Disciple of War Disciple of War (Art of the Adept #4) - Michael G. Manning Page 0,71

used it in crowded places, it rarely mattered whether he disguised himself in other ways—people just wouldn’t notice him, even if he was standing in plain sight.

Combined with the silent-armor spell and the chameleon spell it was even more effective. But he had no way of knowing just how much more effective it might be. Secretly he wanted to try using it to sneak up on the goddamn cat, but since he rarely knew where or when the cat would appear, his opportunities were limited.

Passing through the kitchen, he walked within inches of Jeremy, but the cook never looked up from the vegetables he was cleaning. Blake was nowhere to be seen, so Will adjusted his vision to that strange light that let him see the world as a ghostly world of translucent greys. After a moment he spotted the head servant, sitting at a desk in his room poring over a ledger of some sort. In the front parlor, Laina and Selene sat talking quietly. Will quickly returned his vision to normal, as the see-through variety of sight was not only confusing, but also made it difficult to walk without stumbling into nearby obstacles.

Down the hall, he came to the open doorway that led to the parlor and went inside without pausing. Neither his wife nor his sister looked up. Then he paused. Selene was crying. Why? She was fine when I left this morning!

“It’s just temporary,” said Laina soothingly, squeezing Selene’s hand.

Selene shook her head. “You don’t know that. He doesn’t know that. Even Arrogan doesn’t know for certain. This might never change.”

“You’re overthinking this,” Laina suggested. “Just take a deep breath and take one day at a time.”

Will jumped as Selene’s voice rang out sharply. “I’ve been taking it one day at a time! For months—and I’m still useless! I can’t do anything.”

“Give it time…”

“I don’t have time! Winter is almost over. It won’t be long before the army starts to move and Will with it, and here I am, powerless!”

Laina patted her friend on the shoulder. “You can still go with him even if—”

“I didn’t work this hard to follow along as a comfort woman,” growled Selene.

Will winced. ‘Comfort woman’ was the term used for some of the women who traveled with the supply train. Officially they were there to assist with ordinary jobs, but a large portion of them also made considerable coin providing companionship to lonely soldiers.

He had started out feeling curious and playful, but now a mild sense of guilt swept over him. Selene was his wife, and he knew she loved him, but this was not something she wanted him to see, and sneaking in to listen to it was a breach of her trust. It would hurt her pride if she knew he had seen her whining about her troubles. Quietly, he backed out of the room and moved down the hall to the front door.

Standing there, it occurred to him that being raised a princess under such an unforgiving father had made Selene extraordinarily stubborn when it came to hiding her weaknesses. Understanding didn’t make it easier to figure out how he could help her, though. Would it be easier for her if he showed her more of his own low moments, or would that merely reinforce her automatic impulse to remain strong for his sake? “This marriage shit is complicated,” he muttered to himself.

He opened the door and closed it with a thump before stumping about for a moment and using the boot scraper to clean a bit of mud from the soles of his footwear. That done, he walked down the hall and called out. Selene answered immediately, her voice clear and untroubled, “In the parlor, Will. We have a visitor.”

Laina smiled as he entered, then scowled, and finally gave him a quick embrace. Since temporarily sharing a body, he and his half-sister pretended not to get along, but in truth neither of them had quite gotten over the experience. Their souls still bore the scars of having to be separated after nearly fusing together. Will was gladder to see her than he could easily admit. “When did you come to Cerria?” he asked.

“At the beginning of the week,” Laina answered.

He gasped. “And you didn’t come to see us until now?”

“I was busy. Selene’s been positively brutal with her plan to organize supplies and wagons to help the army during the first phase of the campaign. Naturally, I had to come do the work for her.”

Selene took on