Coldmaker(88)

I poured the thick ink and water into a glass, making sure to leave enough room on top. ‘You don’t have to keep apologizing. It’s not your fault.’

Cam had his knees pulled up to his chest, and he hugged them close. ‘I’d strangle him if I could.’ There was a deep fierceness to his voice as he said the words.

‘Let’s focus on this instead,’ I said to Cam, pointing at all the things arranged on the table. ‘You believe in the Opened Eye, don’t you? We think we’ve found the way there.’

Cam’s eyes were still stony, but he gave a nod. ‘Sorry I’ve been distracted. Tell me.’

‘Cold dissolves in air, right? Like with the Saffir. I want to watch what it does.’

He sat up straighter. ‘What do you mean, what it does?’

I shrugged, scooping some salt from a barrel and pouring it into each of the inky jars. I wasn’t trying to make a Cold Charge with the salt, I just didn’t want the Wisps dissolving in the blackness. ‘To see if it spreads evenly. To see if it rises or falls or comes together in clumps. Or if there’s any metals or potions that it’s attracted to more than others. I figured we need to know everything we can about Cold if we’re going to invent something that can find it.’

‘We, really? You’re going to include a High Noble in your plans, even after what just happened?’ Cam took a deep breath. ‘I sure know how to pick them.’

‘You’re the only reason I’m here,’ I replied, giving him a small smile.

Cam reached out and touched one of the Bellows I’d hauled to the table. ‘So you put the Wisps in the ink. The ink seeps in through the little holes and stains the Cold. Then you crush it, and then watch what it does? That’s the plan?’

‘Unless you have any better ideas,’ Shilah said with a sneer, finally settling down on a nearby chair.

‘Be nice,’ I said. ‘We’re in this together.’

Cam’s head sagged. ‘I’m sorry, Shilah. I’m really, really sorry for everything that’s been done to you.’

Shilah took a steadying breath but didn’t bite back. Cam’s earnest tone seemed to appease her for the moment. ‘Let’s just get this over with,’ she said.

‘Should we get Leroi?’ I asked.

‘No,’ Shilah said, looking over to the study, the tinkering sounds having stopped long ago. ‘Let him have his peace.’

‘Well then, here goes,’ I said. The five jars were ready, different amounts of salt poured in each. I grabbed the first Wisp, kissed it for luck, and dropped it in the first inky concoction.

All three of our faces closed in on the glass, each of us holding our breath.

The Wisp sank to the bottom and dissolved.

I tried not to think of this experimenting as wasting Cold, and selected another one from the basket. I added it to the next jar, which had double the salt. This time the Wisp held near the top, starting to fizzle at the holes, but eventually it dissolved too. My lips pinched with disappointment, but I repeated the process over and over, finding the fourth jar to have the combination I was looking for; the Wisps sinking enough to be submerged, but staying in one piece.

I stuffed half a dozen Wisps in that jar, letting them suck up the ink.

‘How long?’ Cam asked.

‘Few minutes should be enough.’ I shrugged, turning to Shilah. ‘Got any stories?’

She made a face, her eyes glaring at Cam, who physically shrank under her intensity. I’d never seen a High Noble intimidated by a Jadan in this way. The tension crackled in the room as we waited in silence.

My chest beating with excitement, I finally handed Cam the pair of thin tongs I’d found near the fireplace. ‘Want to do the honours?’

Cam accepted them with a bow of his head and began fishing out the Wisps, letting them dry on the sheets of boilweed we’d laid out on the table. The ink ran off the surface of the Cold, but it was still staining the insides.

I opened the mouth of the Bellows and stuffed one of the Wisps into the vice, my fingers growing sticky with ink.

‘The Jadan’s work upon the sands,’ I sang softly, closing the Cold in and wishing Matty was by my side to see this. ‘Those who need the Cold.’

‘What’s that?’ Cam asked.

‘Whatsit,’ I replied with a smile, and turned the top crank of the Bellows.

Using two hands to spin it hard, I was able to shatter the Wisp all at once. The jaws of the vice collapsed in relief, and immediately a trail of black smoke rose from the mouth, slithering into the air. I leaned away as the trail widened, my heart pounding, but the black kept flooding out in my direction. I stumbled back, knocking over my chair, but the dark cloud kept coming at me. The swarm split in two in the air, half of it swinging towards Shilah, who also tried backing away. I couldn’t move fast enough, the inky air surrounding me, covering my skin and diving into my lungs. It blinded me, and I choked, tasting cold and salt, the air rough with the ink. Although I couldn’t see her, I could hear Shilah choking too. I tried to hold my breath, but the cloud didn’t want to dissipate. I held my shirt over my mouth and filtered small breaths for a few moments, until the cloud became less dense. I wiped my sleeve over my eyes, removing the ink and coughing out the last of the black air. My vision cleared after my streaming eyes had flushed out the ink, and I watched the black cloud fade into the air, spreading out and shrinking until it was too thin to be seen.