“Please, take a seat.” Lusana gestured to the chair opposite her.
“I’d rather stand.”
“As you will.” The Modäiti sat back in her chair, her amber eyes considering Aloisia. “I have asked you here—”
“You have asked nothing. I am here at your bidding, under false pretences. What is this?”
“I understand your frustration, Huntress. I apologise if Brother Mikkel was not clear on the purpose of your being led here.” Lusana kept an infuriating calm about her. “I only wished to speak to you about the trial.”
“Is that so?”
The priestess turned to the pair of guards, either side of the doors. “Could you give us the room?”
Each gave a curt nod and moved to stand outside the room. With the doors closed behind them, Aloisia relaxed a little, releasing the hilt of her blade as she strode towards the fireplace.
“The trial yesterday did not go as intended,” Lusana said. “And I think you know why.”
Aloisia looked to the map of Teneria, hung above the mantle. “Apologies for my interruption yesterday. But I had good reason, as you well know.”
“Indeed. And you have every right, as tradition dictates. Though I do not approve of your involvement in the trial, given how close you are to the matter, it is not my decision to make.”
“True enough. The magistrate will have the final say on all things.”
“Of course. I implore you, going forth, to act with a little more discretion.”
“Discretion?” Aloisia turned to face the Modäiti, a brow raised.
“You must understand the tenuous position we are in. Your testimony, and Brother Tristan’s, undermined our trial. Though you may have spoken true, you also spoke of something Teneria has not seen in generations. Magic. The supernatural.”
Inari’s earlier words came unbidden to her mind. Damn that man for being right.
“In future, I would appreciate you and Brother Tristan bringing any discoveries to either myself, High Priest Silas, or Magistrate Vester. In doing so, I hope anything found can be presented… more delicately.”
“Why?”
“I wish to avoid mass hysteria, Huntress Aloisia.” The priestess leant forward, resting on her elbows and steepling her fingers beneath her chin. “Already, there is an undercurrent of suspicion and fear blossoming within Littlewatch. I want it contained. There is no need to cause terror amongst the people of this town, and indeed all of Teneria, when there may be no cause to be afraid.”
“‘No cause to be afraid’?” Aloisia stared at her, bewildered. “There is a very real cause to be afraid, Modäiti.”
Lusana’s amber gaze hardened. “All the same, I must stress the importance of this. I will not stand for any further uncalled-for testimony or evidence in the trials. If you wish to present anything before the people, it must first go through one of the three of us. There is much work which goes on behind the trial itself. During the trial, myself and the other judiciaries must be in control. I will not be undermined by you again.”
“As you say, Modäiti.” Aloisia inclined her head in consent, though she gritted her teeth against the words.
“Can I take this as your agreement?” Lusana stood, placing her palms on the desk.
“Yes.”
“Good. That will be all.”
Aloisia marched to the doors, not lingering for pleasantries. The guards jumped aside as the door burst open. She stormed back the way she had come, her nostrils flaring. Though she understood the priestess’s reasons for wishing to contain the fear threatening to spread within the town, it seemed she was also trying to contain the truth. Inari’s warning rang fresh in her ears, and she loathed he had been proven right so soon.
As she left the building, the light of the midday sun stark against the darkness of the halls, she glanced around, hoping to spot Tristan. Mikkel had not said what had delayed him or how long he would be. But he was still nowhere to be seen. Aloisia paced around the square, Lusana’s words echoing in her mind. With each step, she beat out her rising anxiety. She only hoped Tristan would have good news from his research.
FOURTEEN
ThedoorsoftheTempleopened,justasAloisiawastakinghertwenty-fourthroundofTempleGreen,notthatshewascounting,andTristanboundeddowntheflagstonepathtowardsher.Theeasysmileonhisfacefalteredasheapproached,Aloisia’sicymoodcrackingthroughhisowndemeanour.
“I’m sorry for the delay, Lis,” he said. “They asked me to stay back.”
