Syrah’s eyes lit with hope and she swallowed nervously once more. “Can I watch with you please? I think my Daddy might be there and I just want to see him. I want to know he is ok.” The words poured from Syrah and her nerves seemed to evaporate in her desperation.
“Oh Syrah.” Zoelyn murmured as she carefully took the child’s hands and noticed how the girl didn’t flinch away from her touch. Even with the gloves on Syrah would have likely pulled away if Grim had explained the nature of Undrae to her. So all of the fear was for her Father’s safety then, Zoelyn realized and her heart went out to the child. Syrah had just lost her mother and brother while her entire home burned around her, and now her father was gone as well. She was alone in a strange city and she was trying desperately to hide her fear so she wouldn’t disappoint her father on his return.
“I just want to see him.” Syrah repeated in a broken voice and tried to turn her face away before Zoelyn could see the beginning of tears in her eyes. “It’s been three days since he left and he didn’t even say good-bye.” She added hoarsely.
“You are welcome to watch with me all day, Syrah, but I don’t think you will see your Father on the scry. I don’t think he will be at the council, Sweety. He doesn’t want the High Lords to know he still lives and he went looking for Shade. Shade is an outlaw in Sanctuary. If he shows up at the council they will throw him in prison.” Zoelyn explained as she stood and pulled the girl gently into the room behind her. Her gaze rose to meet her mother’s as she pushed the door shut behind her and her eyes narrowed in warning. “I’m not sure what the scry of the Council will be like, but I hope for both our sakes everything turns out well.” She tried to keep the edge from her voice to spare Syrah, but she could tell Cora heard her anger clearly by the chagrined look on her face.
With a bright smile Cora motioned the child forward. “I’m sure everything will be just fine.” She assured them both and motioned again for Syrah to approach. “Did you fix your hair yourself, Darling? Come here and let me straighten it a bit for you. You can see the scry from my knee and I will make sure you look like the perfect young lady I’m sure you are, just in case your Father arrives today.”
At first Syrah seemed hesitant, but the thought of her father returning seemed to spur the child. Moving swiftly she dropped Zoelyn’s hands and scampered toward Cora completely oblivious to the dark glare of warning Zoelyn was giving her mother.
“False hope is worse than lying.” Zoelyn whispered as she reclaimed her seat at the table and lifted the puzzle box once more. She wasn’t the least bit interested in practicing her skills at the moment, but it would give her something to do to keep her hands from clenching into fists.
Chapter 19
Sanctuary
The cold had seeped all the way through his joints and Shade was certain once they finally did step from the Shadow realm he would be blind the moment he confronted sunlight again. His gaze lingered on the blurred outlines of prisoners milling aimlessly in their cells and he resisted the urge to count them as he turned and paced across the hall.
He knew exactly how many people were in the cell before him. He knew exactly how many people were in all of the cells that filled the massive prison. Grim had insisted that they explore the place thoroughly and for two days they had been doing little else. He knew the exact distance of each hall, how thick the walls were, and where Charm was being held. What he didn’t know was why they were still waiting.
With sheer frustration fueling his movements he spun to face Grim. The Shifter sat with his back pressed against a wall intent on something in his hands. His expression was relaxed though his grey eyes were narrowed with concentration. Frowning Shade paced closer in an attempt to see what was keeping the man so well occupied but the gloom of the hall and Grim’s nimble fingers obscured everything but a thin leather cord that dangled across one of his legs.
“I don’t understand why we are waiting.” Shade snapped impatiently.
“Six times.” Grim muttered not bothering to look up from his work.
“I think we should just move now. If we use stealth we can get Charm and the others out without anyone noticing.” Shade continued not bothering to acknowledge Grim’s comment at all. He knew perfectly well how many times he had repeated himself without the Priest pointing it out every time he spoke.
“We wait for the council meeting to start.” Grim said repeating the same tired words he had used every time Shade had broached the subject.
“If we follow your plan and release all of the prisoners we will cause a riot in the city.” Shade pressed and tried to let enough of his frustration bleed into his voice that Grim might actually listen.
“The Fionaveir should have considered that before they locked so many innocent people away. They can’t be left here to rot forever, and they will provide us with a very nice distraction for our escape.” Grim countered in a distracted voice.
“This is a perfect example of you doing the right thing for the wrong reasons.” Shade pointed out bluntly and glared down at the Priest.
“Yes it is.” Grim agreed without the faintest hint of remorse. He let out a sigh and finally raised his eyes to meet Shade’s furious glare. “If we tried to sneak out of here like you want Myth would have the perfect opportunity to ambush us during our escape. Without the benefit of the entire prison rioting we will be forced to cut our way through the Fionaveir. I’d much rather face Myth one on one than with an army of angry prison guards at his back, and I feel inclined to point out once again that Myth is a High Lord and you are an outlaw. Who do you think the Fionaveir guards will listen to? Especially if we have a handful of prisoners with us.”