I pounced on him as soon as he entered the infirmary. “You saw those survivors in the Greenblade forest. Did they say anything about the Harman sap that might help Valek?”
Janco’s movements lacked his customary grace. He appeared tired and was probably in pain. The mischievous spark didn’t flash from his gaze as he stood next to Valek’s bed. “Wish I could help, but all I know is Selene reduced the concentration of the sap until it stopped killing her test subjects. She would know. Did she survive?”
“I don’t know.”
Energized, Janco squeezed my shoulder. “I’ll find out.”
“I doubt she’ll cooperate.”
“Oh, I don’t think that will be a problem.” A fierce expression gripped his face.
For the first time in days, I had a reason to hope. However, the next day Janco returned with Ari, and they both looked glum.
“Sorry, Yelena,” Janco said. “The survivors of Selene’s experiments were freed, and they managed to find and kill her.”
There was nothing left to do but try Hayes’s suggestion. I stood next to Valek’s bed and cupped his sweaty cheek. He stilled and sighed. But he didn’t wake.
“He might be exhausted,” Hayes said. “Give him some time.”
* * *
While we waited, there was a succession of meetings in the Council Hall. At one point, everyone who had been involved in stopping the Cartel, plus the two Master Magicians and Cahil, all assembled in the Hall. Twenty-eight people total, if you didn’t include the three scribes who took turns writing everything down. Each of the teams reported what had happened at the garrisons. Fisk and I explained what had occurred at the Citadel. Then I related Valek’s adventures in Ixia.
“Do you think the Commander plans to invade Sitia in the near future?” Councilor Tama Moon asked me.
“As long as the Sitian Council remains in power, he will not get involved or attempt to take control of Sitia. However, if you are compromised again, the Commander will act.”
“Noted. And you say he’s open to having a Liaison again.”
“Yes.”
“Yelena, would you be willing to resume your duties as the Liaison?” Councilor Featherstone asked.
Would I? I rested my hand on my belly. Hiccups vibrated against my palm. “Not at this time. I’m going to be busy with other duties the next few years.”
Smiles ringed the room, but I couldn’t share their good humor while Valek remained unconscious.
“All right. Please add that to the list of items the Council needs to discuss.”
It took all day for everyone to report. The Council spent another day addressing the most immediate concerns. Cahil was charged with rebuilding the garrisons. The Master Magicians had already started clearing the Keep of debris, and the Council allocated a couple dozen soldiers to help them. The Masters aimed to reopen the school on the first day of the cooling season—twenty-three days away.
Opal, Devlen and their children returned to Fulgor. Teegan would be back to continue his studies with the rest of the students, which now included Zohav and Zethan. They planned to fast-track Teegan’s master-level training since they were in dire need of more masters. Reema had to wait a few more years before she could attend. The news didn’t go over well with her, to say the least.
Heli returned to the coast, where Zethan would join her and the Stormdancers for the next storm season. Leif was asked to be the new Liaison. He accepted the job, as long as Mara could accompany him on all his missions. She beamed. I couldn’t stop a twinge of jealously over their happiness. Once I acknowledged it, I moved on and was able to congratulate them both with genuine love and warmth in my heart.
I spent every night with Valek, sleeping pressed next to him. I talked to him, relating what had happened at the garrisons. Ari and Janco visited and told him how they’d attacked the Krystal garrison. Each took a turn telling their version of the story. Of course they kept interrupting each other to protest a comment or argue over a particular detail. I thought Valek would wake just to order them to shut up. He didn’t.
That night, it took me a long time to find a comfortable position to sleep. My bulging belly made lying on my back or stomach impossible. It didn’t help that my thoughts swirled with worry. I’d been avoiding making any decisions, since I couldn’t face a future without Valek. I finally drifted into an uneasy sleep a few hours past midnight, but a cold touch jerked me from my nightmares. I yelled and almost punched the dark shape next to me until I realized it was Valek.
I struggled to sit up. “Valek?”
“Hmm?”
All the emotions I’d been holding in broke through my barrier. Clinging to Valek, I sobbed. He wrapped his arms around me. My cries were loud enough to bring Healer Hayes.
He carried a lantern. “What’s wrong?”
Valek blinked in the bright light.
“About time. How do you feel?”
“Hungry.”
“I bet. I’ll be back.” Hayes set the lantern on the night table and left.
Valek turned to me. He wiped the tears off my jaw with a thumb. “Thanks.”
“For what? I took your magic.”
He shook his head as if that didn’t matter. “For guiding me home. I was lost in a world of fire and didn’t know how to leave.” Valek picked up my hand and rested it on his stubbly cheek. Then he covered it with his own. “You showed me the way.”
Was he in the fire world? Or just lost in fever dreams? “That was days ago.”
He frowned. “How long?”
“About a week.”
Valek groaned. “I’ve spent most of the hot season lying in a bed.” He threaded his fingers in mine. “There’s only one good reason for being in bed. And it’s not sleeping.” He gave me a tired leer.
“I brought soup and some bread. Be careful not to eat too much,” Hayes said, carrying a tray into the room.
