Arrows of Time (55 page)

He leaned back, allowing one of the ginger cats to jump into his lap. He scratched under its chin. Orange cat hairs floated to the ground like autumn leaves. ‘That’s what it seems like to you,’ he said when the cat leapt down. ‘But are you taking into account the many-worlds, or your choices in them?’

She clicked her tongue. ‘I’m having plenty enough to do with one world, one set of choices.’

‘That’s a single card. I’m looking at the entire deck.’

‘Are you certain?’

Jarrod rubbed his forehead. He wasn’t getting anywhere with the woman and he needed the information now, before he saw Rosette, before she made another choice. He decided to try a new tactic. ‘If you have anything to add, I’d be grateful.’

She shrugged. ‘I can’t add anything until you tell me where my two are. Selene and the bard? Seen them lately? She’s my first marshal, you know.’ The Caller punched a pillow a few times and leaned back into it. ‘I let you two go gallivanting through the portals on the proviso that you brought her back. Remember?’

‘They’ll both be on their way here soon.’ He blinked. ‘Any moment, really.’

‘And did her little plan work?’

‘I think it was his plan all along, Caller.’

She shook her head, then leaned over to top up his teacup from a blue ceramic pot. The room filled with the scent of rosehip and mint. ‘You’re grumpy today, aren’t you?’ she said.

‘You’d be perturbed in my shoes, I promise.’

She took a sip from her cup, a smile appearing from behind it. ‘Perhaps.’ She got up and closed the doors, blocking out the chirping birds and the splash of the fountain. The ginger cat followed her, and she scooped it up like a child, cradling it in her arms. ‘I don’t know for certain why Rosette was trapped in that time loop, but I suspect…’ Her voice trailed off and her smile deepened as she sat down.

‘You suspect?’

‘Well it’s obvious, isn’t it? What’s the one thing not possible on this world?’

Jarrod felt his face flush as the answer dawned. ‘She was pregnant?’

‘Still would be, I imagine, unless she’s left a child behind somewhere. But let’s not test it by bringing her here again. It’s taken me a month to fix that anomaly. I don’t want it starting back up again.’

‘You fixed it?’

She winked.

His quantum mind raced through an infinite number of possibilities, infinite choices. He looked back at her, frowning. ‘You met with Nell?’ he asked.

‘Who?’

‘A High Priestess of the Dumarkian Woods.’

‘Ishtar’s lion?’ she asked, scratching the cat’s back.

‘So you do know her.’

‘We had a visit.’

A new game?
he wondered.

‘She came to me with her little “problem”, which I didn’t see as a problem at all. “Just kill the man,” I
told her, but she kept saying it was more complex than that. Muttering on about a balance of power within the temples and the furthering of knowledge for all people, men and women equally. Well, of course. That’s a given. But the man was an interference, so I suggested she remove him the old-fashioned way—with a knife.’ The Caller shook her head, tapping the cat’s nose when it nipped at her hand. ‘It’s only as complex as you want to make it, really. Matriarchy-patriarchy. Much of a muchness if you focus on the opposites.’

‘Perhaps easy to say from your position?’

The Caller laughed. ‘Don’t be fooled by gender.’

Jarrod looked at her again, his brow furrowed. ‘I’m not generally fooled by anything.’

‘Then get on with it.’ She clapped her hands. ‘I want Selene back here, and I want to see for myself that this world and her sister dimension are running in a balanced way again. I want to see births and deaths and births again, preferably in that order.’

‘People are dying now, I assure you.’ He drained his cup and stoop up.

‘Nell paid the price?’

‘In that world, yes.’

The Caller leaned back against the cushions. ‘Full of riddles as ever, Jarrod?’

‘No more than you.’

A breeze came in from the west. The chimes clattered like long-legged puppets unable to run fast enough.

‘Where are you off to next?’ she asked.

He lifted his eyes. ‘Now that would be telling.’

‘Touché—but come, you can give me a hint.’

He looked at her before moving to the door. ‘A hint? Watch for the birth closest to home. She will have something to teach you.’ Jarrod noted the look on the
Caller’s face, and smiled as he disappeared into the golden afternoon.

