Burying the Shadow (61 page)

‘I am very
sorry about having to change your plans. I know how much they meant
to you.’

I shrugged.
‘It can’t be helped.’

I insisted he
take further sustenance from Tamaris, and then had her show him to
my tower room. Meanwhile, I took my bath, and as the refreshing,
fragrant water lapped over my skin, I spent a brief time indulging
in delicious memories of all the wonderful new sensations I had
experienced in Avirzah’e’s house, in the arms of Beth and his
lover. Then, I went to my bedroom to sleep, instructing Tamaris to
wake me in three hours’ time.

Upon waking, I
felt alert and spry, and able to apply myself to external matters
once more. The wound on my chest itched a little and I had Tamaris
anoint it with salve. Remembering what Sammael had told me about
how supping repeatedly from the same area caused a messy injury, I
decided that, if this was going to become a regular habit, I would
have to devise a way to minimise discomfort and damage. Perhaps
Avirzah’e, Beth and I were too rough with each other; we would have
to experiment.

I tried to
contact Amelakiveh once more, but with no success. Neither could I
fix myself on the presence of Rayojini. Had Amelakiveh brought her
to Sacramante yet? And, if not, where were they? Avirzah’e intended
to search for my soulscaper that night. I had no doubt, given his
widespread information network, that he would find her if she was
in the city, but I was concerned that I could not contact my
dependant. Had he been intercepted, or damaged? I confided in
Tamaris, who offered to search the area herself. It had been
prearranged that Amelakiveh would install Rayojini somewhere close
to the atelier courts. Tamaris was sure she could find him:
eloim-fed humans had a peculiar affinity for each other. By
following her intuition, Tamaris would perhaps find Amelakiveh and
Rayojini before Avirzah’e did.

‘If you locate
Amelakiveh, bring him here immediately,’ I told her.

I intended to
go into deep trance for a few hours while Tamaris was away, in the
hope of finding something out for myself, but in the event, did not
have the time. After only an hour, Tamaris returned to the house,
triumphantly bringing Amelakiveh with her. I sensed a certain
animosity between them; he had not wanted to come. Strange. Did he
resent anyone other than Beth or me issuing orders? He had always
been a difficult creature to fathom. I interviewed him formally in
my salon.

‘Where have
you been?’ I demanded. ‘Why didn’t you contact me?’

Amelakiveh,
apparently in penitence, sank to his knees before me. ‘Forgive me,
my lady,’ he said. ‘Your soulscaper is a difficult woman to
control. I have had to remain constantly by her side. It has
drained my energy. I intended to contact you tomorrow, after I had
rested.’

‘Where is
Rayojini now?’ I asked, satisfied with his explanation. There
had
been a lot of interference in the aether recently.

‘At this
moment, she is with the patron family Tricante. They are old
friends of hers. We are staying at
The Temple Gate
inn, a
few minutes’ walk away from here.’

‘How is
she?’

He smiled.
‘She is in good health and fired with curiosity for her quest. I
have made sure her interest has been kept at peak level.’

‘I have no
doubt of that,’ I replied, ‘but there has been a change of plan.
Someone will be visiting Rayojini tonight, in order to persuade her
to leave the city. I would appreciate it if, in the morning, you
could augment this person’s persuasion with your own. Get her out
of Sacramante, Kiveh.’

‘What?’
Amelakiveh jumped to his feet, all deference fled. ‘Why?’

‘All I can
tell you is that there have been new developments. We can no longer
use the soulscaper. You must get her away from here. Far away.’

‘I’m not sure
she will do as I suggest. She is strong-willed...’

‘I know that,
Kiveh! I know it will be difficult, but there is no alternative.’ I
hesitated. ‘Naturally, she must not be harmed, in any way.’

He turned away
from me, rubbing his jaw in thought. I realised I was facing an
alarmingly independent soul. Had he wriggled off the leash
somewhere between Khalt and Bochanegra? For some absurd reason, I
suspected he had plans of his own for Rayojini, plans I had just
obstructed. Was it possible he had become emotionally attached to
her?

‘What are you
going to do then, if not use the soulscaper?’ he asked me.

I narrowed my
eyes at his turned back. Perhaps it had been unwise to tell him as
much as I had about eloim affairs. ‘I do not think that is your
concern, Kiveh.’

