Bridge of Dreams (38 page)

“That’s enough,” Glorianna said as a boulder pushed up a long step away from the lane. She looked at Zhahar. “This lane leads to the Den. When your people cross over to visit, you keep the markers on your right on the way to the Den, and on your left when you go home. That will keep you from stumbling someplace you shouldn’t be.”

Because you don’t want us to explore?
Zhahar wondered. Before she could think of how to phrase the question without causing offense that might make Glorianna change her mind about helping them, Kobrah pointed in the opposite direction and asked, “What’s over that way?”

“The border to the Merry Makers’ landscape,” Glorianna replied.

“They sound festive,” Zhahar said, trying not to jump when Sholeh yelled ::No!::

“They’re not,” Glorianna said. “They respect the Den’s rules when they visit the Den, but very few people who go into the bogs the Merry Makers call home survive long enough to walk out again.”

“Oh,” Kobrah said.

::Lee told me a little about the Merry Makers and the waterhorses,:: Sholeh said. ::They’re
dangerous.
:: Then she added wistfully, ::But I’d still like to see them.::

Zhahar sighed, which had Glorianna raising an eyebrow in question.

“My sister Sholeh was exchanging information with Lee about some of the races found in Ephemera, and she’s curious.”

“How old are you?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Not so young, then.”

“I beg your pardon?”

Glorianna laughed. “Never mind. The others are coming.” She looked down the lane and laughed again. “Tell your sister she’s about to have an opportunity to meet a demon.” She sounded as concerned as if the family dog was heading toward them—a dog large enough to be scary, but usually friendly.

Zhahar looked at the swiftly moving lights and felt weak-kneed relief when she turned and saw Sebastian and Lee walking ahead of the Apothecary’s wagon. Her mother shared the driving seat with the shadowman while the Knife rode alongside.

“Why are we stopping here?” Sebastian asked.

“We were waiting for you,” Glorianna replied.

“How did you set the markers so quickly?” Morragen asked, pointing to a boulder.

Glorianna smiled. “Ephemera helped. Shall we—”

“Wait,” Zhahar said, her voice so sharp everyone looked at her. But all she saw was a boulder that hadn’t been there a few minutes ago. All she remembered was a mud wallow changing into rushing,
fresh
water.

She changes the world. Glorianna can change the world.
“If you can make boulders, can you repair farmland?” Zhahar asked. “Can you restore streams? Turn sparse grass into rich grazing?” She looked at Glorianna and heard Morragen suck in a breath. Her mothers understood the reason for the questions. “Can you?”

“This isn’t the place to discuss this,” Glorianna said at the same time Lee said, “Zhahar,” and touched her arm.

She pulled away from Lee.
“Can you?”

“Despair made the deserts, and hope the oases,” Glorianna replied. “Ephemera manifests the heart.”

Zhahar stared at her in disbelief. “You think we did this to our homeland? You think we wanted this?”

“Wanted it? No. Did your people do it? Yes. Heart’s Blessing, Sholeh Zeela a Zhahar,” Glorianna Belladonna said in a cold voice that was oddly laced with compassion. “May your heart travel lightly, because what you bring with you becomes part of the landscape.” She turned and started walking down the lane toward the Den.

Lee grabbed Zhahar’s arm. “That’s enough. You don’t make demands of a Landscaper. It isn’t done.”

“Well, maybe it should be!” Zhahar tried to jerk her arm out of his grip. When she couldn’t, she appealed to Zeela.

=No,= Zeela said, sounding troubled.

*Why not?* Zhahar continued to try to pull away from Lee, ignoring the fact that the harder she struggled, the tighter he held her arm.

=Because our mothers didn’t agree with you.=

::And because what Glorianna said is true,:: Sholeh added.

She looked at Morragen Medusah a Zephyra and realized Zeela was right. Their mothers were angry—at
her.
If Sholeh knew why Glorianna had spoken the truth, then so did Medusah.

She stopped struggling. Lee released her arm and stepped back to stand beside Sebastian, who no longer looked friendly.

“We ask you to overlook our daughter’s unconsidered, and inconsiderate, words,” Medusah said, coming into view. “She needs rest, so Zeela should continue this journey.”

“Not Zeela,” Lee said. “Not yet. I think Sholeh should finish the trip to the Den.”

Medusah tipped her head, considering. “Why?”

Lee’s smile looked forced, but it was still a smile. “Because there’s someone she should meet.”

