Spellslinger (Spellslinger #1)(79)

The sounds of pursuit followed, but they slowed, becoming almost leisurely. We reached the end of the tunnel and hit a dead end.

‘Sha’Tep miners have to spend most of their lives learning these tunnels,’ the voice called out, closer than he’d been before. ‘One wrong turn and you fall into a sinkhole, or wind up lost in the miles of empty passages. You could die in a cave-in and your corpse would rot for years before anyone discovered it. Do you even have any idea how lost you are right now?’

We turned and saw six figures in black lacquer masks coming towards us, each one unique, with its own horrible features. The one in front bore twin curved horns, one red, one black. He’d been the leader of the three who’d attacked us in the forest.

‘I’m sorry it’s come to this, Kellen,’ he said, the mask muffling his words even as the reverberations along the cave walls lent them a frightening, other-worldly quality. Even with all of that, I wondered why I hadn’t recognised his voice before.

As gently as I could, I took Shalla’s other arm from Ferius and set her down on the cavern floor. When I rose again, I balled my hands into fists and turned to face the leader of the Sha’Tep conspiracy. ‘Hello, Uncle Abydos,’ I replied.





THE FOURTH TRIAL


The most powerful magics are those kept most secret. A Jan’Tep mage must be able to uncover hidden lore, but equally he must be able to discover the secrets of his enemies. Only then has he truly earned his mage’s name.





36


The Traitor


‘I should have known it would be you who figured it out,’ Abydos said. He removed his mask and handed it to one of his men. ‘You always were smarter than your parents or your teachers gave you credit for.’

I’m also good at bluffing, Uncle. I relaxed my hands and held them out in front of me, my fingers taking the shape of a particularly nasty ember spell. ‘I’d rather not set your intestines on fire, since we’re related, so you’d better stay back.’

All things considered, I sounded remarkably calm and confident. I think I might be getting better at this lying-all-the-time thing.

Several of the men in masks laughed. One of them pointed at me. ‘Look there, the little mage thinks he’s going to use spells on us! Here, in the mines!’

Abydos spoke more gently. ‘Jan’Tep magic is much harder to work down here, Kellen, that’s why your sister is faring so poorly.’

I whispered to Ferius. ‘Don’t suppose you have your razor-sharp steel cards?’

She shook her head. ‘They took my waistcoat when they captured me.’ She shouted down the tunnel at them. ‘Along with my damned smoking reeds!’

Tusks came barrelling towards us. ‘That’s not all we’ll take, you lousy Argosi—’

My uncle put a restraining hand on his shoulder. ‘Stop. I told you before, this woman saved my nephew’s life. Let’s have no more violence than is absolutely necessary.’

I felt the impulse to explain that he’d already done plenty of harm, but Ferius took a step forward, fists up as if she meant to challenge them all. ‘Well, I hate to disappoint you, but unless you and your little masked theatre group let us pass, I predict there’s going to be a whole lot of violence in the near future for you.’

Abydos ignored her, walking towards us, eyes on me. Reichis clambered up my back to sit on my shoulder. His growl sounded surprisingly loud in the cramped tunnel. ‘Just give me the word, kid, and I’ll rip this one’s face off and make my own mask with it.’

I decided to translate for my uncle. He didn’t seem nearly as scared as I would’ve hoped. He just stood right in front of me and said, ‘Don’t do this, Kellen. We’re not your enemies. We’re your people, your true family.’

‘You kidnapped my sister and attacked my friend. I’d say that makes us enemies.’

One of the other men drew his knife. ‘Stop wasting time. We can’t take a chance on—’

‘Be quiet,’ Abydos said, and for the first time in my life I heard my father’s commanding tone coming from my uncle’s lips. ‘Listen carefully, Kellen. You and the others are going to come with us now. You can carry Shalla if you like, or my men will carry her for you.’

‘You’re not touching my sister ever again.’

‘She’s not your sister, Kellen, not in any way that matters. She’s Jan’Tep. She’s one of them.’

The strength in his voice, the raw confidence that I’d never had in myself, made me feel so weak I could barely stand. ‘Why can’t you just let us go?’ I hadn’t meant it to sound like begging, but it did.

‘Because the world doesn’t work that way, Kellen, and this isn’t just about you and me. I’m taking you somewhere now, for your own good. If you try to run, or if any of you attack, I’ll kill the animal. Do you understand? I’ll kill the Argosi. I’ll even kill my niece if I have to.’ He locked eyes with me. ‘Do you believe me, Kellen?’

I tried to look away, but I couldn’t. I felt trapped in the unwavering certainty of his gaze. My entire life I’d ignored my uncle, always seeing him as a pale shadow of the man my father was. Now I understood that I’d had it wrong the whole time. ‘I believe you.’