Chapter
12

Cohen

WE TRAVEL INTO THE EVENING OF THE next day, until the stars set trails to follow home. Using Siron’s night eyes in the darkest stretches of the forest and the light of the half-moon where the trees break apart, we head northeast.

I haven’t heard anyone following us, so we’re probably safe. Rhea, the young girl we rescued, rides behind Lirra. By the way Rhea’s head is cocked to the side and tipped forward to rest on Lirra’s back, I’m certain the thirteen-year-old has fallen asleep. Which is good. Means she’s finally stopped crying.

It was hard to listen to her soft sobs. My neck is sore from how hard I’ve gripped it. At least a dozen times I’ve wanted to turn back and chase down Lord Conklin and tear the son of a scrant limb from limb.

Finn seems to be holding up. I glance back to see him nodding in the saddle. A quick whistle between my teeth draws him upright. He meets my gaze and groans.

“When we going to stop, Co?” Sleep turns his voice gravelly.

“Soon.”

“You said that a league back.”

True. Should anyone cross our path, we’ll have to explain Rhea’s presence. The number of men and women in arms over the missing girls has increased. Enough that traveling during daylight with this girl is an added risk. Which means I have to find a safe place for her tonight. And then hopefully my friend can take Rhea home. The town’s no more than another league away.

“How much longer?” This comes from Lirra, who rides along my right side.

“At this rate, half an hour.”

She groans.

“You can make it. You’re the toughest girl in these woods.” Finn’s sleepy voice reminds me of my father’s. It’s odd that my fourteen-year-old brother, who’s nine parts goofy to one part serious, inherited my father’s calm-in-any-situation tone. Well, except for when a girl is nearby. He must’ve gotten used to Lirra.

Night pushes in as I lead the group through the outskirts of a small town that sits in the woods on the border of the drylands. Following my memory, I lead us to a well hidden in a grove of trees. A few hundred paces away, golden lamplight bleeds from a small cottage.

Britta and I met Jacinda when we were on the run from the guards, searching for Britta’s father’s murderer. We stumbled across Jacinda’s well and later found out that Jacinda’s Channeling gift made it so the water in the well was Beannach. Blessed water.

I stop at the well first. I pull up a bucket and tell Finn to dismount.

“Drink this.”

He approaches the well and takes the bucket, gulping back a big swallow without question. He’s such a good kid. The blood on his tunic is just another black shadow right now. Seeing it as he brings the bucket to his mouth turns my stomach. This water will help him some. I wish it would completely heal him, but I don’t think it has the full healing power that Britta’s Channeler gift possesses.

“What are you doing? If you’re going to steal, you should do a perimeter check first.” Lirra’s whisper cuts through the night, scrutiny whittling her words to fine points.

“Belongs to my friend. Try some.” I help her and her groggy young riding companion off their horse.

Rhea sits at the edge of the well next to Finn while Lirra takes a sip.

Lirra’s blue eyes rise to mine. “This water’s been gifted.” She twists around, taking in the house. “Are you certain it’s all right to be here?”

“Like I said, it’s my friend’s place.” I finish drinking my fill before setting out a second bucket for the horses.

“Feel better?” I place my hand on Finn’s back.

He nods and drinks again. Finn comments on the sweetness of the water to Lirra, a point he punctuates with a belch. Fourteen years old. I sigh. At his age, I’d just moved to Brentyn to apprentice with Saul. Britta was all elbows, knees, and attitude.

I tell Finn and Lirra to wait for me, and then I head to the door.

Jacinda’s home, a mushroom-shaped cottage, blends into the reddish tree bark and tall shrubs. Someone traveling by might easily miss it. A smart choice for her husband to have made before he passed. The boards crossing one another to bar her windows don’t match the rest of the home’s construction. They’ve been tacked on recently, I’d say, by the fresh look of the wood. No rust stains the nails.

I knock and wait until she calls through the door. “Who’s there?”

“Jacinda, it’s me. Cohen.”

The door swings open. An arm encircles me before I have a chance to step back. The stout raven-haired woman clutches me in a chokehold even though a little voice cries out, “Momma, squeezing me.”

When I pull back, I see a miniature version of Jacinda, hair darker than the shadows, propped on her hip.

“Sorry, Lou.” Jacinda hugs her daughter once and then sets her on the ground where she remains beside her mother, hugging flame-colored skirts. “My youngest forgets she’s not a baby. She doesn’t need to be carried everywhere.”

I kneel down, coming face-to-face with the little girl. “Hi, Lou, I’m Cohen.”

A shy smile winks at me before Lou shoves her face into her mother’s skirt.

“How old are you?” I try again.

She holds up a hand with all five fingers extended. Then she holds up her other hand with one more finger.

