Song of the Saurials - Kate Novak [126]
Finder turned and snapped at Alias, "How dare you change my songs?"
"I can't help it," Alias whispered. "It just happens."
"Nothing just happens," Finder said. "If I meant as much to you as the saurials do, you'd be able to control it. If you can't control it, don't bother to sing my songs anymore."
The swordswoman blanched, and Olive could detect the smell of violets in the cave. Alias was frightened and was communicating her fear through the saurial scent.
Grypht and Finder glared at each other, and now Olive could also smell baking bread, the scent of anger. Meanwhile, Akabar leaned toward Alias and tried to encourage her to ignore Finder and resume her singing.
After listening to Grypht for a short time, Finder had had enough. As the bard rose to his feet and turned away from the others, his blue eyes flashed red in the sunlight streaming into the cave. "Go ahead and sing their songs if you want," he said coldly to Alias. "It makes no difference to me what you do."
Alias swallowed, licked her lips, and took a deep breath. It was obvious she wanted to sing, but from the way the swords-woman trembled, Olive could see that she was too frightened to rise to her father's challenge.
"Careful, bard," Akabar taunted Finder. "She might just improve on your song.
Then what would you do? Go ahead and sing, Alias."
Akabar's goading of the bard wasn't helping to encourage Alias any. Akabar didn't understand how desperately she wanted to please Finder. Olive understood it all too well.
Alias began rocking back and forth, clutching her knees to her chest and whimpering softly with a glazed look in her eyes. Grypht and Akabar hovered over her, trying unsuccessfully to comfort her. Finder stood stubbornly with his back to his daughter.
Olive entered the cave and padded over to the bard's side. "Finder, think about what you're saying for once," the halfling said softly. "Look what you've done to her," she insisted, pointing toward the swordswoman. "Have you forgotten?
She's not even two years old. She needs your love even when you don't agree with her. You can't just slap her and make her do everything your way like you do with everyone else."
"I didn't touch her," Finder said, offended.
"You don't have to touch her. You're a master at using words as weapons," Olive accused him. "Whether you injure her body or her heart, you'll be making the same mistake you made with Flattery."
The bard looked down at Olive with confusion-and fear. "What are you talking about?" he whispered.
"You know what I mean," Olive said impatiently. "The way you bullied him."
"How do you know about that?" the bard demanded.
"He left a long message in your workshop," Olive said.
"So why didn't you say anything?" the bard asked coldly. "Did you intend to sneak back to Elminster and tell him?"
Olive brushed angrily at the tears beginning to form in her eyes, but she held her head up proudly "The message was two centuries old, Finder," she said. "I didn't think it mattered anymore. I thought you'd changed."
Finder stepped back as though he'd been slapped.
Olive turned her attention to the swordswoman. "Come on, Alias," she said, patting the swordswoman's shoulder. "Sing for us. It doesn't matter if you change the song. Finder will understand. Won't you, Finder?" the halfling asked with feigned sweetness.
Finder shot an angry look at Olive, but the glare she gave him in return shocked him into submission. "Yes," he answered softly.
Olive signed sharply for the bard to sit down near Alias. He obeyed with a defiant look, but when Olive put his hand on Alias's and he felt the swordswoman's trembling, his expression changed to one of alarm. Not even a trapped bird trembled as fiercely as the woman before him did now. The bard saw, too, how pale she'd become-as white as the moment before she'd drawn her first breath. Her eyes stared blindly at him.
"I didn't do this to her," he said, refusing to admit his words could have so much power over anyone.
"Yes, you did," Olive hissed. "Now fix it."
"How?"