“Nonsense,” Karam said, “I merely watch and listen. The heart speaks what the spirit yearns to utter, even if the mind and mouth do not partake.”
Pellin nodded. “I know of one such—a reeve, as chance would have it.”
Karam tapped Dukasti on the chest with the back of his hand. “There, you see? There is no need for magic. Come, make yourselves comfortable, and I will have Tanvi bring you date wine and figs for your refreshment while we prepare dinner.”
A moment later a girl entered, eyes wide, carrying a broad tray with a pitcher of wine, cups, and figs. As she passed by, Elieve reached out and touched the shimmering half-sleeved shirt and wrapping cloth the girl wore. “Pretty,” she breathed.
The girl smiled, showing her resemblance to her father. “Do you like it?”
Elieve nodded, her eyes wide and earnest.
“This is the sari my father gave me on my seventeenth naming day,” Tanvi said.
“It’s beautiful,” Elieve nodded, touching the shimmering cloth again.
Tanvi straightened and eyed Elieve with a speculative look. “Dinner will be some time coming. Among my people it is traditional to dress for the meal as a way to honor guests. Would you like to wear a sari for your dinner?”
Elieve’s eyes went wide and she nodded.
Tanvi laughed. “Come. I seldom get the chance to spend time with girls my own age.”
Elieve stood, but when Mark released her hand, her face turned stricken and she hesitated. “Go,” Mark smiled. “Tanvi is a friend.”
Hesitantly—with stops and starts like a child taking their first steps, and looking back over her shoulder for reassurance—Elieve moved away. But she gained confidence as she went, and by the time she left the room, she and Tanvi were running as they held hands and laughter trailed behind them.
“An important moment?” Dukasti asked as he watched Mark.
“I think so,” Pellin said. “This is the first time Elieve has been out of Mark’s sight since we found her.”
“Tanvi is the only daughter of my brother,” Dukasti said.
Pellin nodded. Dukasti’s implication was painfully clear. “Elieve’s vault has yet to open, and it is still three hours until sunset. Both of the girls are safe. However, I can send Allta to watch over them, if you wish.”
“No. As Tanvi has hinted, without girls of her own age around, living on the edge of the desert has been hard for her.”
Pellin leaned forward. “Tell me, Dukasti, have any of the southern Vigil ever succeeded in breaking a vault without also breaking its bearer?” A desperate hope flared in his chest.
But his guide shook his head. “I am new to the Vigil, but nothing I’ve read in our library hints at such, and very few attempt the desert. From what Igesia and the rest of our Vigil have told me, the northern Vigil contends with far more incidents of the evil than we.” Pellin assumed he’d done a poor job of hiding his dismay, because Dukasti amended his assessment. “But Igesia is far older and wiser than I, Eldest, and he says things from the depths of his contemplation that are hard for me to understand.”
They talked of inconsequential matters for perhaps another hour, during which time Mark grew progressively restless. As he made to rise from the cushions, Tanvi and Elieve finally entered.
“I’m sorry for taking so long,” Tanvi said, “but I thought it would be rude not to offer Elieve the opportunity to bathe. The crossing to our oasis is a grim undertaking.” She laughed a sparkling sound and stepped aside to give the men an unobstructed view of Elieve.
Her rich brown hair had been pulled back with a brooch to expose the delicate curve of her neck, and twin gaersum stones rested on her forehead and in the hollow of her throat. A sari of deep shimmering blue caught a half-sleeved shirt of the same color at her waist, and a skirt the color of night flared to show sandals decorated with polished stones.
Pellin smiled. “I’ve lived for a very long time, Tanvi, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen two young women more beautiful.”
At his side, Mark didn’t speak. He gazed at Elieve, drinking in the sight of her, a young man in the desert desperate to quench his thirst.
“You like it?” Elieve asked him.
He nodded, and she came forward to take his hand.
Dukasti rose, a smile on his face and held his hands out to both Tanvi and Elieve. “You are rare flowers in the desert, startling in your beauty.”
Both girls laughed and reached out to take his hands. Mark bolted upright, his protest plain on his face, but Pellin waved him back and watched as Dukasti’s eyes dilated, the smile on his face never wavering. An instant later he released Tanvi’s hand to hold Elieve’s for a moment longer. He stepped back, beaming. “Perhaps, Tanvi, you have something within your chests that would be suitable for Elieve to wear for the crossing tomorrow. The sari is not suited for the harshness of the desert.”
After the girls departed, he turned to Pellin. “I meant no offense, Eldest, but thought it best to verify the girl’s state before we made the journey.” Turning to Mark, he bowed until his torso ran parallel to the ground. “It is rare to see such strength of commitment in any, but especially in one so young. Tell me, Eldest,” he said turning back to Pellin, “have you had him tested for the gift of devotion?”
Mark’s laughter filled the room. “Gifted? Me? I don’t think so, watchful one. If you’ve truly delved me, then you know I am an urchin. The streets have been my home for as long as I can remember, and if anyone had bothered to put their hand on me in blessing, I doubt I would have lived there.”
Dukasti nodded, pursing his lips. “But blessing is not the only means by which a gift may be
