Page 148 of Insolence
My friend lights up as soon as she clocks us. “Bibi! Hello!”
“Bibi! Hello! Bibi!” Head bobbing, my raven imitates Maida’s voice perfectly.
“Elodie?” My friend’s glee falters when she sees me. “Whatever is the matter?” She stands aside, holding the door when I fail to produce an answer. “Come in.”
Bibi pushes off me with the rustle of wings and as much grace as she can muster once I’m across the threshold. Flaps throughthe arched doorway. Without looking, I know she’s settling on the canopy at the end of Maida’s bed—her favorite perch in here.
Maida turns to me once we’re safely behind closed doors. Folds her arms over her chest. Now that I’m finally safe to let my walls down, the words somehow won’t form.
I glance around absently.
“Elodie, you’re frightening me. What’s wrong? Are you hurt?”
“No. Yes.”Fuck. My hands go to my head. “Everything’s wrong, Maida.”
“You can tell me anything. You know that, yes?”
“I know. It’s just that—” I take a deep breath.Goddess, my secret’s almost bigger than I am at this point. It’s slitting open my own tender belly to so much asthinkit. Reminding myself that I’m safe with her, thatsheis safe,I close my eyes. Force it out: “I remember everything, Maida.”
She stares, perplexed. “You remember everything about what, dear?”
“No. You don’t understand.” I wander into her bedroom. Sit on the padded bench at the foot of her bed. Bracing my elbows on my thighs, I scrub my hands over my face. Whisper, “I remember everything about my life before I came to the temple.”
Every word is harder to say than the one that came before.
Silence expands in the room. Even Bibi stays motionless above us.
“How?” Maida finally manages.
“Wish I could say for sure. I have theories,” I shrug. Look at her. “The ritual didn’t work on me.”
Chapter 44
El
Approximately 7.5 Years Ago
The first day I ever see Tiss, we’re both far from home.
I’m helping Ma, manning our booth during the ten-day Festival of Aetinne in the city-state of Nehel. It kicks off on the summer solstice.
Rich and poor alike browse the maze-like jumble of stalls and booths that pop up on the Citadel—the elevated city center flanked by the Great Library and University of Nehel. Writers, scholars, scientists, and more come to celebrate the Goddess of Knowledge.
Ma is inside the library consulting with conservators about restoring manuscripts. Meanwhile, I’m selling books printed by Pop’s press.
The finest and most expensive have been illuminated by Ma’s skilled hand, as well as my own. She taught me everything I know.
A landscape sits on my easel. It depicts the extensive library and university complex—the portion within my view. When finished, I plan to sell it for a tidy profit.
I’m between customers. Half-hidden behind the genre novels, art pamphlets, and botany guides heaped on the makeshift counter. I’ve just finished mulling together freshly ground lapis pigment and linseed oil. The resulting paint is silky smooth and dazzling blue.
I’ve only just scraped some onto my palette when a frisson erupts at my nape. My only warning that my life is about to change forever.
I look over and—
There she is.
A curtain of ebony hair hangs over one shoulder. Jewel-blue eyes move over my canvas. “That’s lovely.” She lifts a delicate chin. “Remarkable, in fact.”
