Page 41 of Family Found

I pointed at Vergis. “He started it. He always starts it.”

“I just point out that a lot of the situations I find myself in—situations that you find yourself in and then choose to drag me into with you—are often your doing entirely. I mean, have you forgotten that creepy orange spider thing? Or how you face-planted after I saved you from it?”

I blanched. That orange spider… I wanted to forget a creature like that existed at all, that evolution had come up with that thing anywhere in the universe. “We don’t need to talk about the…the monster. I have decided that I’m now an arachnophobe, and I don’t want to talk about it.”

Inkiri clicked and rubbed my back. “That means he doesn’t like spiders, or talking about spiders. When there is a spider, best to not tell him about it and take the spider outside,” Weirdo Husband explained to Nokim and Lissir, who both nodded. Nokim mouthed the word silently too. Inkiri now knew the definition on account of the fact that I’d had to explain it to him when there’d been a spider in our bedroom back in Canada. He’d learned quickly and had immediately taken care of it like the highly trained protector he was.

Vergis looked deeply unimpressed. “All I’m saying is, the plan hasn’t really changed. Princess, when we make our approach, you use your magic to keep an eye on the humans. Hopefully the darkness will help with keeping us hidden. We do the thing, we leave. No more monsters.”

Inkiri nodded. “We might not get seen at all.”

I was suddenly very aware of his touch, his strong presence right next to me. If I could help us do this totally under the radar, I would.

Lissir’s brows drew together. “Is there any magic we might trigger?”

Vergis’s hand went to his knife. “Maybe. We’ll have to figure that out when we get there. Princess, at the Koa Esher mansion, you said you could use fog to hide us.”

I nodded, but my stomach cramped. Fog at the Hill of Tara reminded me of that night from long ago that the land had shown me. The two girls had been hunted down, despite the fog.

“I already used it, actually. To hide the beasts getting close from the other direction. I figured since that was where we weren’t, it would make a good distraction.”

Inkiri clicked. “That was smart, sweet thing.”

“Agreed,” Lissir said.

Vergis nodded. “Well, this time around, you can actually use it to hide us.”

“It will be a lot like crossing the border into Kankarraz, won’t it?” Lissir smiled at Inkiri, then at Nokim. “Like long ago, before the Lagasar.”

Inkiri nodded. “It might be, but hopefully there will be less arrows. I don’t like when there are arrows.”

Vergis laughed bitterly. “If they shoot at us, Inkiri, they’ll use bullets. Maybe you should wish for arrows instead.”

I shuddered, but Inkiri held me.

Please protect them all, I said to the land. Not just my guys, but everyone who helps us.

The land considered. I got the sense of it pacing, looking at paper, examining evidence.

If they fight with you, I will do what I can, it finally said. They saved the slaves, and all the slaves have power. Magic. They protected. Few do it readily.

I nodded, and an understanding that had nothing to do with the knowing hit me. The land had suffered for a long time, just not in the way people understood suffering. It had been alone though.

It had waited for someone new to be anointed, and for the longest time, no one had been. Then Gran had left entirely. It had probably hoped and wished that the girl with the green eyes hadn’t been the last anointed it would ever get to talk to, but that had probably been its fear.

The land must’ve felt powerless all this time, and it had been powerless back then to protect the girl. I could understand that it didn’t trust easily, especially not when it came to a large group of people from elsewhere, like the protectors we’d brought with us. Maybe it was even overprotective of me.

They’ll protect again, I told the land as I leaned against Inkiri, running a hand over my new scarf. They trained him to protect me, and they’ll do it again if they have to.

Sonyo’s excited ooh! Made me look at the little bagu, who was pointing at a crow. The large black bird had landed on one of the trash cans and was cawing at us as if we were intruding. Or as if we were due to pay for our presence on its turf in food.

Sonyo turned to Nokim, and together they carefully approached the crow, which kept cawing. Sonyo gasped when the bird took flight at last, clearly amazed.

If nothing else, I got the feeling Sonyo would fit right in with us.

Chapter 14

Inkiri