The Legend of Eli Monpress(333)

Nico stared at him, bewildered. But Tesset just smiled, releasing her hand.

“It helps to find a goal,” he said, his gruff voice almost wistful as he leaned back to stare at the fire. “Mastering your soul becomes easier when you’re chasing something greater than yourself. Mine is to meet Den one more time before I die and finally fight him as an equal.”

“But,” Nico said, “he’s had that enormous bounty on his head for twenty-five years now with no news. How do you even know he’s still alive?”

“He’s alive,” Tesset said fiercely. “Wherever he is, I know he’s alive. Men like Den don’t die without the world knowing. One day I will find him, and then I will show him how much I have learned.”

Nico looked at Tesset as though she were seeing him for the first time, his brown hair touched with gray, his brown skin warm and dark in the firelight, his hawk-nosed face set with absolute determination, and she believed him. She licked her dry lips, thinking of what she would ask him next about how she could begin down the road to understanding what he’d told her. But before she could get the words out, she was cut off by the unmistakable sound of a door being kicked down, followed immediately by the sound of a dog snarling and a woman’s surprised scream.





CHAPTER

15




There,” Miranda said, straightening up. “That should do it.”

The house she’d been moved to was smaller than the one she’d shared with Tesset and Sparrow, but far better suited to her purposes. It had been a storage building, and as such it was one large room with a high roof and a pair of double doors wide enough for Gin to squeeze through. He was now lying stretched out against the wall with his head resting on his paws by the front door and his haunches hanging out the back. Next to him, a small wood-burning stove with a roaring fire far larger than it was meant to contain kept out any chill the open back door might have let in. Other than the stove, the building had no furniture. Miranda had made the bandits move it all out to make room for her custom prison.

Everywhere Gin wasn’t, a bed of soft, springy moss covered the plank floor in a thick green carpet. At the center of the moss was what could only be described as a stone barrel. The barrel was filled to the brim with impossibly blue water, and sitting in the water up to his chin was Eli, looking extremely nonplussed.

“I’m getting a cramp,” he announced, shifting in the water, or trying to. “It’s unhealthy to stay still this long. And the water is cold.”

“You’ll live,” Miranda said, leaning against Gin with a smug expression. Eli gave her a pathetic look, and Miranda, after a dramatic eye rolling, waved her hand. All of her rings were glowing like embers, but it was the cloudy emerald taking up the bottom joint of her left thumb that flashed the brightest. A moment later the stone barrel creaked and widened a few inches, giving Eli room to fold his legs.

“Much better,” the thief sighed. “Thank you, Durn.”

The stone spirit rumbled a warning before settling down into his new shape.

Eli arched his eyebrows and leaned forward. Or he tried to, but the water stopped him before he’d gotten more than an inch. He made himself comfortable as best he could, grinning at Miranda as though this half-forward trapped position was what he had intended all along.

“I’ve been in a lot of prisons,” he said. “But this has to be the most elaborate. How long do you intend to keep this up?”

“As long as I have to,” Miranda said. “It’s clear we’re not getting out of here anytime soon, and I know better than to leave you alone. So until I get you to Zarin and hand you over to Banage himself, I’m not taking my eyes off you.”

“What, you’re just going to sit there and stare at me?” Eli said. “I’m flattered, don’t misunderstand, but aren’t you being a bit unreasonable? I mean, I’m just sitting here enjoying the soak while you’re keeping every spirit you have on full burn. That’s got to take it out of you. How long do you honestly think you can keep it up?”

“I’ll worry about that,” Miranda said.

There was no reason to tell the thief, but she’d planned out a schedule. Right now, Kirik, her fire spirit in the stove, and Alliana, her moss, were on guard. When they got tired, she’d bring out Eril, her wind spirit, and Allinu, her mountain mist, to take their place. Durn, being stone, could watch forever, and she knew better than to question Mellinor’s resolve. Keeping up all these spirits was difficult, but it wasn’t like she had anything more important to do. When she did need to sleep or empty her bladder, Gin could keep an eye on things. It wasn’t a perfect solution, but since Sparrow was dragging his feet, it would have to do. One thing, however, was certain: She was not going to give the thief a moment of leeway. Not an inch of freedom. She had won; she had him. All she had to do to secure her victory forever was get him back to Zarin. This time, she would make sure that happened, no matter the cost. This time, Eli would not escape.