“I’m six too,” I tell her, and she frowns at me. “Well, six plus fourteen.”

“You’re old.”

I chuckle, but in truth, some days I feel old, bone-tired old. I think back to when Finn was this girl’s age, and I get itchy inside at the thought of taking him into any more danger.

“Did you find her?” Jacinda steps to the side and stretches out her arm, welcoming me in.

“Not quite. I found a girl from Rasimere Crossing who was taking Channeler herbs to change her appearance.”

Jacinda carries Lou inside and tucks her into bed by her sisters, and then she follows me outside. She wrings her hands and shoves them in her pocket. “That’s old magic. Charms can be created only when two or more different Channelers combine their efforts. I don’t know much about it, other than it’s risky. And in most cases, the Channelers Guild outlawed making charms a long time ago. It’s been at least fifteen years.”

That’s interesting. A woman at an Elementiary gave Britta a charm in Celize. We used it to gain entry to Enat’s home. “Why would they outlaw it? I thought all Channeler magic was allowed in Shaerdan. And what is the Channelers Guild?”

“One question at a time. The Guild was formed by the elders in the Channeler society. Years ago, they appointed women who possessed the strongest strains of magic. Because they have the most skill, they’ve been tasked with creating lessons for each division of Channeling.”

“Like at an Elementiary?”

“Who taught you about those?”

“Britta stumbled into one in Celize.”

“What’s taught at an Elementiary is overseen by the Guild.”

Makes sense. “And they make laws as well?”

She lifts her skirt to step over a fallen log. I slow my pace as she looks to the moon and back to me. “When needed, they make laws around our magic. They set precedence and a code by which all Channelers live. The chief judge is keen on all Channelers following these rules. It’s for our protection as much as it is for others.”

In all the time I’ve traveled through Shaerdan, I haven’t had many interactions with women who have outright identified themselves as Channelers. Seems like Channelers in Shaerdan don’t advertise their ability. Makes me wonder if it’s a cultural way of existing or a defense mechanism.

I push a branch out of our path, glancing ahead to the well where Lirra, Finn, and Rhea sit. The horses mill around the well behind them, drinking. Siron’s ears flick and he lifts his nose to the air as we approach, but drops it back to the bucket a moment later.

“There must be some that break the Guild’s law,” I say, picking up the conversation.

“Rarely. The first and foremost rule of Channeler magic is that it can be used only for good. We never use our abilities to harm. Which is why most charms have been outlawed.” Jacinda continues, “They fall into the gray area of that rule. A charm could be created by a Channeler with the intent to do good. But someone else could use it for harm. Because there’s a lack of control when it comes to charms, most are prohibited by the Channelers Guild’s law.”

Interesting. Could’ve sworn Enat had no reservations against using charms.

“What happens if someone breaks the law?”

“They get turned over to the chief judge and his council, where you’re tried before a court of your peers.”

Lirra’s voice breaks into our conversation. “Hello there.”

Jacinda turns to Lirra. Beyond her, Finn and Rhea sit at the well’s edge. “Who do we have here?”

“Sorry.” I gesture to each one. “Lirra, my kid brother, Finn, and Rhea.”

Jacinda takes in the group and turns to me with one raised black brow. “Intriguing travel party you have here in the middle of the night. They look dead on their feet. Come on inside and let me get you a place to sleep.”

Finn’s eyes bounce to mine, pleading and big like a puppy’s. Exhaustion shows in the slope of his shoulders and curve of his scrawny back.

“Go on,” I tell him.

His face flushes with relief as he leans forward to stand, elbows and knees bending like a scarecrow’s in an autumn wind.

“Thank you, Jacinda,” I tell her.

She guides us down the path to her home. “You’re welcome anytime.”

Jacinda ushers us inside and lights a candle. The flame flicks to life, spreading weak golden light in the small room. From there she leads us down a small hall to a larger room, where a fire crackles in the hearth and a massive snowy dog curls up on the wood-planked floor.

Jacinda takes out blankets from a chest and sets them on the ground. The dog lifts its chin, surveying the action as Finn and Rhea curl up on the ground.

The kids and the dog are asleep moments later. One snore out of the animal and Jacinda spins to me, hands on hips, fingers tapping against the fiery material. “Cohen, did you want to live another night? Do you know who this girl is?”

I step back, shocked by the ferocity of her whisper. “Who?”

“This is Seeva Soliel’s daughter. Seeva is the leader of the Guild.”

“By Guild do you mean the Channelers Guild you’ve been talking about?”

Her chin rises up and slams back down in a definite nod.

Bludger. “So you’re saying if anyone catches me with her, I’ll be killed first, questioned later?”

She gives me a worried look. “Exactly.”