“It’s the duke,” Eli said beside her, answering her question before she spoke it. “His Enslavement is only for his spirits. He’s taking his city back.”
“Oh, no, he’s not,” Miranda said, grabbing hold of Gin’s fur and pulling herself up. But as she settled on Gin’s back, she jerked violently. Her eyes widened, and she doubled over as if she’d been punched in the stomach.
Eli, one arm pulled up beside her anyway from the chain linking them together, caught her as she wobbled. “What’s wrong?”
“It’s my rings,” Miranda whispered, her voice shaking and terrified. “They’re gone.”
Eli frowned. “I thought that was already established.”
“No,” Miranda snapped. “I mean they’re gone. Before they were there, but far away, but just now…” She shrugged helplessly. “It’s like a door closed. I can’t feel anything.”
“Miranda,” Gin growled, “calm down. It’s way too early for them to flicker out. Get a hold of yourself before you panic Mellinor.”
Miranda blanched and glanced over at the river. Sure enough, the water was washing toward her. She waved it away frantically and sat up straight, wiping her eyes with her hands.
“You’re right,” she said quietly. “But why can’t I feel them?”
“Well,” Eli said, “who did you say had them?”
“Hern,” Miranda said. “He’s another Spiritualist. A nasty one.”
“Sounds like most Spiritualists,” Eli said, nodding sagely. “Present company excluded, of course.”
Miranda didn’t even bother with the nasty look for that one. Instead, she sat, brow furrowed in furious thought, until all at once she groaned.
“I know what happened,” she said, turning to Gin. “Hern sealed himself in his tower. He’s too much of a coward to try stopping the duke’s Enslavement, so he’s separated himself to wait it out. I bet my rings are in there, too, and whatever he’s using for a seal is blocking my connection as well.”
“Then we have a problem,” Gin said. “So long as there’s some connection, the spirits can hold out by staying deeply asleep. But if the connection is gone entirely, they’ll die within the hour.”
“I know, I know,” Miranda said frantically. “But I can’t just ignore the Enslavement of an entire town!”
“Might I suggest something?” Eli interrupted.
Spiritualist and ghosthound turned to glare at him, but Eli’s cool smile didn’t falter. “You need to get your rings back before they expire, right? That’s part of your oath, isn’t it? Protection?”
“Of course it is,” Miranda growled.
“But at the same time, you, as a Spiritualist, need to stop this Enslavement before the entire town is driven mad, or else you violate your oath to protect the Spirit World.”
Gin snapped his teeth together. “Get to the point, thief.”
“The point should be clear,” Eli said. “Even you can’t be two places at once, so why don’t we split our efforts? You go rescue your rings and I’ll take care of the duke.”
“Do you think I’m stupid?” Miranda scoffed. “What’s to say you won’t just turn tail and run? Isn’t ‘get while the getting is good’ one of your rules of thievery?”
“It is,” Eli said. “Though not quite in those words. But consider this, dear Miranda”—he rolled up his sleeve—“you’re not the only one out for payback tonight.”
Miranda gasped. Eli’s arms were covered in horrible bruises. Most were red and angry; others were starting to turn a deep purple. She stared at them in disbelief. How had the thief kept up with her? She wouldn’t have been able to move with bruises like that, but the whole time that she’d been dragging him along, Eli had given no sign he was injured. Now she felt almost guilty for being so rough with him.
“Anyway,” Eli said, letting his sleeve drop again, “it’s not just vengeance for me.” He glared at the town, which was now almost totally still in submission. “I have no love for bullies and Enslavers.”
Miranda believed him on that. From what she’d seen of his tactics, spirit goodwill played an enormous part. He must have been going crazy not being able to talk to the spirits in Gaol. Eli might be a scoundrel and an embarrassment to the dignity of wizardry, but when it came to protecting the well-being of spirits, they were almost always on the same page.
Of course, once she let him go she might never get him back, but at this point surrendering Eli was a small price to pay for not having to choose between the town and her spirits.