World Weaver (The Devany Miller Series Book 4) (4 page)

“Devany?”

I opened my eyes to see Krosh’s sister standing over me. “Sorry,” I said. “I must have drifted off.”

“You’ve been in here a couple hours. My brother thought you might have drowned.”

I checked my fingers and sure enough, I’d visited Prune Town. “Not quite. I’ll get out as soon as I wash my hair.”

Mina nodded. “There are clothes for you on the bench,” she said, then left me to it.

I rubbed sweet-smelling soap into my hair and rinsed it under one of the many warm water springs that fell from the ceiling of the bathhouse. Clean and dried off, I slipped into the soft cotton dress left for me. Most days I could do without dresses, but this one was sky blue with tiny spiders embroidered all over it. Made especially for me?

For me.

Right.

***

I braided my hair and tied it off with a blue thread, then left the bathhouse feeling better than I had in weeks. Bethy was okay, at least for now. I went in search of Krosh, heading down to the ceremonial area when I heard the drums. I hadn’t been joking when I said they liked to party in Odd Silver. Since I doubted they pulled together something special for Liam in a couple hours, it had to be for another occasion.

My son stood with a group of kids his own age, all of them relaxed and happy. He wore Wydling clothes and looked like the other kids except for his hair. Krosh stood with Lizzie, and when she saw me, she held out her arms.

I hugged her tight, letting her croon words of comfort into my hair. “Thank you.”

“I’ve been Dreaming. So many Dreams.” Her cheeks were flushed, and she was either sick or she’d been drinking too much of whatever fermented in the tapped barrel near the food. “We need to talk soon. We also need to bring you into Meat Clan. It is more important than ever.”

It was all important, that was the problem. “I don’t know that I can do that right now. There’s too much going on.”

“Let her enjoy tonight, Dream Mother,” Kroshtuka said, respect in every word. “She’s here. She will answer the call when she’s ready.”

“Mmm,” Lizzie said. She raised her glass to me. “Of course.”

Even though she didn’t say anything more, her urgency was palpable.

Life was never dull and here I was, about to add the icing on top. “There are more Riders. Far south. There are Wydlings infected and a few witches, too.”

She nodded as if she’d already known. “I was afraid of that. We will have to find a way to stop them.” Her eyes bored into mine. Guilt spread through me and she reached out to pat my cheek. “We have time. And yours are not the only shoulders capable of bearing this burden. Now go on. Enjoy the night. Tomorrow brings much work.” She left Krosh and I alone.

He took my hand. “Come. We will dance. We will make love. And later still, we will Dream together.” Kroshtuka pulled me close, closer. I spared a glance for my son, but he was busy laughing and joking with his new friends. Safe. I could let myself have this night without getting eaten by guilt.

“I talked to Bethy. In her head. She’s okay. With Arsinua, but she says she’s fine.”

His beautiful yellow eyes searched my face. “Any clues to help us find her?”

“No, just that she’s in Midia somewhere.” Which I already knew. “She said she was all right. So I can rest for a minute.” It sounded horrid, even still. “Right?”

He answered by tugging me into the dance and I fell into the rhythm of the drums, the stomp of the dancers’ feet on the hard-packed earth, and the eerie wail of the horn.

Smoke curled around us, giving the illusion that I floated above the ground. Inward the women snaked, the men coiling around us. When the music changed, we reversed directions, the women winding outside, the men in. Krosh and I met and parted over and over, the beat bringing us together only to push us apart. Bells tinkled, bracelets clinked, breath hissed over teeth.

Krosh’s hand went up, and I put my palm flat against his. His eyes locked on mine and together we circled each other. The horn trailed off mournfully, the drums faded, and we danced alone. High overhead, this world’s moon dominated the sky, so much closer than Earth’s. Light swept away the smoke and drew licking shadows on the ground.

“It is this I wish for you to share with me,” Krosh said, his words washing over me like velvet rain.

