‘The final resting place of Kaji,’ Leesha said.

Arlen nodded. ‘Nearly died getting my hands on the map, copied right from under the dama’s noses. Spent weeks wandering the desert looking for the place. The Krasians said it was lost to the sands, but I got a stubborn streak.’

‘Honest word,’ Leesha agreed.

Arlen’s eyes glittered. ‘But I found it, Leesha! Anoch Sun, the ripping lost city of Kaji, and I found it! It was half buried, but even so, more beautiful than any place you ever saw. Its palaces dwarfed anything the dukes reside in, perfectly preserved beneath the sand. In the greatest of these, I found a stair into the catacombs, and searched.’

Rojer was leaning forward eagerly now. ‘What did you find?’

‘Kaji,’ Arlen said. ‘Or one of his descendants. He was embalmed and wrapped in cloth, arms still gripping his spear.’

‘The Spear of Kaji,’ Leesha said, a cold feeling growing in her gut. Ahmann’s spear.

Arlen nodded. ‘I brought it to Krasia to share its secrets. They all thought me a liar until it first flared to life, killing a demon in the Maze. An hour later, I was leading the charge, all the Sharum chanting my name. Two hours after that, Jardir and his men laid a trap to steal it from me, Kaval and Coliv among them. They beat me and took the spear, throwing me into a pit with a live sand demon.’

‘Creator,’ Renna said, her eyes wide. Her lip curled into a snarl, and she gripped the bone handle of the huge knife sheathed at her waist.

‘How did you escape?’ Rojer asked.

‘Killed the demon and climbed out of the pit,’ Arlen said. ‘So Jardir cracked me on the head and they dumped me out on the dunes to die.’

Renna growled. ‘I’ll gut those sons of the …’

Arlen laid a hand over hers, and she calmed. ‘Kaval and Coliv were just following orders. Ent their fault. They’re just drones. Jardir’s the mind.’

‘He must have seen your looting the sacred city and the tomb of Kaji as a terrible violation,’ Leesha said.

Arlen shrugged. ‘Should I have left the lost magics to sleep under the sand?’

‘Of course not, but you must understand their perspective,’ Leesha said.

Arlen looked at her, incredulous. ‘What I understand is that Jardir stole the greatest weapon in the world from me, and instead of sharing its secrets, he is using it to murder and enslave his way across Thesa. What I cannot understand is why you continue to defend that son of a camel’s piss …’

His eyes widened. ‘You stuck him.’

‘That is none of your business!’ Leesha had not meant to shout, but anger had been building in her all night, along with a constant brewing nausea and a searing in her head that could brand a cow. She knew the outburst confirmed his words, but that only made her angrier. ‘And you should talk!’ She whisked a hand at Renna.

Renna said nothing, but she rose from her seat, striding around the tea table to advance on Leesha. Their eyes met, and Leesha knew how Rojer must have felt when Kaval came at him. She fumbled at her apron for something to defend herself with, but Renna caught her wrist and snatched it away.

‘Got something you want to say to me, I’m right here,’ she growled.

‘Ahhh!’ Leesha gasped as the young woman twisted.

Arlen was there in an instant, grabbing Renna’s own wrist. ‘That’s enough, Ren!’ He pulled at her, but for a moment, she resisted him. Arlen, who was strong as a rock demon, and she resisted him. He looked as surprised as Leesha, and for a moment she wondered if Renna might kill her. The wild young woman leaned in, their noses nearly touching, and Leesha shrank back, worried she might wet herself and lose what little dignity remained to her.

But Renna just spoke, her words low and even. ‘He said the words of promise to me, Leesha Paper. Did he say them to you?’

Leesha gaped. The words were almost identical to those Gared Cutter had said to Messenger Marick, right before they came to blows over Leesha. ‘N-no,’ she stuttered at last.

‘Then you mind your own business about us.’ Renna let go of Leesha’s wrist and stepped back. Arlen let go of her arm, and she turned on her heel, storming out of the cottage.

Leesha rubbed her sore wrist and cast Arlen a withering glance. ‘Lovely woman you’ve found.’

Arlen glared at her, and immediately she regretted the words. She reached out to him, but her hand passed right through as he dissipated into smoke and vanished.

For a moment, she and Rojer just stared at the spot where he’d been. Finally, Rojer shook his head and turned to Leesha with a grin. ‘Could’ve been worse.’

Leesha glared at him. ‘Shouldn’t you be getting back to your wives?’

Rojer shook his head, coming over and putting his arms around her. ‘They can wait a bit.’

Leesha tried to pull away, but he held her tight, and after a moment, she stopped resisting. Still he held her, and she slowly raised her arms to return the embrace.

And then she wept.

Renna strode past the Cutter girl with nary a glance, picking up speed as she entered the garden maze. Wanting to put as much distance as possible between her and that witch’s cottage, she broke into a trot, and then a full run. But no matter how fast she went, the pain and anger followed her, and she found them impossible to embrace.

She pulled free her knife. She would hunt, killing a coreling and feasting on its magic-infused flesh. The power would ease her pain – lost in the rush, she would feel nothing but ecstasy.

She remembered the feeling of Arlen grabbing her wrist. He had pulled hard, and she had resisted him. He could still have forced her arm away if he had mustered his full strength, but even that was coming closer to her grasp. Soon, she would be as strong as he was.

A mist rose on the path in front of her. For a moment Renna tensed, thinking it was a coreling to kill. But the sun had long since set, and she had never seen a demon rise at any other time. It was Arlen.

One of his new tricks. He had not lied when he said there were more each day, and his comfort in using them, at least in front of Renna, was growing. He called this one ‘skating’ – slipping just beneath the surface and riding currents of magic, travelling from one place to another in an instant.

Renna had attempted it, but thus far dematerializing was beyond her. Whether she had not eaten enough coreflesh, or if it had not yet had enough time to change her was unclear. It might be months. Or years.

But I’ll get there, she promised herself. Sure as the sun rises.

Arlen solidified, catching Renna as she ran into him. ‘What in the Core was all that about? Promised to hold your temper.’

Renna shook her head. ‘Promised not to hit anyone. Din’t.’

Arlen sighed. ‘Fair and true if you’re playing to the letter, but you’re a grown woman, Ren. Can’t just bully everyone.’

‘Witch needed a bit of bullying, and a reminder that you ent hers,’ she glared at Arlen, ‘and she ent yours, even if you two used to slap stomachs and never saw fit to mention.’

She began moving again, picking a direction at random and striding so Arlen had to hurry to keep pace. ‘Never asked who you’ve had in the hayloft, Ren. We agreed past was past.’

Renna waved a hand at him. ‘Can’t blame you. Know I come with my trials, and Miss Prissy Perfect’s got everything a man could want. Money, magic, and loved by all. And oh, look at that! She helped kill a mind demon, too! I was you, I’d set me aside, too.’