Resenting the Hero (4 page)

I'd been shown a map, but I was finding it difficult to change mental pictures from a flat drawing to the reality.

Karish didn't seem to be experiencing any difficulties at all, if the way he was rattling on were any indication. He appeared to be one of that sort who was uncomfortable with silence and needed to fill it with words regardless of their lack of necessity.

“You do have the stoic Shield act down pat, don't you?” he was saying. “Patience on a pedestal indeed. Solid proof you're fresh out of the academy. You'll be relieved to know that no one really expects you to act that way in the real world. All the Shields I've met were far more relaxed.”

Was he aware that he was insulting me?

Then he threw me a smile that I supposed was meant to be charming.

“Indeed,” I said.

“Yes, indeed,” he mocked. “You're too young to be so reserved.”

Reserved by nature, reserved by training. He was out of luck. “I'm a Shield,” I said, for it did appear that he needed to be reminded.

“Don't worry. I won't hold it against you.”

He slung an arm around my shoulders. I instinctively tensed at the unexpected contact while at the same time feeling that damned relaxing effect. My body didn't know how to react.

Wrenching away would probably look undignified.

The Horse's Head tavern and inn was an old establishment, like all buildings in the city of Shidonee's Gap. All three Triple S academies were held in that city, which meant the effects of natural events were kept to such a minimum as to be practically nonexistent. So the Horse's Head was constructed without a thought for possible earthquakes or floods. It was several stories high with huge windows.

Our arrival had been anticipated by the proprietor, who rushed up to greet us as soon as we passed through the entrance. “Welcome!” she crowed, shaking each of our hands. “Let me be among the first to congratulate you on this special occasion. My name is Mala Nadare, and I am here to make sure your every wish is catered to tonight. Come, come.”

I barely had a chance to glance at all the regulars sprinkled throughout the room before we were swept through a door into another room. An appealing room, with a peaked ceiling, solid long tables, and dozens upon dozens of thick candles. No windows at all, though, and no second entrance. If a fire ever started in there, I thought, we were cooked.

Food was being placed on one of the tables, dishes piled with sliced meats, cheeses, and juicy fresh fruits. Decanters of various sizes, some of glass and others of metal, were standing in trays of ice. Wines and ales, I assumed. I had no reason to complain of the food I'd been given at the academy, but never had I seen such an array, and I had to admit that, despite my disappointment of the evening, my appetite was tempted.

After all, I did have my priorities.

So did his lordship, apparently. “My dear woman,” he drawled. “No chocolate? I'm devastated.” And his expression, I thought, was a shade away from a pout.

I would not roll my eyes I would not roll my eyes I would not roll my eyes . . .

“Oh aye,” said the landlady, smirking. “Which one are you, then?”

I opened my mouth to introduce him, chagrined by my lapse so early in my new profession.

He beat me to it. “Source Shintaro Karish.” He caught one of her free hands, bowing over it briefly. “And it is my very great honor to meet you.” The smile that curved his lips invited her to think them the warmest of acquaintances.

Nadare's smirk softened into a smile of her own. “Ah, it is an honor. I've heard a great deal of you.” And she looked at me with more interest than she'd demonstrated before, then asked Karish, “Solid or beverage, my lord?”

“Solid, if you have it. But if not, I'll take anything. It's been a day of much import.”

“Right away, my lord.”

Pampered prat.

There were three musicians getting settled in the corner of the room. A pipe, a lyre, and a drum. The sight was exciting and intimidating at the same time. Music was carefully regulated at the academy, except for tests and lessons when we were deliberately exposed to arousing music, to gauge our vulnerability. I'd been taught that all musicians were warned, as part of their training, to have a care when playing before Shields. But musicians were like all other professionals. Some were better than others, some were more conscientious than others.

This was the Horse's Head. They had newly minted Shields in there after every Match. They knew what they were dealing with.

Good thing, too. Karish, as my Source, was supposed to guard me through music, make sure I didn't start a fight or start a fire or sleep with someone I shouldn't. And while I had heard nothing to indicate he wasn't a brilliant channeler, there were no rumors floating around out there about him being particularly good at taking care of other people.

And I was embarrassingly sensitive to music. Some of my professors claimed they'd never seen anyone worse in their however many decades of experience in the academy. With my excessive vulnerability, and the unlikelihood of Karish being solicitous to the needs of anyone else, I had to wonder what quirk of nature could think the two of us were well-matched.

At least the others were there. Jandi Bacall, who had been Chosen by Devereaux, and Everette had been in all my classes, and knew how sensitive I was. Of course, they were affected by music as well, but not so badly as I, and they would probably warn their own Sources. I could be confident that I wouldn't cause any damage, no matter how lax Karish may be in that area of responsibility.

Though, of course, primary responsibility for making sure I did no harm was mine, and I was pretty good at that, if I did say so myself. While music did have the most powerful effect on me, I was very good at resisting it. And I would only get better, I was sure, as I was exposed to more and more music as a professional Shield. I looked forward to the day when I needed no help at all.

“Good evening, Sources and Shields,” the player of the lyre called out. “I am Lauren, this is Cas and Denner. We'd like to congratulate you on your successful night and to assure you that we have played for members of the Triple S many times before. We know what to expect, so don't worry.”

“Are we to spend the whole night in here?” Tan asked, voicing a question I had had. A party of eight wasn't all that exciting.

“Not if you don't wish to,” Lauren told him. “After most Matches, Pairs take this opportunity to enjoy their food and music in private, while getting acquainted. But many wander out after a while. It's up to you. For now, are there any requests?”

I let someone else ask for a song. I headed to the table, looking over the decanters. We had been given the odd glass of wine or ale at school, but nothing to exult over. I'd heard there was much better out in the real world and wondered whether we'd be getting any of it that night. I poured out some of the white.

