The Spell of Rosette - Kim Falconer [134]
‘Lead who? What trackers?’
‘What if they think Rosette was lost under Los Loma?’ Jarrod asked.
‘You mean dead?’ Rosette drew her knees up and wrapped her arms around them. ‘Sounds like I’d be better off.’
‘Think about it,’ Jarrod said. ‘No-one knows what happened in that avalanche. And no-one knows I’m here at all, so far.’
‘What are you suggesting?’
‘Nell, you and An’ Lawrence return to Treeon with the vial. Say that’s all of the spell that you got. It won’t do any harm and it might satisfy La Makee, at least while she tries to work out what it is.’
‘And Rosette?’ Nell asked.
‘Say that she and her temple cat perished in the tunnels under Los Loma. It’s not a far stretch and there’s the landslide to prove it.’
‘They’ll send scouts,’ Nell said, nodding.
‘It’ll buy us time, and put off any other…pursuit.’
‘It’s nothing new,’ Rosette said, closing her eyes. ‘I’ve been playing dead since I was sixteen.’
He leaned closer to her. ‘I won’t be left behind this time. I’ll sail with you. It’ll be all right. I promise.’
‘This will work,’ Nell said. ‘I’ll catch up with you in the islands, once Makee is satisfied.’
Rosette straightened her back. Drayco? It seems we’re on the move again.
I heard. Could be fun?
Maybe. How do you feel about boats?
On the water?
Generally, yes.
I don’t mind, as long as I can stay dry.
I’ll make sure you do, lovely. You can count on it.
Rosette added more wood to the fire, watching the flames until her eyes began to close.
‘Get your coat. I need you to come with me.’ Nell’s voice brought her out of a daze.
She yawned, following her mother out of the cave. The wind raged, whipping her hair about her face. The warm orange tones of the shelter vanished as she closed the flap, immersed now in the pale blue-grey of the moonlight. Nell’s face was covered in shadow. ‘Forgive me, daughter,’ she said. ‘It was always the hardest thing to live with…’
‘What’s that?’
‘Living without you.’
‘It wasn’t to be,’ Rosette said, her teeth starting to chatter.
‘Not angry any more?’
Rosette wrapped her arms around Nell and gave her a brief hug. ‘I think I’ll always be a little angry—something to live with. I’m proud to have Nellion Paree of the Dumarkian Woods as my mother. As far as I can see, you saved my life.’ She felt Nell’s tension ease.
‘My little Kalindi Rose, my Rosette. Those times you came to stay with me were the best of my life.’
‘Mine too, Nell.’
They embraced again until Rosette pulled away.
‘It all makes sense now!’
‘What’s that?’
‘My birth data’s correct, isn’t it?’ Her voice was a challenge. ‘You didn’t alter that?’
‘It’s exact. Bethsay timed it to the second.’
‘Then this explains my natal Moon in the sign of the Water-bearer conjunct Oraneus. It never really fitted before. You know, things like “Sudden and unexpected separations and reunions with the mother, disruption in the home, need for emotional freedom as well as intimacy and closeness…unconventional mother, strange family roots”. I’ve always tried to comprehend that in context with my life in Lividica, as a Matosh, and it never sat right. Now that I know the truth, it makes perfect sense.’
‘Always believe the horoscope, not…’
‘Not the history,’ Rosette laughed, finishing her mother’s sentence. ‘You gave me all the hints in the world, didn’t you?’
‘A few.’
She rubbed her hands together and thrust them into her pockets. ‘It’s freezing out here. Let’s go back to the fire.’
‘First, the vial.’
Rosette loosened her coat and reached into her bodice. She felt the ornate facets of the crystal nestled between her breasts and pulled it out, holding it up to the moonlight. It emanated a pulsing glow.
‘What is it, Nell? Not Passillo.’
‘No, not Passillo. That spell is woven into you now. This is a sample of your aura, a by-product of that weaving you did when you put Kreshkali to sleep.’
‘Can I do without it?’
Nell chuckled. ‘What do you think?’
‘I think I already have. Will it satisfy La Makee, though? Surely she will know it’s not Passillo.’
‘It’ll occupy her for a time, until she works it out.’
‘Then what?’