The Fourteenth Key (The Chronicles of Terah Book 3) (79 page)

The men looked at each other for a minute and then Lance said, “Personally, I’d like for us to use rotating shifts so everyone can get some sleep. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m beat.”

The other men nodded. “Maybe we could divide up into two groups,” Vernon said. “Half of us could cover the first half of the night, and the others cover the second.” He shook his head and said, “I know I won’t get much sleep tonight, but it would be nice to stretch out for a while and know if something starts, there are others out there who’ll wake me up. Last night it was over before I knew what was happening.”

“Same here,” Oryn said. “I heard Shel scream, but by the time I got up and pulled on my tunic and boots, Marcus had everything under control. I’m just glad he was here.”

“So, would you like to divide my men up, or do you want me to do it?”

“Doesn’t matter,” Vernon said. “But however we do it, they’ve got to have someplace to sleep when they’re not on duty.”

“I’ll have Myron bring some tents and blankets. They’ll be fine.”

Oryn shook his head. “These men are putting their lives on the line to protect us. The least we can do is find a place for them to bed down when they’re not working.”

“My children can sleep in my room with my wife and the soldiers can sleep in their rooms,” Nick said. “I’m going to sleep downstairs in the living room for the next few nights anyway.”

“Same here,” Oryn said with a nod.

Marcus had slipped in the back door during the discussion. “Thanks, Nick, Oryn, but I’ve got another idea. Why don’t I let the soldiers use my house? It’s vacant right now, and there’s plenty of room. We’ll need to put fresh linens on the beds, but at least they’d have a bed and a little privacy.”

“It’s got to be dusty in there, Marcus,” Nick said. “I’ll send Bryn and the girls over to clean it up after you take the wards down.”

“And we have plenty of extra linens,” Vernon said. “Ronda and my girls will help Bryn get things right.”

“And I’ll take my boys out and we’ll get a load of firewood for them,” Oryn offered.

“All right,” Kevin said with a quick nod. “Then it’s settled. They’ll use Marcus’s house.”

Gen. Crandal stood up. “Lance, can you be in charge of getting things organized? Figure out who’s going to work when, and whether you want stations or patrols. My men are used to 12 hours on, 12 off, but they’re flexible. You can change it around any way you want. Sanders is the squad leader. Just tell him what you need and he’ll see to it.”

Lance nodded. “We’ll get it worked out, General. Thank you.”

Gen. Crandal nodded and turned to Kevin. “Myron, I think they can take it from here. Would you mind taking me back to Milhaven? I want to have a word with the slavers and see if they’ve remembered anything now that they’ve had a few hours to think.”

Kevin nodded and looked at Marcus. “I’ll be back later to check on things. Tell Theresa I’ll pick her up then if she wants to head back. Hayley too, if she’s ready to go.”

Marcus nodded. “I’ll let them know.”

~ ~ ~ ~

It was late afternoon before Kevin made it back to the settlement. All signs of the fire the slavers had started were gone. There was no circle, no wood, not even any ashes. The remnants of snow covering the field looked undisturbed.

Kevin nodded. Someone had done a really good job. He wondered if Marcus had had a hand in that. Before he could knock on the door at Lance’s house, it opened and Theresa stood there with her finger over her lips.

“Shh,” she whispered. “The baby’s sleeping and so is Marissa. We’d like to keep it that way for a little while.”

Kevin grinned. “So she did have her baby.”

Theresa nodded. “A son.” She stepped out onto the porch and pulled the door to behind her. “Let’s take a walk.”

When they were too far from the house to be overheard, Theresa said, “Hayley delivered it. I didn’t do anything. Actually, I haven’t done anything since I got here. It’s like going into another sister’s chapel. Hayley considers these people her responsibility. She’s ready to be on her own.”

“You’re going to miss her.”

Theresa nodded. “I wouldn’t have her know it for anything in the world, but in a way it’s a relief.”

“How so?”

“She’s a good assistant, but I’m not sure I want one. I like being on my own, not responsible for anyone else, not having to take anyone else into consideration. Like the last time I was in Rainbow Valley. Since I was there by myself, I could spend as much time with Sari and Taelor as I wanted. I even went up to see Ashni a couple of times. It was nice.” Theresa paused. “When Hayley’s with me, I have to be careful. She feels left out whenever I’m with any of the giants, and I swear I think she’s jealous of the way Taelor and I work together. You saw how we were when we ran that clinic, right?”

