Jak surveyed the town in the valley below, wondering why he had never noticed before how ugly it was. The buildings were square and forbidding. There was a clear delineation between the wizards' compound and the rest of the town, but that only seemed to highlight how unappealing both sections were. Even the town's two temples were square and functional and the only areas of greenery were in the gardens of the wealthier houses. He realised that he was unconsciously comparing it with Eto's graceful beauty and grimaced. The aesthetics of where he lived had never mattered before. Hell, the town he lived in had never mattered before, so why was he suddenly caring about Genta's relative ugliness?
He dismissed the thought and turned back to his companions. Denil looked exhausted but he hadn't complained once, even though Jak knew that he had been pushing harder than he had any right to. The scholar had already been injured on this trip and he probably should have spent several days recuperating from the blood loss. Instead he had followed Jak onto the road after only a day and ridden harder and longer than most men would in prime condition. Jak had cut out Denil's stitches last night and the wound was healing well, leaving only a long line of raw, pink new flesh that would eventually fade into a neat scar. When he had finished, Denil had conducted a thorough inventory of Jak's scars and concluded that his own could have been a lot worse. The memory of that inventory sent a rush of heat through Jak's body that he pushed away with difficulty.
Jak turned his attention to Sai'em and frowned. From the tips of her pointed ears to the toes of her pristine white boots, she was every inch an elf. Walking into Genta with Denil would be easy. Walking into the town with an elf would be much harder to explain and the wizards would know about her before they were ten feet past the gates. Even with her hood up, Sai'em's immaculate white clothes and horse would be noted and the embroidery on her jacket and breeches was obviously elvish. Rumours about her would be flying within a few hours and Jak wanted to keep her presence quiet for now.
"Are we going?" Sai'em asked.
Jak shook himself, realising that he had been staring at her for a few minutes. "Sorry, I was miles away." He frowned again. "Do you have anything a little less...clean with you?"
"Less clean?" she asked with a puzzled frown.
"Less white," he amended. "I'm not sure that I want to announce your presence yet, but you're a little hard to hide, what with the ears and the clothes and all."
"You want to disguise me," Sai'em said in a flat voice.
"Yes."
"Why?"
Jak shrugged. "I'm not really sure yet. How about calling you an extra card up my sleeve? It seems like a good idea."
Sai'em didn't look entirely convinced but she nodded anyway. "Have you guys got anything I can borrow?"
Between Jak and Denil, they managed to find clothes that fitted as long as nobody looked at her too carefully and she stayed mounted. The cloak she borrowed from Denil dragged on the floor and a tightly cinched belt held up her breeches. Her boots were more of a problem and she ended up in a pair of light indoor ankle boots that had been hiding in the bottom of Denil's pack of books. They were too large and would be ruined if she walked more than a few steps in the snow so Denil helped her mount and Jak promised to keep her up there if he could.
Jak looked uncertainly at the horse. "Is there any way to make her a little less impressive?"
Sai'em patted the horse's neck. "I'm not sure that Mya will appreciate it."
"But there is a way," he confirmed.
The elf nodded and bent to whisper in Mya's ear. Jak decided that it had to be coincidence that the horse whickered and tossed her head just then, forcing Sai'em to straighten and shoot him an aggrieved glare. He made a shooing motion and Sai'em closed her eyes and put her hands on Mya's neck. A moment later a faint glow appeared around her hands and after a few breaths the horse shivered. When she settled, her coat had changed from pure white to pale tan.
Sai'em opened her eyes and raised an eyebrow. "Is this better?"
"It'll do," Jak conceded.
He remounted and nudged his horse into a trot. Denil and Sai'em followed and Jak gestured for the elf to raise her hood. It only took a few minutes to reach the town gates. He slowed to a walk and stopped in front of the guard huddled in thick furs, snoring in his chair. The guard had untidy stubble on his chin, the smell of stale sweat rose off him in waves and the Watch badge pinned to his furs was tarnished. Jak snorted his disgust. He'd only been gone for a few weeks and his men had lost all pretence at discipline.
"Constable Harrak," he barked. "Stand to attention!"
The watchman snorted and opened his eyes. A moment later his chair was lying on the ground and he had slipped on the ice and landed on his rear. He stared up at Jak, stammering and struggling to stand.
"Commander, sir," he panted as he finally rose. "I didn't know...sir, I was just-"
"I can see what you were 'just'," Jak said harshly. "Where are the rest of your men?"
Gate duty was supposed to be conducted in four man teams. Two would stand at the gate checking papers and the other two would be in the small hut just inside the walls to register all visitors to the city. In weather like this they would swap out every hour. One scruffy, snoring guard in a chair went against every order Jak had ever given regarding gate duty.
Harrak snapped into something approximating attention. "They're in the Broken Bucket, sir. Do you want me to fetch them?"
"And leave the gate completely unmanned? No, I don't want you to fetch them. You will check us in and then you will send a message to the Watch house to request replacements. You and your friends are going to be on sewer duty for a month." Jak grinned as he watched the colour drain from Harrak's face. "If you've bathed and shaved by the time I next see you, I might consider halving that."
Harrak swallowed and saluted. "Yes, sir. I'll do that, sir."
"Good man." Jak gestured to his companions. "Now, would you register my friends?"
Jak dismounted and Harrak scurried to lead him to the hut. He wrinkled his nose at the scent of sour wine, mould and dirty socks.
"You might want to clean this place, too," Jak said, his tone making it closer to an order than a suggestion.
"Yes, sir," Harrak agreed, sitting down at the small desk.
He opened a large book and flipped to the right page before dipping his pen in the ink well.
"Sir?" Harrak asked.
Jak had thought about this as he rode down the hill. "Denil of Errith from the university in Eto and his assistant, Ratha Kamor. They're linguists, hired by the Archai."
"Duration of their visit, sir?"
"I'm not sure yet. Probably a month - I'll come down here if that changes."
Harrak carefully entered the details in his register. Jak had given Sai'em a Ventaxian name, which would account for her slight accent if she had to speak. Her hood hid her pointed ears and short hair and Ventaxian women were famous for standing with men on the battlefield, which should explain her breeches. Hopefully, he would be able to keep her hidden in his house so that no one would discover the lie.
Harrak closed the book and pulled two papers out of the desk drawer. He filled in the details and carefully sealed them.
"Will you ask them to register with the gate when they've found accommodation?" Harrak asked as he passed Jak the papers.
"They'll be staying with me," Jak said without thinking.
Harrak's eyes widened. "Yes, sir. I'll make a note of that, sir."
"See that you do."
Jak returned the constable's salute and went outside, taking a deep breath of the slightly less rancid air.
"What was that about?" Denil asked.
Jak mounted. "Just reminding them who's in charge." He handed out the documents Harrak had prepared. "Don't lose these or you'll end up in my cells and I'll have to pull a lot of strings to get you out."
"You've got a lot of security here," Denil noted.
"Wizards seem to make a lot of enemies really easily. Even King Geroll can't get in without the right passes."
"Doesn't he rule here?" Denil asked.
"Technically," Jak said. "He tends to concentrate more on the rest of his kingdom."
"So I see."
He led them through the streets of Genta towards a section northwest of the wizards' compound. The main streets had been cleared of snow although the cobbles would be slick with ice as soon as the sun went down. The narrower streets and alleys hadn't been cleared and the snow from the main streets had been piled in them. Tenants who were willing to take the time had cleared paths to houses and businesses but Jak guessed that most people were finding ways to avoid those streets. He made a mental note to have his people check those snow-clogged alleys on their patrols; they would make a great place to hide bodies and other inconvenient items until spring.
Jak's house was in one of the wealthier sections of the city. It had a high stone wall in front of it and strong gates. He opened the gates and led his companions through into the courtyard in front of the house. To the right were the stables with a cosy apartment above where his housekeeper lived with her son. The house was at right angles to the stable and the back of his neighbour's stables formed a wall to his left. He had never really noticed before how bare and bleak the courtyard looked. A plain, unadorned front to the house didn't help and Jak suddenly wanted to apologise for it. The garden behind the house was bright and filled with flowers in the summer but even it would be bare in the winter.
He dismounted and led his horse through the snow-covered yard towards the stables. He'd barely crossed more than halfway when the door to the house opened and framed his housekeeper.
"Commander Kern? Is that you?" she called.
Elsa Tanner was a plump woman in her fifties who fitted the stereotype of a jolly cook perfectly. Jak had hired her as soon as he met her. Anaya had only been gone for a few weeks and he'd needed someone he could trust to look after his house and son while he was working. Her references had been good but her kind face and immediate rapport with Charry had won her the job.
"Yes, Elsa, it's me," he called back.