Sebastian glanced at the lights heading toward them, then at Lee. “You sure?”

“Lynnea did all right with them.”

“Oh, daylight. Then you’d better ride with her, or she’ll never get to Philo’s.”

Ashamed for being reprimanded before the others and angry enough not to want to be around Lee, Zhahar’s aspect waned and Sholeh’s came into view.

Sebastian pointed to the Apothecary and the Knife. “Wait there so the horses don’t spook.”

“Come on, Sholeh.” Lee walked over to the lane.

“What about Kobrah?” Sholeh asked, hurrying to catch up.

“She can take a look and make her own choice,” Sebastian said.

That’s when Sholeh saw two
somethings
racing toward them. Big eyes, long arms, and…

“Blaaarrrrrgh!” one of them roared, waving those long arms and displaying too many sharp teeth. It stopped within touching distance of them. “Blaaarrrrrgh!”

She had never seen anything like them. Not even in the pictures she had found in the books she’d studied in Vision.

“Demon cycles,” she breathed, smiling so widely her cheeks hurt. “Are you a demon cycle?”

It seemed to ponder her reaction. “Wanna ride?”

The voice like gravel in a metal barrel thrilled Sholeh.

“This is Sholeh, who is Lee’s friend,” Sebastian said. “They could use a ride to Philo’s Place. Belladonna will be waiting for them there.”

One demon cycle turned its odd metal body as an invitation to mount while the other drifted above the road until it was looking right at Kobrah.

Sebastian smiled at Kobrah. She swallowed hard but nodded.

“Kobrah will ride with me.” Sebastian walked up to the cycle and swung a leg over the leather seat. “Come on. You can ride behind me.”

“Take the front position,” Lee said, guiding Sholeh over to the cycle that was waiting for them.

“But I don’t know how to steer!”

He laughed. “You don’t steer. You just hold on.”

She mounted. He got on behind her and rested his hands lightly on her waist. A friendly touch that warmed her and made her wish he could remain their friend after he learned about the taboos. It wasn’t likely, but she still wished it.

“The lane will take you to the Den,” Sebastian told the shadowmen. “You should be fine on your own, but I’ll send Addison or Henley to guide you.”

“Appreciate it,” the Knife said.

Sholeh turned her head and spoke over her shoulder. “The horses weren’t afraid.”

“The horses were upwind and don’t understand what they’re seeing,” Lee replied.

They headed down the lane.

After a minute, Sholeh sighed. Now that she was used to how the demon cycles looked and how they floated over the road, they weren’t very exciting.

“Daylight,” Sebastian muttered. “All right. You two go ahead. We’ll catch up.”

Suddenly the ground was a
blur
.

“Hang on!” Lee shouted.

She whooped in answer. Zeela did exciting things, but even her warrior sister hadn’t done anything like
this.

It seemed like they’d barely started when she saw lights coming up fast. Lots of lights.

“We’re here already?” She didn’t say it loudly, but she didn’t take those big, tufted ears into account. As they reached the place where dirt lane changed to cobblestone street, the demon cycle made a tight turn and went speeding back the way they’d come.

“Hey!” Lee shouted.

“Yay!” Sholeh shouted.

“Blaaarrrrrgh!” the demon cycle shouted.

They passed Sebastian and Kobrah, then made another tight turn to race alongside the other cycle, which sped up, responding to the competitive spirit—or something—until Sebastian made a sharp sound that caused both cycles to slow the pace to halfway between amble and blur.

She wanted to tell him it was all right for the cycle to go faster, but a glance at Kobrah made it clear that the other woman had never ridden anything that went this fast and was, according to Lee, very dangerous, even if it was acting friendly. So she contented herself with the more sedate return to the Den.

When they reached the cobblestones, the demon cycles slowed to the pace of a fast walk and finally stopped in front of a courtyard that had tables and statues.

“That was wonderful!” Sholeh said as she dismounted. “Can we do it again?”

“Later,” Lee replied, grinning.

She noticed the blond-haired man who stared at them a moment before hurrying toward them. And she noticed the way Kobrah stood frozen, staring at the statues.

*Oh no,* Zhahar said. *Sholeh, you’d better let me—*

=It’s my turn,= Zeela said.

*Kobrah needs help.*

::I want to stay a bit longer!::

Zhahar withdrew from them in a way that told her sisters she was hurt and upset.

