KATE HAD NEVER BEFORE BEEN plagued with such doubt. Not even in those terrible days after her father’s arrest. She’d been in a daze all week since first meeting Kiran and learning the truth about why her father had been in King Orwin’s chambers that morning. She still didn’t know why he’d attacked the king when he had only gone there to influence his decision about the Inquisition, but she was closer than ever before to understanding.
The Rising. It seemed impossible. Her father had never expressed concerns over other wilders to her, not even to acknowledge their existence. It was always just him and Kate, father and daughter, two wilders in hiding against the world. But maybe Hale’s attitude had changed and Kate had never noticed. She couldn’t deny things were different after Queen Imogen was killed by that wilder. Perhaps it had an impact. Or maybe it was Vianne and Kiran who opened her father’s eyes to the larger world. If so, she understood, given the cruel living conditions Kiran was forced to endure.
She would never know for sure, but in the last few days she couldn’t deny Hale’s involvement with the Rising. Just last night she’d attended a secret meeting in the basement of the Sacred Sword. More than half of the people there had spoken to her about her father—some to offer condolences and others criticisms of his failure.
It seemed to her that the Rising was divided in all things, opinions on her father included. For more than an hour she listened to Raith arguing that they needed to be cautious, to explore every avenue to end the Inquisition without bloodshed. But another leader in the rebellion, an earthist named Francis, argued the opposite.
“The time to strike is now. Rime is already in turmoil,” Francis had said, his voice teetering toward a shout. “Whoever is behind these daydrakes will continue to lay the blame on us until nowhere is safe. We need to defend ourselves before it’s too late. The plan is already in place. We just need to act.”
The plan, it seemed, was to seize control of Farhold, the only city in Rime capable of being fully self-sustaining. The Rising would claim the city for themselves and use it to force the high king to end the persecution.
Afterward Kate had asked Raith, “Won’t many innocent people in Farhold die during the siege?”
A grave look crossed his face. “If it comes to war, then yes. Violence is an inevitable consequence. But I would ask you, what is worse? A handful of people dying in this siege, or hundreds of innocent wilders being kidnapped and executed, one at a time, for years to come?” He faced her then, placing a hand on her arm, his voice tremulous with emotion. “This is why I so desperately need your help, Kate. You’ve a strong influence with Corwin, and goddess be good, he will win the uror over his brother. If you can help him see the truth about us, then maybe he will use his authority as high king to end the Inquisition before any blood is shed.”
“You don’t know Corwin very well,” Kate said, feeling a knot in her throat. I have no influence over him. She might’ve if she’d agreed to be his paramour, but she’d closed that door and had no intention of opening it again. Unwilling to discuss such matters with Raith, though, she said instead, “He hates wilders.”
“I’m not certain that’s true. Though even if it is, his feelings are nothing compared to those of his brother, and his high council.” Raith made a look of disgust. “Edwin appears evenhanded, but Master Storr has told me that the hatred in him runs deep. In his mind every wilder must pay for his mother’s death. Since taking over for his father, he’s done everything he can to expand the Inquisition’s power and refocus the League’s priorities on capturing wilders. Did you know Maestra Vikas allows him to attend the Purgings in Norgard?”
Kate thought she might be sick. It was one thing to fear wilders or even to suspect them all capable of the same harm that caused Queen Imogen’s death, but to want to watch them die? That was something else.
“Corwin cares for you,” Raith continued. “That’s plain for anyone to see. And I believe he’s wise enough to see past his prejudices against wilders, if given the chance. He only needs to realize that wilders are equally as capable of good as of evil. The man who set the fire that killed his mother wasn’t part of the Rising—we never had the chance to recruit him. So many slip through our fingers. The Rising works hard to keep wilders from ever using their powers to harm, although we don’t always succeed. Such is the result of a country in which prejudice divides us, forces us into hiding, threatens our families. Corwin might be able to see this truth; he just needs to be shown by someone he trusts.”
Kate didn’t reply, although she wanted to believe him—that the Rising didn’t want to spread fear and violence, that their only cause was to win the freedom to live in peace. At her silence, Raith had attempted a new tactic to convince her, by offering her a way to keep Bonner’s magic hidden from the League and to allow him to finally make his revolvers. Once she’d gotten over her shock at how much the master magist knew, she’d agreed to his plan. It was for that very reason they’d been in Bonner’s workshop when Corwin had appeared a short time before with news of the attack on Dal’s home.
