Mara kept quiet during the uneventful two-day trip. I filled my father in on what had been going on with the Cartel and me. He was delighted about his soon-to-be grandchild and new son-in-law, although he warned me that Sitia wouldn’t recognize the union until we filed the official papers, which might not happen if the Cartel remained in power.
Memories surged to the surface of my thoughts when we checked into the Cloverleaf Inn, which was one of the only two inns in town. We rented a four-room suite on the top floor so we could stay together. The place had been our headquarters while we’d planned a way to defeat Roze Featherstone and her Warpers six years ago. It’d been a long shot, and it hadn’t gone as we’d hoped—Moon Man and many others had died—but we’d won in the end and reinstated the Sitian Council.
With a start, I remembered that I’d been unable to use my magic during that time, as well. If I’d pulled any power, Roze would have learned of my location. The situation with the Cartel was on a grander scale than our problems with the Warpers, but not that different.
I mulled it over. Excitement built as new possibilities bubbled in my mind. I didn’t need magic. Yes, I missed it; I’ve relied on my power for years and helped many people. But I didn’t need it. I was quite capable of dealing with problems without it.
For the first time since I’d woken up without my magic, I accepted my condition. It was time to move on and stop moping about it. My power would either return when the baby was born, or it wouldn’t.
Energized, I strode from my room. Esau sat on the couch, reading a botany book, and Mara was curled up in the armchair with a cup of tea. I called for Onora.
She shot into the living area with her knives in hand.
“Sorry to scare you,” I said. “But I’d like to resume our training while we wait for Leif.”
Onora glanced out the window. “Now? It’s almost dark.”
“Don’t assassins use the darkness to their advantage?”
“You want to be an assassin?”
“No. But I want to learn all the same skills.”
“Me, too,” Mara said. Putting her cup down with a clatter, she hopped to her feet. “Can you be an assassin without killing anyone?”
Onora shot her an odd look. “I...don’t know. I don’t think so.”
“Is there a name for people who have those skills?” Mara asked.
“Yes. Dangerous,” I said.
Mara rubbed her hands together as a gleam lit her eyes. “Oh, I like that. I want to be dangerous.”
I exchanged a glance with Onora.
“If she’s going to hang out with you and Leif, she should learn how to defend herself,” Onora said.
True. “All right, let’s get started. Father, would you like to learn how to sneak around in the dark?” I asked Esau.
“I’ve been sneaking around in the dark since before you were born,” he said. “How do you think I get those notte flowers for your mother’s perfume? They only bloom in the dead of night, and any bit of light will make them close up tighter than a...er...” He cleared his throat. “If you can navigate the jungle at night without being eaten by a tree leopard or garroted by a necklace snake, then I’d say you don’t need any assassin training.”
“You know, a simple ‘no’ would have sufficed,” I teased.
“Where’s the fun in that?”
“I see where Leif gets his sense of humor,” Onora said.
*
While we waited for Fisk’s messenger to arrive, Onora taught Mara and me a number of skills she’d found helpful.
“If you’re going to be in a lit room for only a short time, then a way to keep your dark-adapted vision is to close one eye when you reach the light. Then, when you return to the shadows, open that eye and you won’t be completely blind,” she explained.
Onora also showed us how to read body language and to move without making too much noise.
“It’s all in keeping your balance and picking up your feet when you walk. Most people are lazy and shuffle. Rubber soles help, as well, if you’re going to wear boots,” she said.
“Why don’t you wear boots?” Mara asked.
“My toes grip better than any sole, and the bottoms of my feet can feel noisy things such as dried leaves or small twigs before I step on them. To me, wearing shoes is like putting gloves on hands. You lose your sensitivity.”
We practiced late at night when there were no other sounds to cover our movements. But we kept our boots on. Onora had been going barefoot for as long as she could remember, and her feet were conditioned to withstand the rough ground and cold air.
“I had to wear boots when I was in the army, but I shucked them whenever possible,” she said.
We taught Mara a number of self-defense moves, as well. The training kept me from worrying too much about Valek and Leif or from imagining all the dire reasons Fisk’s messenger hadn’t arrived yet. After two days of practice, Mara seemed a bit more like her old self. And while the time wasn’t nearly long enough to learn everything or to be truly proficient in anything, it was a start in the right direction.
After we ate breakfast in our rooms on the third morning, Onora asked, “How long are we going to wait for Fisk?”