Heiress: Birthstone Series Book Two (37 page)

“Sai,” Nil whispered, “why are you here? You’re no friend of
mine so just skip the formalities and tell me what you want.”

Our eyes met and we glared at each other through the door.
Finally I looked away. “The Travel Gem we stole . . .”

“
We
stole, Sai?” Nil broke in.

  “Yes.
We
. You and your bird wouldn’t have been able
to steal it if I hadn’t created a distraction.”

Nil waved a hand flippantly. “You underestimate me.”

I ignored him and continued. “The Travel Gem is gone. Would
you know anything about that?”

“I’ve been in a prison cell the entire time. Why would I?”

“You just told me not to underestimate you.”

“True. But you don’t actually believe I had anything to do
with its disappearance?”

I gave him an icy stare and his smiled grew wider. “I didn’t
know you thought so much of my skills,” he said. “I’m flattered.”

I rolled my eyes. “I can get you out of this cell if you can
find me the Travel Gem.”

“Wow.” Nil pretended to consider this for a moment. Already
spent from the conversation, I leaned my head against one of the slats to wait
for what I knew would be another obnoxious reply.

“That’s a great offer. Really. I can see why you’d think it
would be a good trade for me.

“Enough, Nil. Do you think you can find the Travel Gem or do
you want to stay in your cell? One word to Baen and I can have you remain here.
He’s only willing to release you at my request.”

Nil snorted. “I’m grateful for the proposition, and I think
I may be able to find the gem, but you haven’t asked what I want in return.”

“Your freedom isn’t reward enough?”

“Oh, I want so much more than that.”

I lifted my eyebrows. “Can you be more specific?”

Nil stepped away from the door and plopped down somewhere in
his cell. Through the slats, I saw him stretch his legs out in front of him and
place his hands behind his head. “I want Faema, Sai,” he said, his voice
strangely composed. “I want Faema to stay with me.”

I shook my head at first. When I realized he was serious I
gaped at him. “You’re crazy. You can’t demand a person in exchange for an
object. I don’t know how you were raised but in my land, people aren’t up for
trade.”

“Try to understand. You especially know how it is to be
without the person you love.”

“What do you know about love? You’re using her.”

Nil cleared his throat before he responded. For the first
time, I heard his voice waver slightly. “I’ve lost everyone, Sai. My parents.
My friends. Even my sister told me to never return.” He stood once more and
strode toward the door. When he was inches away, he gripped the slats and
glowered at me. “I need Faema. She’s everything to me.”

 I took a step backwards. “I’m not going to convince her to
stay with you. I’ve known her my entire life. She deserves better than a
dishonest, conniving. . . “

It didn’t take much for him to abandon his moment of
earnestness. Nil clutched his chest and pretended to double over in pain. “That
hurts. How can you say such terrible things about someone who’s helped you?
You’re asking me to steal for you.
Again
!” He looked up and grinned.
“You know, Faema may not share your opinion of me.”

I shrugged. “It doesn’t matter. I won’t force her to do
anything she doesn’t want to do.”

I turned to leave and for the first time saw her standing a
few cells away. Her eyes were wide and her hands trembled at her sides.

“I’ll do it,” she whispered.

“No you won’t. I’ll find another way out of here.”

“No,” she said. “I’ll stay with Nil. I want to stay with
him.” She paused and glanced toward his cell before adding, “I
think
.”

“You
think
? That’s not good enough.”

Suddenly, Nil’s face appeared between the slats. “Yes, it
is. I’ll treat you like a queen, Faema. You won’t regret it.”

“You will regret it,” I promised her.

“Be quiet, sea boy,” Nil said from behind the door. He
reached his hand through one of the openings and made a lazy attempt to cover
my mouth.

I ducked out of the way and slapped at his hand. “See,
Faema? Do you really want to put up with this?”

“Sai, what else do I have here?”

I motioned toward Nil’s hand as it attempted to reach me
again. “You think this is all you’ve got? Faema, you’re our friend. You’re part
of the Varidan family. You have us and we won’t just let you. . .”

“Too late! She already agreed,” Nil said. “She stays with
me.”

“She can change her mind.”