And now Raith’s convinced me to use my powers to try to find whoever is behind the daydrake attacks. I must be mad.
Kate shook her head, wishing she could dislodge these worries from her mind by force.
“Are you all right?” Bonner said. It was just the two of them in his workshop now. Signe was off somewhere with Dal, and Raith had left shortly after Corwin with a promise to return so as to help Kate continue to develop her ability to use her magic on humans—a skill she would need to track down whoever was controlling the daydrakes. But she didn’t want to do it, no matter how important. All her life, her magic had been simple: a way to talk to animals, to influence them. Innocent, harmless. But using it on humans? That made it infinitely more powerful—and dangerous.
Realizing she’d been silent too long, Kate glanced at Bonner, a weak smile coming to her lips. “I’ll be fine. It’s just a lot to take in.”
“I know how you feel.” Bonner grimaced, the expression out of place on him. He held up the magestone necklace Raith had given him before departing. A diamond the size of a marble hung from a leather cord. “Do you really think this will shield my magic from the magists?”
Fortunately, Raith had also told Bonner about the Rising and his part in it, thereby allowing Kate to discuss it without the risk of activating the binding curse. “I don’t see why Raith would lie about it, or even give it to us for that matter if it weren’t going to work. That diamond must cost more money than either of us will ever have in both our lifetimes combined.”
“Good point.” Bonner fastened it around his neck, then spoke the incantation, activating the spell within. The cord was long enough that the diamond hung halfway down his chest. He tucked it into his tunic, out of sight. Then he picked up one of the half dozen revolvers lying on the worktable. These were the rejects, the ones with too many imperfections to work properly. Balancing the gun on one hand, he placed his other on top of it.
Hesitating, he looked at Kate. “This feels wrong.”
“You don’t have to do it.” She walked over to him, cupping his hands with hers. “You could tell Corwin that this was all a mistake and leave Norgard. Go back to Farhold and live out your life without these troubles.”
“Would you come with me?” Bonner fixed a penetrating stare on her.
A week ago she could’ve said yes. But not now. Not with Kiran. Every day she’d gone to see him, trying to catch up on all the years stolen from her. He was the only family she had left. She wasn’t about to give him up now that she’d found him.
She shook her head and dropped her hands from Bonner’s. “I can’t leave Kiran. He’s living in a cage, Bonner. It’s awful. Something must be done.”
“I know. And that’s why I’m going to stay too. If I can finally make enough revolvers, and Corwin can eliminate the drakes, I will have saved the world. Then maybe afterward he’ll be so grateful that I can tell him the truth about my gift.”
Remembering Raith’s words from last night, Kate slowly nodded.
Bonner adjusted his grip on the gun and closed his eyes. Although Kate couldn’t sense anything, she understood that he was probing the metal with his magic, purging it of dents and impurities, smoothing out the places it had gone wrong.
“Done,” he said a moment later. They both waited, half expecting a gold robe to come bursting through the door to arrest them. When several moments went by and nothing happened, Bonner shrugged and said, “I guess it worked.” He set down the revolver and picked up the next one.
“Wait, Bonner.” Kate touched his arm. “You can’t make too many at once. The reason why Raith knew what you are is because of the questions people are asking about why only your revolvers work and no one else’s.”
With a huff, Bonner nodded. “You’re right. I’ll fix two more. Then tomorrow when the rest of the smiths start working, I’ll correct each gun as needed once it’s made. That way, it’ll look like the smiths are managing to do it on their own.”
“Good plan, but keep the diamond hidden. If any magists spy it, they’ll wonder what it’s for. Raith says the spell is unsanctioned.”
“I’ll be careful.” Bonner patted the front of his tunic where the diamond lay hidden beneath it. “You were wrong, though.”
Kate frowned. “About what?”
“I couldn’t leave Norgard now any more than you. My father wouldn’t survive the trip.”
