Free Caught in Crystal: A Lyra Novel by Patricia Collins Wrede Page A

Wyrds now, but who can say how long that will last? North of the Thar lands, maybe. I hear the ice is moving back.”
    “Is there anything you’ll need?” Kayl said.
    “Prompt payment on this job,” Bryn said, flashing pointed teeth in a grin. “The rest we’ll manage ourselves. We’ve been preparing for a long time.”
    Kayl nodded. “Good luck to you, then, whenever you go.” There was nothing else to say. She would miss the furry little Wyrd, and Copeham would miss her fine touch with carpentry, but she could not deny the wisdom in Bryn’s choice. Mindaria was going the way of most of the non-Alliance countries, and nonhumans were better off elsewhere. Kayl felt a sudden, fierce anger; these were her friends being driven from their homes!
    The anger faded into grim frustration. There was nothing she could do about it, nothing at all. Islorran was not the only nobleman more interested in sorcery than in justice; half the Mindaran court was greedy for knowledge of magic. Remembrance of the punishment inflicted on Prince Fazendin might keep them from overt measures, so long as the Estarran Alliance remained strong. It would not keep them from whatever threats they thought they could get away with. And the more Shee and Wyrds withdrew from Mindaria, the worse the situation grew for those who remained behind.
    Kayl felt like smashing something, preferably Islorran’s head. Even that would do no good; Islorran’s son was as bad or worse than his father. With difficulty, Kayl reined in her anger and frustration and bent to help Bryn pick up her tools.

CHAPTER
FIVE
    B RYN LEFT WITH HER measurements and the pieces of the bench, promising to return and finish the repairs before evening. Kayl was grateful; if the crowd was as large as it had been the previous night, she would need every bench and chair in the inn. Kayl shut the door behind the Wyrd and turned to find Corrana still watching from her seat beside the hearth. “Is there anything I can do for you, Your Virtue?”
    “We must talk,” Corrana said. She was frowning into the distance as she spoke.
    What now, Kayl wondered. She crossed back to the hearth-side and seated herself. “I am at your service.”
    “I hope so,” Corrana murmured. Her eyes came back to Kayl’s face. “I shall not be staying the full week, as we arranged.”
    “It is kind of you to tell me, but—”
    “Word that an Elder Sister is in Copeham will spread, and I wish to be gone before the Magicseekers hear of my presence.” Corrana paused. “I fear they will do so soon.”
    Kayl nodded. The members of the Circle of Silence, more commonly known as the Magicseekers, were known to be devious and unscrupulous; some even thought that they had been the true instigators of the Darkwater Massacre. The Sisterhood of Stars opposed them openly, and had been instrumental in forcing them out of Kith Alunel entirely some twenty years ago. The Magicseekers could do little to harm the Sisterhood itself, but they could make things extremely unpleasant for any individual Sister who happened to fall into their hands. Suddenly Kayl understood the presence of the warding spell she had found guarding Corrana’s door the night before.
    “What does this have to do with me and my inn?” Kayl asked uneasily.
    “Have I said it has to do with you?”
    “People normally don’t bother to tell innkeepers the reasons for their comings and goings,” Kayl pointed out. “So I ask again—what has this to do with me? And no more games, lady.”
    Corrana’s head dipped in assent. “Very well. I apologize. I had hoped to give you more time, but your Prefect’s man forced my hand.”
    “Did he?” Kayl said skeptically. “Your help was welcome, but hardly necessary. I have managed Utrilo before.”
    “Not under such circumstances as these. And I had reasons of my own for wishing you to remain.”
    “What do you mean?” Kayl demanded.
    “I think you must already know,” Corrana said. “I seek a