The King's Traitor (Kingfountain #3)(45)

Owen wasn’t as afraid as he’d been moments before. He’d thought, for an instant, she’d come to destroy him.

When he took her hand, she smiled and stepped over the edge of the fountain. He was expecting her gown to be soaked, but it was perfectly dry. Not even a drop of water came from her bare feet as she touched the stone tile on his side.

“Thank you,” she said with a pleasant smile. She set her sandals down on the edge of the fountain. “I’m sure you have many questions. We didn’t have a chance to talk before you left.”

Owen stared at the Wizr set and saw that the white Wizr and the dark knight were occupying adjacent squares. She noticed his attention to the board.

“Have you discerned the board’s truth yet, Owen?” she asked.

He looked at her warily, but with budding hope. “Are we enemies?”

There was a delighted look in her eyes, and a slight flush came to her cheeks. “I’m not your enemy,” she said simply. “I want to be your ally. If you will let me help you.”

Owen walked closer to her. Could he trust her? So much of his fate would depend on that. One wrong turn could destroy him. But he also felt it could destroy her. He wanted to test some of his knowledge. To make her prove she was trustworthy.

“Can you see the future?” he asked her pointedly.

“Yes,” she answered. “My gifts from the Fountain are mantic in nature.”

“Romantic?” he asked in confusion.

She smiled at the mistake. “No, Owen. They are mantic. I can see the future. And the past. My parents hid my gifts when I was little. I’ve learned to hide them also. To be very guarded of who knows of them. I’m trusting you, as you can see.”

He nodded slowly. “And you are a Wizr. A true one. That brings me answers to some of the questions that have puzzled me. You knew I’d be looking for you that morning in Ploemeur, and you deliberately avoided me.”

“I’ll admit, I was teasing you a bit. Do you understand now that our lifting contraption isn’t the only reason I don’t need to take a horse or a carriage up to the palace? I can travel along the anchor lines quickly and efficiently.”

“Anchor lines?” Owen asked, perplexed.

She nodded again with calm deliberation. “Another secret. It’s not often shared because Wizrs are killed in this world, Owen. We are too powerful and misunderstood. You see my true form on the set. Just as I see yours.” She looked over at the pieces. “You understand now that the rows are geographical? This side represents Ceredigion. This one, Occitania. There are anchor lines of magic that connect the boundaries between earth and sea and intersect with one another. There is a map I can show you that reveals where they are.”

“We’ve been on opposing sides,” Owen pointed out.

“I know. It’s my hope that will change when you learn the truth.” She gave him an imploring look.

Owen bit his lip. “Are you asking me to betray my king?” he asked hoarsely. He wanted so much to tell her that he was willing to do it. That perhaps the Fountain was using them both to change events in the world.

She shook her head. “I think it’s the Fountain’s will that you save your people.”

He wrinkled his brow in confusion. “What do you mean?”

She looked down at the arrangement of the remaining pieces in the Wizr set. It appeared as if the game were winding to a close. “This particular game has been drawn out for centuries,” she said, her finger lightly touching one of the pieces. “This side represents the Argentine family. This side, the Vertus family. The game plays out over several generations. Severn is the king now,” she said, touching the dark king next. “The problem, Owen, is that he was never meant to be king, and now he is defying the rules of the game. He violated the rights of sanctuary. He has threatened to harm innocent children again and again. The rules were set in ancient times by great Wizrs who had mantic gifts like my own. When they are disobeyed, the Deep Fathoms will reclaim the land.” She looked up from the board and into his eyes. “If you do not stop Severn, his choices will destroy your people. Left unchecked, he will continue to violate every custom, every boundary set up by the Wizrs. He wears the hollow crown, which has its own magic. With its power, he can destroy his entire kingdom in winter. You know the legends of the sanctuary of Our Lady. How long will the privileges of sanctuary exist?”

Owen stared at her, his heart yearning to know more. “Until the river stops flowing.”

“Until the river becomes ice,” she corrected.





CHAPTER SIXTEEN


Alliance




Because of the Wizr set, the king’s deeds and misdeeds wielded control over the weather. He did this unwittingly, but the more evil his actions had become, the more the snow had fallen on Ceredigion. Owen nearly gasped aloud from shock.

“I think you’re beginning to understand,” Sinia said, giving him a prodding nod. “You must say it, Owen. I can’t tell you everything, but I can tell you if you’ve figured it out. Knowledge about the game isn’t forbidden. But I can’t share the mantic truths with you directly. You must learn them for yourself.”

Owen stared down at the set, at the king representing Severn. There were so few dark pieces left on the board. “Are you saying that the words were changed over time? That the protection would last so long as the river flows, meaning until it’s frozen over?”