Faema sighed. “I won’t. I’m going with Nil.” She glanced at
him and added, “At least until he gives me a reason to leave.”

From inside his cell, Nil let out a whoop of delight. My
shoulders dropped in defeat.

“You don’t have to do this Faema.”

“I’m not doing it for you.” She looked down at her clasped
hands and took a deep breath. When she lifted her head again, her eyes pleaded
with me for understanding. “I’m at the end of Nil’s path.”

I bit the inside of my cheek, knowing nothing I said would
change her mind now. With a nod, I stepped toward her and wrapped my arms
around her. The finality of her decision shaped my embrace. I was telling a
Vairdan sister farewell.

Behind us the lock on Nil’s cell clicked. He pushed the door
open and emerged, wielding two small, slender tools.

I turned, unsurprised. “You’ve been pretending to be
imprisoned the entire time we’ve been here?”

“That’s one way to look at it. I see it more as a choice. I
chose
to remain in my cell.”

I raised my eyebrows skeptically.

Nil shrugged. “How else would I get Faema to spend so much
time alone with me?”

I opened my mouth to comment on his lack of integrity but
once again, I swallowed the insult before it left my tongue. I was rewarded for
my self-control. With a knowing smile, Nil reached into his vest pocket, pulled
out a small bundle, and threw toward me.

“Hey, look what I found!” he said. “It’s weird what people
leave lying around in rebel camps.”

I caught the bundle in my hands and peeled back the
wrapping, careful not to touch the contents. Sure enough, the Travel Gem lay
hidden inside.

“Well,” Nil muttered, “I’ll admit, I did leave my cell a
couple times when things got a bit boring.” He strolled to Faema and slung an
arm around her shoulders. She eyed him warily but I didn’t miss the tiny smile
she fought to conceal.

“So, my lovely sea goddess, I have a few ideas of how to
break out of camp. Care to hear my plans over a meal? What time of day is it
anyway?”

I followed them silently out of the prison quarters. Before
we reached the guards, I tucked the gem into my vest.

At the entrance, one of the guards arrived back at his post
just as we emerged.

“Baen says we can release the . . .” his voice trailed off
when he saw Nil, his arm wrapped tightly around Faema.

“How did you . . . ?” the guard asked.

“A good trader never reveals his secrets without a price,”
Nil said. With a bow in their direction, he led Faema away.

When I met the guards’ gaze, I shrugged and rolled my eyes.

“I’m late for . . .” I glanced around in search of an
excuse. “Something,” I finally muttered. I strolled past them as nonchalantly
as possible. But during my walk back to my bunk, I couldn’t help wondering how
long it would take Faema to regret her decision. I already regretted it for
her.

“Where’s Faema?” Haji asked a few hours before dawn. She had
slid into my sleeping quarters moments before but it didn’t take her long to
notice the grim set of my lips.

I glanced from her to Lirig, who had arrived a little
earlier, bearing armor for me to wear since I wasn’t allowed anywhere near the
armory. Both wore fresh clothing as well as fresh armor and Haji had a new,
larger pack slung over her shoulder. I didn’t ask what she’d found to fill it
with but I knew she’d remember things I’d probably never think of.

“Faema isn’t coming,” I whispered. The camp was mostly
silent and I worried our voices would stir nearby sleepers.

“Nil?” Lirig asked.

I nodded and moved to fasten the rest of my weapons to my
body. I was laden down with more supplies than I’d come with after spending the
remainder of the day snitching food and various forms of weaponry. Once again,
Nil’s words itched at my conscience but I attempted to slough them off by
keeping my hands busy.

“Haji,” I said. She turned a set of weary eyes to me and I
tossed her the gem Nil had surrendered.

“You’re not just going to leave her, are you?” she asked as
her fingers closed around the bundle.

“It was her choice. There was nothing I could do.” I reached
into one of my deeper vest pockets and yanked out the finger-marked, tattered
scroll I’d managed to procure from one of the supply piles. I avoided Haji’s
eyes as I unrolled it and passed it to her.

“It’s a long way but we need to get as close to Indikae as
possible. From what I gather, that’s where most of the battle will be and it’s
close to Et Loedin.”