I sniffed it. Smelled good. I tasted it.
Mmmm.

“One of those, are you?” Karish asked, and I nearly jumped, startled. Apparently he'd slithered right up behind me without making a sound.

“One of what?” I responded, because manners demanded I must.

“Those self-conscious types that head straight to the food in the middle of a party.”

I took another long, soothing sip of wine. I was not self-conscious. Just not interested in my current company. “Many understand that sharing in drink and food facilitates conversation.” Though not him, obviously. “No doubt that is why it's here.”

“Don't try to get the better of Mallorough, my friend,” Everette chuckled, reaching between us for a jug of ale. “You're wasting your time.”

Karish raised an eyebrow. “She is so witty, is she?”

“Not so much. But she always takes time with what she says. Won't be rushed into saying anything stupid. Kind of irritating, really.”

“Love you, too, Everette,” I murmured.

He flashed me a grin. Really, he had the demeanor of a Source.

I looked over at Devereaux, who was already in quiet conversation with Bacall. They both looked serious but comfortable. I didn't usually waste my time with envy, but I couldn't help wishing things had turned out different. I'd rather be over there having a quiet, calm conversation instead of gulping down wine because I just wished the evening was over already.

I noticed when Karish turned to follow my gaze, and then looked back at me with a bit of a frown.

My, how indiscreet of me. “Perhaps you could tell me of one of your adventures, my lord,” I said. “We hear you were permitted to travel much more widely than most Sources, before they are bonded.”

He was still frowning. “That's an honorific.”

“It is still the appropriate means of addressing you, is it not?” Damn straight, it was.

“Well, if you want to be strict about it, you should be calling me Source Karish.” Then he assumed another smile. “But you're not going to be all stiff and formal for the rest of our lives, are you? My friends call me Taro.”

Do they?
I nodded, and let him make of that what he would.

“So, those adventures of yours?” I'd let him do the talking. I had the feeling he liked to talk about himself, and he needed only a little nudge before going on for hours. I could pretend to be fascinated for a while, then claim fatigue and beg off.

He was looking at me oddly. I wasn't sure why I felt it was odd. There was nothing mocking in it, or angry, or in any way inappropriate. More like, there was a certain weight to his gaze that I hadn't been expecting, that caught me off guard and made me wonder if I was being too transparent.

“Let us partake of this meal,” he suggested, his tone even but his eyes still . . . close. “Then we can settle down and tell each other our life stories.”

I hoped to avoid the life stories, but I was willing enough to dive into the food. My answer to him was to hand him a plate.

The music started then, and I froze at the first notes, bracing myself. The music played, however, was a nice light air, pretty dining music, and I relaxed. I sat down at another part of the table, and Karish sat across from me.

“So, Lee . . .”

I halted halfway through biting into a slice of bread. Lee? Only members of my family called me Lee. But my mouth was too full of food to make an immediate protest.

“Who was the last person you slept with?”

My mouth still full, I glared at him.

He grinned back.

It was a hard meal to get through. I couldn't get a serious word out of him. He flirted or teased the whole time, and it was irritating. I always enjoyed the occasional droll comment, but joke after joke spilling out of someone's mouth was tiring. It made me feel I had to either laugh or shoot back something equally urbane on a regular basis, and that was a game I'd never enjoyed. All I could do was respond as though the comments were serious, and hope to slow him down a little.

And then there was a knock on the door, and the landlady walked in, holding up an envelope. “Which one of you is Shield Mallorough?”

The thrill of hearing my title for the first time was shot through with apprehension. Why was I receiving correspondence, delivered right to me at the Horse's Head? That bespoke an emergency. “Here,” I said.

She looked my way and handed me the envelope. She was smiling, though, so the news couldn't be bad. “Congratulations,” she said.

Frowning, I cracked the wax Triple S seal and pulled out a single sheet of paper. It was a short message, quickly read.

“What is it?” Karish asked.

“Our post,” I said in an absent tone. We weren't supposed to receive our posts until the next day. How had they even made the selection so quickly? They hadn't even known who was going to be bonded, never mind to whom. “We're to start off for High Scape as soon as possible tomorrow morning.”

“High Scape?” Devereaux demanded, reaching out to snatch the missive from my hand.

I let her. I was thrown into shock.

High Scape. The biggest city on the continent. Said to be exciting and dangerous and full of crazy people. Also said to be increasingly unstable, threatened with natural disasters on a daily basis, a frequency unheard of anywhere else. It had more Pairs posted there than anywhere else, six, who were put on a schedule so that one Pair was always doing nothing but waiting for the events.

We were to be the seventh. An increase on the roster, to accommodate the sudden increase in natural disasters.

Only highly experienced Pairs were posted there. I wouldn't have even considered it a possibility so early after bonding. Why in the world would they . . . ?

I looked at Karish.

Ah.

It had started already.

Chapter Three

The ride from Shidonee's Gap to High Scape was three weeks, and that was all the time I had to learn everything about one Lord Shintaro Karish—how he moved, how he slept, how he ate, how thoughts traveled across his brain and blood through his veins, his every physical quirk and habit—before I might be required to put all that information to use and Shield him. The bond enabled me to feel when he was about to lower his protections, but I needed observation to know just how to craft my Shields to his specific requirements. So I watched him. It was my job, I expected to have to do it, and I did it as thoroughly as possible.

It didn't hurt that it drove him crazy. Which, enjoyment factor aside, surprised me. Surely such a popular fellow was used to being under scrutiny of one kind or another. But no, after only a couple of hours he was twitching in his saddle, shifting his shoulders, glancing back at me with his eyes narrowed. Didn't like it at all.