Chapter 79
I slipped the strange brass object into my satchel.
No glow. No warmth. No hidden mechanism suddenly springing to life. Just an old piece of metal that looked suspiciously like a pocket compass-an heirloom from my mother, and a broken one at that.
For a while, none of us spoke. The only sound inside the cottage was the crackling fire.
Master Benedict broke the silence. "I suppose," he said, reaching for his tea, "there is one thing I can help you with."
Rhaevan looked up.
"The Covenant stripped me of Ardentia's secrets," Benedict took a slow sip. "It did not stop me from watching those who seek them. I've been investigating the Veiled Thorn."
"You were retired," I pointed out. "Why would you want to work again?"
He smiled over the rim of his cup. "Oh, that was merely a cover."
I blinked. "What?"
"Nobody pays much attention to an old man living alone in a quiet village," he spread his hands innocently. "I garden. I complain about my back. I occasionally argue with merchants over vegetable prices."
I stared at him. "So... you've been pretending to be a harmless old man?"
"I am a harmless old man," he paused. "Most days."
Theo really does collect the strangest people.
Benedict set his cup aside, stood, and retrieved a large rolled parchment from a nearby shelf. He unrolled the map across the table, and immediately, both he and Rhaevan leaned over it, their expressions turning serious.
Naturally, I did the same-for approximately twenty seconds. Then I found myself admiring the remarkably well-drawn mountain range in the corner. Whoever had illustrated this map had no business being that talented.
"This area," Benedict placed a finger on the western mountains, "was once the Kingdom of Aethelgard."
I leaned closer. The kingdom's name had been scratched out long ago, replaced by warning symbols drawn in dark ink. Comforting.
"What happened there?" I asked.
"No one knows with certainty," his finger remained on the faded border. "Some accounts speak of war. Others of plague. And still others blame magic."
The fact that magic had earned its own category alongside war and plague was not reassuring.
"The kingdom fell decades ago," Benedict continued. "It remained abandoned for years. Then, several months ago, the Veiled Thorn arrived." He traced a line through the mountains. "They established mining operations."
Rhaevan's eyes followed the route. "The western Solithium deposits."
Benedict nodded. "So you suspected the same."
I looked between them. "You already knew about these mines?"
"I knew of their existence," Rhaevan replied. "I did not know the Veiled Thorn had occupied them."
"Shortly after the mining began, nearby villages started reporting strange occurrences," Benedict said. "Livestock died. Wild animals became unusually aggressive. Entire herds vanished into the forests."
I frowned. "And the people?"
"Headaches, persistent fevers, nosebleeds, and hallucinations."
Neither Rhaevan nor I needed to say the word aloud: Solithium.
"The villages were eventually abandoned," Benedict said quietly. "Whatever they were extracting... remaining nearby became too dangerous."
He moved his finger to a second location closer to us, a tiny mark surrounded by hastily written notes.
"Three weeks ago, similar activity began here. My contacts have observed members of the Veiled Thorn gathering repeatedly at an abandoned warehouse. They remain there for hours, transporting supplies into the mountains, but little ever comes back."
Rhaevan studied the markings. "Did they linger at any other sites?"
"They did." Benedict pointed to three separate locations scattered across the map.
"Ordinarily, they excavate an area, extract what is useful, erase evidence of their presence, and move on. But here..."
he tapped the first mark, then the second, and finally the third.
"...and here, they remained far longer than necessary. Long enough to suggest they believed something else lay hidden. A relic, or the entrance to one."
He folded his arms. "I cannot tell you whether they found anything. But I have learned that whenever the Veiled Thorn abandons efficiency, it is because they have begun chasing certainty."
Silence settled over the table. I found myself looking again at the three marked locations. Three mines. Three failures. Or perhaps... three clues.
Rhaevan straightened. "We begin with the warehouse."
Benedict inclined his head. "A sensible choice. If they're transporting Solithium or excavated relics, the warehouse will reveal where they're coming from."
"And perhaps," Rhaevan added, "where they intend to go."
