“My first day in the garden behind the palace.” Sometimes she forgot that all her memories of Rinnish were not tainted by ashes and burning.
She had climbed down and Han had shown her the fountain. They’d sat on the edge, their feet dangling in the water, while the flashing goldfish nibbled on their toes, and pink petals stuck to her wet legs. “You were teaching me to speak Harshen.”
“You were lonely with no one to talk to.”
She studied him, trying to make his face match the face of the kind little boy. “Why did you warn my parents?”
“You were my friend,” he said simply.
She lay beside him, feeling the gentle swaying of the boat. Once her muscles relaxed, she could no longer move. “Thank you,” she whispered. “Thank you for saving me. Again.”
Chapter 20
That day I realized something was different about Lilette. Her song wasn’t just strong, her witch sense wasn’t just accurate. Something else was happening. ~Jolin
A hand on Lilette’s shoulder shook her awake. Jolin crouched beside her. Han was nowhere to be seen. Lilette pushed the hair out of her face and sat up. Inside the hold, the heat of midday had made her tunic and trousers stick to her body. Her whole being ached, her heart worst of all, for her sister was gone.
Jolin gave her an orange and a cup of water. Eyes closed, Lilette held the fruit against her lips. She heard the tearing and smelled the orange rind as Jolin peeled her own breakfast. Lilette started into hers.
“We’ll begin where we left off,” Jolin said. “You’re a fast learner.”
Lilette took a bite of tangy sweetness. “I don’t need lessons in the Creators’ language—I remember it.”
“When did that happen?”
Memories assaulted Lilette again. Her sister twirling in the air, tears streaming down her face as Chen and the emperor forced her to kill. Lilette frowned. “I don’t want to talk about it.”
Thankfully, Jolin let it go. She taught Lilette witch songs until it grew unbearably hot below decks. By then, Lilette’s headache was better, so they went topsides. She held her hair up to let the breeze reach her neck while she looked for Han, but he was nowhere to be seen.
For lunch, they ate rice cooked on bolted-down braziers, and chewed on salt fish. There were mangoes, so sweet Lilette groaned with pleasure at her first bite. She sucked every last morsel off the pit before throwing it overboard.
By midafternoon, her head throbbed again and her thoughts were fuzzy. She held her hands over her ears. “Stop! My head can’t fit anymore.”
Jolin smiled to herself and Lilette realized that had been her goal—to fill Lilette’s thoughts with something besides heartache over leaving her sister. She and Jolin took a nap curled under the shade of one of the masts.
When Lilette woke, the sun wasn’t quite so hot, and a woman stood over them. She was a bit older than most of the keepers on board, and pale as a snail’s belly.
Jolin quickly sat up. “Lilette, this is Nassa.”
The woman sat down beside Lilette without so much as a glance at Jolin. “The famed Lilette. Your song was rumored to be strong enough to guarantee your place as Head of Light one day.”
Lilette remembered singing for strangers—thousands of them. As a child of seven, she longed to play with her sister, dig in the garden behind their tree, or go swimming with her father. But there were always lessons and performances.
Shaking herself out of her memories, Lilette noticed the tension between her friend and Nassa. “Jolin?” she said hesitantly.
Geth moved toward them. “It’s time,” he said to Jolin.
She stood and brushed off her dress. “Geth agreed to let me stop at one of the smallest islands to gather the seeds I lost in Rinnish. I’ll see you later.”
Lilette watched her climb onto a small boat, a dozen guardians going with her. “Such a keen mind,” Nassa said. “Such a shame it is wasted.”
Lilette’s gaze narrowed. “Jolin’s mind hasn’t been wasted.”
Nassa tsked. “Well, not completely. She’s brilliant with potions, but she cannot sing for her concoctions or even her garden. She has to have a keeper on hand to help her. That’s why she’ll never be Head of Plants, no matter how many breakthroughs she has.”
Lilette watched as the boat was lowered. “I thought Plants was chosen because of proficiency with potions.”
“Certainly, but a Head must be a full keeper, and Jolin will never move beyond an apprentice.”
Before Lilette could respond, Nassa went on. “Let’s test your song then.” She held out a small seed between her forefinger and thumb.