Rosette awoke to sunlight beaming across her bed and Drayco’s soft snores by her side. At first she thought she was still floating disembodied, but as she became aware, she felt the weight. It took a moment to work out why everything was so thick and heavy. She stretched, groaning.

Maudi?

I’m in my body, Drayco, and it’s like climbing a mountain after floating downstream.

Stretch again, Maudi. It’s the best way to wake up.

She took his advice and stretched like a cat, while listening to the whispers floating in from the other room. They were too soft for her to distinguish the words, but she didn’t care. She was back in her body, and though she had some creaks and cramps and very sore ribs, it felt good. Drayco stretched by her side, the warmth of his back like a full-length pillow along her spine. She sank her hand into his thick pelt and he purred.

Feeling better now, Maudi?

She rolled over and wiggled her fingers and toes. ‘Much. Where’s Jarrod?’

Drayco jumped down and yawned, arching his back.
Sleeping
…
deeply.

‘Don’t wake him, then. We’ll talk soon enough.’

I doubt I could if I tried. It’s like he’s not there.

She reached towards the ceiling, spreading her fingers wide. ‘Well, I’m here. Gratefully.’ She let her hands drop to her sides. ‘What are they nattering about out there?’

A variety of things.
Drayco licked his front paw and swiped his ears a few times.

‘Such as?’

He tilted his head.
The future of Temple Los Loma seems high on the list. Jarrod and you
…
the Lupins. They don’t mention me.

‘Don’t they?’ She laughed. ‘Does that sting?’

He dropped his face to hers and stared, eye to eye. Suddenly, he licked her nose, making her squeak.
Bees sting, Maudi. Inclusion or exclusion doesn’t have the same effect.

‘You’re such a philosopher.’

I got that from you.

She rolled onto her stomach and pulled the covers over her head. ‘Not today,’ she said, laughing into the pillow.

And why is that?

She rolled over again and looked out the window. ‘Because today I’m back in my body, the sun is shining, you are here, and I suspect there is some good hunting in these plains.’

You’re optimistic. It’s a desert.

‘Yes! And I’m hungry too!’ She threw back the covers and looked at her naked body. She ran her hand down her left arm, caressing her temple cat tattoo, and followed the line of the serpent from her hip to the back of her knee, noticing the nick. ‘Where’s Grayson?’

He comes. He’s bringing food for both of us. Good man.

The knock on the door made her smile. ‘Enter all ye who bear my breakfast.’

‘Does lunch count?’ he asked, opening the door and looking in.

She glanced out the window again and noted the sun’s height in the sky. ‘You’ll have to forgive me if I’ve overslept.’

He chuckled. ‘You’ve been asleep far too long—like a fairytale princess.’

‘What kind of princess?’

‘Rosette,’ he chided, setting the tray down on a low table and pulling her into an embrace. ‘We must expand your literary knowledge.’

She hugged him tightly before squirming away. ‘Certainly, but first I must eat. What have you brought?’

I’d say the raw lamb shank is mine.
Drayco licked his chops.

Rosette pulled a sarong off the bed and wrapped it around her body, twisting the ends and tying them at the nape of her neck. She dropped her chin to let her hair fall in front of her, then gathered it and twisted it into a knot on top of her head as she straightened. Grayson handed her a chopstick and, kissing his cheek, she secured her hair with it. ‘I’m ready.’ She leaned towards the tray, inhaling. ‘Show me the goods.’

He lifted the lid. There was a tiny bowl of steaming oats, a little jug of goat milk, honey and an even tinier dollop of stewed apples and rhubarb.

‘You must think I’m an infant. I could eat three times this much.’

‘That’s what Kali feared, hence the modest meal.’

He sat next to her and circled her waist with one arm. ‘Your body’s been in cold storage, remember? You need to take it easy.’

‘How could I forget?’

He kissed her lips. ‘Drink this first,’ he said, uncovering a small bottle of dark liquid.

She wrinkled her nose and pulled back.

‘It’ll aid digestion. Otherwise…’

‘Don’t tell me any symptoms. You know what I’m like! Hear it today; have it tomorrow.’

He laughed. ‘Then drink this and all will be well.’

She took the bottle from him and drained it in one go. Her face contorted. ‘What was in that?’ She shook her head. ‘It’s vile.’

