Page 83 of A Conduit of Light
Notfor the first time,Revichwondered who this author was.Howhad she known such information that was privy only to aBaron?Herinsight and detail of the four trials was remarkable.Heflipped back to the cover ofToTrainaConduit:AHistoryof theConduitTrialsbyThaliaLighton.
He’dnever heard the author’s name outside of this book he kept in their rooms.Itwas surprisingly helpful.Histime was coming to conduct the conduit trials given toKarus,Figuerah, andClairannia.Bythen,BaronHeimlenwould be dead and his own reign asBaronofficial.
Hestood to pace.
Paceand brood.
Hedid that more and more these days.
Hemust find a way to keepKarusaway from theBlightfor now.Heknew well enough that nothing he could say could stop her, but maybe, just maybe,BaronHeimlencould convince her to keep her distance.
Therewas too much they didn’t know.Karusaround theBlightwas too risky, even with bothBaronsthere with her.Revichhad had high hopes thatMoirawould divulge some important information that they were lacking, and, so it seemed, she had.
Herubbed the tips of his fingers, grinning at the remembrance ofKarus’shealing touch, the evidence of their sunburn faint.
Fuck,she was gifted.
Shehadn’t even begun her medicus lessons and she was able to heal him almost completely.
Hewanted more than anything to ridFelgrenof theBlight.Thesooner that happened, the sooner they could live their lives together.Therewas so much to do in hisBaronshipthat he often felt as if decades were never going to be long enough.
Hehad ideas and plans to streamline the trainings and bring more channelers at one time.Theisle had its faults.Therewere holes in the system that it ran upon, but they could be fixed.Theycould be patched up with the help of more conduits, thus more opportunities to train and help the people who needed it most.
Hehad lived it firsthand.Hisvillage had all worked together to give what they could for him and the other orphans.Somany orphans were made by the hardship that was rhyzolm mining, but it didn’t have to be that way.Lapisconduits were the rarest, true, but if he could focus on finding more of them, if he could just train enough to help the people of his village who searched for the precious stone without magic…maybe he could prevent what had happened to him.
Beingraised by a village kept him alive, but it did not keep him loved.Ifthat was something he could prevent other orphaned children from experiencing, he’d use every last piece of power he contained to do so.
Pacingstill, he found himself in front of the box he had carved forKarus.Smiling, he opened it, hoping to just hold the rhyzolm again, but as the lilting music played, he realized she must have it on her.Thesound filled the room and the absence of her presence was heavy and obvious.
Hesat on her side of the bed which was somewhat still tidy as she hadn’t slept in it the night before.
Shame.
Heloved waking next to her.Shewould be tangled up beside him, her bare skin so tempting to touch, her frazzled hair flooding her face and usually draped across his chest.
Heshould leave.Itwas going to do him no good to stay here and reminisce about the woman he loved to love.Along walk in the forest could possibly relieve some of his more anxious thoughts.
Ashe entered the foyer, he spied a swish of skirts leaving it, headed toward the dining hall.
Hefollowed them, grinning, like a stalker of prey, hoping to catch up and startle her.Agreat joy of his since he loved to see her so out of breath in many situations.
Sheentered the kitchens through the dining room, and as he reached the door, he heard her speak.
“Lia, are there more cinnamon buns leftover from this morning?”
“Ofcourse not, love.”
“Alright, well, what breads do you have?Mylittle fae friend demands more flour-based goods.Andbutter.Lotsof butter.”
“Aye, thatIcan get for you.Justsit right there andI’llgather the load.”
“Thankyou,Lia.AndcanIask you a question?”
Realizinghe was now completely eavesdropping,Revichturned to head back toward the hallway, hoping to catchKaruson her way toMoira.Thequestion she asked next stopped him.
“Wereyou the cook here whenBaronRevicharrived?”
“Iwas.Iwas here much earlier than that, too.”
