have been over long ago.”

She left, closing the door silently behind her.

Now what I was I to do?

‘

Feeling better than I had in days, I made my way to the dining hall, passing a number of Protectors who smiled at me as I walked by.

Meisha, Clarissa and Blair were already seated at the table when I got there. Their gazes following me as I sat down next to Meisha.

This couldn’t be good.

They watched me eat for several minutes, while I pretended to ignore them.

When my plate was finally cleared away, Blair broke the silence. “She’s ready for the next step.”

Clarissa and Meisha stiffened.

I held my breath. What now?

“Who will take her?” Meisha asked, shifting in her chair.

“Clarissa will.”

“Me?” Clarissa grinned. “Are you sure? I can’t promise she’ll come back in one piece.”

My heart raced.

Blair folded her arms in front of her chest. “You will take her, and you will protect her.”

“Where are you sending me?” I finally asked, tired of them talking as if I wasn’t there.

Blair tilted her head. “Ponya.”

“
Ponya
?” Clarissa said, rising from her chair. “How are we going to teach her anything there? Those people greet us like goddesses! We should send her to Garlock or Yandry. She’d learn a real lesson there!”

“You will take her to Ponya and back. That is all. Do you understand?” Blair’s tone left no room for argument.

“Fine!” Clarissa shouted, stomping her feet. “But the girl
better
be waiting by the door come nightfall.”

She left in a fury of curses, and I could’ve sworn I almost caught a flicker of a smile on Blair’s lips as she watched her go.

“Is this wise?” Meisha asked, sipping her mug of honey-colored liquid.

Blair relaxed into her chair at the head of the table, and then gestured for me to scoot over to sit in Clarissa’s abandoned chair. I complied, easing myself into the chair at her side, and across from Meisha.

“Clarissa is a very dangerous creature. Do you understand me?” Blair tapped her fingers on the burned marks on the table. “She’s one of our most powerful Protectors, but her mind… it’s not so strong. Clarissa has seen things, experienced things, that would snap even the strongest of minds, but she’s somehow maintained some sense of herself.”

Meisha leaned towards me. “This makes her unpredictable. Do not push her or anger her. You have already seen a taste of what that can drive her to do.”

“If she’s so crazy, why was she allowed to join The Protectors?” I asked.

An expression of guilt, pain, and anger flashed across Blair’s face for a moment, before she concealed it once more beneath her shell of indifference. “Clarissa is powerful. She passed the test. She refuses to add or connect her powers to The Orb, but she is still a resource for us in the worst of times.”

Having seen her magical daggers, and her skills in fighting, I thought I could understand why they allowed Clarissa to join. She would make a good fighter, if she’d fight for our side.

Our side
? Had I really just connected myself to these women? I guess I couldn’t deny it anymore, even to myself, somehow I’d become a Protector both in name and thought.

“And this next step,” I continued hesitantly. “Is this the same step that all Protectors take?”

Blair and Meisha exchanged a look. “No,” Blair said, her fingers stilling upon the table. “We have over three hundred Protectors in our order—“

“Three hundred?” I asked incredulously.

“Most of our women are stationed at various towns along the outskirts of Tarak, in order to keep an eye on the wizards and the shield. The only women who remain in this castle are ones who retain specific skills that make their presence here preferable.”

“And how many women reside here?”

“Perhaps fifty.”

I regarded Blair carefully. “Then why have I seen so few of them?”

“You’ve seen what happens to the recruits who don’t pass our test. Will we find you eager to welcome the next girls?”

I swallowed the lump that had formed in my throat. What would I do if I saw girls being led to their untimely ends? The shield needed power to remain up and continuing to protect Tarak. Power that would come from the girls’ lives. But how could I meet more Chosen girls, and not encourage them to run while they could?

It was an impossible situation, and one I couldn’t handle thinking about with so much else on my mind. So I focused on what I could handle.

“I guess I’d better get ready for tonight… for whatever Clarissa has in store for me.”

Blair smiled, a humorless smile. “Tonight is a long way away. But your practice with Meisha, that starts now.”

“Even today?” I groaned.

But the truth was I really didn’t mind. A nervous energy built inside of me. Training with Meisha would distract me from the many worrisome thoughts about traveling with Clarissa alone.

“Come now,” Meisha said, rising. “I think you could use all the help you can get.”

Three hours later, Meisha crouched in human form, her eyes glowing.

Sweat glistened on every inch of my body and my breathing was labored. My body ached from where I’d received kicks, punches, and been knocked and pinned to the floor. But anticipation raced through me like lightning, because I knew Meisha was hurting too.

I suppressed a grin. This training session hadn’t been easy on her either.

She knew I’d been lost in my thoughts again, because her muscles tensed and she leapt at me. Unfortunately, I’d taken our training seriously. No matter where my mind drifted to, I kept most of my focus on the battle.

At the last possible second, I twisted out of the way.

With her usual agility, she was already turning in mid-air to catch me with a punch to the side of my head.

I moved out of reach, expecting it.

She hit the floor at the wrong angle, and I was on her before she could get up, jerking her arm behind her back.

She struggled beneath my grip like a wild animal, but slowly stilled. “I give.”

I released her but extended my hand.

She grasped it and climbed to her feet.

As always, win or lose, we crossed the floor of the practice room and sat down against the mirrors. It was the perfect spot. Sunlight had warmed the stones beneath us, and it caressed us as we sat, giving a healthy warmth to our skin. In companionable silence, we meditated until I felt that deep sense of calm and opened my eyes.

“You are getting better.”

