The Spell of Rosette - Kim Falconer [77]
‘Jealous?’
‘Hardly!’ Jarrod took another sip of wine. ‘I’m concerned, is all. It doesn’t add up.’
‘Why not? Rosette would naturally attract—’
‘Not that.’ He tapped his fingers on his lips. ‘Of course she would attract anyone she wanted.’
‘So…’
‘The bard had a very interesting companion.’
‘Companion?’
‘A familiar, perhaps, but I don’t think it was his.’
‘What was it?’
‘A raptor. I saw him give it a message.’
Nell frowned. ‘Did you see where it went?’
‘North. It disappeared into the clouds above Mount Jacor.’
‘A falcon?’
‘Peregrine.’
Nell poured more wine. ‘Either our Rosette indeed has herself a suitor, or things haven’t blown over after all.’
Jarrod shot her a glance. ‘I was hoping you might elucidate on the “things” aspect. Just what is it, Nell, that hasn’t blown over yet? Is Rosette in danger?’
She looked him up and down, thinking that perhaps this could be a past her future might change. ‘It wasn’t John’ra Matosh they were after when the Corsanon assassins murdered him and his family.’
‘It wasn’t?’
‘No.’
‘Who, then?’
‘They were after Rosette.’
Jarrod stopped chewing. ‘What for?’
‘There are beings on this world, and others, hunting for…something.’
Jarrod put down his fork and wiped his mouth. ‘What are you talking about, Nell?’ His eyes narrowed. ‘She’s just a young Gaelean witch. What things could she have that someone on this world, or any other, would kill for?’
‘She has a spell.’
‘What kind of a spell?’
Nell closed her eyes. ‘The hidden kind. Many are searching for it, would give, or take, anything to find it.’
‘Anyone in particular?’
‘The High Priestess of Treeon, for one.’
‘Does Rosette know she’s got it?’
‘No.’
‘What? She thinks it’s some travelling charm? And you let her go to Treeon with it?’
‘Sometimes the safest place is right under the adversary’s nose.’
‘But if they know she’s a Matosh…if they link her to the murders…’
‘They may have suspicions I hadn’t counted on. Makee will stop at nothing to get the spell back.’
‘Back?’
‘She had a glimpse of it once. It left quite an impression.’
‘Why? What does it do?’
‘It’s a power spell. Great power. If Makee should ever get hold of it she’d doubtless try to reclaim the temples to the east and extend the influence of Treeon across the whole of Gaela.’
‘That would mean war again!’
‘That’s not the half of it.’
‘What else?’
Nell hesitated. Could she reveal it? She knew that Rosette had trusted Jarrod utterly. If he was to help her now, he needed to be at least semi-informed.
‘The spell contains knowledge from another world. It can protect the portals that lead to other dimensions—other realms—to keep them intact, unpolluted. It holds the secret to the many-worlds’ survival. Oh, Jarrod, there is so much to it that you would never grasp. Even I’m still learning what it can do. It’s the key to this universe. Do you have any idea what that could mean in the wrong hands? In any hands?’
He pressed his fingers together. ‘Yes, Nell. I do.’
Jarrod sat in profound silence as Nell stared at him, her eyes like a hawk.
‘What do you mean, you do?’ she asked. ‘How could you comprehend what I just said?’
‘Because I know Passillo better than anyone alive,’ he whispered back.
Nell pulled the chair out from across the table and sat, her hands shaking. She took a deep breath. ‘I’m listening.’
‘I have a few questions first. What name do you go by?’
‘My name?’
‘With the Matosh family gone, I had a demon’s time tracking you down. Rosette told me you were Nell, the Dumarkian witch, but no-one could tell me more. I’d like to hear the whole thing, if it’s not a secret.’
‘It’s no secret to those who ask. I’m Nellion Paree of the Dumarkian Woods.’
‘Paree.’ He said the name like a prayer. ‘Can you tell me where you come from, Nellion Paree?’
‘Originally?’
He nodded.
‘A small fishing village south of Morzone.’
‘Morzone? Really? Isn’t it more like a small fishing village south of San Francisco? Of course, they can’t fish there any more, can they? Not in those dead seas.’
Nell froze with her wine mug halfway to her lips. When she spoke, her