Page 40 of The Goddesses' Gifts

I rolled it with the toe of my boot, taking in the bewildered expression on its face before I spat on it. There was no sense of relief in meeting his dead eyes, just more weariness. I picked it up by the braid and slung it over my shoulder.

Dourlek met me inside the gates with the bundle of wood and only paused for a moment when I didn’t take the turn that would lead us down and away from the mountain.

“Where are you going?” He asked while giving me an assessing look.

“To the grotto,” I sighed. “I have business with the spirit there.”

Dourlek paled at the mention of the thing. “Is that wise?”

“Do you want to know Dulanzo’s secret or not?” I muttered over my shoulder as I strode down the false tunnel.

At that, Dourlek sprinted after me a few steps. “You’d really tell me?”

I sighed heavily. “I hadn’t intended to, but today … today I learned a valuable lesson. And I’m not so sure of some things as I was before learning it.”

Dourlek raised a brow at me. “You’re not making any sense.”

“It won’t make sense until we get there,” I shook my head. “I might be a little overwrought too.”

“I couldn’t get Rhemvile hidden away before they got to him,” Dourlek said impassively. “We were waylaid when the orcs came looking for Grelmuh’s female again.”

He’d tried explaining it all to me earlier, but I was too distracted. There were too many things in the air that needed managing and I was too numb to do more than just … do. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t even get Ozanna past Dulanzo’s keen eyes. But it all worked out. I made everything up to Lobikno. I’d given him his prickly mate and given him his sons, even if there was only the one willing to go with him.

“Why did the two boys want to stay here?” I asked out loud, though I hadn’t really meant to.

“Because you’re the father they know,” Dourlak answered without hesitation. “You’ve done better by them than you did by me.” He shrugged and looked thoughtful.

“Lessons learned,” I agreed with a frown.

We walked the rest of the way in silence.

The grotto was in the heart of the mountain. It took ten years of slave labor to find it, according to our history book, and the spirit that dwelled there required much appeasement before our ancestors dared to install the warband in its roots. It required fire and power and life in payment. Dulanzo’s head was the agreed upon payment for the spirits cooperation this time.

The grotto was a peculiarity for an underground structure. Bright green and blue moss grew thick along the stalactites and pillars that formed the chapel like space. There were hardy vines that crept along the ceiling, its pale-yellow blooms casting faint light across the cavern. They reflected in the still, clear water of the deep lake surrounding an island in the center of the large chamber. That’s where the sprit’s altar lay. Where our ancestors had left their offerings of magical significance and burned prisoners in sacrifice to the ancient creature that dwelt within.

Dourlek didn’t appear bothered by the burned bodies and old artifacts that were clearly visible at the bottom of the lake. Everything from swords and jewelry to chariots and horses, all somehow preserved in the waters, clearly visible from the stone bridge that crossed it. I found it disturbing as it didn’t fit in the natural order of things. Bodies should rot.

I set Dulanzo’s head on the altar and built a pyre to burn it upon with the bundle I’d asked Dourlek to carry. He raised a hand to light it for me, but I halted him.

“No,” I hissed. “The spirit said specifically to not use Irnon’s fire.”

“Why?” he asked, puzzled. “It will burn better.”

I shook my head. I wasn’t a priestess, so I couldn’t say exactly, but the creature had told me, “An offering burned in Irnon’s fire belongs only to Irnon.”

“Peculiar,” Dourlek frowned.

So I awkwardly lit the kindling with flint and watched the flames lick up around Dulanzo’s slack face, no longer frozen in confusion.

“What next?” Dourlek asked.

“The spirit will come bind itself to me when it accepts the offering.”

Dourlak’s eyes went wide with shock. “Is that what it was? All this time?”

“Yup.” I took a deep breath. “Do you want it instead?”

He furrowed his brows and watched me with narrow eyes for a moment before speaking. “Why don’t you want it?”

---