Keeper (First Ordinance #2)(65)

"And I still want to kill the one responsible." Justis heaved the stone up, his muscles bulging with the effort as he pushed it over again. Dena almost jumped when the stone hammered the ground near her feet.

"I think you should talk to her. She understands what a difficult thing she was asking—you'd have had to go without the King's permission—everybody knows that."

"Does everybody have such a poor opinion of my brother?" Justis stopped for a moment and studied Dena's face.

"I think they measured him by Halthea's actions," Dena muttered.

Justis cursed softly, flung sweat out of his eyes and nodded. "Yes, I'll see Quin. After dinner."

*

Quin

Justis walked in quietly while I was having dinner with Berel and Kaldill in the healer's suite. He'd recently had a shower—his hair was still damp. That wasn't the only thing I noticed, however.

You look like you've beaten yourself, I sent to him. Why?

"Don't you think I deserve it?" he asked aloud, pulling an empty chair closer and nodding to Berel and Kaldill.

"Why? I know it was an unfair and foolish request to ask of you, and even more foolish of me to put all of it on you," I said.

"Ardis and I should have gone with you," he replied. "We could have made that decision for ourselves," he added.

"I don't know that it would have made much difference," I sighed, staring at my plate. They'd provided me with soft foods to eat—mashed carrots, lentils and such. "Have you eaten?" I lifted my eyes to gaze into his. They were dark and troubled—that was easy enough to see.

"I'll get something later," he shrugged.

"I'll go to the kitchens," Kaldill offered. "She forgives you, therefore I will as well." Justis shook his head in confusion as Kaldill disappeared.

"You didn't see her get hit," Berel snapped and stood to leave. "I'll be back, Quin," he flung over a shoulder and walked through the door.

"I have some ground to make up with that one," Justis sighed. "He's right, though. I didn't see it. A part of me is glad. It keeps me from hunting the one responsible and killing him with my bare hands."

"I think it was an accident," I said.

"That's what I heard. Still difficult for me to believe."

"I don't think we can stay here long, Justis," I said.

"Here? In the healer's suite?"

"No. Here—on Siriaa. When I woke—it was as if the poison had multiplied a hundred times since I boarded that ship for Kondar. If the High President doesn't know it yet, he will soon. Relocating Fyris' population was one thing—there weren't many there. Relocating those still here? I don't even know if it's possible."

"Some will refuse to go, I think," Justis looked away. He meant the Avii, as well as Kondari and Yokarun.

"We have to have a place, first," I said. "And then do our best to convince them in a very short amount of time. We may have a moon-turn, Justis."

"The laws in Kondar say it will have to be by a vote of the people," Justis said. "Yokaru has an emperor, so he will have to be convinced. Are you sure about this?"

"As sure as I was the last time."

I watched his face go pale before he nodded. "I believe you," he said finally. "But that doesn't mean the people of Kondar or Yokaru will believe you, and I have no idea what Jurris will say."

I didn't tell him of the growing dread I'd felt since the moment I'd wakened—that I felt as if we stood on a narrow edge of a precipice, where a strong breeze might push us past saving.

*

Le-Ath Veronis

Queen Lissa's Private Journal

"Kooper, did you release discreet notices that Marid was dead?" I asked. "I still see those bounty offers pop up on occasion."

"I put it out there," he said, "And paid a few informants to spread the news. Even passed along a few images of him after he offed himself."

Kooper had stopped by my private study for a cup of coffee. He sat on the other side of my desk, his long legs pushed out comfortably in front of him as he sipped from the mug of coffee Renée brought. "Still no news of Bree?" he lifted an eyebrow hopefully.

"Nothing," I shook my head. "I've sent out mindspeech several times, but nothing has been sent back."

"It's been two years," he sighed. "I know they don't pay attention to time, but since we have mundane jobs to do, we have to pay attention."

"I hear that," I agreed. "I've been in contact with the worlds where we know Marid dumped that poison. They're noticing a rise in radiation around the burial sites. There's nothing they can do—it's like trying to hold water in a sieve. A few have attempted complete containment of the area—but those creatures, whatever they are, manage to find a way through every material they've tried."

"I can't begin to tell you how f*cked up that is," Kooper grumbled.

"We've had reports from three worlds that we didn't know about before, sending information on the rise in radiation on their planets—so we have more coming. If Marid weren't dead already, I'd kill him myself."