“I don’t understand. He’s doing so much better.” They’d had supper together only yesterday, Thomas warm and welcoming like always. It was true that he remained too thin, his appetite small as a bird’s, but his spirits were high. He’d even teased Bonner about finally finding a wife and settling down. “Someone as beautiful and kind as our Kate here,” he’d said, winking. “I think you mean fierce, Pa,” Bonner had replied, and they’d all laughed.
Bonner didn’t meet her gaze now. “Yes, he is, but it’s conditional. I spoke to the greens about it just this morning.” He glanced up, far too much emotion in his face. “They can’t cure what’s wrong with him. All they can do is keep the sickness at bay with magestones. His body is burning through two a day at least. But if he stops wearing them, he’ll regress back to how he was before, and eventually . . . he’ll die. I could never afford so many magestones without this position.”
Love is a cage, too, Kate thought, miserable for her friend, one that has caught us both. She slid her arms around his massive frame. It was like hugging a boulder. “Then let’s make sure you succeed in giving Corwin his revolvers.”
Raith returned an hour later. He brought a second diamond magestone with him and gave it to Kate. “You’re going to need this.”
Kate accepted it and put it around her neck. “Does everyone in the Rising wear these?”
Raith snorted a laugh. “We could only dream of such fortune. But no. Just like the rest of Rime, we can only buy or steal such precious gems. Most of the wilders have to settle for lesser stones that have the power to prevent them from being discovered if a gold tests them for magic like they do when someone is arrested by the Inquisition. But it doesn’t enable them to use their gifts at will without fear.” He pointed a blackened finger at Kate, then at Bonner. “Don’t either of you lose them and don’t let anyone take them. A thief would do almost anything to steal one.”
Nodding, Kate said, “What now?”
Raith put his hands on his hips and fixed a determined gaze on her. “Now we teach you how to attune your gift to humans, and let’s pray to Noralah that you’re a quicker study than your father.”
“You taught my father how to do this?”
Raith walked over to the nearest chair and sat down, motioning for Kate to take the one opposite. “Taught is not the right word for it. There is no teaching someone with wilder magic, not like the study magists are put through at the League Academy. All you can do is learn through trial and error. I assisted your father by volunteering to be the subject of his attempts. I’ll do the same for you now. Your first task will be to glean a single image from my mind. I’m going to focus on the image with all my concentration. That should make it easier.”
Kate doubted it. She didn’t have the faintest idea how to adapt her magic for a human, much less what precision was needed to read a mind, but she sat down across from the magist anyway. “Okay, where do I start?”
Raith scratched the stubble on his chin. “Just do whatever it is you do when you listen to animals, but try to attune it to me.”
“That’s somewhat less than helpful, but I’ll give it a go.” Kate closed her eyes and reached out with her magic same as she would if she were searching for wild animals in the forest.
In moments she began to detect the various animals in the castle, several cats and an alarming number of mice. She even sensed Lir in Dal’s rooms, the falcon anxious in response to her master’s dark mood. Finding these animal minds was easy, but when she tried to home in on Raith’s thoughts, nothing happened. She might as well be trying to teach horses to fly for all the good it did.
She opened her eyes and glared at Raith. “This isn’t going to work. I have no idea what I’m doing.”
Raith leaned back in the chair, regarding her with a narrowed gaze. “How did it work on those thieves that night?”
“I don’t know. I was scared and angry. I did it without meaning to.”
Raith nodded. “An emotional trigger. It’s not uncommon. But how can we re-create one now?”
Kate shook her head. At the moment all she felt was tired and uncertain, utterly spent from the last few days.
“I have an idea.” Bonner set down the gun he’d been cleaning and approached them.
Kate looked up in time to see him make a grab for her, one arm pinning her while he started tickling her sides with his free hand. With a shriek, she struggled to get herself free, but she couldn’t keep herself from laughing.
“Stop!” she tried to shout, unable to draw a full breath.
Bonner only tickled her harder, relentless.
“Stop!” she said again, starting to panic at the ache in her stomach. It soon sparked into anger. “Stop, I said!” This time, she put the force of her magic behind it, and Bonner stumbled backward, releasing her at once.
“That was . . . unsettling.” Bonner touched his forehead. “It was like I felt you inside here.”
Kate glared at him. “Now is hardly the time for tickling, Tom Bonner.”
Raith waved at her. “Never mind that. Channel the emotion, Kate. Try to glean my thoughts.”