Kevin nodded.

“We’re still like that, even when we’re working in the herb garden. We’re just in sync. I don’t know why, but we are. And I think Hayley resented it.”

“So, what now?”

“Now, as in right now? Or now, as in what’s next?”

Kevin laughed. “Both I guess.”

“Well, as for right now, I’m going back with you this afternoon. Hayley wants to stay until Marcus leaves, and from what I’ve seen, she can handle things fine by herself. I’m more in the way than anything else around here.” Then she shrugged. “As for what’s next? I don’t know. I’m taking it one day at a time, same as I’ve been doing since we woke up on Terah.”

A shuffled sound behind them drew Kevin’s attention.

When he turned around, Sanders walked up. “Sorry to disturb you, but I wanted you to know a duty schedule has been worked out. We’ll have three soldiers patrolling the area around the clock. From sunset to sunrise, the men from this area will be joining us in two shifts. Marcus is at his house sleeping right now. He’ll keep an eye on things from his sister’s house tonight, so he’ll be available if we need him. Would you let Gen. Crandal know we’ve got things covered here?”

Kevin nodded. “Thanks for handling all of this.”

“It’s my job, sir,” Sanders answered. “But thank you.” The soldier turned and walked back towards the houses.

“Guess we should get back,” Kevin said. “If Marcus is asleep, I’m not going to wake him, but I would like to speak to Lance for a moment before I go and see if there’s anything else they need. Do you need to do anything before we head home?”

“Just tell Hayley I’m going.”

When they reached Lance’s house, Kevin asked, “Fifteen minutes?”

Theresa nodded as she opened the door. “Meet you out here.”

~ ~ ~ ~

Kevin was tired when he made it up to his room that night, but not quite ready to go to sleep. He couldn’t wait to see who didn’t make it to the council meeting the next morning. They’d been pretty sure a key had been used in the rash of raids that had hit Camden that fall, but now they had proof. They had the key. And he wanted to know whose it was.

Chris was already sitting on the couch in Kevin’s room. Two mugs of scog sat on the coffee table, so Kevin picked up one of them and sat opposite Chris in one of the armchairs.

“So? Whose do you think it is?” Chris picked up the other mug.

“The key?”

“Of course, the key.” Chris took a swallow of his scog. “My money’s on Gwendolyn.”

“I don’t know. I doubt any of the council sorcerers are actively engaged in the slave trade, but most of them have families. A brother or sister might be, or an aunt or uncle.”

“Or a son or daughter.”

Kevin nodded. “And lending out a key isn’t unusual, and definitely not against the rules. Look at how many people use mine, and I’m new to all of this. Imagine what it’d be like if I’d grown up here and had family all around me.”

“But my money’s still on Gwendolyn.”

“You just don’t like her.”

“True, but that’s not why.” Chris leaned back against the couch and swirled the scog in his mug. “This whole thing has felt personal, like an attack on you.”

“Maybe, but maybe it’s your paranoia showing through, too.”

Chris shook his head. “Look at the places that have been hit. According to Gen. Crandal, we’ve been hit in places no one has ever thought about hitting before because there’s no good escape route.”

“Unless you have access to a key. The key changes everything.”

“It’s like they’re flaunting it in your face, saying they can get to anyone, any time.”

Kevin thought for a minute. “I’ll agree it’s flagrant, but why not Rolan? The man has spies in our home. How much more ‘in your face’ can you get?”

Chris nodded. “You do have a point.”

“And even though he hasn’t said or done anything on his own, I don’t think Malcolm would hesitate to do this if he thought he could get away with it, especially if he’d profit from it, or win favor with Gwendolyn.”

“Do you get the feeling he’s afraid of her?”

Kevin laughed. “I think anyone with any sense is scared of her. I’m terrified of that woman.”

Chris tilted his head and looked hard at Kevin. “Why?”

“Because I’m afraid she’ll do something so outrageous I’ll have to call her on it and then she’ll challenge me. I do not want to have to fight her.”

“You’d win.”