The old mage carefully rolled the map closed and handed it to him.
"I have no further guidance to offer. The Covenant saw to that."
His gaze shifted briefly to me, then to my satchel.
"If she entrusted it to you... then I'm certain it has a purpose. I'm simply no longer meant to know what that purpose is."
I instinctively rested a hand on my satchel. The brass object remained stubbornly, disappointingly silent. Broken compass or not, it had crossed decades to reach me. That had to mean something.
We retired to our rooms for the night. Outside, the wind stirred through the trees.
Morning suddenly felt much closer than I would have liked. My mind was too full for sleep: Ardentia, the Covenant, my mother, and that thoroughly disappointing antique occupying space in my satchel.
I pulled it out one last time beneath the candlelight and turned it over. Still nothing.
I frowned at it. "If you're secretly magical," I muttered, "now would be an excellent time to prove it."
Silence.
"Right. Be difficult then."
I shoved it back into my bag, extinguished the candle, and lay down. Sleep eventually found me, though it wasn't particularly committed to staying.
......
A faint sound woke me. The floorboards outside my room creaked.
Someone was moving through the cottage.
I sat up, listening to another quiet footstep. Glancing out the window, I saw the sky was still dark, the first hint of dawn just beginning to lighten the horizon. I slipped out of bed, threw on my cloak, and quietly opened the door.
The cottage was silent. Near the entrance, Rhaevan stood fastening the clasp of his travel cloak.
He looked up the moment he heard me. For the briefest instant, surprise crossed his face before vanishing.
"You're leaving?" I asked.
"Yes."
I glanced toward the front door. "Without me?"
"I'll return before evening."
I folded my arms. "I thought Theo sent us here together. And yet you're going alone."
"Yes."
I stared at him. He looked perfectly calm, which somehow made it more irritating. "So... is there a reason?"
When no explanation came, I let out a slow breath. "I came all the way here because I agreed to help. I've already been dragged into this mess."
"I know."
"Then why am I suddenly being left behind?"
His expression didn't change. "Stay here."
There it was again. Those two infuriating words.
"For what?"
"It's safer."
I laughed once-a short, disbelieving sound. Neither of us spoke until the silence stretched uncomfortably.
Finally, I asked the question bothering me since yesterday. "...Are you avoiding me?"
Something flickered across his face, gone so quickly I almost convinced myself I'd imagined it. "No."
"It feels like you are."
He looked away for a fraction of a second before meeting my eyes. "I'm not."
I searched his face for anything-frustration, annoyance, an explanation. Instead, I found the same composed expression he'd worn ever since we left Theo. I hated it.
"What happened, Rhaevan?"
"Nothing."
I exhaled sharply. "You've barely spoken to me. You keep walking away. And now you're trying to leave without me. If I did something wrong..." the words caught in my throat. "...just tell me."
For the first time, he hesitated. It lasted only a heartbeat. "You didn't."
"Then why are you acting like this?"
He was quiet for so long I almost thought he wouldn't answer. Finally, he spoke, his voice entirely calm. "If you want to help... stay here."
Okay. That was it. I threw my hands into the air. "I swear, talking to you is like arguing with a wall. You know what? Fine, go by yourself. Solve the mystery. I'll stay here and enjoy... probably develop a new hobby!"
He looked at me for a long moment. "Good."
That irritated me more than if he'd argued. He opened the door, letting cold morning air drift inside. Just before stepping out, he paused. Without turning around, he said quietly,
"...Try not to blow anything up."
"...Or get yourself killed."
Before I could respond, he stepped outside and closed the door.
I stood there staring at it. What is wrong with him?
Yesterday, he had barely looked at me. Today, he'd gone out of his way to leave me behind. If this was his idea of teamwork, Theo seriously needed to reconsider his recruitment strategy.
I turned and trudged back toward my room.
"Well," I muttered to myself, "this expedition is going wonderfully."
We hadn't even begun yet, and somehow, Rhaevan Aetheris had already become the most confusing part of the mission.