“I know of them. They were respected in my time, and those who sought them met their end with them. But many wished that, and that was the purpose of visiting them.”
“Wait, the Sisters were alive in your time? Are you saying they were death bringers then?”
“Not alive, but touching earth’s plane in some greater form. Perhaps stronger then, or the veils were thinner where they resided. They sped death, and a leaving with them was serene.Humans sought them to ease their passing. The Sisters draw power from the earth, and that power feeds them.”
I ran a hand through Bud’s newly planted basil. “The Sisters are earth workers, then?”
“Singers of the earth.”
“What is that?”
“When they touched earth, they drew song from it, and with that, power.” He ran a hand over the tattoo, gazing up at the sky.
“Is that the whispering? Their song?”
“I haven’t experienced it. Low and repetitive would make sense.”
My heart did double beats for a second.Was I wrong then? Had they asked my mother to go with them? No. She would have told me.
“Sorrel?”
“I was thinking about my mom. When we get the third gold piece, then what happens?”
“We can create the ritual, and I should return to the Garden of the Trees. Some of the finding elements can be reused for the sky opening. The ritual isn’t as important as the intent and the gold. Once I return to the Garden, Rei, Kelis, and I should be able to redo the spell to keep the plane stable and heal any rifts. Then, we can return to our positions as Keepers until the next are chosen.”
I toyed with the end of my braid, thinking. “But that’s the thing. We are generations past yours. There are no Ahknim to choose new Keepers? This time thing makes no sense to me.”
“That’s because it’s not parallel. Once I was taken, the bracelet changed hands and eventually came to you. That’s linear time, and you can trace that like a family history. But the Trees are in a place where time doesn’t shift. The three of us were connected to the Garden before the bracelet moved. When I return, it will be like I never left.”
“But wouldn’t your return erase the time associated with the movement of the bracelet? They call it the space-time continuum, I think?”
Ranth stroked the hair on his jaw. “If new Keepers were chosen and sent to the Garden, they wouldn’t be able to enter. When I return, the next Keepers may enter as they should, but their fate on this timeline doesn’t change. The Ahknim aren’t aware I am not in the Garden.”
“Wait, WHAT? That’s impossible. Why didn’t you mention that before?”
“What’s impossible?”
“If the Ahknim don’t know you aren’t there, then how can they be looking for you?”
“They must have some knowledge they should not have. Perhaps the record keeper failed his duty… Or the Marahk are not actually part of the Ahknim, which is what I now suspect. They know the words, but their methods are not our way. Perhaps they were the ones who destroyed our temple. But they don’t know the Garden is locked. Unless one of the elders went to look…”
“What does that mean?”
“After death, the elders, our Amum, can briefly visit the Garden before they journey to the spirit realm. If someone spoke to an Amum spirit, they might have learned information they should not have. There must have been some notation that my place was in the Garden. Unless…” He rubbed the back of his neck.
“Unless what?”
“Harold has the knowledge of the Garden, and he recognized me. He could have told the Marahk.”
I sniffed the basil on my fingers. “But why would he do that and then rescue us?”
“It is mystifying, but we don’t know his goal. It could be he seeks to enter the Garden again, and he’s misguided. But without the Ahknim knowledge, the Marahk would not know it’s impossible to go to the garden and remain alive.”
The wind picked up, and I moved closer to him, resting my hand lightly on his arm. Electricity crackled over my skin. He shifted as if he felt it too. I stilled. My power prickled and rose, recognizing his. He was part of the same threads, and my body knew that. I wanted more. His hands slid down my sides, and mine roved under his shirt. The hard, solid planes of his chest. smooth and silky as I’d imagined. But the flash of the lich form was ever present. Touching him felt right, like I’d known him all my life. But he’d be leaving soon…
“Sorrel, I… I’m not sure I should say this, but you’ve made me think about things in a way I have never done before. To dream impossible dreams.”
“What dreams?” My voice was a whisper, as if speaking louder would break something.