‘It’s Annadusa’s.’

‘Tastes like it.’ She took a spoonful of porridge.

‘Better?’ he asked.

‘Delicious,’ she said around another steaming mouthful.

They chatted lightly for some time. She felt reluctant to talk about anything but the most trivial. No doubt there would be deep discussions soon enough. For now, she wanted to enjoy the day without any complexities. She wanted only peace and serenity.

That won’t last, Maudi.

Why do you say that?

A trio of caws blasted through her open window. The branch outside swayed as the ravens landed, jostling for position, rustling their wings. They stared into the room, alternately squawking and preening, white down showing beneath black feathers.

Because the Three Sisters are here.

Rosette put down her spoon. ‘Kali!’ she yelled, making Grayson lean back. ‘Call off your spies.’ She laughed as the Three Sisters took flight. ‘Come in here and see for yourself if you want to know how I am.’ She smiled at the look on her mother’s face as she entered the room.

‘Nothing wrong with a little precaution,’ Kali said. She sat down on the bed next to Rosette and took her pulse.

Rosette pulled her hand away and reached for the stewed fruit, tipping it onto the oats before she took another mouthful. ‘I could eat three times this amount.’ She smiled. ‘The apples are very sweet,’ she added as juice trickled down her chin.

‘Thanks to you,’ Grayson said.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Temple Los Loma has the only Gaelean apples on Earth.’

Rosette lifted her face. ‘Demons. Those apples are my trees, aren’t they? How long have I been gone?’

J
arrod awoke to dazzling sunlight. It beamed into his room, filtering through a stained-glass window above his bed. It decorated the walls and floor with half-moon shapes and stars, making cookie-cutter patterns of purple, yellow, red and green. The lower portion of the window was open, giving a clear view of the stables rooftop and the rust-red plains beyond. He stretched, his tulpa body protesting.

He tapped around the orbits of his eyes and under his nose, his chin, his chest, his fingertips stimulating energy meridians to repair the disrupted flow. Kreshkali had come to him again, late in the night, and done more work herself, leaving only minor adjustments to attend to. She’d told him to stay put for at least a day, that there was plenty of time to sort out the threads of their web, though he had already ignored that advice. ‘You know patience wasn’t written into my original program,’ he had said to her.

She’d smiled. ‘I suspect Janis Richter had Aries in
mind when she designed you. I wonder who she modelled you after.’

‘A friend of her daughter’s. His name was Damien.’

‘Ruby’s?’

‘Not her. The older daughter, Loni. But can you blame Janis for using the first cardinal sign of the zodiac as reference? She knew I’d need all the initiative I could muster. And courage.’

‘And the spirit of adventure, too. No blame at all.’ She’d put her hand on his heart. ‘Jarrod, do consider that your body just took three million volts per metre of electrical current from the anvi-to-ground lightning strike. Even a tulpa would find that challenging. You might want to have a little rest.’

He’d rubbed his chest. ‘I haven’t forgotten. That was some conjuring, wasn’t it!’

Kreshkali was clearly pleased with it herself, and with all the Temple Los Loma clan. Reviving Rosette had been no small feat. Now it was time to set things in motion for a much more humble act, but miraculous just the same. He needed to ensure his continuation, and he needed Rosette’s cooperation for that. According to the Caller’s theory, he already had it, though he didn’t think Rosette knew. How would she react? The topic had never come up, though he’d tried to broach it a few times.

Jarrod yawned and stretched as he kicked back the covers. When his toes touched the floor, a feeling of warmth rose in him—a rush of wellbeing. He rubbed the stubble on his chin and laughed. At the window he gazed down to the courtyard, spotting Teg near the fountain. The Lupin looked contemplative, one hand playing in the water, slowly swishing back and forth. The young apprentice shivered and turned to Jarrod.

Have you seen her?
Teg asked.

The mental message surprised Jarrod. He wasn’t expecting that.
Rosette? No, not yet. You?

I thought I’d stay out of the way. Kreshkali’s with her now.

Claustrophobic?

A bit.

Jarrod laughed.
If I know Rosette, she’ll be feeling the same, and aching to hunt before the day’s out. Perhaps you’ll join us?