might have thought he heard a hint of sadness in her words.
“What is it?” asked Will.
“Something you don’t need,” she answered, her tone grave. “A worthless relic from our time, long forgotten in this age of degenerate mages and indolent sorcerers. It is called a limnthal, the mark of a true wizard.”
“Why did you say it hasn’t changed?”
Aislinn smiled sadly. “Each one is unique, given by a master to his or her student when they feel the time is appropriate. Usually that comes after an apprenticeship has been completed, but Arrogan couldn’t afford to wait. This is the mark I gave your grandfather when he satisfied my requirements. Ordinarily he should have created a new one for you, but since he was dying, he gave you his own, the one I made for him.”
Will’s eyes began to water, but he was shocked from his sorrow by her next statement.
“Give it to me,” ordered the elder fae.
Without thinking, he answered, “No.”
“It will do you no good,” said his grandmother. “It grants no power or ability. It is little more than a symbol of achievement, something no one will even recognize, and if anyone did, it would bring you only misfortune.”
“Then why do you want it?”
“Because it is mine. It means nothing to you. Give it to me and I will grant any wish you can imagine,” she told him, her eyes shifting colors from blue to lavender as she spoke.
Will closed his hand into a fist, and the limnthal vanished from sight. “It isn’t for sale. Useful or not, it’s the last thing he gave me.”
Aislinn seemed to relax. “Very well, Grandson. I will respect his discernment in deciding to give it to you, but you have chosen a hard road for yourself.”
His face showed surprise at the word ‘grandson,’ and Aislinn laughed.
“Don’t think too much on my acknowledgment,” said his grandmother. “The fact remains that I will not hesitate to take everything you have if you make a mistake, William. Never forget that.”
For a moment he could feel a sense of alien malice radiating from her, but rather than creating fear, it engendered a feeling of sadness in him. How terrible it would be, to have once been a woman who loved and was loved, only to be consumed by a magic that rendered you incapable of anything but hunger and cold logic. Aislinn must have seen the emotion on his face, for she looked away then, unwilling to meet the pity in his eyes.
“I only have one thing more to ask of you, William,” she said. “Bring me his body if you have it.”
“What do you want it for?” he asked suspiciously.
His grandmother laughed. “Nothing malign. I only wish to say my farewells, to bury him in the place where we first met.”
It seemed fitting, but though it went against his human decency, he asked, “What will you give me in exchange?”
Aislinn smiled. “He would be proud of you. What do you wish?”
“My mother and cousin are living in his house, but there are soldiers from Darrow in the village. Can you protect them?”
“I will not go near the house,” said his grandmother. “The creature that owns it and the land it sits upon is not kindly disposed toward the fae, but I can ensure that no enemy finds it. Will that suffice?”
She’s afraid of the goddamn cat? thought Will. How can that be? “That will be good enough,” he told her. “Do you know what the cat is?”
“It is a cat, of the worst kind,” she answered. “It is not my place to speak of it.”
Chapter 29
The sky was beginning to lighten when Will returned to the old shack. His grandfather’s body was still on the porch, but as he started to drag it away a thought occurred to him. Going inside, he returned to the bedroom and opened the blanket chest at the foot of the bed and removed Aislinn’s pillow.
“William?” It was his mother. She lifted her head groggily. “What are you doing?”
“I’ll explain at breakfast. I’m going to cook something nice,” he told her. “Go back to sleep. It isn’t even dawn yet.”
Erisa’s head flopped back down and she closed her eyes. “That’s nice,” she mumbled.
Outside again, he tucked the pillow under one arm and lifted Arrogan by his shoulders so he could drag him into the forest. His grandfather felt heavier than he had the day before, and he was grateful when Aislinn and Tailtiu appeared after he had gone only a hundred yards.