Chapter 14 #2
“There is little point in endangering a driver,” he called as he shut the door, and I yanked mine open so I could hear what he said next. “And before you ask, no. You can’t drive on the way back.”
“How the hell do you get off on saying that?” I demanded. “I didn’t even know you could drive.”
“I’ve been practicing new skills,” Fenris said lightly as he put the vehicle into gear.
Half an hour later, my fingers were twitching with the need to grab Fenris by his collar and shake him. “Do you think you could go any slower?”
Fenris raised an eyebrow. “I’m going at the suggested speed limit for non-residential roads,” he said, pointing to the dashboard.
“There’s a reason it’s a suggestion,” I retorted with a growl. “At the rate you’re dawdling, the factory will be closed by the time we arrive. Get moving, or I’m tossing you into the backseat and taking over.”
Fenris scowled, but he increased the speed until we were going at a clip that would actually get us there at a decent time.
Timbran’s Gourmet Foods was located about forty minutes north of Turain, according to the map I was looking at – still a good hour and a half from here – so I settled into the passenger’s seat for a nap.
After all, the car was warded, and there was little I could do unless we were actually under attack.
Please, please, don’t let there be another attack. The last thing I needed was to be stranded on a road many miles away from Solantha and any sort of shelter.
“Sunaya.” Fenris’s voice woke me, and I sat up, startled.
I felt like I’d barely fallen asleep, but as I looked around, I realized that Fenris was taking us down a winding dirt road that led to a factory building just a few hundred yards ahead.
It was situated right at the water’s edge – which made sense, since many of their shipments and supplies probably came and went by boat. “We’re here.”
“Great.” I slapped my cheeks to force myself into alertness. “Don’t forget, I’m taking the lead on this one,” I warned. After all, this was all my idea.
“If you insist,” Fenris said mildly.
As he parked the steamcar, it occurred to me how anomalous it was for Fenris to be as easygoing as he was.
After all, just a few years ago, he’d been Polar ar’Tollis, Chief Mage of Nebara – a mage who had defied the Federation by helping a group of humans escape a death sentence.
Clearly, he’d not only been a leader, but he’d also been willing to completely disregard the Federation’s authority in favor of his own.
And paid the price for it, I reminded myself as I looked at him.
The one photograph I’d seen of Polar ar’Tollis had depicted a tall, fair-headed mage not unlike the Legal Secretary.
Fenris had not only had to change his identity on every level, but his appearance as well.
Perhaps the knowledge that his actions had cost him life as he’d known it had taken him down a few notches.
“Is there a particular reason you’re staring at me?” Fenris asked as he killed the engine.
I thought about brushing off the question, but we had a minute, so I answered it instead. “I just wonder if you regret your actions,” I said. “The actions that forced you to go into hiding and transform yourself into a shifter,” I clarified when Fenris arched a brow.
Fenris sighed, leaning back in his seat and staring out the windshield.
“There are times when I wonder whether it was truly the right decision.” A faraway look entered his currently dark brown eyes.
“I do wonder if it might have been better to let that family die, and use my position to lobby for changes to some of the outdated laws that continue to make lives difficult for Northia’s non-mage citizens.
” He shook his head, laughing softly. “But then I remember that if the case had not come to my attention, if the injustice of their situation had not caused me to take action, I may very well have gone on governing as I was, indifferent to the plight of my subjects.”
His expression grew serious as he turned to face me again.
“No, I may have paid a steep price for my actions, but on the whole, I prefer Fenris, the man I’ve become, to the late Polar ar’Tollis.
And besides, I am needed here at Iannis’s side, at your side too, and right now, I can’t think of a better place to be. ”
I smiled, tears stinging the corners of my eyes, and threw my arms around Fenris to hide them. “You’re such a sap,” I told him.
Fenris laughed, returning the embrace. “I’m not the only one,” he said, seeing through me.
“Seriously though, I’m glad you’re here.
I don’t know what I would have done if you hadn’t been there when I first came to the Palace.
” Fenris’s calming nature and willingness to act as a go-between for Iannis and me had been crucial to bringing us together as master and apprentice…
and maybe something more. “I might even be dead,” I added softly.
“Don’t be silly,” Fenris chided. “You’re far too resourceful to die. I’ve watched you escape death too many times to count in the short time we’ve known each other. I don’t know if it’s luck or intelligence that keeps you alive, but you defy death on a regular basis.”
“Maybe someone’s watching out for me,” I said with a grin, pulling back. I took a moment to compose myself, settling my face into stern lines again, then reached for the door. “Now let’s get inside and scare these poor people into telling us what they know.”