"Have you found Charry yet?" she asked, her face falling as she searched and obviously didn't see the boy.
"Not yet," Jak replied, "but I have found the man who might be able to help me. Is Paet around?"
Elsa nodded. "I'll send him round to take care of the horses. Is there anything else you need?"
"I'll need my uniform and something suitable for Denil, here," he said. "We need to get to the wizards as soon as possible."
Within minutes Paet, a cheerful young man in his twenties, had taken the horses to be rubbed down in the stables and Jak was leading his companions into his house. The hallway was just as he had left it - tidy and plain. A pile of envelopes sat on a small table on his left and the vase that was filled with flowers in the summer held a few twigs of holly. Closed doors led off the hall into a formal sitting room, a large dining room and a study. The door to the comfortable den was ajar, as was the door at the end of the hall into the kitchen. He and Charry usually ate in there unless he had guests.
On Jak's right was the staircase to the upper level. He gestured for Sai'em and Denil to precede him and settled Denil's heavy book-filled pack more comfortably on his shoulder. Denil had insisted on carrying his other pack, but had been forced to concede on the books due to his healing arm. Jak managed to get his pack and Denil's up the stairs and paused as his eyes were immediately drawn towards the closed door to Charry's room. He felt warm skin brush his hand and tore his eyes away to meet Denil's. The scholar's eyes were filled with understanding and sympathy. Jak nodded and gestured down the corridor. He directed Sai'em into a guest bedroom and led Denil down to his bedroom at the end.
"Are you sure?" Denil asked, pausing in the doorway.
Elsa would probably be scandalised but Jak couldn't make himself care about that. The idea of Denil sleeping down the hall instead of next to him made something ache inside.
"I'm sure," he said.
Denil seemed to accept that and walked in, dumping his pack in a corner with a sigh.
Jak put Denil's other pack down next to it and slung his own pack onto the wide bed. A tall wardrobe, a chest of drawers, a washstand and a blanket box were the only other pieces of furniture in the room. Although there was no fire in the hearth, the room didn't have the damp, musty feel of an unused room so Jak guessed that Elsa had been airing and heating the house while he was away. He made a mental note to add a bonus to her pay at the end of the month.
"So, what are we doing now?" Denil asked, carefully flexing his healing arm and wincing as the scar obviously pulled.
"Now," Jak said, "we change and get over to the wizards before dark."
He strode over to the wardrobe and pulled the doors open. At that moment he felt movement behind him and then Elsa was next to him, slapping his hands away and giving him disapproving looks.
"Your formal uniform is on the bed, Commander," she said.
Jak glanced over and saw that his formal uniform was indeed on the bed, brushed and neat with a fine polish on the silver buttons.
"Thanks," he said politely.
Elsa sniffed. "Go and wash up while I find something suitable for your friend."
The emphasis she put on the word friend left Jak in no doubt that she had worked out his relationship with Denil immediately. Jak had no worries that she might gossip - her discretion was legendary - but he hoped that she wouldn't be too forceful in her disapproval. She hadn't approved of any of his 'friends' over the years, believing that he should be finding a nice, respectable young lady to replace Anaya. Jak usually just ignored her but this time her wanted her to like Denil. It was an emotion he decided not to examine too carefully for the moment.
Instead of saying anything he dug his shaving kit out of his pack and proceeded to tidy up and change, keeping a wary eye on Denil and Elsa.
Half an hour later, Elsa had been thoroughly charmed and Jak wondered how he could ever have worried that she wouldn't approve of Denil. She gave Jak a sniff that implied he looked presentable and bustled off to attend to Sai'em. Jak's black uniform was stiff and scratchy. The collar was too tight and he always felt ridiculous with all the gold braiding on the sleeves. He would have been far more comfortable in his less ceremonial one but appearances mattered to wizards so he was stuck with the formal one.
Denil looked amazing, even better than Jak had realised he could. Elsa had dug out a dark blue suit that intensified his eyes and the cut flattered him far better than his threadbare, mismatched clothes usually did. His hair had been combed neatly and, although it was still too long and flopped into his eyes, it looked somehow right on him. He was wearing his wire spectacles, which added a studious, scholarly air to his handsome appearance.
"Ready?" Jak asked.
Denil nodded and followed him downstairs. Paet was waiting in the courtyard with fresh horses. Jak recognised the old white mare as one from the Watch house stables. Patrolling the streets of Genta was done on foot but the Watch had a couple of horses for the odd occasions when they were needed, such as formal visits to the wizards' compound.
The beautiful, glossy silver stallion that Paet was beaming proudly at wasn't familiar but Jak had a fair idea where he came from. Paet had a problem with words and numbers; despite Elsa's best efforts, he could barely recognise his own name and addition was a complete mystery to him. He would be cheated out of everything he owned in five minutes if he tried to survive on his own. A way with horses was the only real gift he had. Jak had never met a man better with them and a horse trained by Paet was worth a small fortune. With help from Jak and Elsa, he bought, trained and sold horses, making a tidy profit in the process. The beautiful stallion waiting patiently in the courtyard had to be one of his.
That suspicion was confirmed within a couple of minutes of mounting the horse. He responded to the slightest of touches from Jak's knees and nothing startled him during the ride through the city, even when a child let off a firecracker in an alley. Jak made a mental note to negotiate a price with Elsa for the beast.
He led Denil through the twisting streets to the gates of the wizards' compound and stopped at the gate lodge. Jak frowned when he noticed the teenager who was manning the lodge. The boy's black robes had the pale lemon hood and trim of a first-level student and the irises of his eyes were still in the process of turning brilliant orange. Usually the gatekeepers were older, second or third-level wizards at least.
"Can I help you, sir?" the boy asked.
"I'm Commander Kern of the Watch," Jak said, "and this is Denil of Errith, the linguist. We have business with your librarian."
The boy cocked his head. "Our librarian?"
Jak nodded. "I've brought this man to translate a document in your library."
"Do you have any papers?"
Jak pulled his papers out of his coat pocket and took Denil's from him to hand to the boy. This was getting stranger and stranger - everyone in the compound usually recognised him on sight and he had never been asked for papers before. He visited the compound at least once a week in the course of his duties.
"The Archai knows what this is about," Jak prompted when the boy glanced nervously at the gates after carefully scrutinising the documents.
The boy gulped and held out the papers. "Thank you, Commander, these seem fine."
He pulled a rope hanging from the ceiling of his little lodge and, with the sound of grating metal, the high gates slowly swung open. Jak and Denil rode through.
"What was that about?" Denil asked in a low voice.
"I don't know," Jak replied quietly. "I don't like this."
"I don't either."
The avenue leading to the main building had been cleared but the lawns to either side were still blanketed with snow. As they approached, a small black-robed figure scurried out of the main door to wait at the base of the steps. When they reached him, Jak noted that it was another first-level student. The boy took their reins as they dismounted and cautiously patted the silver stallion's nose.
"He's lovely, sir," the boy said.
Jak frowned at him. "Yes, he is."
"Go on, sir. I have instructions to wait here while you talk."
Jak glanced up and his frown deepened when he saw an older man in the green-trimmed robe of a fourth-level wizard standing in front of the large ornate doors with his arms folded across his chest. Out of the corner of his eye he could see an equally worried expression on Denil's face. There was nothing else to do but walk up the steps and stop in front of the wizard. He was in his early twenties and had flame-red hair and a long nose. The hair clashed horridly with his orange eyes. Jak vaguely recognised him.
"The librarian is unavailable, Commander," the wizard said before Jak could even open his mouth.
"He'll be available to me," Jak said, carefully keeping his voice even and calm.
The wizard looked down his nose at Jak. "He isn't seeing anyone at present."
"Then I would like to speak to the Archai. My friend and I have travelled a long way and our business is urgent."
"Yes, the translation," the wizard said unconcernedly. "I was informed that you would be bringing the linguist. However, the Archai and the librarian are not available to speak with you and we cannot spare anyone to accompany your linguist in the library."
It was only the sense of Denil's calm presence at his shoulder that gave Jak the strength not to simply punch the officious little bastard on the nose.
"Is there anyone more senior that I can speak to?" Jak asked through gritted teeth.
"No," the wizard said curtly.
"Nobody?"
"Nobody, Commander."
The wizard stared at him impassively, not in the slightest bit intimidated by Jak's barely restrained anger.
"Of course there isn't," Jak said. "It isn't your son that's been taken who knows where. It's not your entire life that hinges on getting this linguist," he gestured at Denil, "into that library," he gestured at the building, "to translate a book written in a language that none of you people even recognise."
"We will send a message when someone is available to supervise your linguist in the library," the wizard said calmly.
