Page 33 of The Surviving Sky
Chaiyya and Airav had moved away when she’d approached Iravan, but now Ahilya turned back to them, her gesture protective of her husband. The councilors all stood in a cluster, watching her.
“Why didn’t the alarm go off?” she repeated, louder.
Kiana coughed and fidgeted with her wooden cane, leaning on it and straightening like she couldn’t decide. “We don’t know yet,” she said at last.
“You don’t know.”
“I assure you we’ll be looking into itclosely—”
“Don’t you dare,” Ahilya said softly. “My apprentice is dead. Iravan and I nearly died. So, you will give me more thanI don’t know.”
Senior Sungineer Kiana pursed her lips.
Ahilya glanced from her to Bharavi. “Why didn’t the alarm go off, Bha? I deserve an answer.”
Bharavi cleared her throat. “It should have,” she said slowly. “By our assessment.”
“Then why didn’t it?”
“It…it wasn’t sounded on time,” Bharavi replied. “We don’t allow anyone but a Senior Architect at the watchpost,and—”
Ahilya swung back to face the council architects. “So, it was one of you. Which one? Who was at the watchpost?”
The councilors glanced at each other, but no one said a word. Then Airav made a gesture, and from behind the rudra tree, a figure walked forward, trembling.
For a moment, Ahilya didn’t understand. “Naila,” she said, seeing her shake from head to toe. “No, but you’re no SeniorArchitect—youwere supposed to be withme—”
She cut herself off. The muscles in her legs grew weak. It took a long time for her to turn to see Iravan straighten on his chair. Ahilya stared at him, feeling dizzy, horror and disbelief coursing through her. Her hand disengaged from his. Her feet staggered back.
Iravan locked gazes with her warily, shadows darkening on his face.
11
IRAVAN
The room spun. Iravan knew what was happening. He didn’t have enough blood in his head. He tried to focus on Ahilya, the one thing he had tried his best to hold on to during the horror of the jungle.She’s here. She’s safe.
But Ahilya’s expression changed as his gaze locked on hers. Her mouth fell open. Her fingers flexed, then tightened into fists.
He recognized those signs. He ought to know what they meant.
Iravan blinked. Something was escaping him. Something that had happened.
He gripped the arms of the healbranch chair with shaking hands, noticing the angry black welts burned into his skin. Trajection scars. That was bad. He had felt the rudra tree’s healing presence through a daze. Why hadn’t the scars receded? Oh, rages. His Two Visions had merged. He had become the magnaroot. He had tried to kill himself. Wrong, wrong,wrong.
They were all staring at him. The councilors looked watchful, wary. AndAhilya…She was backing away. He read fury in herstance…and something more, something he had never seen before, glittering in her beautiful eyes like an open wound, except darker,eviscerating—
Betrayal.
On the heels of the understanding came another. He was in danger, grave mortal danger.
But that was ridiculous; he was in the temple. His eyes slipped from Ahilya toward Bharavi and the other councilors, then back to his wife.
Pieces clicked in his mind, as though he had finally seen the obvious path to a difficult trajection. Images returned, of crushing Naila’s rudra bead, entering the jungle despite his misgivings, someone he had left behind, so many mistakes he hadmade—
Oh, rages.
“Ahilya,” he began, his voice hoarse. “Please,listen—”