“She didn’t even want to say goodbye?” Haji asked. Her voice
wavered with each word.

I sighed and ran a hand through my hair. Finally, I met
Haji’s eyes. “She didn’t want us to try and change her mind. She said she
needed a fresh start.”

Haji stared down at the map I’d given her. “She was one of
us.”

“And she will always be,” I said. “We may see her again
someday.” But the words sounded hollow as they left my lips.

“It’s best to get moving. We don’t have much time,” Lirig
said. He put an arm around Haji and squeezed her gently.

Haji shook her head and tried to smile but I could tell it
was strained. She studied the parchment in her hands for several moments until
finally she sighed. “I learned a little bit more about where other people in
the resistance are meeting up. It isn’t in Indikae.”

“We don’t want to end up with them, so that’s a good thing.”

“Not necessarily. Indikae has some protections around it and
we may not even make that far. But we could end up arriving somewhere near the
king’s army. Travel gems are dangerous. They can drop you off anywhere once
they run out of power.”

“So you think we should arrive at the same place as the
other rebels?” Lirig asked.

Haji shrugged. “I think it would be our safest choice. We
plan on fighting anyway and so many people will be arriving at random times, it
would be unlikely that we’d draw extra attention.  Then we could march with
them and join the battle. We’d likely be allowed into Indikae and even helped
with our request to reach Et Loedin if we’re among those fighting the king.
We’ll be questioned more if we show up with just the three of us.”

I had to admit her logic made sense. I’d wondered how I
would find Indikae or a way into the city once we arrived but this was the
easiest solution.

“I trust you, Haj. Take us where you think it would be
best.”

 She flipped open the cloth that surrounded the gem and
placed her hand over its surface. She grimaced as its power flooded into her
veins but sighed once the initial feeling ebbed.

“Do we have everything?” she asked.

I indicated yes with a quick bob of my head.

“Then hold onto me.”

She stared at the map and whispered the name of a small lake
not far from Indikae over and over again. Then, after a deep breath, she closed
her eyes and gave the command to the gem.

“To Lake Crioba of Miranasch!”

With a familiar crack, my sleeping quarters were gone and I
felt the world shift beneath me as I was hurled away from our underground
prison.

I expected to feel satisfaction, even elation at knowing I
would be closer to Aylen than I’d been since arriving in Miranasch. Instead, as
my body transported, a heavy cloak of dread seemed to settle over me. For the
first time, I recalled Aylen’s fears for my life. Tereg’s warnings pounded
inside my head. I closed my eyes in an attempt to ward off a headache but a
jagged pang of uncertainty twisted inside my gut like a blade. By the time I
found myself somewhere in the wintery, wild forests near Indikae, hours before
dawn, I could do nothing but lay on the frigid ground and gasp for each,
painful breath. Inside my shivering, exhausted body, one thought pulsed through
my mind again and again.

I’d just made a terrible mistake.

I hadn’t spoken more than a handful of words since we’d left
Baen’s camp. When we’d arrived at Lake Crioba, we’d hardly been questioned.
Instead, we were met with a mass army of battle-ready rebels and hustled into a
group waiting to be led to the borders of Indikae. We were told we’d be
stationed there with the others and expected to defend the city.

I remained quiet throughout our march to Indikae and during
midday meal while Haji and Lirig stared at me in worried silence. I ignored
them and tried to pretend I was too absorbed with looking at the colossal snow
covered mountains and the rumbling volcanoes that arched over the forest to
speak to them. It wasn’t until we neared the place where the majority of rebels
had gathered that Lirig finally approached me.

“What’s with you?” he hissed in my ear. “You’re scaring us.”

I opened my mouth to respond but the words wouldn’t come.
How could I tell them our decision to come had been all wrong? There were no
words to justify my concerns and if there were, I doubted I had the courage to
voice them.

“It’s nothing,” I finally said. “Just nerves.”

I felt Lirig’s eyes watching me as we walked but he didn’t
say anything for a long time. I sunk back into my own thoughts, as jumbled as
they were. A thousand questions rolled around in my head and I fought to focus
on one at a time, searching for answers to the concerns I’d only just begun to
take seriously.