Free The Chronicles of Elantra 6 - Cast in Chaos by Michelle Sagara Page B

birth?” Kaylin asked quietly. “What was the address?”
    “Sauvern, near Bitton.”
    The child had been born within the confines of the circle.
    The rain of blood had been bad; the Swords were probably still out in the streets enforcing a certain rationality upon people who’d been caught in the torrent. A demonstrably secret, on going investigation into one of the most powerful humans in the city had been totally compromised by a cheap, charlatan fortune-teller.
    But with this new bit of information, it was suddenly, completely damn serious. “How were the parents?”
    “The parents, thank the gods, are followers of Iravatari.”
    When Kaylin failed to nod as if the sentence seemed relevant, Marya rolled her eyes. “The goddess of wisdom and enlightenment? Tall, robed lady?”
    “Sorry.”
    “Never mind. Iravatari has three eyes. It was a shock to the parents, yes—and I think a shock to young Mellan—but when they recovered, they were not unhappy.”
    Kaylin nodded.
    “The second birth was more problematic.”
    And tensed. “How?”
    “The second birth was attended by Helen. You know Helen?”
    Kaylin frowned for just a minute, and then nodded. “Older woman, this tall, brown eyes, hair down to her knees?”
    “She doesn’t wear her hair down when she’s working,” was the severe reply. “But yes, that would be Helen. She attended the second birth. The second birth was a first child, a girl.”
    “The child was also…different?”
    “The child, at two minutes out of her mother’s womb, could speak.”
    “Speak?”
    “Yes. In complete sentences. There may well be a god of speech, but in this particular case, the parents were not thrilled. I believe they were confused, but the child’s grandmother insisted that the baby had been possessed by evil spirits. She did not attempt to harm the infant—”
    “Not if Helen was there, she didn’t.”
    “—but she insisted that the child be exorcised. Formally. The child had other ideas, and some argument ensued.”
    “Where is the child now?”
    “Helen is still there. The grandmother, however, is not. The mother is…not happy. The father is confused.”
    “Tell me where this child was born,” Kaylin said, in a tone of voice that indicated she had a good idea. Marya’s answer confirmed her suspicions. “Can I use your mirror?” she asked, although she’d already walked behind the desk and tapped it with her palm.
    “Yes, but use it quickly . Given the incidents tonight, I want an entirely open channel.”
    Kaylin nodded. She waited for the mirror to blur, and when the image shifted from reflection to communication, she saw that Marcus was, as she suspected he would be, still in the office. So was Caitlin. So, she thought, were a number of Hawks, although it looked like they were mostly Barrani. The Barrani didn’t exactly need sleep.
    “Marcus—”
    “Where the hell are you?”
    “Midwives’ guild.”
    “You went to the Palace?”
    “Yes. And I’m due in at the office first thing to head back to the Oracles’ Hall. With Sanabalis.”
    “First thing?”
    “Yes. I’m considering skipping sleep entirely.” She caught Caitlin’s expression, and added, “Just joking. But I need you to send something across to this mirror, now.”
    Marcus looked as tired and frazzled as Kaylin felt, and he bared his fangs at the tone of her voice. But that was all he did; he didn’t even give her a knee-jerk refusal. Instead, he said, “Please don’t tell me that this is affecting births.”
    “If you don’t want to hear it, I’ll write it up when I make my report.”
    “I’ll have to read that.”
    “Eventually.” She glanced pointedly at the piles that could be seen teetering on his desk in the distance. “I need Marya to have a map, so she’ll have a good idea of where things are likely to—to go bad.”
    “Done. It is not to be transmitted beyond the guild’s mirror.”
    Marya, who had wedged herself into the frame’s view beside