Jayden held out his hands. “Calm down. We’ll find out why they were arrested and see what we can do.”
Not good enough. They needed to act now. “We can get into one of the prince’s empty special rooms and find a way into the black cells from there.”
“It’s not that simple, otherwise we’d have done it before.”
At that moment, she hated Jayden. Easy for him to be logical and calm, it wasn’t his parents who were in trouble. Except, no one besides Rendor knew they were her parents. Everyone still believed she’d been abandoned in the desert as a baby. Hanif had asked her to keep it a secret.
“I’ll send Mojag and Gurice to the monastery as soon as it’s cool enough,” Jayden said. “We can discuss options once we learn more. In the meantime, you can explain to me why you thought going to Tamburah’s temple was a good idea.”
A childish retort—I don’t have to explain myself to you—pushed up her throat. Instead, she detailed her reasons and showed him the map. “I think it might lead to a maze of hidden tunnels and rooms. Do you recognize anything?”
He studied the scroll with his forehead furrowed. A pang gripped her. Underneath his eyes were dark smudges like faded bruises. He hadn’t been getting enough sleep.
Finally, he met her gaze. “We’ve had our headquarters in the temple for hundreds of thousands of sun jumps. If there was something like this in there, the Invisible Sword would have found it by now.”
“It has to be well concealed. And perhaps only I’ll be able to see it.”
“Still dangerous just for a perhaps.”
“We’ll go along as backup,” Elek said, gesturing to the other three who nodded in agreement.
His comment eased some of the pain in her chest. “And I’ll need you, too, Jayden. I think it’s worth the danger.” However, if he didn’t agree to accompany her, it would be too hazardous to go.
“I’ll think about it. For now, let’s deal with the problem at hand.”
“Which one?” she asked.
Jayden ignored her sarcasm. “The one associated with the other bit of news I picked up while working for the black-market dealers.”
She settled back on the cushion. “How bad is it?”
“There’s a trading caravan coming in from Tarim in a few sun jumps. The dealers say the leader of this cavalcade, Zimraan, is fond of precious metals and is well known to have ingots of platinum for sale.”
“How well known?”
“The Heliacal Priestess is probably already planning on sending a couple of Arch Deacons to the man’s market stand.”
Scorching sand demons. “We need to stop that sale.”
“Exactly.”
Shyla mulled it over. “When are they due to arrive?”
“In the next four to six sun jumps, but it could be longer.”
“At least we have some time to plan. But that will take away from all the other things we need to do!”
“You can’t save the city in a couple sun jumps, Shyla,” Jayden said before leaving to find Mojag and Gurice.
But it’d been more than a couple. An eternity of them weighed on her shoulders. To be fair, it was only twenty-six sun jumps since she’d sacrificed her eyes, but she’d expected to have accomplished more. Jayden was right. They lacked resources. They needed to strengthen their numbers. Especially if they were going to rescue Hanif and Kaveri, find the hidden maze, and stop a merchant from selling his valuable goods. She studied the four ex-acolytes.
“Oh no, do you see that look on Shyla’s face?” Lian asked her friends. “She’s up to something. Well, it’s been nice, but I’ve sand to shovel.” She gave a jaunty wave.
“Nice try,” Shyla said, tugging Lian back. “Sit down.” She explained her experiments with Mojag and Gurice to them. “I’d like to see if you have the potential to wield magic.”
“Does that mean you’ll read our souls?” Rae asked. She pulled her knees up to her chest and hugged them.
“No. Yes. Not exactly.”
“That was clearly confusing,” Jaft said.
“I won’t dig for your innermost desires and secrets. I’m searching for your potential. I might learn something about you, but it’s usually just surface thoughts and emotions. It’s up to you.”
“I think knowing I have potential to wield magic is worth Shyla knowing I hate my father,” Lian said.
“We all know you hate him,” Elek said. “If I ever meet him…” He punched a fist into his hand. “I’m going to pummel him.”
“After I’m done with him,” Lian said.
“What if we’re cracked? Then what?” Rae asked.
“I’ll try to open it. Expand it.” Shyla mimed pulling apart a druk.
“Try to? That doesn’t sound very reassuring,” Jaft said.
“I’m still working on that part. Once I figure it out, then I’ll open everyone with potential.”
“I’m feeling better already.”
“Ignore him, we always do,” Lian said. “I’m in.”
The other three also agreed.
“What do we need to do?” Rae asked.
“Relax.” Shyla grabbed a handful of sand and poured it on the table. “I want you to gather your energy and try to move the sand.” She explained the process of using magic as best she could.
Lian went first, then Jaft, Elek, and finally Rae. Nothing she encountered while searching for that inner light surprised her, except for Rae.
The petite woman was a sun-kissed. Burn scars marked her skin from when she’d been abandoned in the desert. Rae dyed her hair, eyebrows, and eyelashes in order to blend in. Only the monks knew what she was and she wanted to keep it that way. And, of the four, Rae was the only one with potential. As Rae focused on the sand, a sliver of light glowed inside her.
“Figures,” Lian said when Shyla told them.
“At least I’m still young and handsome,” Jaft said, eliciting groans all around.
Unconcerned, Elek shrugged his big shoulders.
Rae, though, curled tighter. “Are you sure? The sand didn’t move when I stared at it.”
Sensing Rae’s distress, Shyla put her arm around the young woman’s shoulders. “Yes, I’m sure. And you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to.”
“I’m okay. Just getting used to the idea. Besides, nothing bad ever happened to…crack me.”
Perhaps the trauma of almost dying as a baby had unlocked Rae’s magic, or maybe being sun-kissed was a factor. Shyla wondered if her mother might have the potential. Claws of fear sank into her stomach. What if something terrible happened in the black cells that unlocked Kaveri’s magic?
To keep from useless worrying, Shyla scanned the common room. Many people had congregated there for second meal. She asked Elek to gather the rest of the ex-acolytes so she could test them. He went over to a table of them. She was struck by how the members had sorted themselves into groups of ex-acolytes and original Invisible Swords. Even she thought of them that way. That wasn’t good. She needed to fix it. Yet another problem to add to her ever-growing list. At least they had a steady supply of clean water thanks to Rendor. Thinking of him sent a bolt of pain right through her. She quickly refocused on the Invisible Swords.