Sacrifice of the Widow_ Lady Penitent - Lisa Smedman [76]
“We can do it, Lady Qilué,” Halisstra whispered, “finish what we started. Use the Crescent Blade to kill Lolth.” She spread her elongated fingers, looked down at the claws that protruded from their tips. “But she won’t die by these hands. Someone else will have to wield the Crescent Blade this time.”
Qilué nodded. Eilistraee’s faithful would not make the same mistake twice. Three years before, Uluyara’s decision to let Halisstra carry the Crescent Blade had proved a disaster, even though the choice had seemed sound at the time. Halisstra had been part of the group that had been seeking Lolth during her Silence. She stood the best chance of infiltrating Quenthel’s band and traveling with them to the place where Lolth had secluded herself, but Halisstra had been a novice, not yet fully trusting in her newfound faith. It would be one of Eilistraee’s Chosen—Qilué herself—who would carry the battle forward.
If, indeed, the Crescent Blade did still exist.
“Three years ago,” Qilué said, “Uluyara came to me and told me what you planned to do. When you entered the Demonweb Pits, I was watching.”
That got a reaction. “You were scrying?” Halisstra’s spider legs drummed against her chest. Her breathing was fast and light.
Qilué nodded. Deliberately, she added details that Halisstra would recognize. “Could you not feel me, when I shattered the ice that Pharaun used to imprison you? I saw through your eyes when Danifae lifted you by the hair and made you watch as the draegloth tore into Feliane.”
Halisstra’s eyes narrowed, perhaps in pain at the memory. “You saw Feliane die?” Every muscle of her body was tense.
“Yes.”
For several moments, there was strained silence. Qilué waited expectantly for Halisstra to reveal, through some ill chosen word, whatever secret had caused her to tense up. Something had happened after the draegloth killed Feliane—something Halisstra didn’t want Qilué to know about—but what?
Halisstra laughed, a wild sound that rippled at the edge of insanity. Qilué thought she heard an undertone of relief in it, but couldn’t be certain. “You think I could have done more to save Feliane, but I was weak, nearly dead myself. I could do nothing to stop the draegloth from killing her.”
Qilué arched an eyebrow, waiting. Nothing more was forthcoming, however. Qilué at last nodded. “You could do nothing to save her,” she agreed.
Halisstra’s relief was clearly visible, and perhaps it really was as simple as that. Perhaps Halisstra felt guilty about the deaths of the two priestesses who had accompanied her to the Demonweb Pits, a guilt as painful as any penance Lolth had imposed.
Qilué suddenly wondered if she’d pushed Halisstra too far. She switched to a soothing tone. “A death like Feliane’s is disturbing,” she said. “It would make anyone question her faith. It’s easy enough to think that Eilistraee had abandoned you, but she didn’t. It was her magic that revived you, after Danifae’s mace shattered your face.”
Halisstra cocked her head. “Eilistraee was … with me?” she whispered in a dry, strangled voice. “Even when …”
Qilué nodded. “She was.”
Halisstra’s eyes hardened. “If Eilistraee was with me, why did she let Lolth claim me?”
“Strong as Eilistraee is, Lolth is more powerful within her own domain, especially within her fortress,” Qilué spread her hands, “but Eilistraee—and I—did not just abandon you. My scrying ended when Danifae struck you down. I assumed you were dead, until Eilistraee hinted otherwise. Whatever happened in the Demonweb Pits after that, Eilistraee will forgive you.”
Halisstra stared flatly back at Qilué. There was no conviction in her eyes.
“One last question,” Qilué said. “It’s been three years since Lolth broke her Silence. What have you been doing all this time?”
Halisstra shifted uncomfortably. “I only escaped the Demonweb Pits a year ago. Since then, I’ve been … busy.”
“Doing Lolth’s bidding,” Qilué suggested. Halisstra’s eyes blazed.