He turned
round and faced me. ‘I only ask because I am worried about
you.’

‘There is no
need, I assure you.’ I reached out to caress his face. ‘You have
done well, my beloved. I am sorry it has been for nothing. We were
not to know, still...’

‘She will ask
questions. Do you intend to obliterate her memory?’

‘I don’t know.
I really don’t. Not yet.’ In truth, I did not think that would be
an easy thing to do to a Tap, especially a woman like Rayojini.
‘The only thing I am sure of is that Rayojini must be removed from
Sacramante. She must not stay in the vicinity of the eloim.’

He nodded.
‘Then, of course, I will do everything I can to accomplish
that.’

‘You have
enjoyed your excursion out into the world,’ I said, ‘haven’t
you?’

He looked a
little sheepish. ‘If I have been disrespectful, I apologise. The
journey has been... stressful.’

I put my hands
upon his shoulders. Away from the stifled atmosphere of the atelier
courts, he had really bloomed. He seemed taller, bolder, stronger -
and eminently attractive. ‘Return to
The Temple Gate
in the
morning,’ I said. ‘Tonight, I would like you to stay with me.’

He lowered his
eyes, bashful as a virgin. I put my hand beneath his hair to draw
him to me for a kiss, but he caught my fingers in his own,
apparently to examine my father’s seal ring, which I still wore.
‘You are still leading the Metatronim throng in this time of
crisis, then?’ he said, kissing the ring.

‘No,’ I
replied. ‘Metatron has returned to Sacramante. I simply forgot to
surrender the ring. I have been busy.’

Kiveh slipped
it from my finger and put it down on the table beside us. Then, he
kissed me.

Avirzah’e
arrived at my house early the next morning. He had spoken to
Rayojini. I was so excited about what he had to tell me, I almost
forgot to embrace him. He seemed distracted, anxious. Had the
interview not gone as well as he’d hoped? Was Rayojini all
right?

‘I do not
think I persuaded your soulscaper to leave the city,’ he said. ‘She
has learned too much, perhaps. She is curious.’ He fixed me with a
steely stare. ‘She is also adamant about seeing you, I’m
afraid.’

I clutched my throat
with reflexive fingers. ‘I thought we had decided that would be
unwise.’ Even as I said that, my spirit surged with pathetic
hope.

‘I know, but
now that I have met her... Gimel, I feel we owe her at least a
partial explanation.’

‘You mean she
is no longer “just a human” to you either.’

‘I confess I
found her interesting. She is very attached to you, even though I
think she only realised while I was with her that you were a real
person, and not a phantom of her mind.’

‘So, what do
you suggest we do?’

‘I think I
should bring her here to meet you, Gimel. Don’t say it’s something
you don’t want, because I know you do. I will bring her here this
afternoon, if that’s alright with you.’

I clutched his
hands. ‘Avirzah’e, I don’t know what to say. I feel... this is
going to be so exciting! I’m so glad!’

He kissed me
warmly. ‘Enjoy this meeting as much as you like, beloved. There
might be dark days ahead.’

Rayojini

‘
Among the
faithless, faithful only he; among innumerable false, unmoved,
unshaken, unseduced, unterrified his loyalty he kept, his love, his
zeal…

Paradise Lost,
Book V

On the morning
following Avirzah’e Tartaruchi’s visit to my room, Keea appeared at
breakfast as before. I was relieved to see him, but intended to be
very selective about what I told him concerning my discoveries.
After all, I still had not defined his position in this drama. By
keeping information back I would be, for once, in the position of
control. Still, if I really was going to have to meet Gimel
Metatronim in the flesh, I wanted to be armed with as much
information as possible. Last night, I had been given intriguing
hints. Perhaps the Sacramantan libraries would be able to expand
upon them. At the very least, I had to discover why the Taps had
perceived no inkling of these strange currents in the world. It was
unprecedented.

‘So how was
your day yesterday?’ Keea asked me, pouring syrup over a bowl of
fruit. ‘Did you visit your friends?’

‘Yes. I had a
wonderful day. I feel much better.’

‘You look it
too, Rayo, if I may say so.’

‘Thank you.
So, what did you get up to yesterday? Did you report to your
employers?’

He smiled and
sniggered. ‘That is something I thought you no longer had an
interest in.’

