Aloisia came to a halt.
Kaja frowned, following her gaze, her expression softening as she spotted the priest. She withdrew her arm from Kaja’s shoulders, marching towards the hall and ignoring Tristan.
“Lis, please wait.” Tristan reached for her.
She retreated. “Don’t.”
“Please, just speak with me a moment.”
“A moment?” Aloisia spun back to face him. “Fine. Here is your moment. For the sake of our families, I will be civil when we are in their presence. Expect nothing more from me. And do not come here again.”
He ran his fingers through his sandy hair. “I am sorry. I was only doing what I believed was right. The coincidence was too great. For Brighde’s sake—”
“What about Fynn? We were supposed to be helping him!”
“The marking the shaman bears makes him, at least in small part, suspicious. Why can’t you see that?”
“Inari was helping us. He still is. He didn’t have to. Still doesn’t. Yet here he is, trying to prove who is really behind this. We all know it’s not Fynn.”
“I would not say the shaman’s name is clear in this, either. The scholar couldn’t speak against either of them at the trial. And if we know for certain it’s not Fynn…”
“I will let no one hang, only to clear Fynn’s name. What is the point if the real culprit is still out there? Yes, it would be easy to brush this off as the shaman’s fault. To let him hang, so Fynn would not. However, too much doesn’t add up. I would have thought you, as a priest, would be invested in finding the truth here. I would have thought as someone who was welcomed into our family, as if you were our own brother, you would be more invested in finding justice for Brighde, and for Fynn. But no, the easy option was there, and you took it. And so much time was wasted, time in which Inari could have helped us find the truth, time he spent in a cell instead!”
“Lis…” He reached for her again.
Aloisia stepped back from him. “You have had your moment. Now leave.” She stormed to Mavka’s hall, sparing him no further time.
Inside the hall, a space had been cleared for Inari and Ezra to work on the enchantments. Dhara hovered over the pair with a hand on the blade at her belt. The benches were pushed back against the walls, making the vast room seem larger still. Inari glanced up as she entered, a question in his eyes.
Mavka approached, a frown creasing her brow as she examined the two huntresses in their sodden attire. “Are you both well?”
“Yes, if a little damp.”
“The wisps?”
Aloisia shook her head and explained what had happened again.
The crease between Mavka’s brows deepened. “I dislike the idea of these creatures being able to enter your mind so easily. These things we are meddling with are unknown, and the effect it is having is concerning.”
“I’m fine,” Aloisia said for what felt like the hundredth time. “It is concerning, I know. But we have some information from the wisp about how the Forgotten Gods were summoned and how they can be sent back. That’s worth something, at least.”
Mavka nodded. “The enchantments are not ready yet. With the day drawing to a close, it would probably be best to begin this come morning.”
“Agreed. They have shown up during the day before. Hopefully, they shall again.”
“Tomorrow will tell.” Ezra shrugged.
Mavka pulled Aloisia to one side. “I assume from the shouting,” she said, her voice low, “you encountered Tristan outside?”
Aloisia cast her gaze to the ground. “I did.”
“It is hard to see you both at odds, as close as you were.”
Her throat burned, sorrow settling within her chest alongside grief. For the bond broken, for the betrayal which had shattered it.
“Put it from your mind, child.” Mavka swept Aloisia’s hair from her face. “You will need a clear head come morning.”
Aloisia nodded, though the knot in her chest did not release.
