A Plague of Giants (Seven Kennings #1) - Kevin Hearne Page 0,171

mercilessly about it just as I had teased him about Mella du Bandre.

When the scholar finished, he closed my diary and returned it to me with both hands like it was something sacred. “I hope you realize what you have here, Kallindra,” he said.

“Just a diary,” I said, taking it from his knobby, ink-stained fingers.

“It’s much more than that. It’s a record of a way of life that no longer exists. The end of an era. It’s history. Whatever Brynlön may be in the future, it will never again be the country you wrote about there.”

“Oh. I hadn’t thought of it like that.” The diary seemed heavier all of a sudden, and I frowned. “I suppose you’re right.”

There would be no clave in a cornfield for us again. No happy visits to farms and villages or the special treat of that honey-apple bacon. All our usual customers were gone. Their lives were over, and ours were forever changed.

Gondel Vedd had understood that before I did. How? What had happened to him? He looked at me with such empathy in his eyes that mine welled up and I gulped, trying to swallow a sob.

“Does your family follow Bryn or some other god?” he asked.

“Mostly Bryn, but we revere them all like many traveling people do. I’m sure you follow Reinei.”

“Yes. I subscribe to peace. But it’s difficult to see Reinei’s work in Brynlön right now. I hope the wind will blow gently and bring you peace again soon. I will pray for you and your family if you don’t mind.”

“That would be very kind. Thank you.”

He bowed his head to me. “It was my very great pleasure to meet you, and I hope we will meet again in this life. Please be well and happy until then, and be wary. There were a few Bone Giants still in the city when we left it.”

The old scholar slid carefully off the tailgate and winced at some pain—knees would be my guess. But then he raised his hand in farewell, and so did the tempest. I waved back, carried along by the wagon, and watched them diminish as they turned to continue on their way to Setyrön. I hoped I’d see them again, but every revolution of the wagon’s wheels told me that the future was too uncertain to harbor such thoughts. My only certainties at this point are that my parents love me and my brother is unspeakably horny.

—

The bard waved to the crowd after returning to his own form. “That’s all for today! Tomorrow we hear more from your very own tidal mariner, Tallynd du Böll, as well as others!”

Immediately after the bard’s performance on the wall, one of the Wraith’s men approached me and handed me a set of keys. “Those will get you into your house. We’ve installed several security measures, and someone will tell you about them tomorrow. For now, enjoy your new home.”

“My new home? What do you mean?”

The longshoreman didn’t reply; he simply trickled away into the crowd like spring runoff. I made my way home as quickly as possible, curious beyond measure, as the sun edged toward one horizon and the moon peeked over the other. People in the streets were smiling, amused by Kallindra du Paskre and her assessment of her brother.

My house didn’t look any different from the outside except for the front door. There were three different locks on it now instead of one, though still just the single knob. I considered the ring of keys in my hand, wondering which one belonged to each lock. I was going to look silly while I tried them out.

“Dervan?” a woman’s voice called behind my back, uncertain and tremulous. I turned and beheld a familiar figure in orange.

“Elynea!” I threw my hand up in surprise and dropped the keys. “You’re alive!”

She began to smile and then frowned. “You thought I was dead?”

“No, I simply didn’t know; I’ve been looking for you.”

“You have?”

“Well, yes. Excuse me.” I bent down to pick up my keys. “Garst came looking for you a couple of nights ago, and that made me worry.”

She put a hand to her mouth. “Oh, I was afraid of that. That’s why I didn’t come back.”

“Are you all right? How is Tamöd?”

“He has a black eye, but we’re okay otherwise. I mean—” She bit her lip, and her eyes welled a bit. “I’m feeling angry and stupid and don’t know how I’ll ever forgive myself for putting Tamöd in that situation, but physically, nothing