I waggled my
head a little. It was time to play a card. ‘Well, I’m interested in
you, Keea. Do you know, I have a sneaking suspicion you are
connected, or even related in blood, to the artisans of Sacramante.
Am I right?’

He looked at
me blandly. ‘And what prompted this idea?’

‘Your sense of
the dramatic, I think. Well?’

‘I’m
flattered! But, no, I am not kin to the artisans.’

I shook my
head. ‘Oh dear, I was quite convinced. Never mind, my other
supposition is that you are apprenticed to an alchemist who, in
turn, is in league with the artisans.’

‘My, you have
been thinking hard! Why this sudden interest in the artisans?’ I
could tell he was enjoying himself immensely.

‘Keea, it is
obvious there is a link between the Sacramantan artisans and the
Host of Helat.’

‘There is? I
find that hard to believe. The artisans are creatures of artifice;
very shallow individuals.’

‘I suspect you
underestimate them! I assure you, the link
is
there.’

He shrugged.
‘Very well, let us suppose you are right for the moment. Now
explain why you think I should be connected with either the
artisans or alchemists.’

‘Well, this
may sound a little insulting, but please take it in the most
objective of spirits: I believe you used alchemical substances to
warp my perception during the journey across Khalt, leading me to
believe all kinds of strange business were going on. For some
reason, I think the artisans have included me in a dramatic
production of theirs. The scale is rather grand - the stage being
the entire countries of Khalt and Bochanegra and perhaps even
further afield. It seems logical to me that you are involved in
this. Why else would you have been so insistent about accompanying
me?’

‘Maybe I just
like you.’

‘Don’t insult
my intelligence, Keea!’

He sighed. ‘As
you wish. May I ask what evidence you have to support your
theory?’

I shrugged and
took a big spoonful of fruit. ‘Simple. Since you stopped feeding
me, I’ve stopped hallucinating. I no longer feel as if I’m in an
alien world. I prefer to attribute my feelings of disorientation in
Khalt and the Strangeling to being drugged than to having
experienced a warped reality.’

Keea shook his
head and laughed. ‘I’m mortified! You have uncloaked me utterly! Ah
well, Rayo, it was fun while it lasted.’

I stared at
him narrowly for a few seconds. ‘Damn you, I’m nowhere near the
truth, am I?’

He shrugged.
‘No,’ he said. ‘You’re not.’

I decided not,
at this juncture, to tell him about Tartaruchi. I had no idea what
Keea’s real intentions were towards me. At best, I felt he was
trying to occlude the precision of my thoughts. It was he who had
instilled ideas into my head about how I would discover important
information in the city, he who had tantalised my curiosity by
showing me the ruined temple. Was he involved with the Metatronims
or not? I should have asked Avirzah’e about him, but then I had not
been thinking clearly the previous evening. Seeing him sit there,
an extremely attractive youth gulping down his breakfast, Keea
seemed without artifice of any kind. I knew that to be an illusion,
but it was still hard to see malice in him, particularly.
Impulsively, I reached out to touch his arm. ‘This morning,’ I
said, ‘you must take me to the libraries.’

His eyes were
lambent, catching the morning light, but was the radiance one of
victory or gratitude? It was impossible to tell. He raised my hand
to his lips and kissed it; I felt his teeth smooth against my skin.
‘You are wise, soulscaper,’ he said.

He took me to
a cluster of dark old buildings that hunched in the long shadows of
the atelier courts. We climbed a steep hill, the morning full of
the dolorous clang of bells. The scent of the sea filled my head,
blended with the ripe aroma of autumn fruit. The strangeness of the
journey west had distanced itself from my mindscape again; it would
be easy to imagine all I had experienced were the wild fancies of a
mind estranged from the bustle of society. I was still chasing
shadows, but now I thought I understood what cast them.

We approached
a gate, which was thickly encrusted with locks and chains. ‘Not
exactly welcoming,’ I said. ‘Are you sure these libraries are open
to the public, Keea?’

He smiled at
me. ‘I can gain us entrance. Follow me.’ He went around the side of
the building and into an alley, which wooden boxes of rubbish and
discarded bales of pulpy old newssheets made difficult to
negotiate. I picked my way through the obstacles behind Keea, and
he eventually stopped before a small, iron-barred door.