"I suppose that I can't persuade you to let Denil study the book without a babysitter?" Jak asked, not really expecting an agreement.
"We'll send for you when someone can be spared," the wizard repeated.
"What's your name?" Jak asked.
"Amit Dion."
"Well, Amit Dion, I hope you never need help from your superiors because they'll screw you over," Jak said bitterly. "Denil was right - when you lot get your hooks into someone's soul, you never let go."
Amit blinked and said nothing.
"Tell your superiors that they'd better get their heads out of their asses soon," Jak said.
He turned on his heel and walked slowly down the steps with Denil following. Jak snatched the reins from the young student, who almost tripped over in his eagerness to run up the stairs to the dubious safety of the wizards' compound. He handed Denil's reins to the scholar and mounted quickly.
"Arrogant, scum-sucking, manipulative, orange-eyed, uncaring, arrogant bastards," Jak growled as he wheeled his horse and kneed it into a canter up the drive. "Did I mention arrogant?"
He continued cursing most of the way home.
Sai'em was sitting in the kitchen drinking tea while Mistress Tanner cooked and chatted. Strangely, although the housekeeper had glanced at her pointed ears, she hadn't asked about Sai'em's heritage. It was a refreshingly different response.
Instead, Mistress Tanner had pried out details of the journey and Denil's background, throwing in some details about her history and Paet to disguise the fact that she was essentially performing a ruthless interrogation. She had given away nothing about her employer, but on the odd occasions that she mentioned him there was a fond smile on her face. Sai'em got the impression that Mistress Tanner saw Jak as a headstrong teenager who needed her firm guidance and occasional spoiling but would turn out just fine eventually.
The smells rising from the pots bubbling on the stove were making Sai'em's stomach rumble hungrily and she was just wondering whether the men would be home for supper when the kitchen door leading to the stables slammed open, letting in a burst of cold air. Jak stalked through with a thunderous expression, pulling off his gloves with jerky movements. Denil followed and closed the door carefully. When he turned, Sai'em saw a mixture of sympathy and anger that she suspected was entirely on Jak's behalf.
"How did it go?" she asked, already guessing the answer.
"Oh, they can't see me right now but they'll send a messenger, so that's alright," Jak spat. "Arrogant little...I'm going to change."
He was obviously trying to rein in some of his anger but Sai'em caught some muttered curses as he brushed past her and left the room.
"It went that badly?" she asked.
Denil nodded. "I've never seen him this angry and, to be honest, I'm not far from feeling that way myself."
"Are you going after him?"
He shrugged out of his coat and accepted a steaming mug of tea from Mistress Tanner. "I think it might be best if I gave him some time to calm down."
It was sometimes hard to read human expressions, even Denil's, but Sai'em could easily interpret the way his eyes kept flickering to the door that Jak had left through as he sipped his tea. Even though he knew that leaving Jak alone was for the best, he still wanted to be with the man. After a couple of minutes, he seemed to pull himself out of his introspection.
"Mistress Tanner-" he began.
"Call me Elsa," the housekeeper said with a maternal smile.
"Elsa. Has anything unusual happened in the city while Jak was away?"
Denil walked slowly up the stairs and paused at the top. The door to Charry's room was half open and there was no doubt in his mind that he would find Jak there. Almost without conscious thought, he silently moved towards it and stopped in the doorway.
Jak was sitting on the edge of a small bed. The room obviously had not been touched since its owner disappeared. The shattered remains of a dish lay on the wooden floor with a few bronze coins, a broken toy horse and the assorted detritus that most boys collect. There was a deep gash in the dresser next to the pile and another in a small wardrobe. Books had been swept off a shelf and the splintered remains of a small table still lay in one corner. Jak had fought hard against the invaders who took his son.
The man showed no sign that he had noticed Denil's presence; his entire attention seemed focused on the battered stuffed bear that he was holding. Denil couldn't see his face but the set of his bowed shoulders didn't encourage interruption.
Denil swallowed and turned away. It felt like he was intruding on something that should stay private. He could tell Jak what he had learned from Elsa Tanner later.
It was hours later when Denil finally went upstairs again. Elsa had cooked a delicious chicken pie for supper, particularly welcome after weeks of unvarying inn food, and Denil had stayed in the kitchen talking with Sai'em until the housekeeper began turning down the lanterns. The door to Charry's room was closed again so he said goodnight to the elf at her door and went down the corridor to the bedroom at the end. Denil quietly opened the door and slipped through, latching it carefully. Only a couple of candles still flickered in their holders above the bed and the fire crackled welcomingly on the hearth. At first he thought that Jak, lying on his back with his eyes shut, was asleep until he opened his eyes and smiled slightly.
"Were you waiting for an engraved invitation?" Jak asked dryly.
Denil couldn't help grinning at that. Jak's temper seemed improved and there was no trace of the melancholy he had sensed in Charry's bedroom. He quickly shed the suit and shirt Jak had lent him and slid into bed next to his lover.
"I thought you were sleeping," Denil explained.
Jak rolled onto his side and pulled Denil into a quick, fierce kiss. "The polite euphemism would be that I was thinking."
Denil wrapped his arm loosely around Jak's waist. "And the less polite explanation?"
"I was angry and wouldn't have been a nice person to be around. I needed some time to cool down."
"How are you feeling now?"
Jak shrugged. "Angry. But I don't think I'll be tearing any of them apart with my bare hands in the immediate future so I guess that's an improvement."
"Wizards seem to produce that reaction in a lot of people."
Jak was silent for a while before fixing Denil with an intent gaze that he couldn't tear his eyes away from. "What did they do to you?"
"What?"
"Most people don't trust wizards but with you it seems...personal. You've also got an elf standing bodyguard who seems convinced that the wizards will never let you leave Genta."
"Half-elf."
"What?"
"Sai'em is only half elf. On her father's side."
Jak's eyes narrowed slightly. "Does it really matter?"
"It does to her."
"Denil," Jak said warningly.
"Well, not to this conversation. I guess."
"Then quit stalling."
Denil shifted forward and kissed Jak seductively.
Jak put a hand on his chest and firmly pushed him away. "Nice try, but no good. I'm not that easily distracted."
Denil sighed and rolled onto his back. He was aware of Jak propping his head on his hand so that the former mercenary could watch his eyes, but he didn't turn his head. Instead, he reached out blindly for Jak's free hand and twined their fingers together, bringing their joined hands across to rest on his bare stomach.
"I've been here before," Denil said. "In Genta, I mean."
"I gathered that much."
"It was a long time ago."
"Go on."
"My parents were itinerant scholars. We'd travel around, spending summers on excavations that interested them and winters in cities and universities so they could research in the archives and libraries. We even spent one winter in a king's palace because he had a book they wanted to see. They thought that if we could find out the origins of the Gilderaan Empire and how it grew as fast as it did, maybe they could discover why it fell."
"Did they ever find out?"
Denil shook his head. "If they did, the answer wasn't in any notes that I have."
"I take it you came here one year?"
"The winter before they died." Denil absently traced circles on the back of Jak's hand with his thumb. "The wizards have been gathering up everything that even mentions magic for centuries - they think they're the only suitable guardians for that kind of information," he said bitterly. It was a policy that went against everything he believed about knowledge. "My parents thought that some of those documents might have the information they needed. Magic would certainly explain how the Gilderaan Empire acquired so much territory in only half a century. We took rooms at an inn and tried to get access to the library."
"Successful?"
"Eventually, under supervision. I went with them every day and a fourth-level wizard was assigned to watch us."
"Trusting."
Denil couldn't help snorting at that. "I swear that wizard almost had apoplexy every time my parents walked past the restricted section. We didn't find much even though we were there for months. Father became rather...irritated with the obstructionism and lack of access to the restricted section. Maybe they might have found something if we'd stayed longer."
"Why didn't you?"
"It was my fault, actually."
Jak squeezed Denil's hand. "How could it be your fault? You were just a kid."
"That was the problem." Denil turned his head to see the confusion in Jak's eyes. "I was just starting to work out that the strange feelings in my head could tell me what the weather would do. I'd always had them but for the first time I was old enough to consciously realise what they meant. Unfortunately, I wasn't old enough to keep secrets well. I tried, but I kept blurting things out at the wrong moment and the wizard babysitting my parents worked out that something was going on. He asked a lot of questions and my parents started to get worried."
"Why?"
"Wizards like to keep anything connected to magic - even people - to themselves. My ability isn't true magic but it was unusual enough to interest them."
"Your parents didn't think that they'd try to take you, did they?" Jak asked sceptically.
Denil raised an eyebrow. "Jak, half the students in that compound were taken without their parent's consent. Wizards don't like to let anything escape them."
"They kidnap kids?"