I laughed. “Not much.”

It felt good to laugh. And to fight. Especially when I
was
getting better.

I cried out as a crack of pain struck my knuckles. Holding my hand to my chest, I inhaled sharp breaths as a tear rolled down my cheek.

“What is it?” Meisha tried to touch my hand, but I pulled away.

“It hurts. Horribly.” I sucked in a deep breath. “I don’t understand.”

Meisha reached for my hand again.

This time, I gave it to her.

We both stared. Red knuckles faded back to white, and the pain vanished.

We locked eyes.

“What kind of magic could do that?”

Drumming her fingers on her knees, she spoke with care. “You must be feeling Asher through your link.”

I frowned. “But why did I reach out to him right now?”

One of her brows rose. “Did you?”

Then, it hit me. “No, he reached out for me. Because someone hurt him!”

My pulse raced. I’d imagined Asher imprisoned in some dark, dreadful cell. I’d never imagined someone might be hurting him.

“Was the pain unbearable?”

Taking a minute, I considered how I’d felt. “No, it wouldn’t have been so bad, if it hadn’t been so unexpected.”

“Then, Asher is fine.”

My fears lessened in the face of her logic.

Meisha rubbed the side of her face. “Someone will have to teach Asher how to put up his own walls.”

I tried not to let my surprise show. “Do you think he knows I’m his One too?”

“If he doesn’t know it for certain, he suspects it just as you did.” Meisha stiffened and said nothing for so long, I thought she’d never respond. “I was thinking about what you said about the boy and the war.”

“Oh?” I rubbed the fabric of my soft cotton dress between my fingertips, forcing myself not to look up.

“About Asher being the answer to ending it.”

My breath caught in my chest. After plaguing her with questions about how to reach him, and getting nothing but snarls and threats, it was the last topic I expected her to bring up.

“Oh.”

“Yes,” she said, her accent teasing the whispered word. “I think you may be right. Since we spoke, I have been trying to consider what makes you different from Blair or your mother. I think that you have the motivation to fight this war as Blair does, but you have one thing she does not have, your One is a wizard. Perhaps the last living wizard on this world. I cannot believe this is a coincidence. There is a goddess’s hand in this.”

Willing myself not to react, I rubbed my shoulder where she’d delivered a sharp kick to it during our training. “I think so too. But I can’t find him.”

“You’ve found nothing in the gardens?”

Should I tell her? I guess I had nothing to lose. “I used my powers. They led me to a wall covered in the faces of goddesses.”

She sat up and turned to face me. “Which goddesses?”

I frowned. “Not sure. I didn’t really notice. But nothing was unusual about the wall.”

Her eyes narrowed. “The goddesses matter a great deal. The right one will take you where you wish to go.”

Finally, I turned to face her. “Why can’t you just take me to him? Why does it have to be like this?”

Indecision filled her expression. “It just must be.” Her hands curled into fists. “Everything inside me wishes to help you find him. To use this chance to end the war. But I owe Blair much. I owe her this.”

“But you’re still helping me find him,” I argued.

She scowled. “No, I am not.” Rising, she glided soundlessly to the stairs, but stopped. “Sometimes it is better to be a little right and a little wrong then to completely drive into wrongness.” She shifted to go.

“Wait!” I was in her debt for all she’d told me. “I found the roses of Sirena and your sister. I planted them in pots in my room.”

Her eyes filled with tears. She opened her mouth several times, before closing it. Then, she raced from the room.

Alone, I could finally think. Meisha was a puzzle to be sure. I didn’t understand her, and I doubted I ever would. Yet, her emphasis on the importance of the faces of the goddesses gave me hope. Maybe I was closer to finding Asher than I’d thought.

I waited just long enough to be sure Meisha wouldn’t still be on the stairs or the hall, before darting back down to the courtyard and the gardens. An old woman with vines growing through her hair smiled at me as I passed her. I smiled back, then pretended to inspect some bright orange flowers with pink spots, until she disappeared back into the castle.

Weaving through the wild plants, it took me just a few minutes to reach the right spot. This time, I cleared away all the moss from the stone carvings. When I was done, there were more faces than I’d expected. Zeuita, Hadia, Artemay, Hermya, and Persia all stared back at me. But what did it mean?

I touched the deadly-beautiful faces. All had a sleek ruthlessness to them typical to all goddesses. The details of the carvings were flawless, better even than the pictures in the small bookshop in our town. But which of them would lead me to Asher?

Not Zeuita and Hadia, I quickly decided. And after a few moments, I ruled at Artemay, the Goddess of Protection. That left only Hermya, the Goddess of Travel, and Persia, the Goddess of Destruction. Neither name I
knew
. But something told me, if I could speak the right one, I’d find the stairs leading to Asher.

Using the immense power of destruction was daunting, so I’d start with the power of travel. But could I learn a goddess’s name on my own without having to place myself in a dire situation? I hoped so. Every day I picked up the names faster and faster. I couldn’t second-guess myself now. I could do this. I had to.

“Hermya,” I spoke her name, repeating it over and over again, knowing each time it wasn’t quite right. Tears of frustration built in my eyes, and I pounded the wall with my fist as I spoke. Couldn’t the goddess sense how badly I needed her right now? Sending a prayer, I took a deep breath. Warmth wrapped me like a blanket. “
Hermya
.”

The one word seemed to fling me through space and time, for one stomach jolting moment before I was slammed back into my shoes. The world spun around me. How was I still standing? Blinking several times, the wall came back into focus. It slid open with a loud grinding of stone.

              A staircase led into darkness.