Still angry, Kate closed her eyes and reached out again. Moments later she sensed two separate thoughts—the first an image of a gleaming red apple. The second was: Gods, I’m going to pay for that later.
Kate opened her eyes, gaping. “It worked, I think.” She pointed at Raith. “You’re thinking about a red apple. And you”—she swung her finger at Bonner, wielding it like a dagger—“are worried about what I’m going to do to pay you back for that.”
Bonner let out a nervous laugh. “That’s . . . a little frightening, knowing you heard what I’m thinking.”
Kate’s stomach did a flip. It was frightening. And wrong. She cut her eyes to Raith, who was nodding his approval. “If I learn to do this, will it happen all the time? Will I start hearing everyone’s thoughts, whether I want to or not?”
“I don’t believe so. Your father never spoke of such at least.” Raith cocked his head, expression curious. “Do you sense the thoughts of animals all the time without meaning to?”
Kate considered the question before answering. “No, not unless their emotions are strong, like the horses that night in Jade Forest during the fire.”
“There you have it, then.” Raith clapped his hands once. “There’s no reason why humans would be any different, I wouldn’t think. If you don’t want to listen in, then you don’t have to.”
Kate nodded, swearing silently that she would never listen in on someone’s thoughts unless absolutely necessary. “So what’s the point here? When we head to Thornewall, I’m supposed to listen for whoever is in hiding or something? So we can catch them?”
“You should do more if you can,” Raith replied. “Their thoughts might reveal all manner of important information, and once they’re caught, we can’t be certain they won’t kill themselves like Ralph Marcel at the Gregors’ house.”
Kate shook her head, unable to imagine what could make a person desperate enough to willingly walk into death.
We must uncover the reason, she realized, remembering Dal’s heartbroken expression at his brother’s death. Whoever is doing this must be stopped. It was up to her. She took a deep breath, wishing the gods had laid a different task at her feet. Why couldn’t she have to win a horse race, or some mounted trial? Anything other than stealing into someone’s mind.
Because the gods want to be entertained, Kate thought, reminded of this truth by the mark of the Shade Born on Raith’s face. They don’t want anything to be easy.
Sighing, she said, “Let’s try again.” She shook her finger at Bonner. “But no more tickling. I’ve got to learn to do it when I’m calm.”
Bonner grinned. “Never again, I swear.”
Hours passed before Kate managed it again. After a while she began to think of it like singing. That was the best analogy she could come up with. The thoughts of animals were on a different part of the scale. They were lower, in easier reach. Human thoughts resided on a much higher scale, one you had to stretch for. All she needed to do was attune her magic to the different plane. Easier said than done, after a lifetime of training her magic only to reach one level. But she kept at it until she was able to do it several times in a row.
She began to understand that attuning herself to the different scale was the hardest part of the challenge. The rest of it, the actual listening in part, was much the same, though the human mind was larger, more complex, like a massive vault full of thoughts and memories. Without meaning too, Kate caught glimpses of Raith’s past, of the life he’d endured as a child—fear and hate directed at him for no other reason than the different way his skin had been marked. But at his center, he possessed the same glowing flame, his essence as bright and beautiful as any she’d sensed before.
In the end she found that using her magic on humans was actually easier, especially when it came to communicating back. After all, with humans, she spoke the same language. But the ease was also the biggest danger, Kate realized when she accidentally sent a thought directly into Raith’s mind.
He winced and rubbed his forehead. “You’ll want to be careful about doing that, Kate. You’ll give yourself away at once. Those diamonds will only prevent the detection stones from going off. They won’t do anything to hide proof of magic happening. Also, there’s no need to shout.”
“Sorry,” Kate said, sagging back on the chair. She felt drained to the point of passing out, the well of her magic like an empty hole inside her. Never before had she used it so much at one time. “I didn’t mean to do it. I’ll be more careful.”
“Good.” Raith stood and glanced out the window, where the last rays of the sunset were casting faint orange streamers over the horizon. “I’m afraid that’s all we have time for. We’ll practice again on the road and when we stop to camp. If we’re lucky, the time it takes us to get to Thornewall will be enough for you to master the skill.”
Kate nodded, ignoring the doubt that remained. Mastery or not, she would do the best she could and could only hope it would be enough.