"If the parents aren't frightened enough to give them up, yes."
Jak sighed. "I wondered, sometimes, but I've never had proof."
"That's the kind of people you work for."
"Hey, I don't work for them."
"No? Who runs this city, Jak? Who dictates what you can and can't look into? Who pays your wages?"
"The city council."
"Which group has the largest number of representatives on the council?"
"Aren't we getting a little side-tracked here?" Jak asked uncomfortably.
Denil gave in, for the moment. "Yes, we are."
"So what did your parents do?"
The scholar smiled slightly. "We snuck out before thaw. By the time anyone noticed we were gone, we were fifty miles away and a blizzard was closing in on the city. They never caught up with us."
"That blizzard was very convenient."
"I told my parents when it might hit. The rest was easy."
"No one came after you?"
"If they did, they didn't find us. My parents went on the remotest dig they could find. Father must have left instructions with his chief assistant about what to do if anything happened to them." Denil's throat tightened as it always did when he thought about that terrible day but he'd shed all his tears long ago. "Barit picked me up and took me to Eto as soon as he was sure that nothing could be done. Denil Curath became Denil of Errith and no wizards ever tried to take me away."
"This is why Sai'em insisted on coming with us," Jak surmised shrewdly.
"She worries."
"I can understand why now."
Denil raised their joined hands and looked at them, absorbing the contrast between his long, elegant fingers and Jak's darker, callused hand. "I think I know why the wizards were acting the way they did today."
Sudden fierce interest lit in Jak's eyes but he only said, mildly, "Oh?"
"I was talking to Elsa. Apparently there was a large explosion a few weeks ago. It rocked the city, knocked slates off roofs and no wizard has been seen outside the compound since."
"That fits the timing of the weather."
"Almost to the day. Sai'em thinks a spell went wrong and backlashed on them - a big one. It would explain a lot."
"Uh-huh."
"Any wizard contributing power to the spell would be incapacitated - the more power they put in, the worse the backlash."
"So the only ones unaffected..."
"-Are the lower-level wizards."
Jak spent a few minutes cursing the wizards, even managing a few curses that Denil didn't know. He was wondering whether a particularly colourful physical position was even possible when Jak broke off.
"Low-level wizards?" Jak asked quietly before a grin slowly spread across his face.
"What?" Denil asked warily.
"I was just thinking that if they're having problems like that, we might be able to get in and borrow that book ourselves."
Denil blinked a couple of times. "Steal from wizards?"
"Not steal - borrow."
"You're borrowing without permission or any intention of returning it. Don't your city laws classify that as theft?"
Jak shrugged. "Planning to report me?"
Denil glowered at him.
"Alright, I'll give it a day and then I'm going in."
"Three days."
"I'll think about it."
That was the nearest thing to a promise that Denil was likely to get out of the man so when Jak suddenly leaned over and kissed him, he didn't try to resist. It was a deep, intoxicating kiss that chased away all coherent thought and left trails of fire and need in its wake.
"I thought you didn't want to...?" Denil asked a few minutes later.
The soft smile on Jak's face made him look ten years younger. "I wanted to know your story. Now I know it."
He leaned down again and Denil released his hand so that he could wrap his arm around Jak. The feel of Jak's skin against his had become almost familiar over the past couple of weeks but it still had the power to send hot shivers down Denil's spine to pool at the base of his stomach. He shifted restlessly against Jak and was rewarded with a gasp.
"I want you," Jak growled in his ear.
Denil nuzzled Jak's throat, teasing and gently nipping at it. "I'm here."
Suddenly Jak was pulling away and stretching across to get something out of the pack on the floor next to the bed. Denil barely had time to swallow his disappointment before Jak was back, holding a small bottle of oil.
"I want you," Jak repeated and Denil suddenly understood.
For a moment he froze, uncertain whether he was ready to take this step, but it only lasted a heartbeat. Of course he was ready. It was what he had expected on the night they became lovers. It had just been delayed slightly due to the circumstances. Now the circumstances, if not the timing, were better and he wanted to know what it would be like to have Jak inside him and to be inside Jak.
Denil plucked the bottle out of Jak's hand and stretched up to brush their lips together.
"I want you too," he whispered, pulling Jak down.
Jak woke up feeling tired and there was tightness in his head that meant a headache was trying to form. A glance at the sliver of sky visible above the rooftops through his window showed why. Dawn was only just lightening the sky so he had barely had a couple of hours of sleep. The fact that it was his own fault didn't help. He was the one who had initiated a third round of lovemaking when Denil was still drowsy and content from the last bout. It was just that the fierce pleasure and satiation of his release had, for a while, pushed away the anger and disappointment of realising that finding his son wouldn't be as easy as he had expected it to be now that they were back in Genta.
He swallowed and forced the blank despair away. He would find his son. It was just going to take longer than he had thought it would.
Despite his exhaustion, Jak felt restless. Denil was sleeping peacefully, his arm around Jak's waist and his head resting on Jak's shoulder, but that kind of peace eluded the former mercenary. He needed to be doing something. Out on the road, the daily slog through the snow had fulfilled that need. Somewhere at the back of his mind there had always been the assumption that he would get to Genta and immediately discover the location of his son. It was ridiculous but inevitable. Now he had to face the fact that translating the book and finding the clues that might lead him to his son would take even more time.
Jak brushed a hand over Denil's hair and briefly considered waking him up. He dismissed the thought immediately. Denil deserved his sleep after the difficult journey and what could he do anyway?
Instead, Jak carefully slipped out of the bed. Denil immediately sighed and rolled onto his stomach but didn't wake. Jak silently crossed the room and rummaged through his wardrobe. Elsa had taken their travelling clothes to wash but he found a grey jacket and breeches and a linen shirt that he hadn't taken with him. He dressed quickly and pulled on warm woollen socks. His hand hesitated over his gaudy uniform jacket and he shrugged. Even the everyday jacket was ridiculously over-decorated so he took off the watch badge and rank pin and left it behind.
Jak glanced at the bed before he left. Denil hadn't stirred and the blanket had fallen down to his waist, exposing the smooth length of his bare back. Without pausing to think, Jak crossed the room and planted a kiss between Denil's shoulder blades. The mixed musk of Denil and sex made his resolve waver for a moment but he straightened up and ignored the temptation. Denil shifted slightly as though he could feel Jak even in sleep. Jak touched his shoulder lightly before picking up his boots and slipping out of the room.
Elsa puzzled Sai'em. She seemed to be a gossipy, garrulous woman and yet she didn't discuss her employer's business and displayed no interest in Sai'em's heritage. The elf had caught Elsa's eyes occasionally flickering to her pointed ears but the woman had said nothing. In her experience, humans usually couldn't resist commenting on the ears and asking all sorts of questions that she couldn't answer. Instead, Elsa made piecrusts and told Sai'em more than she wanted to know about the gentlemen callers at a house down the street. Sai'em sat at the kitchen table drinking tea, trying to puzzle out why the woman wasn't behaving the way she was supposed to.
Every now and then Elsa paused in her chatter and gave Sai'em thorough instruction about what she was doing with the pastry. Sai'em just nodded and sipped her tea.
There was nothing else she could do. She'd slept as much as she could and she couldn't leave the house without risking exposure. Sai'em hadn't been able to bring any of her work with her and most of Denil's books were in languages she didn't understand. If they had to stay in Genta for a prolonged period of time, she anticipated becoming very bored.
It was late morning when Denil finally appeared in the kitchen. He was still yawning sleepily so she poured a mug of tea and held it out. He took it and sipped gratefully as he sat down across the table from her.
"How do you feel?" she asked.
Denil pushed his hair away from his eyes and stifled another yawn. "Better."
"Really?" she asked sceptically.
"I think the journey is just catching up with me today."
He finished his mug and poured another. The tea gradually took effect and Denil began to look more awake. Sai'em was aware of Elsa listening carefully as she filled her pies with fruit. Probably nothing happened in the house that the housekeeper didn't know about within a few minutes.
"Have you seen Jak?" Denil asked.
Sai'em shook her head. "I assumed he was still upstairs with you."
Denil suddenly flushed and shifted uncomfortably. Sai'em almost asked what had made him react that way before reminding herself that it really wasn't her business. As long as Jak did nothing to harm Denil, she would have to curb her instinct to protect him.
"Commander Kern has gone to the Watch house," Elsa said, her eyes still intent on her pies. "He felt that he would be more useful at work than waiting here for a message from the wizards that may never come."
"He was threatening to break into their library last night," Denil said.
"Do you think he would?" Sai'em asked.
"Yes," Denil and Elsa chorused before glancing at each other with surprised expressions.
Sai'em managed to restrain herself from commenting on human impetuosity with great effort.
