The Sea Devil's Eye - Mel Odom [133]
Glawinn continued using his power on her daily, but there were no healing potions left. Now, every day, the ship's mage lost ground. Her wounds festered, growing larger, taking her away from him a piece at a time.
The young sailor was ragged and unkempt. Not an hour passed that he didn't feel pain-hers as well as his. He ignored the knock on the door, not wanting to deal with
Glawinn trying to get him to eat or leave. If he had kept his distance from Sabyna, she would have been fine, but he'd returned.
"Young warrior," Glawinn spoke softly, "someone has come to see you."
"No." Jherek knew he was being petulant, but he'd had enough of looking at other people.
"Jherek."
The musical voice captured the young sailor's attention, striking a chord deep within him. He found it immediately uncomfortable. "Go away."
"I can't. I've waited all my life to meet you."
Shamed by his own lack of manners, knowing Glawinn wouldn't think well of him either, Jherek pushed himself to his feet and opened the door. It took him a moment to recognize the two men standing beside Glawinn. He'd met both of them the night Iakhovas and the pirates attacked Baldur's Gate.
"Hail and well met," the old man said.
His clothes were wet, almost dripping, and he smelled of the sea. He offered his hand.
"You're the bard," Jherek said, his tired mind wandering through all the memories. He clasped the old man's arm.
The bard bowed and said, "Pacys."
The resonance continued in Jherek but he still didn't understand where it came from.
"Hail and well met, swabbie," the dwarf greeted him good-naturedly.
"Khlinat."
Seeing the dwarf sailor standing there brought the beginnings of a smile to Jherek's lips. He took Khlinat's arm and felt the powerful grip.
"Hear tell ye've been betwixt some proper demons' brews since these old eyes last seen ye."
Jherek nodded quietly and glanced back at Sabyna. "It's been far harder than anything I could have imagined."
"This is the one who holds your heart?" the old bard asked.
Pacys glided into the room, in motion before Jherek even knew it. He stood by her bed and trailed his fingers across her feverish brow.
Jherek didn't know how to respond. Sabyna never had the chance to let him know her mind after he'd revealed who he was.
The look in your eyes is all the answer I need," Pacys said softly. The love you share is a powerful thing."
Tears clouded Jherek's vision but he didn't let them fall. He spoke through a too-tight throat. "As it turns out, I wasn't the man she thought I was."
"On the contrary, my boy," the old bard said, "it's you who aren't the man you think you are."
"Can you help her?" Jherek had put off the question because he'd been afraid of the answer.
Sadly, Pacys shook his head. "No. The young lady lies beyond any help I might give her."
Jherek tried to will himself into a state of numbness but couldn't. The resonance within him that the bard's presence elicited wound him up inside.
"You should go," Jherek said.
"I can't. I was sent here to find you and to help you."
Jherek shook his head. The only way you can help me is to help her."
"You don't know all there is yet."
The old man took the waterproof bag from his shoulder and opened it. He sat on the floor of the small cabin.
"What are you doing?" Jherek demanded.
Pacys's practiced fingers brushed the strings lightly. He twisted the knobs at the end of the instrument, adjusting the string tension. When he brushed the strings again, creating a mellow note that seemed to fill the room with light and warmth, he smiled and said, "Blessed Oghma, after being under the sea for so long and not able to practice, I thought I might have lost the gift."
"You have to go," Jherek said sternly, unable to believe the audacity of the bard.
Pacys effortlessly played a tune. It was soft and quiet, melding the gentleness of a stream running over smooth rocks and the sight of the wind through winter's bare tree branches.
"Music