“Why, Elohm, of course.” Grey inclined his head. “You have a place in Lothon’s future without its king.”
“I have a place here,” Ōbhin said.
“My offer is open.” Grey extended his hand. “I recognize valuable men even through the muck. I can’t wait to see how you’ll shine once you’re polished.”
Ōbhin clasped Grey’s hand, the black leather contrasting with the beige skin. For a moment, Ōbhin imagined wearing gloves of a different color. The deep purple of a warrior . . .
Grey broke the handshake and departed. Through the open door, Ōbhin saw the White Lady seated in the carriage. She smiled at Grey as he joined her. He closed the door. The coach trundled away, revealing Avena on the far side.
The itch he felt, the one whose answers he feared, prodded him forward. Avena wore a red shawl over her dark-blue dress, her brown hair pulled back in her braid. She didn’t even have a scar from her head injury.
“Did you notice anything unusual during the fight?”
His words caught her off-guard. She furrowed her brow and turned her head to the side. “I . . . What?”
“When we fought Ust, did anything stand out?”
“Well . . .” Her eyes flicked to the side. “When Smiles got thrown into the wall, he cracked his head. There was a patch of blood, and yet he had no wound.”
“Did his flesh look weird for a moment?” Ōbhin said, a dreadful weight sinking into his stomach. “White and pasty?”
“Like sculptor’s clay,” she whispered.
“Outside the gates, Ust hit Smiles in the head. I could have sworn it crushed his skull. And yet he returned to the fight. He even ran faster than me. I know I was injured, but he moved with a burst of speed that shocked me.”
Avena swallowed. “What does that mean? He healed two injuries to his head faster than any topaz jewelchine could? How is that possible?”
“You saw how fast Ust healed.”
Her face paled. “I’ve seen Smiles get injured.”
“Yeah, he was injured during the riots. He limped for, what, a few days? Then he went out drinking with Aduan, Bran, and Dajouth. It was the night you found Miguil and . . . Anyway, he wasn’t limping the next day. He was running.”
“You think Dje’awsa did something to Smiles?”
“Grey just told me that he has the means to protect Dualayn,” Ōbhin said.
She shook her head. “Smiles? He’s worked here for three years. He’s a good man. A good husband. He wouldn’t work with Dje’awsa. When would the man have time to modify him anyways? When would he be alone long enough? It took Dje’awsa hours to enchant Ust.”
“What if that isn’t Smiles?”
Avena gasped, her face paling. “You mean . . . Is it a darkling?”
“More like a grumliicho,” he said. “A shapechanger. We have stories of them up in Qoth. Campfire tales. They say if you went out in a blizzard and died, a grumliicho would take your appearance and wear your form back to your house. Pretend to be an icy version of you.”
“He’s not icy,” Avena whispered.
“Still . . . his face went white. Inhuman. He healed. I don’t think Smiles ever came back from drinking that night.”
Avena grabbed the front of Ōbhin’s leather jerkin, swaying. “You think Dje’awsa created this thing for Grey? A grumliicho to pose as Smiles?”
“I didn’t imagine what I saw.” Ōbhin shuddered. “I wished to all of the Harmonic Tones I had. We can’t tell anyone. Can’t let it know we suspect.”
“What about Jilly? She’s pregnant.”
“This impostor is here to protect Dualayn. For now, it won’t be a threat. So long as we pretend . . .” Ōbhin’s back straightened. He clenched a gloved fist. “The Brotherhood is using Dualayn. You have to find out what’s in the Recorder that they want so badly. We have to protect him.”
Avena nodded. “And the impostor?”
“Smiles,” Ōbhin said. “We need to think of him like that. We pretend. We wait. We study it. We can’t lose the advantage of surprise until we know how to kill it. In the meantime, we’ll keep looking for Dje’awsa. We’re going to prepare, Avena. Dualayn’s research is going to save lives. Whatever Grey wants from him won’t.”
Avena nodded. “Okay.” She glanced over at Dualayn with his wife. “I guess I should cut back on my practicing and work in the lab more. I know how to get Dualayn to talk. He’s always excited about his ideas.” She smoothed her skirt and took a deep breath like she braced herself against the pain of walking on a sprained ankle. “I’ll start now.”
She broke away and marched with confidence across the lawn. Ōbhin glanced down at his gloves. Maybe, just maybe, he could do some good right here. He could earn the right to take off the Black.
For the first time he could remember, Ōbhin saw a future before him, a path that didn’t lead through the dark mines but to the sunny mountains.
The END of Book One
You must click here to find out what happens in “Ruby Ruins”!
Exciting Peek at “Dual”
Author Note: Curious about the whole story of what happened between Ōbhin and Taim in the Mines of Gunya? Check out Dual!
Doubt poisoned Taim’s thoughts as he raised his sword and parried the Black-painted bastard’s blow.
Their curved resonance blades buzzed as they clashed. Vibrations shivered the handle gripped in Taim’s dyed-olive gloves. The emerald jewelchines, portmanteau of jewel machines, in the pommels of both weapons flared to life. The power hummed through the blades, making their edges incredibly sharp, capable of cutting through stone, let alone flesh, with ease. Both blades had the sinuous curve of the tulwar, a saber-like blade favored by