Jak managed to keep his frustration under control for two days before it finally got the better of him and he had to do something. A brief trip to the wizards' compound only eroded his temper further. A fourth-level wizard with an annoying sneer barely listened to him before sending him away to wait for a message. Again. Jak had no idea how he managed to restrain himself from punching the arrogant son of a bitch.
Instead he stalked home, his anger getting hotter as he went, and threw open the kitchen door with a satisfying crash. Two pairs of startled blue eyes met his. Elsa just sniffed disapprovingly and turned back to her stove.
"Jak?" There was a note of concern in Denil's voice.
"I've had it," Jak announced, closing the door. "Those wizards have had plenty of time to dig out someone to baby-sit us. They're lying, arrogant, snivelling weasels with the humanity of hyenas and I'm tired of waiting around for them."
"You're right. We need to take that book."
"Denil, they've gone too far and...I'm right?" The scholar's unexpected agreement temporarily derailed the righteous anger that Jak had been nursing. Despite Denil's dislike of wizards, he hadn't expected him to agree to theft so quickly.
"You're right," Denil repeated. "They're playing with us. They'll keep putting us off until we give up."
Jak eyed him uncertainly. "Why are you agreeing with me?"
Denil glanced at Sai'em before focusing on Jak again. "If they had any intention of helping us, they would have found someone to sit with me in the library by now. The fact that they want a senior wizard around strongly suggests that they want to keep the information in that book to themselves. If they hadn't put most of their senior wizards out of action, I'd probably be sitting in that library right now making the translation with an ancient wizard breathing down my neck and we wouldn't have seen anything of it when I finished unless there was something that even I could tell was relevant."
Jak had to take a moment to reorder his thoughts and discard some of the arguments he'd had lined up to persuade Denil to go along with the idea. "Well, thank you. I'm glad you agree with me."
"You're welcome. What's your plan?"
Jak sat down at the table. "I'm going to break in."
"I gathered that. How do we do it?"
The unwavering assumption that it would be a joint expedition made Jak wince. "We don't. I do, with Sai'em's help." He held up a hand to forestall Denil's protests. "I know you want to help and I appreciate it, but this isn't something you can do. I need you to translate the book if we get it out."
"What do you need me for?" Sai'em asked.
"Could you get past alarm spells set by humans?"
"Probably."
"Would you be willing to do it?"
Sai'em cocked her head. "I've never stolen anything before, but it might be an interesting challenge."
Jak grinned and outlined his plan. At one point Denil interrupted to ask how Jak knew so much about the defences in the wizards' library and he had to smile sheepishly.
"A lot of those spells were put in place after I broke in to search the restricted section," Jak explained. "I discovered them when I tried to steal the book to bring to you. As soon as I picked the lock, an alarm went off that woke the whole damn place."
Denil's brilliant smile sent an unexpected thrill down Jak's spine.
"How soon can you be ready?" Jak asked Sai'em.
She shrugged. "Now, if you need me."
Getting over the high wall around the compound was easy. The wickedly pointed iron stakes set along its top probably intimidated causal student escapees but they made good grips for grappling hooks and were spaced far enough apart to cause few problems for a pair of nimble thieves.
Jak and Sai'em dropped lightly to the ground and ran across the snow to the main building. The elf easily sped over the white surface without leaving a footprint and her white coat blended with the moonlit snow. Jak was slightly slower and he glanced back over his trail when he reached the protection of the small sheltered doorway they were aiming for. The footprints that would have given away his presence were already disappearing. He raised his eyebrow at Sai'em and she nodded, her blue eyes sparkling.
The door was a small one that led into the servants' quarters. Jak crouched to examine the lock and was surprised when Sai'em batted his hands away. She made a circling gesture with one hand and mouthed, "Warded."
Jak nodded his understanding and stepped away to let her work. She held her hands just above the handle and closed her eyes. After a few breaths, a glow appeared around the door that quickly dissipated. Sai'em stepped back and gestured for Jak to resume his part in the break-in. The lock was easily picked and they slipped in soundlessly. Sai'em took a moment to reset the ward-spell before they walked quietly down a short hallway. The sound of snoring floated out through a couple of closed doors and Jak heaved a sigh of relief when they latched the door to the large kitchen at the end of the hall behind them.
It wasn't time to relax yet. Jak took off the knapsack he was carrying and pulled out two black robes. He had already decided not to ask Elsa where she'd found two robes with the green trim and hoods of fourth-level wizards at short notice. He bundled his coat with Sai'em's and the knapsack and hid them in a shadowed corner. The robes weren't perfect fits but they would do and the raised hood hid Sai'em's pointed ears.
During his years with the Watch, Jak had observed that the most successful thieves were those who didn't look like thieves. Skulking, creeping and running away attract attention. Someone who acts innocently can pass undetected, even if he's stealing the family jewels as he goes.
Sai'em and Jak employed that idea as they walked through the corridors towards the library. Jak's heart hammered as though he was running a marathon, but he calmly nodded greetings as he passed other wizards and led the way without hesitation. Instead of waiting suspiciously outside the door until the coast was clear, they walked boldly into the library and found to their relief that it was empty. A few mage-lights floated near the ceiling but there was no movement between the stacks. The restricted section was at the far end behind a heavy grating. A barred door was set into it with an old lock that Jak knew from experience was easy to pick and a couple of shiny, newer ones that looked trickier. Although the rest of the library had high ceilings and a balcony around the edge with yet more shelves, the restricted section was low with vaulted ceilings. He wasn't an expert on architecture, but Jak thought that this was much older than the rest of the library.
As Jak led Sai'em to it he asked, "Did you notice the wizards we passed?"
Sai'em pushed back her hood and nodded. "Nobody was above fourth-level."
"That suggests they were telling the truth about everyone higher being out of action."
"If the backlash was bad enough - and I think it probably was - any wizard caught up in it will be useless for months. Most of the remaining students will have to act as nursemaids until they start to regain their strength."
"Does this work for us?"
"It makes getting past any spells undetected a bit easier."
Sai'em spent a couple of minutes carefully examining the grating without touching it.
"This is a lot more complicated than the door was," she said softly.
"How?"
"The locks are protected against picking and there seems to be a grid of power inside that will fry you if you touch it."
"Nice. They've made some upgrades."
"It's quite sophisticated," she said admiringly. "For humans."
"Are you going to compliment them or disarm it?"
Sai'em frowned and stated intently at the grating. For a long time nothing happened. Jak kept a wary eye on the door at the other end of the room and waited for some sign that Sai'em had broken past the wizards' spells.
"Try now," she whispered eventually.
"Try what?"
"Picking the lock."
Jak knelt in front of the barred door and pulled the small leather roll containing his lock picks out of a pocket under his robe. He examined the locks carefully before choosing the picks he would need for the first of the newer locks.
Just before inserting the pick, he paused and asked, "You're sure this won't fry me?"
"I'm sure."
He carefully inserted the pick just as Sai'em added softly, "Almost sure."
Jak ignored her and concentrated on delicately manipulating the lock mechanism. It took a few minutes before he felt the tumblers fall and he allowed a small grin to escape. The other new lock had a slightly different internal configuration and took even longer. The older one was simple by comparison. By the time he was finished he was dripping with nervous sweat.
"Done," he announced quietly, wincing as he stood. Kneeling on cold stone floors was murder on his knees.
Sai'em's sigh of relief was audible in the silent library. She waited until Jak moved out of the way before carefully pulling the door open.
"Is it safe to go in?" Jak asked.
Sai'em shook her head and held up her hand. A burst of pale light shot out from her palm into the vault and immediately a grid-work of thin red beams criss-crossing it appeared. Jak jumped and swore harshly under his breath.
"Could you warn me before you do something like that?" he asked irritably.
"Sorry." The tone of Sai'em's voice wasn't particularly apologetic. "Where was the book?"
"Why?"
"I can't shut down the entire spell without someone noticing, but I can clear a path."
Jak pointed towards a corner of the vaulted chamber. "It was over there. Unless they've moved it."
Sai'em nodded and a moment later another bolt of pale light flew from her hand. This time it didn't dissipate throughout the chamber. Instead it expanded to form a narrow corridor leading towards the section Jak had pointed to. The light brightened and then split in two and wherever the light touched the grid it absorbed the red beams until a pale pink light edged a cleared corridor a little wider than a man.
"It's safe," Sai'em said quietly. "Try not to touch the light, though. Bring out the book - I may have an idea for it."
Jak looked at her suspiciously. "What sort of idea?"
"I don't want to say until I know whether it might work."
"So it's a surprise."
"In a sense."
"I don't like surprises."
"Even good ones?"
