Betrayed by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #5)(11)

I nodded. “Noria Melcott, Annia’s younger sister, was one of those recruits. Her boyfriend Elnos, and Annia herself, left a couple of weeks ago to find her and drag her back home, before the mages lose their temper and start annihilating the camps wholesale. Elnos and Annia made it to a Resistance camp in Canalo that they think Noria went to, but they’ve been out of touch since then, and I’m worried. I may need to go retrieve them, but I can’t without the location.”

“I see.” A troubled expression settled on Lakin’s face. “I’m afraid I wouldn’t have any knowledge of such a camp. I did help a number of shifters flee the city, but I wasn’t sending them to the Resistance.”

“Yeah, but surely you know someone who could tell me,” I urged. “What about those two birdbrains who visited last time? Have you seen them lately?”

“Hmm.” Lakin tapped his forefinger against his chin. “I haven’t heard back from them, but then again, it’s entirely possible they were captured and are now awaiting sentence.”

“Shit.” I pursed my lips together, then brightened. “Of course. I’m so dumb. I’ll just go to Prison Isle and question a few of them. Maybe the Chief Mage will let me offer reduced sentences to anyone who provides useful information.”

“You could start with asking your cousin Rylan, you know,” Lakin said dryly. “I’m sure he would be happy to help.”

“Yeah, well, that depends on your definition of ‘help’.” My lips thinned as I recalled how Rylan had attempted to ‘help’ me, by getting a witch to cast a spell that made me forget to warn Iannis about an impending ambush. Anger ignited in my chest, and I took a deep breath and exhaled through my nostrils to expel it. He wasn’t worth getting angry over.

“Is there something you’re not telling me?” Lakin asked warily.

I shook my head. “Nothing worth mentioning.” I checked my watch, wondering if I had time to get over to Prison Isle. “Crap, my magic lesson starts in an hour. I’d better get going.”

“All right.” Lakin looked a little disappointed that I was cutting my visit so short, but he smiled as he walked me to the door. “I’ve got to check in with Chieftain Baine soon anyway. She’ll have orders for me, depending on what was decided at the council meeting.”

“Oh, yeah.” I hesitated at the doorstep, wondering if I should ask him to tell Mafiela I’d called. But I’d already asked Melantha to do it, and I didn’t want to seem desperate. Mafiela would be curious enough about my invitation to answer, anyway. All I had to do was wait.





5





I reached the training room before Iannis, which wasn’t surprising. He was ridiculously overburdened, dealing with the aftermath of what the people were beginning to refer to as the Uprising. There were prisoners to sentence, structures to rebuild, jobs to fill, agreements to hash out. It was a wonder he managed to make time for our lessons at all.

Following my usual routine, I sat cross-legged in the middle of the wooden floor, closed my eyes, and practiced a breathing drill Roanas had taught me. The breathing drill might have been a martial arts exercise, but its ability to help one focus and maintain calm had endless application. Control over one’s emotions was essential when practicing magic—a flare-up of anger or a lapse of concentration at the wrong time could have disastrous consequences. Today had been particularly emotional, and I did my best to breathe it all out so I would be ready when Iannis arrived.

Footsteps and murmured voices drifted through the crack beneath the door, and I tuned them out so I could focus. But the moment Iannis’s sandalwood scent reached me, my heart jumped in my chest. I took in a deeper breath than was strictly necessary, listening to the distinctive sound of his approaching footfalls, but kept my eyes closed as the door swung open.

“Hello.” His sexy, slightly musical accent turned the greeting into a caress that slid along my spine like a silken scarf.

“Hello to you too.” I opened my eyes and smiled at him. He looked a far cry from the gorgeous, naked man I’d woken up to this morning, dressed now in his blue-and-gold robes, his hair tied back from his stern but handsome face. “How’s your day been so far?”

“Busy.” Iannis placed his palm against the doorjamb and muttered a few Words. Glowing blue energy rippled outward from the door and across the walls, signaling that the protective wards had been activated. My magic wouldn’t be able to harm anyone outside this room, and no one would be able to get in unless Iannis let them. “Are you ready to begin?”

“Yes—” I began, then hesitated. “Well, no. Not exactly.”

Iannis’s eyebrows pulled together in a frown as he came to stand in front of me. “Why not?”

I got to my feet, so I wouldn’t have to tilt my neck back to look up at him. Or at least not as much—he was a foot taller than I was, after all. “You said my apprenticeship would take ten years. Is that the average length, or are you adding years because I’m so far behind?”

“It depends on the individual student, but yes, ten years is about average,” Iannis confirmed, and my heart sank. “You are a fast learner, so I am optimistic you can complete it in that time despite your lack of basic mage education. However, we really must do something about your Loranian—mage children typically begin learning it at four years of age.”