Bound by Magic (The Baine Chronicles #2)(18)

I raised my head as a thought occurred to me. “Why is no one else here?” I asked. “Don’t other mages come here to umm… worship? Or whatever it is you do here?” And wouldn’t there at least be attendants or something?

“Yes, but I asked that the temple be cleared for our visit this evening,” Iannis said. “I didn’t want other mages to distract you.”

He sent them away for me. More warmth filled my chest, followed by a healthy dose of shame, and I looked away.

“I’m sorry.”

“Hmm?” For the first time I could recall, confusion entered Iannis’s voice. “What for?”

“For not thanking you.” Tears pricked at the corners of my eyes, and I blinked them away before turning to look him in the eye – I was not going to cry in front of the Chief Mage. “For sparing my life, for taking me on as your apprentice, for everything you’ve taught me so far… I’ve never thanked you for any of it. And I’m sorry.”

“Well, that must have been incredibly difficult for you to say.” The surprise on Iannis’s face melted into another small smile. “If I didn’t know better, Miss Baine, I would say that you’re maturing.”

“Hey, it’s a process.” I stuck out my tongue. I might have been twenty-four years old, but shifters lived for hundreds of years, and as far as I was concerned that meant my brain still had a little ways to go to catch up with how old I looked.

“Indeed. I’d hoped that between studying Resinah’s scripture and your increased exposure to other mages that you’d begin taking after your other half more. It would seem that it’s working.” He smirked a little.

“Soooo… does this mean that you’ll give me time off in the mornings now? You know, so I can study this book?” I grinned, knowing he would see right through my ploy, but the tension between us had lightened significantly, and I figured I’d take a shot.

To my surprise, a thoughtful glimmer entered Iannis’s eyes. “I would be willing to allow you to come in an hour later to give you time to read in the mornings,” he allowed. “But rest assured you’ll be quizzed at the beginning of every lesson, so if I find you’ve been abusing the privilege I will take it away.”

“Ugh.” I rolled my eyes. “You know, at this rate I may as well just take out one of those interest-free loans Sandin Federal Bank is offering. I need to start earning money again.”

“Interest-free loans?” Instantly, all the levity vanished from the Chief Mage’s expression. “What are you talking about?”

“Sandin Federal Bank is offering such loans specifically for shifters,” I said carefully, wary of the dangerous tone that had entered his voice. “I heard about it at a diner in Shiftertown today. Apparently a lot of shifters have accepted them, and they seem to be pretty happy about it too. I figured I may as well take advantage.”

“Absolutely not.”

“Excuse me?” I stiffened at the authoritative tone in his voice.

“Under no circumstances should you accept the loan from Sandin Federal Bank,” Iannis said sternly. “Loans of that sort are highly suspect, and the terms they are offering are likely to be illegal. They could cause you great financial hardship in the future.”

“Oh.” I deflated momentarily, and then stood up straight again. “Well how do you know the terms are illegal? Isn’t it worth checking out at least?” I wasn’t actually keen on going into debt, but the rebel in me was chafing at the idea that I couldn’t at least consider the terms.

“Terms that look too good to be true usually are. There is no such thing as free money, and the fine print will likely have some caveat, such as interest rates kicking in after a certain period of time. But I suppose it’s worth finding out exactly what the fine print says.” Iannis tapped his triangular chin, his eyes narrowing. “In fact, I think that’s exactly what you should do.”

“Huh?” I gaped at him as if he’d suddenly grown a second head.

“Yes.” Iannis nodded in satisfaction, more to himself than to me, I think. “I’d like you to investigate the terms of the loan, find out how long the bank has been offering it, and if there have been any repercussions on the shifters who have taken the money. I would do it myself, but as you know I am leaving for the Convention soon and Fenris and I are both pressed for time.”

“Right.” That damned Convention again. “When exactly am I going to have time to do this? In case you haven’t realized this, banks are closed in the evenings.”

“I will allow you to take the next three mornings off to conduct the investigation,” he relented. “I realize you will need more time in your schedule, and this is more important than your routine duties at the Mages Guild. But make no mistake; if I don’t have any results from you by the end of the week, there will be consequences.”

“Oh believe me, I’ll have your results for you.” I grinned, and if Iannis hadn’t been standing in front of me I would have danced around the room, sacred temple be damned. Investigating the bank seemed simple enough, and three days was enough time for me to do it while also looking into Sillara’s murder with Inspector Lakin. After all, who said a girl couldn’t multitask?