"Surprises tend to ruin perfectly good plans."
"This one will help our plan."
Jak opened his mouth to argue, but closed it again. He had a feeling that the elf could out-argue him without much difficulty and time was important.
Holding his arms carefully at his sides, he strode down the narrow corridor towards the shelves. Sai'em's light display was actually going to work in their favour. It provided just enough illumination to allow him to read the spines of the books without needing to find and light any candles. Although there were mage-lights in the main library, the lamps in the restricted section were dark - probably to deter any curious students. Jak remembered, in a vague way, which shelf the book had been on but it took him a few minutes to find it. Eventually he spotted the slim volume wedged between two huge, thick books and carefully pulled it free, all the time expecting alarms to go off as he did so. The compound stayed silent, though, so he quickly returned to Sai'em and held the book out to her.
It was a small, non-descript book that he'd almost ignored the when he was first looking for clues to his son's kidnapping. The gold embossed lettering was fading and the red leather had darkened with age. He still had no idea what had made him pick it up. The characters on the spine weren't in any alphabet that he recognised and there was nothing else notable on it. But the moment he'd seen the cover, Jak had known that this would hold the clue that would lead him to his son. The tooling on the cover was a perfect, intricate reproduction of the vortex that the kidnappers had disappeared through. The text inside was written in the same strange alphabet as the cover and the wizards hadn't been able to make any sense of it. There were diagrams as well and those had confirmed in Jak's mind that he had found an important clue. As well as another diagram of the vortex, there had been a sketch of some kind of emblem that was similar to a tattoo on the cheek of one of the kidnappers.
"This is it," Jak said.
Sai'em took the book from him and swept her fingers over the cover. A small smile appeared on her face.
"This will work," she said, handing the book back to Jak.
"What will work?" he asked.
Sai'em ignored him and reached into her robe to pull out a small book almost the same size as the one in Jak's hand.
"Watch," she instructed.
Sai'em rested a hand on Jak's book and closed her eyes. The book in her hand shimmered disconcertingly and then it began to change. Before Jak's eyes the leather gradually darkened and writhed as characters appeared on its surface. Within a couple of minutes it looked exactly like Jak's book and Sai'em opened her eyes with a satisfied smile.
"Well?" she asked. "Is this a good surprise?"
Jak took her book and opened it. "There's nothing in this."
Sai'em shrugged. "Duplicating the text would require me to look at each individual page and copy it. The spell doesn't work on what I can't see."
"Why?" Sai'em began to reply, but Jak held up a hand and said, "Never mind. I don't really need to know."
"Thank you."
Jak tucked his book into his robe and held up the fake. "I'll put this back then."
"That would be a good idea. Could you hurry a little?"
"Tired?"
"It's a complicated spell I'm holding and we still have to reset the wards we took down."
Denil was pacing in Jak's bedroom. He had been pacing since Jak and Sai'em left just after midnight, stopping occasionally to peer out of the window at the snowy garden. Now pale dawn was just beginning to lighten the sky and he was spending more time gazing anxiously out of the window than pacing. Logic told him that it was sensible to take the smallest group possible into the wizards' compound and he was not an ideal thief, but his instincts told him that he should be sharing his friends' danger.
There was a quiet knock on his door and he called for the person to enter. Elsa came in and joined him at the window. She was already dressed in a dark grey gown with her greying hair neatly pulled into a bun. Denil was still wearing the same clothes he'd worn yesterday.
"It won't be much longer," she said reassuringly.
Denil nodded wordlessly. They continued their silent vigil as the sky turned pink and the sun slowly rose over the horizon. Pale light was just beginning to touch the snowy garden when there was movement at the far end. A small gate set in the high wall opened and two figures slipped through, the darker one pushing it shut before they walked towards the house. Sai'em's white coat was as unmistakable as Jak's silvering hair. Denil and Elsa exchanged relieved grins before rushing for the stairs.
Jak and Sai'em were shaking the snow off their boots at the kitchen door when Denil and Elsa entered the kitchen. Denil immediately crossed to Jak and took the knapsack that was handed to him.
"Jak, where the hell have you been?" he demanded.
"It's nice to know you were so concerned," Jak said lightly.
Denil scowled at him. "You should have been back hours ago."
"It took longer than we'd planned."
There was a slight limp in Jak's walk as he moved to the table and gratefully sank onto one of the chairs.
"Are you alright?" Denil asked, concerned.
"Yeah." Jak winced as he carefully massaged one of his knees. "I've just spent most of the night picking and unpicking locks."
Denil shot a questioning glance at Sai'em.
"We wanted to get in and out undetected so we had to leave everything as we found it," she explained.
Her face was pale and Denil could detect signs of strain and tiredness around her eyes. His guess was confirmed when she also sat on with of the kitchen chairs with an exhausted sigh. Elsa must have noticed their weariness because she began bustling around the kitchen, taking bacon and sausages out of the larder.
"Did you get it?" Denil asked.
There was a triumphant grin on Jak's face as he pulled a slim dark red book out of his coat. Denil held out a hand uncertainly and Jak immediately surrendered the book to him. Everything else faded away as Denil ran his fingers over the intricately tooled leather cover. He stumbled over to a chair and sat down, his eyes never leaving the faded letters. Conversation flowed unheeded around him.
Denil opened the book, faintly surprised to see that the ink was still bright and the pages unmarked by time despite the book's obvious age. He held the pages to his nose and smelt the slight tang of marshmallow, a root that he often smelled on books treated with preserving spells. Lowering the book, he flipped to the first page and stared at the writing.
He had no idea how much time passed before someone shook his shoulder and Jak called his name.
"Can you translate it?" Jak asked, hope shining in his eyes.
Denil absently picked up the steaming mug of tea on the table in front of him and sipped at it while he composed his answer. "It's written in Old High Elvish runes."
"So you can translate it," Jak confirmed.
Denil frowned thoughtfully. "I can read the runes but they're translating into gibberish. Maybe there's something wrong in my translation - I'd have to check one of my notebooks upstairs."
"Can you translate it?" Jak asked Sai'em.
The elf shook her head ruefully. "Old High Elvish hasn't been used by my people for over a thousand years. Only the historians and a few elders can still read it. I'm not much of a linguist or a historian."
"Is there somewhere quiet where I can work on this?" Denil asked.
"You can use my study. It's the room next door," Jak said.
"Thanks."
Denil picked up the book and his tea and walked to the door, his mind already returning to the puzzling translation.
"Is there anything I can get you?" Jak asked.
"I'll need my books," Denil said, pausing. "Just bring the entire pack and I'll find what I need. I'll also need paper - lots of it, probably. And my pen case is wrapped in some socks in my other pack."
"I'll get them for you," Jak promised.
"Thanks," Denil said vaguely.
By nightfall Denil was no further in his translation and a long way towards shouting at Jak. He knew that it was only worry for his son, but each time Jak came into the study with a cup of tea, a plate of food or wood for the fire and asked about his progress it interrupted his train of thought. Eventually he had to say something despite knowing why Jak was there.
"How is it going?" Jak asked as he put another mug of tea on the desk and removed the previous, untouched one.
"I'm no further than I was the last time you asked," Denil said, "or even than I was this morning."
"Oh."
Denil put on his best sympathetic expression. "I know you're only trying to help, Jak, but at the moment the best thing you can do is to let me work. Each interruption only delays me."
"I'm sorry," Jak said quietly.
Denil gave him a reassuring smile. "Don't be - I understand. Just give me some time to study this thing."
Jak nodded. "I'll stay out of your way."
"Thank you."
The former mercenary walked to the door and hesitated. "Can I send Sai'em in sometimes to get you things?"
"That would be great."
With a curt nod, Jak left the room and Denil sighed before returning to the book.
Denil worked steadily, barely taking more than a few minutes' break for anything, and Sai'em kept him supplied with food and pots of tea. Three days after the theft she took another tray into the study and winced at what she saw. The room was lit by mage-lights that she had produced after a short rest from the exertion of the theft and they provided a better light than candles ever could. That light clearly showed the untouched tray from lunch and Denil's exhausted, defeated posture. She put her tray down on a low table by the fire and lightly touched his shoulder, unsurprised when he jumped.
"Have you slept recently?" she asked critically.
He put his pen down and rubbed a hand over his face. "I dozed off for a couple of hours yesterday."
"I thought so. Why don't you go upstairs and get some proper sleep?"
Denil shook his head. "I need to finish this."
"How's it going?"
"It's complete nonsense," he said irritably. "I've tried everything I can think of and I can't get it to make sense."
Sai'em picked up one of the pieces of paper he had been working on and tried to read it. "I see what you mean. Do you think the book is useless?"