“I want to share it, I do.” A knife appeared in his hand and the gesture reminded me so strongly of Tytan, I stumbled. “What are you doing?”

“Use this to sever the ties. When you are ready.” He passed it to me hilt first and when my fingers curled around it, its power tickled my palm. “It is not for shedding blood,” he said, reading my thoughts. “It’s symbolic. In fact, you cannot hold it outside this place.”

“What place?” Our hands were still touching, palm to palm, the Dream knife in my other hand. We danced around each other, slowly, moving through the magic that thickened the air and made my skin tingle. “This isn’t real.”

“It’s like the Dream. A place we can both visit, even far apart.” He stepped closer, our arms bending until his body pressed against mine. “I want you to stay, Devany. To be my mate in truth. To be part of the Meat Clan. To help me Anchor our people. This knife is my pledge to you I will always be willing to protect you, should you need it.” He smiled. “To hunt, to live, and to die here, keeping our home whole and safe. To keep your children safe and happy.”

The words were ceremonial, like those spoken by two people joining in marriage. Words so different from those I’d spoken that sunny July afternoon when I wed Tom. Unlike that day, I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t want to tear apart the spell wrapped around us, the one that promised everything would be okay, that the world would settle and let me find peace and happiness.

“There was a reason the magic brought me to you. I wish to honor that as well.” His finger brushed across my cheek, sweeping away my tears. “When you’re ready, if you ever are ready, you can take out the knife and make it true.”

I wanted to be ready, wanted to be with my whole heart.

Not yet, said a small voice inside me. Not yet.

I dropped my hand and wrapped both my arms around him. We held each other for a long time under the moon and later we made love with beams painting our bodies in light.

***

The magic of the night before didn’t evaporate when the sun rose. It beaded on my skin like water, and only when I smoothed my palms over my arms did it scatter like dragonflies on an early morning breeze. I felt good, having had a full night’s sleep with no nightmares to fray my nerves. Maybe I needed to sleep in Odd Silver more often.

There were more clothes for me on a shelf in the corner. Krosh’s sister, probably. I vowed to do something nice for her in return. I hadn’t earned all this care. I was in and out of Odd Silver too quickly to spend time with her. It was something I had to do when I got Bethany back.

The green shirt was plain, but for tiny dragonflies embroidered around the neckline. My jeans were there too, washed and neatly folded. I pulled on my bra, underwear, and jeans, but passed up my t-shirt for the green one.

Liam was up before me, but he stopped long enough to hug me and promise he would be good and not get kidnapped—his joke—and then he was off running with a gang of his new friends.

Krosh grinned as he watched him go, then turned his smile on me. “I will keep him safe.”

“Thank you.” The whole village would watch him and it was strangely comforting that a town full of people knew Liam’s name and wanted him to succeed in his Becoming. “If anything happens …”

“I will let you know.”

The ring he’d given me, the one that hung on a chain around my neck, warmed. “Would you tell your sister thank you?” I plucked at the green material. “I love it.” I leaned in and gave him one more kiss before plodding up the stairs to the Dream Caves.

Lizzie was waiting for me in the cool, dark space, Fisli at her side. My nickname for him was Caterpillar Eyebrows for obvious, hairy reasons. He glowered at me, making his namesakes form into one long bug across his forehead. “Nice to see you too,” I said, enjoying his scowl way too much than was polite.

“Go on with you, Fisli. Devany and I have business to attend to.” He opened his mouth to complain, and she said, “Dream Mother business.”

He left, grumbling all the way.

“Such a softie,” she said, laughing at my expression. “You don’t believe it, but it’s true. He keeps it hidden because he likes to appear tough. Come. We must talk of the dark things I’ve seen.”

Since it would be impolite to say, “No! I don’t want to know!” and run away screaming, I followed her through a maze of tunnels that ended at a rather cozy nook filled with soft pillows and blankets.