“Lee!” The man bounced up to Lee and hugged him. “Welcome back, you fool.” Then he gave Kobrah a delighted grin—and put himself between Kobrah and her view of the statues. “Hey-a, Kobbi. Welcome to the Den.”

Kobrah blinked. “Teaser?”

“All the way.”

Teaser cocked a thumb over his shoulder. “Nothing but statues tonight. No live performance. But if they bother you, we could go down the street and listen to some music.”

“I think it would be best for us all to stay together for a bit,” Sebastian said. “But we can use the inside room if the statues bother Kobrah.”

“No,” Kobrah said. “I can—” Her mouth fell open.
“Shaman Danyal?”

It
was
Danyal heading for them with a dark-eyed, dark-haired man.

“I’m happy to see you all,” Danyal said. He looked at Lee. “And I’m glad you found your way home.”

“Me too,” Lee replied.

“Lee!”

He’d barely had a chance to turn toward the voice when a woman leaped into his arms.

“Lynnea!”

Sebastian leaned over Sholeh’s shoulder. “Let’s find some seats for you two. People are going to be pouncing on him for a while.”

“Is that his lover?” Sholeh asked, worried because jealousy was seeping through despite Zhahar’s withdrawal from her and Zeela.

Sebastian choked on a laugh. “No, that’s my wife, which makes her family.”

The hug might have been from a lover. The punch in the shoulder that followed it? That was family.

Sholeh relaxed, determined to enjoy as much as she could before Zeela demanded some time to explore this place.

A round man with dark, receding hair hurried up to them.

“Sit. Sit. I’m closing off this half of the courtyard for you,” Philo said.

Before Lee could take his seat at the table, a male voice said, “Lee, you ripe bastard. It’s about time you stopped ignoring a helping hand and got yourself back home.”

She saw pleasure in Lee’s face as he turned toward the man, but there was shame mixed with that pleasure.

“Magician,” Lee said. A hesitation. Then he grabbed the man in a hard hug.

More people. So many people, Sholeh had trouble keeping track. There was Yoshani, the holy man with Shaman Danyal. There were Nadia and Jeb, Lee’s mother and stepfather. There was Caitlin Marie, Michael the Magician’s sister.

And there, at the edge of the courtyard, part of the group and still apart from it, was Glorianna Belladonna.

“Come on, Kobbi. Have a seat,” Teaser said, pulling out a chair across from Sholeh and Lee. As he pulled out a chair for himself, he looked at her. “So you and your sisters are together all the time?”

“We are Tryad. We are three who are one, one who is three,” Sholeh replied, noticing how sharply Medusah watched Teaser—and how sharply
Nadia
also watched Teaser.

He gave her a smile that was naughty and boyishly good-natured. “How does that work when one of you has sex?”

“Teaser,” Lee warned.

“If one of you is romping, do you all feel the
fizz-bang
at the end, or is it each to herself? And if one of you has a lover, do the other two have to do without cuddles?”

“Teaser!” a chorus of voices shouted.

“What?” He looked around. “I’m just asking. It’s not like I’m inviting myself to the party. Although…” He gave Sholeh a considering look. “
Would
it be cheating if the other lover was just a dream?
Ow ow ow!
” That last because Nadia grabbed his ear and pulled him toward another table.

Sholeh hunched down in her chair, hoping to look smaller as she tried to interpret the look on her mother’s face. She was certain that
no one
had
ever
said such things in front of Medusah before now.

=By the triple stars,= Zeela whispered.

::Are you appalled or amused?:: Sholeh asked.

=I don’t know.=

Sebastian gave Medusah a smile that had
heat
and said, “It’s a valid question. Especially when asked by an incubus.”

“Oh, daylight,” Lee groaned. “Don’t say things like that to Zhahar’s mother. Mothers.” He put his hands over his face. “Why did I miss any of you?”

“I’m thinking the man now knows what it’s like to be dealing with the rest of you for the first time,” Michael said, giving Lee a friendly clap on the shoulder.

“Yeah,” Sebastian said. “I haven’t seen him this embarrassed since the first time I walked in on him and a girl and he had his hands—”

Lee grabbed for his cousin at the same time Nadia said, “Sebastian Justicemaker! If you don’t want to be telling that story to
me
, you won’t be telling it to anyone tonight.”

“Yes, Auntie,” Sebastian replied. But he winked at Sholeh. “So where’s the other sister?”