“Just one?” I asked.
She laughed. “Many, in fact. But one I thought of this morn as I woke.”
“You thought of me as you woke? Interesting.”
“Marek,” she chastised, her eyes not matching her tone. They were teasing, bordering preciously close to flirting. So close, in fact, that I did not hold back my own appreciation of her. One that was always simmering beneath the surface. In fact, I let my gaze wander at will, paying the price when it lifted to once again meet hers.
“Aye, sereia?”
“Why do you call me that?” she said, her voice barely above a whisper.
“You know why, Issa. Now, was that your question?”
“No. My question was, why did you have those trade routes written down, as if knowing you would need them?”
Not what I was expecting, but perhaps I should have. Issa was observant.
“I expected to use them in some capacity,” I admitted, “though not precisely as it happened. I’ve been trading in information for many years, and would find it difficult not to think in such ways, even if I suddenly had all of the answers I sought.”
“Do you worry, with Nerys as queen, that you will compromise her position? With your ‘unsavory’ practices, as they are.”
A good question.
“No more than I’ve always worried about how my dealings might negatively impact those I care about. Thankfully, the list is small and thus far, I’ve avoided any lasting consequences. My turn.”
“To ask a question?”
“Aye.”
If Issa was wary, it was with good reason. If I were more cautious, I’d ask her about any number of things… except this.
“If you despise me so, not that I blame you for leaving as I did,” I began.
Issa’s head slowly spun toward me, her soulful eyes narrowing.
“Why were you jealous of Cassandra?”
Issa looked as if she would throttle me.
Instead, she jerked her hands from the wheel and clasped her chest. Something was wrong.
Very wrong.
16
ISSA
I’d never felt magic like this before.
Squeezing my eyes shut, I felt the beat of my heart beneath my chest. Marek was beside me, either having taken over the wheel or ensuring I remained safe, I wasn’t sure.
It wasn’t just powerful; that was not the most unusual thing about this magic. Typically, when magic was close, it cascaded through my senses, but not this. This was like a crash, sudden and… unnatural.
How to describe it?
I opened my eyes. Marek was so close, I could hear his breath, even over the wind that had suddenly picked up.
“Issa, what is it? What’s wrong?”