“It’s my little getaway. No one can find it but me. Dream Mother perks.” She made her way to a stone platform and lowered herself onto the cushions that covered it. “Ah. Lovely. Sit, sit.”

I found a spot on the ground and stretched out my legs. As soon as I leaned back, she began to talk.

“Where to start? You weren’t raised on the lore of our world. Do I tell you our origin myths? But that would take us a long time, more time than we have. Do I jump into the middle and risk missing vital information that might end up killing you? Do I give you the bare bones and let you add flesh and skin to them as you see fit?” She shook her head, her silvery hair rippling around her shoulders as she did. “I will have to do a bit of all three.”

I took a deep breath and let it out. “I’m not sure I can take more bad news, to be honest.”

“It’s not bad news. It’s … well, you’ll have to hear it for yourself.” She smoothed her hands over her dress, her face thoughtful. “Our world is woven through and through with magic. We come from the magic and we return to it. We are all magic in solid form and the witches forget that fact. Heck, some of the People forget too.” She pointed her finger at me. “Everyone is made from the magic.”

“Even humans?”

She nodded, then took a storyteller’s deep breath. “Let me tell you of a spider goddess.”

At this, Neutria crawled forward in my mind, her interest an electrical spark in my brain.

“We call her the Spider Queen, or we did when I was a child. I suppose there are still children who know the stories about her. She is the weaver of the magic and she guards the web that protects us all. She and her babies blessed our children each Solstice, delivering magic and touching us with her strength and wisdom. That is the story.”

Like Santa Claus, only big, multi-legged, and terrifying. I also didn’t understand how it applied to my situation, but kept my mouth shut and waited.

“She no longer visits the children of Midia. No longer is seen running along the web of magic, repairing strands, keeping order. Long after the Spider Queen vanished, the web tore and the magic twisted. The People believe that the Witch King broke the magic when he made the Omphalos. He took something that was never meant to be caged and trapped it, and in trapping it, he destroyed the web.”

I shivered. It wasn’t a terrifying story by any means, but the Omphalos was powerful. How in the hell had one man created such a thing?

“Ah yes. You are thinking along the same lines as I. That it wasn’t something one man could have made. The Witch’s Council now claims it wasn’t King Sorgen but a coven of many witches that created the Omphalos. I don’t believe that, either.” She leaned toward me. “I believe he stole the magic from the Spider Queen, and that’s why the magic broke. Whatever he took from her fueled her weaving.”

“So, I have to find a mythical spider and ask her what the Witch King stole from her?”

Kill her and take her power.

‘Yeah, so not happening, crazy spider,’ I said to Neutria.

“There’s a man who lives in Null, a small border town to the east of here. He studies the mythology of Midia—the Anforsa doesn’t like that, not one bit—but he studies both witch and Wydling legends. He might be able to help you find the Spider Queen, find where she dwells.”

I didn’t have time to track down a professor, or whatever he was. Every minute I wasn’t looking for Bethany was another layer of guilt on an already thick pile. “Null, got it. What’s his name?” If I needed him, I would find him—later. Only if strong-arming every last witch in Midia didn’t yield me the whereabouts of my daughter.

“Daniel Luresh. I talked with him long ago, when he still had youngin spots.” At my confused look, she said, “Pimples? Zits, you call them.”

“Right. Thank you Lizzie.” I paused. “Remember when you said Bethy’s fate was tied to the Omphalos? Is there more you can tell me about that?”

Lizzie reached over and took my hand in hers. “It started with that thieving, backstabbing Witch King and it will end with righting the wrongs he committed. Somewhere in the middle is the Omphalos.”

Great. My daughter’s fate hung on me making amends to a spider goddess.

FOUR

Remembering Marantha’s question, I decided my next stop would be to visit Ty. He was in the Slip, not at Tempest Peaks with his mother. I was grateful. Sephony wasn’t entirely sane and I didn’t know if I had the heart or strength to talk with her right now.