“How’s the baby doing?” Shyla asked.
“Not well. My healers are not sure what’s wrong with him so I’ve sent for Zhek.” He studied them. “Any news on the babe’s parents?”
“Not yet. We need to take a look at those torques. Can you retrieve them for us?” she asked.
Now she received a shrewd appraisal. “I’m just about to assess three acolytes. If you’re willing to help me out, I can spare some time to fetch them for you.”
A niggling sensation warned her that this wasn’t going to be that straightforward. “All right. What do you need?”
Seeming way too happy about her acceptance, Hanif led her down to the training room on level seven. “These three acolytes are almost ready to take the oath. They all arrived at the monastery over a short period of time four circuits ago. All on different sun jumps, but it’s a bit odd for us to get that many so close together.”
Ah, she sensed where this was going. “And you suspect they might be spies.”
“Yes. We’ve had them in the past. Over the last twenty circuits, the people in power have sent a dozen or so of their loyal supporters to infiltrate us, hoping they’d become monks and steal all our secrets.”
“The vagrants have the same problem. How do you catch them?” Jayden asked.
“We keep a close eye on the acolytes. They tend to reveal themselves by being just a bit more curious than their fellows, a bit more observant, a bit more…standoffish as if they’re better than the rest of us. They also tend to be found in places that are off-limits to acolytes. These three, though, have not shown any of those signs, but the timing of their arrival also coincides with when the current Water Prince came into power.”
“You want me to read them,” Shyla said.
“Yes.”
An uncomfortable twinge gripped her stomach. On the one hand, she wanted to help Hanif and keep the Water Prince from learning about the monks and, by association, her, but on the other hand, what if they were innocent? She’d hate to invade their privacy.
“Do they know she has woken The Eyes?” Jayden asked.
“Unfortunately, everyone in the monastery knows.” Hanif shrugged. “Something that momentous can’t be kept a secret for long.”
“Then as soon as they see her, they’ll know you don’t trust them. You might lose three good people. But if they’re working for the Water Prince, they might try to kill her.”
Oh, she hadn’t thought of that. And she needed to make eye contact to read a soul. Perhaps she could wear a turban and veil to hide her identity.
“She could assess their fighting abilities. The acolytes have a final match with a veiled monk before taking the oath.” Hanif seemed to follow her train of thought.
Except she hadn’t been practicing the Ways of the Yarin lately. “I don’t know if I’ll be a worthy opponent.”
“It doesn’t matter. I know they’re good fighters, but I don’t know if they’re trustworthy.”
In that case… “All right. But this is worth more than you getting the torques for me. You owe me another favor.” A pause. “How about admittance into the Third Room of Knowledge?”
Hanif laughed. “Nice try. I agree to another favor, but not that. Pick something else.”
“How about when the time comes, you allow Kaveri to help us with starting our own garden?”
He shot her a probing look, but she kept her expression neutral. Did Hanif really believe she hadn’t figured out Kaveri was her mother?
“Okay, but that doesn’t include providing plants,” he said. “For that I’d need you to do another task.”
Still a victory. She’d expected to have to do more for the plants. “Do you have a task in mind?”
“No, but I’m sure something will come up.”
Jayden just shook his head over their negotiations. “Can you get the torques before the fights?”
While Hanif fetched the necklaces, Shyla changed into a monk’s uniform. The stiff tan fabric was more tailored than what the acolytes wore—the tunic was shorter and it had a matching fabric belt that she tied around her waist. Shyla studied her reflection in the mirror.
She’d spent her entire childhood insisting she’d never become a monk. Not that she was one, but wearing the uniform and being a part of an assessment came close. At least the idea of being a monk no longer caused her to panic. She’d learned being a part of an organization was really just being part of a family.
She wound the turban around her short hair, keeping it small and tucked in close. Then she secured the veil so the material would not come loose while she fought.
Jayden waited for her in the training room. He met her gaze when she entered—the only part of her exposed. “I’m still having trouble getting used to your new eye color. Do any of the monks have blue eyes?”
“A couple.” It was a good thing that blue eyes weren’t that uncommon among the people in Zirdai.
Hanif returned with the torques. He gave them to Jayden and then shooed him from the room. “Only monks are allowed.” After Jayden left, Hanif turned to Shyla. “You’re going to need to be on the offensive. Can you do that?”
Before her adventures with the Invisible Sword, she’d had a hard time being an aggressor since the Ways of the Yarin focused on defense—block and then punch versus punch and then block. However, she’d learned how to attack first and ask questions later. “Yes.”
“Good.” He left but soon came back with an acolyte and two other monks.
The two monks sat on stools along the far wall. The acolyte faced her. Shyla didn’t recognize the monks, but she knew the acolyte—her name was Durva. It made sense once she thought about it. Durva and the other acolytes would have come to the monastery when Shyla was still living here.
Hanif served as the referee. “To me.”
They bowed to him.
“To each other.”
They bowed, but not as deeply. Shyla kept her gaze on Durva, making eye contact while removing her mental shield. The woman was nervous and excited and confident. Durva was five centimeters taller than Shyla, with longer limbs that she planned to use to her benefit.
Hanif held his hand between them and they shifted into fighting stances.
“Go!” Hanif jerked his arm up and backed away.
Shyla executed a front shuffle kick followed by a roundhouse kick. Durva sidestepped and snapped a side kick at Shyla’s leg—the one that held all her weight. A good strategy for any other opponent, except Shyla hopped out of the way before Durva’s foot touched her. Shyla attacked with two quick punches to Durva’s ribs. Durva blocked both with her forearms and stepped close to launch an upper cut to Shyla’s jaw. Shyla leaned back just in time for Durva’s fist to sail pass. They disengaged and the two women circled each other.
Durva was quick and skilled. Shyla was out of practice and still fatigued from using her magic. However, being able to read Durva’s intentions gave Shyla a big advantage. It was fun and Shyla almost forgot why they were sparring. With a renewed effort, she concentrated on Durva’s deeper thoughts—ones not connected to the fight. That wasn’t fun. Shyla’s unease grew as she learned things about Durva that she was sure the woman would never have shared. Was she crossing a line? Abusing her power just so Hanif could uncover a spy?