Valek let go of me to sit up. Then he grinned.
“It’s just chicken broth. No need to get that excited,” Hayes said.
But I understood. “Your magic?”
“Looks like I’ll be helping Healer Hayes after all.”
* * *
A few days later, Valek was released from the infirmary. We returned to the guest suite, but eventually we would move to the apartment over Alethea’s bookshop until classes started at the Keep. Then we would stay in Irys’s tower while Valek explored what he could and couldn’t do with his magic. Irys speculated that Valek had gone into the fire world while he was unconscious, which was very similar to the master-level test. Because Valek couldn’t leave without my help, his magic wasn’t strong enough to be a master.
Soon after, my father left for home, but not before promising to be back with Mother when the baby was born. “I’ll warn you now,” Esau said to me in the living room of the guest suite. “Your mother will want to discuss plans for your wedding celebration.”
“Even with a grandchild distracting her?” I asked.
“This is your mother we’re talking about. She can be very persistent and stubborn.”
Valek burst out laughing, and we both looked at him in confusion.
“Sorry,” he said, wiping his eyes. “It’s just I have a feeling that I’ll be saying that very same thing to our son or daughter in the future.”
“Hey,” I said in mock outrage.
Esau clapped him on the back. “Just remember it’s those qualities that made us fall in love with them in the first place.”
“Really? I thought it was because she said I looked stunning in my dress uniform. Love at first compliment,” Valek joked.
I marveled at my husband. I’d never seen him so happy and carefree.
Ari and Janco stopped by later that night for a visit. I’d relayed Valek’s informatio
n to them about the Commander welcoming them back, but they’d wanted to wait for Valek to wake up before they decided anything.
“You certainly took your sweet time,” Janco said to Valek as he plopped into one of the armchairs. He propped his feet up on the ottoman and sighed.
Ari shook his head. “The boy has no manners.”
“What? I’m supposed to wait for an invitation to make myself comfortable?” Janco pished.
Sitting in another armchair, Ari made it appear small in comparison to his large frame. “You both look better,” he said.
I opened my mouth to thank him, but Janco waved a hand. “Pah. Small talk. We’re beyond small talk.”
“True,” Valek agreed. “You’re here to say goodbye.”
Janco straightened. “How did you know?”
Valek waited.
“Yeah, well, I guess we spent a lot of time working together.” He frowned. “But we think we’d be bored here in Sitia.”
“We?” Ari asked.
“Well, Ari is too polite to use the word bored, but we realize that you are going to build a nest and settle down.”
“Nest?” I asked.
“Home, nest, you know what I mean. You don’t need us getting in the way. And Little Miss Assassin needs us more.”
I wasn’t surprised by their decision. “I’m glad. Onora has a rough road ahead of her, and having friends will make it easier.”
“We’ll visit, of course. Someone has to teach the kid how to get away with stuff that you won’t let him or her do.”
I glanced at Valek. “Remind me to never leave Janco alone with our child.”
“Hey!”
We all ignored him.
“And we’ll drop everything and come if you need us,” Ari said.
“Unless you need us to change diapers. Then forget it.” Janco waved a hand under his nose.
“Just remember, we also can offer aid if you need it,” Valek said to them.
“Will do.” Janco saluted. “Our herd may roam, but we all know where is home.”
* * *
The students returned to the Magician’s Keep on the first day of the cooling season. The New Beginnings feast was a highly anticipated affair. I hadn’t been to one in years. But this year’s feast represented so much more than the start of a new school year. Everyone needed a night of celebration and fun after being under the Cartel’s influence.
Before the party, Valek stood in front of the mirror in our rooms in Irys’s tower. He wore a silver silk tunic with black piping, black pants and a silver belt—formal Sitian dress clothes—and they showed off his athletic physique. He’d regained weight and muscle tone since he’d recovered from the Harman sap. And I’d gained about a hundred pounds in baby weight...or so it seemed. He was sleek and sexy, and I was the size of a heifer.
“I feel ridiculous,” he said, yanking at his high collar. “I’m the oldest student ever to attend the Keep. Can we skip the feast?”
“No. It’ll be fun. Don’t worry, you’ll be working with Irys and Teegan and won’t have to attend classes with the first-years.”
“Thank fate.”
We entered the dining room and wove through the clumps of people, stopping and talking as we headed for the buffet. Food first, dancing second. After we ate, Valek pulled me to the dance floor. He twirled me around as the music vibrated through the air.
Zethan mingled among the students and faculty with ease, but Zohav stayed on the edges of the room, frowning at anyone who approached her. Valek coaxed her onto the dance floor, while I partnered with Zethan.
“Don’t worry about Zo,” he said when he noticed the direction of my gaze. “She’ll thaw eventually. It always takes her a while to adjust.” Then he laughed. “And this has been the craziest year in our entire lives.”
“I’d say. You’ve experienced a lot of changes. But you seem to have made friends already.”
“Compared to being captured by pirates and then arrested by the scariest man in Ixia, who ends up being your older brother and involved in a dangerous plot to overthrow an evil Cartel? This is easy.”