“Maybe, but I have a feeling going up against her would be more dangerous than dueling with dragons.”

“Why?”

“Because I don’t think she’d limit her fighting to the field of battle.”

Chapter 65

Questions

Kevin and Chris arrived on Chamber Island an hour before the council meeting was scheduled to begin. Over the next hour, they watched sorcerers and assistants trickle in, and by the time the meeting started, every sorcerer was present.

Kevin was confused. If the key didn’t belong to one of the seated sorcerers, where had it come from? If it had been stolen from one of the Federation representatives, surely he’d have heard about it by now. But where else could a slaver get one? Were they for sale somewhere? How many keys were out there anyway? And why didn’t he know the answer to that question? Kevin shook his head as more and more questions swirled around in his mind. Time for that later. He needed to turn his attention to the meeting.

The first council meeting of the new year lasted nearly an hour. No one had any complaints or concerns, but most of them had come with a shopping list and a list of goods they wanted to get rid of. While the trading was going on, Chris took meticulous notes. When everyone was done, Kevin had each sorcerer initial beside any and all trades he or she was involved in. As soon as that was done, Kevin adjourned the meeting.

When they returned to the office, Chris sat down and looked over his notes. “That was interesting.”

“And peaceful for a change.” Kevin stretched. “Anything else we have to do right now?”

Chris shook his head.

“Then let’s head out to the canyon lands. I want to practice making tornadoes. I promised Rhianna I’d teach her how to work with them and it’s been a while since I’ve made one.”

Chris frowned. “I doubt you’ve forgotten how to do it.”

“I know, but I want to be able to do it quickly. You know how I get around her.”

“When are you going to talk to her?”

“About what?”

“About the fact you’re interested in her and would like to get to know her better.”

It was Kevin’s turn to frown. “I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“Yes, you do.”

Kevin hesitated. “All right. For the sake of argument, say I am interested in her. I’m not, but let’s say I am. What am I supposed to do about it? It’s not like I’m Kevin O’Reilly, accountant, and she’s Rhianna Crinsor, executive assistant. If we were, I could ask for her phone number, take her to dinner, take her out on a date. But I can’t do any of that stuff. I’m not Kevin O’Reilly anymore. I’m Myron, Master Sorcerer of Terah, and she’s Rhianna, Warrior Elf.”

“So? You could still talk to her.”

Kevin sighed and leaned back on the edge of his desk. “Chris, look at her family for a moment. Her brother was part of the inner circle responsible for getting me ready for the Master’s Chair. Her cousin has one of the four gate keys, and he was my godfather while I was on Earth. Tsareth sent Landis, the daughter he wanted to name heir to Brendolanth’s seat, to live with her father. Do you think all of that’s coincidence? I’m not sure how high her family is in the elven hierarchy, but I’d be willing to bet they’re near the top, and I doubt they’d want her seeing a human.”

Kevin walked around his desk and sat down. “And besides, Hayden’s not thrilled that Rhianna’s in Willow Canyon. He thinks being around Landis is too dangerous. What would he think about her being around me? With all the targets on my back? And even if we could get around all of that, there’s the council. Most of the sorcerers already resent that there’s elven blood in our family. How do you think they’d react if they thought I was seeing an elf? Even more assassins would pour into Milhaven, and this time the target would be on her back.” Kevin shook his head. “No, Chris. I’m not interested in Rhianna, and I never will be, because I can’t be. It wouldn’t work.”

Chris didn’t say anything for a minute. Then he looked up at Kevin and said, “It could.”

“No, it couldn’t. Let it go.”

“All right, for now.” Chris sighed. “What about that key?”

Kevin stood back up. “After I get some practice with tornadoes, we’ll find Glendymere and see what he knows about it.”

~ ~ ~ ~

It was almost lunchtime when Kevin and Chris made it to Willow Canyon. Chris was about to ring the gong when Glendymere said,
“I wasn’t expecting you two today. Did I forget something?”

“No, but I need to talk to you if you’ve got a minute,” Kevin answered.

“Private?”
Glendymere asked.

“I think it would be best,” Kevin answered.

“I’ll be right out.”

When Glendymere joined them, he asked,
“Here? Or do you want to go somewhere else?”

“No, this will do,” Kevin said. “How many keys are there to Terah?”