Page 145 of A Tower of Half-Truths
“Mother help me if I have to rely on him and hisarcanato save my arse.”
Alain set his jaw as he flashed Neldren an icy glare. “With any luck, it won’t come to that.”
“For fuck’s sake, we’re not even out of the city yet!” Ellice said, throwing up her hands. “Why don’t we all attempt to tolerate one another’s companyin silence?”
“Now, there’s an excellent idea,” Neldren said. He shot Alain one final glare, and his expression softened as he turned his attention to Ellice.
“That, at least, we can agree on,” Alain said beneath his breath. He opened his pack, pulled out one of his books, and resumed his reading. From her own pack, Mavery retrieved a book—a detective novel she’d picked up ages ago but had set aside to prioritize the spell presentation. With a sigh, she leaned her head against the window frame and began to read.
The rest of the day progressed in near silence. Alain and Mavery kept to their books while Neldren and Ellice played cards. It made for a painfully dull day of travel, but at least there were no more arguments.
Around dusk, they stopped in a thoroughfare town along the Royal Turnpike. But finding a place to rest and change horses proved easier said than done. The first inn they came across refusedto rent rooms to an unwed couple, and their rates were too exorbitant to justify individual rooms. The next one turned them down on the basis of having a Nilandoren among them. In the end, they were forced to settle on what had to be the town’s most ramshackle inn, but it had cheap rooms and a less discriminating innkeeper.
They finished checking in as the final dregs of dinner were being served. Alain opted to take his bowl of gristly stew and heel of day-old bread up to his room, claiming he’d come across a potentially useful incantation he wanted to memorize. The other four—Neldren had invited Evrard to join them—gathered around one of the long tables in the dining room.
As Neldren and Ellice taught the young driver the finer points of Tribute, Mavery was reminded of a similar evening at a similar inn. In fact, this place was like a larger version of Seringoth’s Rest, down to the watery ale and the portrait of some long-dead Archmage hanging on the wall. Like that night over two months ago, Mavery longed to be among different company. Unlike that night, no one protested when she rose from her chair and left the room.
Forty-Three
Alain was stretched out on the single bed, his back against the headboard and a thick book propped open on his chest. He read it in the warm glow of the oil lamp on the bedside table. His pounding head and aching body begged him to get some rest. Yet, he continued to read.
Earlier that afternoon, he’d read about an obfuscation ward to create a dense fog. The spell had been developed in the fourth century, so with any hope, it would be similar to the one protecting the Innominate Temple. Using Declan’s scroll as a baseline, he could reverse-engineer this obfuscation ward and create his own counterspell. But that would require—
A knock at the door interrupted his thoughts. The ward he’d placed only protected him from faulty spellcasting; it did nothing to dampen the sounds coming from inside or outside his room. He wished he’d taken the time to place a soundproofing ward. The walls in this inn were nearly as thin as its mattresses, and all these interruptions were making it difficult to concentrate. A heated argument had erupted from one of the rooms down the hall. But worse still was his travel companions’ uproarious laughter. The sound of Neldren’s voice was especially grating on Alain’s last frayed nerve.
“It’s me,” said Mavery’s voice through the closed door. “Areyou still awake?”
Well, there was at leastonesound he didn’t mind.
“Yes,” he said. “Come in, it’s unlocked.”
The door swung open, and the air rippled as Mavery passed through the protective ward. He could only imagine this room was similar to her former accommodations at the boarding house: cramped, dusty, and with furniture that favored function over comfort. Though Mavery was likely as road weary as he was, she was nonetheless an exquisite sight. Too exquisite for this dingy room.
“Are you planning to come back downstairs?” she asked.
“And be further lambasted by your former lover who very clearly despises me? No, thank you. I can think of better ways to spend my evening.” He gestured to his book. “This, for instance.”
“I know he’s an ass, but it’s not personal. His line of work has left him with a poor opinion of wizards as a whole.”
“I’ll keep that in mind the next time he throws an insult in my direction.” Alain turned a page. “Go on, don’t let me ruin your fun.”
She snorted. “Yes, I’m having a rip-roaring time with Neldren, Ellice, and their soon-to-be newest accomplice.” She took a step forward, closed the door behind her. “I’d much rather spend my evening with you, assuming you don’t mind the company.”
He looked up from the book with a smile. “I will never turn down your company. Come here.”
She locked the door and kicked off her boots before clambering over the foot of the ramshackle bed. With every movement, the wooden frame creaked, the mattress rustled. How Alain missed his bed filled with cotton and reinforced with box springs. And that was to make no mention of the plush blankets and feather pillows.
He shifted, wincing as a lump prodded his ribcage. “It’s awful, isn’t it?”
“A bit,” she said, making a similar expression as she settled between his body and the wall. She peered at his book. “What are you reading?”
He began to explain his plan for creating a counterspell, but after a few sentences, her eyes glazed over. Her gaze lingered on apoint in the vicinity of his mouth.
“I’ve completely lost you, haven’t I?” he asked.
“I caught maybe the first half. For what it’s worth, I do love watching you talk, even when I’m not following a word of it.”
Her eyes met his, and a carnal gleam indicated that spellcraft was the furthest thing from her mind. Taking the hint, he put the book aside, then turned until they lay face to face. He brushed aside a lock of hair that had fallen across her eye, caressed her face as he’d done while lying together on a far superior bed.