I laughed. “When you put it that way, I see your point.”
“And it all worked out. I’m learning about my magic. I have a sister-in-law, and I’m gonna be an uncle!” He beamed at me.
His resemblance to Valek was unmistakable, and I hoped it didn’t cause him trouble in the future. Many Sitians still feared Valek, despite all he’d done to save us. At the end of the song, I said, “Just remember, we are here if you and Zohav need anything.”
“I know. There’s only one thing I’m worried about.”
Concerned, I put my hand on his arm. “What is that?”
“That after all the excitement of the past couple seasons, school will be boring in comparison.”
I swatted him. “You’re just like your brother.”
“Thank you.”
Boys.
* * *
After the feast, life slowly returned to normal. Valek kept busy attending sessions with Irys, and with helping to teach the students self-defense and fighting techniques in the training yard. I spent my time reading through Bain’s history books. I hoped to find some mention of another magician who might have had the same magic-sucking power as the baby.
I was propped up in bed scanning a book on the clans that traced the lines of magic in families when pain ringed my stomach. My first thought was that I’d been poisoned by White Fright again. Memories flashed of being locked in General Brazell’s dungeon while it felt as if someone shredded my insides with a rusty knife. But that was nine years ago. My confusion cleared when another contraction hit, stronger than the last. It was the middle of the cooling season, and the baby was coming. Now.
Terror and panic mixed with relief—I’d gotten to the point where I couldn’t stay in one position for long before something on my body hurt. Lumbering from bed, I put on my robe. Valek worked at a table in the living area. He concentrated on a wooden stick.
“Valek.”
“Hmm?” He scowled at the thin branch. “Looks like lighting fires is truly beyond me. Pity. That would be a really useful skill to have.”
Another contraction rolled through me. I sucked in deep breaths like Healer Hayes had instructed. Medic Mommy had arrived yesterday morning, but she hadn’t thought I’d go into labor for another week. When I could speak again, I said, “Valek.”
The strain in my voice caught his attention, and he was beside me in a heartbeat. “Is it time, love?” He remained calm. Typical.
“Yes.”
* * *
“Almost there, Yelena, one more push. You can do it,” Medic Mommy said.
She and Healer Hayes had taken turns soothing me while I clung to Valek’s hand as the contractions grew in frequency and severity.
“That’s it. Breathe.”
I grunted instead. After all these hours—I had no idea how many, except it was a lot—I thought I’d earned the right to grunt.
“Another push for the shoulders,” she instructed. “The rest is easy.”
And it was.
“The baby’s a girl,” she said, holding up a squirming little worm covered in goo.
Relief and joy pulsed through my tired body. Valek cut the cord, and I collapsed back on the bed, sweaty and achy. But all my woes disappeared when the baby cried. I lifted my head in concern. Was something wrong?
“Relax, Mom,” Hayes said with a grin. “She’s healthy.” He weighed her. “Almost eight pounds. What’s her name?”
“Liana Zaltana Icefaren,” Valek said, leaning over and kissing my forehead.
Our gazes met and his eyes shone with unshed tears. Even with her hair a mess, Yelena’s still beautiful.
Wait. I blinked at h
im.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Give me a minute.” I reached for the blanket of power and concentrated. Magic flowed through me like a fresh, cool breeze. My magical senses awakened, and the world came alive around me. One of the best days of my life just became better. I met Valek’s questioning gaze, then projected my thoughts toward him. I hit a solid barrier. Hard. Irys wasn’t kidding when she’d said he was strong.
Valek straightened in surprise, but then he grinned. The wall disappeared.
Hi there, handsome, I thought.
Welcome back, love.
I smiled. Reaching out further, despite my low energy, I sought another.
Kiki?
Lavender Lady had foal. Approval flowed over our connection. Better?
Yes, I can hear you again!
She snorted as if she knew this would happen all along. Bring foal.
We’ll visit soon.
Bring apples.
I promised to bring an entire bushel.
Healer Hayes cleaned Liana, wrapped her up so all that showed was her round pink face and handed her to me. Long black eyelashes arched from blue-green eyes, and dark hair covered her head. It was long enough to curl slightly. She was perfect. Liana stared at me for a moment, gazed at Valek for a few seconds, then promptly fell asleep. Unimpressed? Bored already? Or was it a sign that she’d be a good sleeper?
“We’ll leave you alone now,” Hayes said. “When she starts to fuss, that means she’s hungry. Let us know if she has trouble latching on, and we’ll come back and help.”
Latching on sounded painful, but I nodded as if confident it would work. We marveled over our daughter for a while. It was love at first sight for both of us.
Valek touched her cheek with his finger. “She’s so soft.” His voice held awe. Then he crinkled his brow. “She’s also blocking my magic.” He pulled his hand back. “Is she blocking yours?”
I focused. “No.” Then I placed my thumb on her chin. Her skin was soft, and my connection to the power blanket severed. “Yes, when I touch her.”
“What happened to her sucking power?”