Denil pushed his hair out of his eyes and folded his arms over his chest, a move that always signalled some form of distress. "That's the problem - I don't think it is. I think it probably describes the spells used to create the vortex. If I could translate it then we could probably trace those spells back to find out where Jak's son might be."
"You're sure about that?"
"Absolutely. The diagrams and illustrations in there are unmistakable. It's the text that makes no sense."
He suddenly swept the useless translations on off the desk and swore loudly. "If it would just make sense!"
Sai'em put a hand on his wrist. "Calm down. Go and get some sleep - you can't be thinking clearly right now. I'm sure Jak won't be angry if you get a little rest after working for three days straight. Maybe the answer will come when you've had a chance to clear your mind a little."
Denil seemed to deflate as the last of his energy ran out of him. "Maybe you're right."
"Of course I am." Sai'em grinned. "I'm an elf."
"Half-elf," Denil correctly automatically.
"Pedant."
She ignored his raised eyebrows.
There is a place between sleeping and waking where the mind roams and wanders in a way that it doesn't have the freedom to at any other time. Denil was in that place. Runes and letters chased across the surface of his mind, combining and breaking apart to recombine in new formations.
Suddenly his eyes shot open and he was wide-awake as an idea hit him. It was at once so obvious and so devious that he almost dismissed it. After a few minutes of careful consideration, though, he decided that it was definitely an idea worth pursuing.
At some point Jak had come home from the Watch house and slipped into bed. Denil could feel Jak's warm bulk spooned behind him and there was a strong arm slung over his waist. The room was still dark so dawn hadn't yet come, but his mind was now too active to go back to sleep. He wouldn't get any peace until he had tried his idea and found out whether or not it worked. Denil carefully eased away from Jak despite Jak's attempts to pull him closer. He sat on the edge of the bed and looked back when he heard a soft grunt behind him.
"D'n'l?" Jak mumbled sleepily.
He wasn't really awake so Denil brushed his fingers through Jak's hair and murmured, "It's alright, go back to sleep."
Jak obediently rolled over and began snoring softly again. Denil grinned indulgently before standing, wincing as cool air met bare flesh. He quickly dressed, uncaring whether his clothes matched or not, and crept quietly out of the room. There were a couple of lamps turned low to illuminate the hall and stairway so Denil made his way safely to the study. There he ignored the untidy jumble of papers that he had knocked to the floor last night and pulled out a fresh sheet as he sat down. He opened the stolen book to the first page again and stared at the incomprehensible runes for a while.
It took a few minutes to search through his notebooks and find the one he was looking for. When he had it, he flicked through the pages until he found the right place and read the entry. It said exactly what he thought he remembered. Putting that notebook next to Jak's book, Denil dipped his pen in ink and began to write slowly, stopping frequently to refer to his notes.
Jak spent as much time as he could at the Watch house, deciding that it was better to keep up with the meaningless paperwork and have an eye on his constables rather than wait in the house with only his thoughts and a mysterious elf for company. He left early and returned late, his eyes inevitably drawn to the door of the study where Denil was working each time he walked through the hall. The only thing that stopped him walking into that room and asking how the translation was going every few minutes was the thought that it might delay Denil's work. Now that he finally had the book, every minute seemed precious. It wasn't just that he needed to see his son again after months of missing him; he felt as though something terrible would happen if he delayed further.
It was a week after the theft when Jak came home just after midnight and his eyes, as always, went to the study door. This time he was too tired to resist so he went down the hall and nudged the door open, although he wasn't so tired that he would interrupt Denil yet. Instead, he leaned against the doorjamb and watched the scholar, drinking in every detail.
Denil was hunched over his desk, a look of intense concentration just visible through the curtain of too-long hair. His hair had grown a couple of inches over the past month so that it now nearly touched his shoulders and he had to brush it out of his eyes frequently. Jak still wondered how hair that he thought should look ridiculous could actually suit the man and emphasise his strength instead of feminising him.
As he watched, Jak slowly realised that there was something different about Denil's posture. When he came here the night after the theft, Denil's shoulders had been slumped and there had been an aura of disappointed frustration around him. Now, although he looked exhausted, there was also anticipation and tightly controlled excitement in his face and body. Denil had open books spread out on the desk around him and he divided his attention between them, running a finger down one page and then turning to another and nodding before scribbling something on one of the many pieces of paper in front of him. Some time in the last week he'd had some kind of breakthrough in the translation.
Jak wasn't sure how long he stood watching Denil. He wasn't just watching a man who was helping him to find his son - he was watching his lover, a man who was slowly coming to mean more to him than he had ever thought possible. The mismatched jacket and breeches, the untidily cut hair and the ink smudges on Denil's fingers had somehow captured him in a way that nobody else had. Jak felt as though he was being torn in two. On the one hand he needed to find his son, but on the other he missed having Denil in bed next to him. He'd come home a couple of nights ago to find Denil asleep in the bed and woken up the following morning alone. It had been a strange moment to realise that he was both glad and disappointed at the same time.
Eventually, Denil must have sensed that someone was there because he turned in his chair and the smile that spread across his face made Jak's heart skip a beat.
"How long have you been standing there?" Denil asked, rotating his neck with a wince.
Jak had crossed the room and begun firmly massaging the stiff muscles before he had time to think about whether or not it was a good idea.
"A while," Jak said.
Denil sighed as Jak's fingers worked on a tense spot. "I'm sorry."
"What for?"
"Not noticing you."
"You weren't meant to. I didn't want to interrupt you."
"The translation is going well."
"I gathered."
"It's going to take some time, though."
Jak reluctantly removed his fingers from Denil's neck. "I should go then."
Denil caught Jak's hand as he passed, forcing him to stop. "You don't have to stay away completely. The occasional interruption, like this one, is fine."
"I don't want to delay you," Jak said, swallowing hard. "If it's my fault that we don't-"
"That's not going to happen," Denil cut him off. "You've done everything in your power - more than most people would. Interrupting me every five minutes will delay me, but dropping in at the end of the day won't."
"Neither will taking the occasional nap," Jak said with a gentle smile.
Denil flushed. "I sleep."
"If your mind gets fuzzy, you won't be doing anyone any good. You need to eat, too."
"I eat."
Jak looked pointedly at the mostly untouched tray of supper. Instead of arguing, Denil suddenly tugged hard on Jak's arm and he overbalanced, toppling forward so that he had to put one hand on the desk and the other on the back of Denil's chair to stop himself landing heavily on the floor. The position put his lips inches from Denil's and the scholar wasted no time in taking advantage. Denil wrapped a hand around the back of Jak's neck and tugged him the remaining inches until their lips met. There hadn't been a chance to kiss over the past week and Jak's eyes closed as soon as he felt the warm touch. They kissed slowly, reverently, relearning the touch and feel of mouths sliding together and the taste that Jak had been hungering for. Jak's arms began to shake under the strain of holding himself in the uncomfortable position, but he refused to back away until he felt Denil's fingers lightly stroking his face and the other man pulled away.
"I've missed that," Jak said softly, unable to hold the words in.
A lightning smile brightened Denil's face. "So have I."
Jak leaned forward and brushed his lips over Denil's. "Our timing sucks."
"Uh-huh."
Denil's fingers still rested lightly on his jaw but Jak finally had to give into the demands of his aching arms and back. He straightened reluctantly.
"I should . . ." Denil gestured vaguely towards his work. "It's late."
Jak nodded. "I should probably get some sleep."
"Yeah."
For a long moment he stared down at Denil, watching as the other man licked kiss-swollen lips and shook his head to clear it. A mask of detachment slowly dropped over Denil's face and Jak knew that it was time to go. He brushed a hand over Denil's hair before he walked to the door, looking over his shoulder once to see that Denil was already absorbed in his translation again.
Even though he had the key, it took Denil another two weeks to complete the translation of the slim book. Sai'em regularly brought him meals and forced him to eat them if too many were ignored. Jak sometimes ordered him to bed if he came home and found the scholar asleep at his desk but Denil rarely slept for long. There was a growing excitement that wouldn't allow him to rest as the book gradually gave up its secrets. His entire attention was focused on it to the exclusion of everything else, including the demands his own body.
Eventually, he turned a page and found that there were no more runes; the translation was finished. Denil sat back in his char and the weight of his exhaustion suddenly crashed down on him. The temptation to simply curl up in a corner of the study and sleep for three days almost overwhelmed him. He resisted, instead gathering up his papers and pushing to his feet.
Sai'em was sitting alone in the kitchen when he went in. The expression on his face must have told her that he'd finished the translation because a smile immediately lit her face and she stood to help him to a chair.
"Is Jak here?" he asked tiredly.
