Blood Double (God Wars #1)(54)

"His name was Fasil Bow." Willem Drifft strode into Ildevar's private study and dumped a comp-vid on Ildevar's desk. "The Winds tell me that he was hired by Skel Hawer. Why I cannot determine—that part the Winds do not reveal."

"Why are you seeing this after the fact?" Norian demanded angrily.

"I knew something was wrong, and Willem reported this days ago—that the Winds were unstable and fluctuating. Had you paid attention to more important matters, this might have come to a better resolution. At least the Serendaan King and his wives are still alive." Ildevar wasn't happy with Norian, and Norian knew it.

"Deonus, my apologies. I should have been here and I wasn't. I should have replaced Hawer and I didn't."

"You shouldn't have placed my safety in Hawer's hands to begin with," Ildevar growled.

"I know that," Norian sighed and slumped into a chair beside Ildevar's desk.

"If the shining woman hadn't arrived, the King and his wives likely would have been killed. As it is, four of my palace guards are dead, and all six of the King's servants. The assassin killed one servant already before taking his burden and following the others to me. One of my palace guards merely managed to wound the attacker slightly before dying."

"How are we going to report this to the media?" Norian moaned.

"I suggest you show the vids and let them speak for themselves," Ildevar huffed.

*

Breanne's Journal

I was never so glad in my life that I was glowing in all the news-vids. Nobody could make out anything about me, and that's how I wanted it to stay. Tired didn't begin to describe how I felt, too, when Gavin appeared the following morning and herded me to a Council meeting.

*

"The shining woman, boss." Trace dropped a comp-vid in front of Ashe during breakfast. Ashe and Bill had attempted to convince Kay to eat breakfast, but she'd turned her head away, refusing to look at them.

"What's this?" Ashe pulled the comp-vid toward him.

"The shining woman. You keep talking about her. Looks as if she may have helped save Ildevar Wyyld yesterday. It's all over the news. She saved the King of Serendaan and three of his wives, that much is evident."

"What the hell?" Ashe tapped the saved vid and watched in fascination. "That's her, all right," he mumbled, as he took in the unedited scene from Ildevar's private vid-cameras. "Did anybody see where she went?"

"I hear she disappeared." Trajan wandered in and sat heavily at the island.

"Traje, I'm sorry. I just," Ashe rolled his shoulders uncomfortably.

"Boss, I'll never get Breanne back. Not in a million years. You didn't see her face when I dumped her and took off. Look, I don't want breakfast." Trajan stood and folded away.

"Boss, I've never seen you screw up like this," Trace mumbled.

"Yeah. I get that."

*

Zint had no desire to bring the vid to Erithia's attention. He felt as if he'd failed her, when he hadn't. Skel had arranged for Ildevar Wyyld's death, only Ildevar had somehow been protected. Perhaps Fasil might have gotten through Ildevar's shields eventually, but the Founder had gained unexpected help from a shining woman. Zint had no idea why.

"What have you brought for me?" Erithia smiled at Zint as she sat down for breakfast.

"Your favorite, my lady," Zint whined. "Stewed eel in wine sauce."

"Ah. Good. And what is this?" She lifted the comp-vid he laid at her elbow.

"I have terrible news," Zint wept and fell to the floor beside Erithia's chair.

*

"You were brought here by a future me," Ashe did his best to explain to Randy Smith how things had happened. "That future me had help—from someone who, at the moment, is a basket case. And the shining woman is somehow appearing now, when there was no recollection in the future. This is such a mess," Ashe rubbed his forehead. He'd found Randy in the groves, supervising the last of the harvest in the northern section, which butted against EastStar's boundary.

"But, I don't understand how you know it was a future you," Randy pointed out. Ashe always liked the way Randy's mind worked—logically and with a talent for expressing himself.

"I leave notes for myself," Ashe muttered.

"That must come in handy," Randy chuckled. "Man, I need to write a book about you, someday."

"Put it off, will ya?" Ashe begged. "Sometimes, being the Mighty Hand isn't everything it ought to be."

"So, this shining woman. Who do you think she is?"

"I'm hoping one of us—the Mighty, that is. The truth, though, is that she could be somebody else. Maybe even one of the Koh'Ahmari. They're powerful in their own right."

"But you told me that she Changed What Was. That doesn't sound like anything less than one of the Mighty."

"Either that or the Vhanaraszh—but—you're right. This is the shining woman, and the Vhanaraszh might not be capable of some of the things I've known her to accomplish. I'm just not thinking straight today. The love of my life is sitting in a bedroom at the house, and all she can do is shake, cry and refuse to eat. I think I want to separate Norian Keef's particles over this. Trace says she seemed fine before he and Schaff questioned her. She attempted suicide shortly after that, and physically, Franklin says she's fine."