Chapter
Thirty-Seven
Eagleton seems to be about three times the size of Thornhill. There’s a clean street instead of muddy tracks, a two-story inn, and several temples dotted along an outcropping above the town.
“No temple to me,” Kalos says, watching me study the buildings. “Before you ask.”
I’m not entirely surprised. Kalos only seems to be included when the locals feel like they must, not because he’s particularly beloved. The largest temple is festooned in Belara’s bright red colors. It’s a grand building, so it stands to reason that they’d have a library of some kind. My excitement surges and I squeeze Kalos’s hand. “I’m starving, but I can wait. I want to head to the temple before we get something to eat.”
He points at a cobbled path that climbs through the edge of the town and heads up the hill to the temples. We set down it, and as we walk, I realize no one else is walking on the road. Just us. It’s like no one wants to be near us. Odd.
We move to the sidewalk and as we do, we pass a blacksmith’s stall, and one that has huge, flat buckets on thesidewalk with chemicals. It smells like piss and bleach. A balding man stirs the concoctions with a stick, eyeing us as we walk past. I hold my nose as politely as I can with my free hand, eyes watering. Good lord.
The man with the stirrer suddenly runs in front of us on the sidewalk, eyeing Kalos. He drops to his knees at the god’s feet and presses his forehead to the ground. “Lord! We are honored!”
“The Aspect is here!” someone bellows nearby.
I bite back a groan. Of course we’ve been recognized. Kalos has shock-white hair and manages to look elegant no matter his surroundings. I’m dressed in a patchwork dress with a tattered hem and blend in better, but if they knew we were staying nearby, they’d be on alert to the possibility of us visiting. So much for making this a quiet, quick visit.
Kalos makes an annoyed sound and steps past the man, continuing as if nothing has happened.
Others are noticing us, though. Everyone’s staring, the hot prick of their gaze making my skin crawl. I instinctively move closer to Kalos, letting him pull me along. He walks faster, and I can practically feel the annoyance vibrating off him.
“An Aspect,” another person murmurs, bowing their head as we walk past. “Eagleton is blessed.”
No one stops us as we continue moving, but people are gathering behind us as we move through town. It adds to my unease, and I wonder if it’ll be possible for us to take a different route home. One that doesn’t involve wandering past every single person in the village. I might as well put a big red target on my back.
A priestess meets us in front of the temple, dressed entirely in rich red robes. They’re heavily embroidered, and she’s a stout woman with kind eyes. “We are honored to have such an esteemed visitor at our small temple,” she says, bowing andlifting her skirts slightly to get on the floor and prostrate herself. “Truly, Lord Kalos?—”
“Don’t,” Kalos says, annoyance in his tone. “Don’t bother. I’m not here to get my arse kissed.”
Her expression remains composed. “To what do we owe this honor?”
Kalos tugs me forward by the hand, then takes a step back so I’m in the lead. It’s all me, then. I put on my friendly, best customer-service smile. “I’d love to see your book of cures,” I say. “Varina told us you have one similar to the one I’m working on for a nearby village and I’d like to compare notes.”
Her eyes widen. “You are the Maiden of Medicine? We’ve heard a lot about you.”
I’m…what? I look over at Kalos, flummoxed. “I, um…no, I’m just helping out.”
“There have been a great deal of stories coming out of the villages nearby about the Vulture God and his new consort. That you were working to reclaim the mantle of medicine from the goddess Anali. That he shares his powers with you so he will take you with him when he returns. We weren’t sure if these were rumors, but I see now that they are true. Truly, we are honored to have you both.” She inclines her head.
My skin prickles and I’m very uncomfortable. Consort? Power-sharing? Me…going with him when he returns? None of that is true. “Um…”
“But you didn’t come here to talk of that, did you?” The priestess smiles. “You are here for our library. Of course you are welcome to anything we have. Please follow me. Our house is your house.”
“I doubt Belara would feel that way about you giving hospitality to me,” Kalos comments, not budging an inch. “Are you sure you wish to let us in?”
She turns to look at us. “Belara is not in the heavens at themoment, and I would rather not anger a god at my doorstep,” the priestess says smoothly. “I will make my apologies to my goddess later, but I think she would understand. Follow me, if you please.”
The priestess retreats into the temple, and I glance over at Kalos. “Is this okay?”
“Is any of it?” He shrugs. “We’re here. We might as well see what they have for us.”
That’s a cryptic answer, and I’m not sure I like it. He takes my hand in his and we follow the priestess as she leads us through a colonnaded courtyard. I walk slowly so the priestess can move farther ahead of us and turn to Kalos as we walk. “Is this going to get you—or her—in trouble?”
“With Belara? Who cares?”
Me. I care. But I bite my tongue at that. “What’s with that ‘Maiden of Medicine’ crap? Do you know?”
