Page 107 of Boxed In

The warrior's expression turned rigid, and she reached for his hand, holding tight as the priest continued speak.

“You almost took another man’s life by jumping into the fire.”

Luke’s lips firmed, and his chin jutted upward. “I’m sorry for that. But you gave me no choice.”

Olivia braced for a further rebuke. But the priest looked sad—and abashed. “We made a mistake with Zabastian, and I want to apologize.”

She caught her breath in astonishment, then stole a glance at Luke, and he looked as confounded as she felt.

“Zabastian was a loyal warrior,” Father Delanos continued. “And we used him for our own purposes. We should have realized that we were asking him to take on more than any soul could endure.”

“Yes,” Luke whispered, but she sensed both men answering.

“You are free of us. I hope the time you spend with Luke Garner will be good for you. I hope it will help make up for your long punishment.”

“Thank you,” Luke whispered. He straightened his shoulders. “What about the Poisoned Ones?”

“They are dead,” the priest said.

“You killed them?” Olivia whispered.

“No. The men who sent them to steal the box punished them for their failure.”

“Who are they exactly?” Olivia asked, because all this time she’d been wondering who was really trying to kill them.

“Men who are the ancestors of priests who were part of our society. Some of them wanted power, and they tried to take it from us. They were expelled from the temple and went out to live in the world, marrying women who would continue their line. Over the years, they and their descendants have tried to acquire the potency of the box when we have sent it from the temple into the world to regenerate its power. But they have never been successful. Thanks in part to Zabastian. And lucky for us, because they don’t understand that if the chest stays too long outside the temple, it will discharge its energy—to very bad effect.”

Olivia winced, then asked, “What happens now that you don’t have Zabastian working for you?”

“We have decided on another method. The younger ones of us will draw straws. And one will volunteer to guard the box. But for no longer than a hundred years.”

“Only a hundred years,” Olivia murmured.

“Shortening our lives is a small price to pay to keep the box safe. Our order is important to the world. To keeping the peace among the factions of mankind.” He smiled. “Or, I guess the way you would say it in this age is ‘humankind.’”

“Yes.” She gave him a questioning look. “Where will you keep the box?”

“It must be in a place where men—people—gather. We will move from city to city. But not yet. It can stay safe here for a decade before we must make other arrangements.”

Olivia swallowed. “When Zabastian leaped into the fire—did he disrupt the power of the box?”

“Only a little. He waited until the end.”

Beside her, Luke let out the breath he must have been holding. She glanced at him, seeing the relief on his face. Then she turned back to the priest. She knew she was asking a lot of questions, but she also knew this was her only chance to get answers to some of them.

“And when you’re in the temple, how do you keep up with what’s going on in the outside world?”

“Now we watch your television and listen to your radio. And sometimes we bring other media into the temple.”

She nodded.

“You must leave us soon.”

Olivia felt a dart of alarm. Since returning from the tunnel, she hadn’t been thinking about the outside world. Now she remembered they still had a problem. “What about the police?” she asked.

“I have adjusted their memories. They no longer remember that they were looking for Olivia Weston and Luke Garner.”

“But our friends from Decorah Security will remember?” Olivia asked.

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