Page 84 of Anathema

A look of uncertainty crossed his face, as if he didn’t want to tell me. “There are mages looking for you. Powerful mages.”

“Why? Because I crossed?”

“At the moment, they’re not aware of your presence here,” he said, pacing again. “But when they do become aware, and I suspect they will, you can be sure they will go to every effort to hunt you down.”

Hunt me? “Why? What did I do?”

“It isn’t what you did, but what you possess, Maevyth.” He paused his pacing. “They believe in a prophesy. Well, one I may have started …” Brows furrowed, he rubbed a finger across his lips. “I don’t want to frighten you, but you happen to possess extraordinary abilities. Is it possible you’ve stumbled upon oddities about yourself? Things you can’t explain?”

The first to come to mind had happened just before Aleysia had taken off into the woods. “I …” I hesitated, because admitting such a thing back in Foxglove would’ve stirred suspicions of witchcraft.

“Do not fear to say. We’ve been anxious to know what wonderful gifts you possess.”

“The villagers … they wanted to hurt my sister. They approached, and the moment I threw out my hands, a pile of bones lay on the ground.”

The concern etched into Dolion’s face softened to a beaming smile. With a flick of his fingers, he urged me to the bars of the cage. “Come. I must see your palm.”

I flipped my hand over and frowned down on seeing the same strange symbol I’d seen in the sky just before The Banishing etched as a faint scar on my skin. With everything that’d happened, I hadn’t noticed it at all until right then. Rubbing my thumb over the scar failed to erase it, and I pushed to my feet. Still staring down at the marking, I crossed the cell and, with a small bit of reluctance, pushed my hand between the bars.

Dolion smiled, running his thumb over the symbol that flickered under his gentle caress. “Osflagulle. My gods, I’ve never seen this particular magic before.”

“Magic?”

“You possess incredible power, Maevyth. This one, in particular, has not been seen in centuries.”

The excitement in his voice contrasted with the growing fear inside of me. The very real possibility that I’d lost my senses completely and was hallucinating everything.

“Who knows what others are tied to your bloodline.”

My head remained in a state of disbelief when I asked, “So, these mages that are hunting me, as you say—they want me because of these abilities?”

“They want your blood, I’m afraid.”

I’d definitely lost my mind. The more farfetched the story, the more questions I asked, because at that point, I couldn’t stop myself. “My blood? As a bat consumes blood.” It wasn’t a question on my part, it was a refusal to accept his explanation.

“No. To rebirth an ancient weapon.”

What started as a small chuckle in my throat grew to a full-blown laugh. I laughed so hard, tears welled in my eyes.

Dolion lowered his gaze and nodded. “For you, I imagine this all sounds quite unlikely.” His comment made me laugh harder, and I wiped the tears from my eyes, only then realizing how sore and aching they felt. It very much sounded ridiculous. Impossible.

“I can assure you, it’s all true.”

The laughter died in my chest, and the intense urge to break into tears stung the rims of my eyes, but just as before, I choked them back. “You can assure me,” I said in a flat tone. “So, how am I safe in this cell? It seems I should return before they discover I’m here.”

“Should they learn who you are, I’m afraid they won’t hesitate to seek you out, no matter which side of the vale you’re on. Here, the castle is guarded by a very powerful ward. There are also four of the king’s best assassins prepared to protect you. Tell me, do you have that level of protection back at home?”

I couldn’t even say I still had a home, let alone anyone willing to protect me there, besides Aleysia.

Aleysia.

While I sat entertaining these outrageous explanations, the likelihood of her being alive withered, because even if Moros hadn’t killed her that night, the governor and Sacton Crain would’ve surely seen to her execution. “Why would I possibly believe any of this?”

“Because I’m very invested in watching you live a long and prosperous life, Maevyth. If you believe nothing else, believe that.”

“I don’t even know you, nor do you know me.”

“I know more than you think.”

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