"He left an hour ago." She examined him closely. "Why don't you have a bath and something to eat while I send for him?"
A good scrub in a hastily heated bath and a plate of Elsa's chicken pie left Denil feeling refreshed and staved off some of the exhaustion. He was sitting in the kitchen with his second cup of liberally honeyed tea when the front door flew open and he heard Jak's footsteps in the hallway.
As Jak hurried into the room his eyes immediately found Denil's. There was a question in them, mixed with unmistakable fear, and Denil nodded with a slight smile. Jak closed his eyes and took a deep, shaky breath before opening them to give Denil a look that clearly conveyed his gratitude and relief. He kept his eyes locked on Denil's as he crossed the room, pulled Denil to his feet and enfolded him in a tight hug.
"Thank you," he whispered in Denil's ear.
Heat rushed to Denil's face as he was released and allowed to resume his seat. It was easier to concentrate on his mug than meet anyone's eyes until the flush faded.
Jak took his coat off and draped it over the back of a chair. There was an unspoken accord in the kitchen not to ask questions until everyone was settled. Elsa made a fresh pot of tea and brought out mugs for her and Jak before she sat down.
Denil could feel their eyes on him, which unaccountably made him nervous, so he took a deep breath before beginning.
"I've finished the translation," he said, trying to find an elegant way to begin.
"You've translated the entire book?" Jak asked.
Denil nodded. "It was a lot more complicated than I initially thought it would be. I tried to translate the Old High Elvish directly into Common but it just produced nonsense."
"What does it say?" Jak asked impatiently.
Elsa frowned at him. "Let the lad finish."
Denil smiled gratefully at the housekeeper. "The way the text was encoded gave me some information about the author of the book."
"Encoded?" Sai'em asked sharply.
"Encoded," Denil confirmed. "Old High Elvish was used mainly for official or technical texts, with the simpler Old Elvish used for personal correspondence, journals and so on. That meant the writers sometimes had to write words that had no translation in Old High Elvish - human words, mainly. Certain runes have a dual meaning - they're either translated normally or are used to roughly equal a human letter. If a certain determinative rune appeared at the beginning of a word, the rest of the runes in that word were translated as their human equivalent. This book was written completely in those runes, but the writer deliberately left out the determinative."
"So he knew some Old High Elvish," Sai'em reasoned.
"Probably. Enough to encode a human alphabet, anyway," Denil confirmed. "The text still made no sense in the transliterated format until I began trying cipher shifts. A shift of ten - A becomes K, B becomes L and so on - turned the nonsense text into a Bedaani dialect used around six hundred years ago and the rest was just a straight translation."
"Well done - but what does it say?" Jak asked again.
Denil forgave Jack the slightly obnoxious tone because he was obviously more worried about his son than politeness. "Whoever wrote this went to a lot of trouble to keep the information secret. Making any sense of this required knowledge of two fairly obscure languages and code breaking. The author was probably afraid that the contents might fall into the wrong hands."
"Such as the wizards," Sai'em said.
"Exactly. The author made some amazing discoveries and he couldn't simply destroy the information, but he was also worried about what someone might do with it."
When Denil paused to take a sip of tea, Jak gestured impatiently for him to continue.
"I'm not a wizard," Denil said, "so some of this went over my head, but he seemed to be describing his journeys through something called 'the planes'. He discovered that our world isn't the only one. There are hundreds of these other planes, some of them habitable and some not." Denil focused all his attention on Jak, sitting across from him. "The description of the portals he opened to travel to other planes exactly matches your descriptions of the vortex. I think the soldiers came from one of those planes and took Charry there."
All the blood seemed to drain from Jak's face. Denil watched him helplessly while Elsa silently poured a mug of tea and spooned honey into it. Jak took it and sipped it without a word, his eyes fixed on a spot on the table although he probably didn't see it.
Denil was so focused on his lover's pain that he barely heard Sai'em's whispered, "Hiyalam hai'a."
Jak did hear and his eyes immediately shot to Sai'em's. "What did you say?"
"Literal translation?" Denil said absently. "Holy Hiyalam."
"Elves need to learn to swear better," Jak said humourlessly.
"Can I see your notes?" Sai'em asked, ignoring Jak's comment.
Denil passed across the sheaf of papers unquestioningly, more concerned with Jak than scholarly discussion.
Elsa was more observant. "You know something, don't you?"
"Maybe," Sai'em murmured.
Jak turned his head in her direction. "Maybe?"
"In a minute."
Denil was in the unusual position of hearing that from someone else instead of saying it himself. He'd never realised just how annoying it could be.
"Well?" Jak said barely a minute later.
Sai'em was still frowning intently at the pages of notes.
"Have you got something?" Jak's voice became harsher. "Sai'em?"
Finally she looked up and said, "These are human spells."
"And? So? But? Therefore?"
Sai'em had already returned to reading the notes with a puzzled frown. Denil felt a cold chill as he realised what her words meant. He didn't want it to be true, but the way she had phrased it made his assumption the only one possible.
Elsa was the one who voiced what Denil couldn't. "You know elven spells that can do the same thing, don't you?"
Sai'em sighed and reluctantly raised her head. "In a way."
All trace of shock vanished from Jak's face, replaced by incredible anger. He stood and stalked around the table to glare down at Sai'em. Denil could see his fists clenching and unclenching as he visibly stopped himself grabbing the elf.
"You know something and you didn't say anything?" Jak said furiously, almost shouting the words. "The whole time, you recognised the spells? You could have saved me weeks of pointless waiting! I might have found my son by now if you hadn't lied to us!"
Sai'em raised her chin defensively. "I didn't recognise your description and I couldn't have helped you even if I had."
"Why the hell not?"
"Because only the Council has access to those spells!" Sai'em took a deep breath and lowered her voice. "No one has been permitted to use those spells for centuries. I only know that portals are possible because they're an important part of our history."
"You should have mentioned them!"
"Jak!" Elsa said sharply, before softening her tone. "Commander Kern, let the girl explain before you start throwing accusations around."
The former mercenary stayed where he was, gazing down at Sai'em with cold, hard eyes.
"Jak," Denil said softly.
That seemed to jerk Jak out of his single-minded focus and he looked up to meet Denil's eyes. Denil kept his face open and honest, knowing that right now the last thing Jak needed was someone trying to deny him the anger he was entitled to. If he was honest with himself, Denil wasn't feeling too comfortable either, aware that his old friend had omitted something that might have seriously consequences. It was more important, though, to find out what she knew. Maybe the information would explain her actions, or lack of them.
After a minute's silent communication Jak nodded and moved away from Sai'em, retaking his seat although he showed no sign of releasing his anger.
"Talk," Jak said tersely.
"I've already said more than I should," Sai'em said uncomfortably.
If it was possible, Jak's eyes hardened further. Denil decided to step in before things became physical.
"Circumstances have changed," he said.
Sai'em turned to him. "There are things I can't discuss with humans."
"Wouldn't you say that a child's life is more important than that?"
She paused for a long time, considering, while Jak's agitation visibly grew. Eventually, she nodded jerkily.
"What I tell you mustn't go further than these walls," she said.
"I won't tell anyone, you have my word on it," Denil promised.
Elsa murmured her agreement and Denil stared Jak down until he also consented.
"Elves aren't native to this world." Sai'em held up a hand to still their immediate comments. "Hear me out. We began on another plane a lot like this one. In fact, we would probably never have left if we'd had any choice."
Sai'em paused and sipped her tea. "Until around three thousand years ago we lived in relative peace in our own plane. My people were just beginning to explore the possibility of the existence of other planes. A few of the elemental creatures we summon during spells come from higher planes and some of our scholars theorised that there were other planes parallel to ours. Then there was a disaster. It was nothing short of a worldwide catastrophe. The earth began spewing out molten rock - great rivers of it - and new volcanoes appeared. There were tremendous earth-shakes and chasms appeared afterwards, allowing more lava to flow. It set off wildfires across the plains and forests. My people lived in the north, in the ice, and were unaware of the disaster for the first couple of months."
"Your world was tearing itself apart," Denil commented.
Sai'em nodded. "The surviving wood elves came north to beg for help - that was the first that my people knew of it. We spent too much time in our studies, too little in the world, and we still do. My people investigated and found that they couldn't halt or undo the damage to our world. The air was filling with poison and the destruction would eventually engulf even our most northern retreats. The only way to save our people was to find a new home. The theorists who believed in the planes discovered the spells to create portals and they explored through them. Most of the worlds they encountered were uninhabitable. This world was the first they found with higher life forms. Human physiology is similar to elf, so it was decided to flee here."
"Through the portals," Jak said.
"Yes. Fleeing to a world whose natives were similar to us seemed a sensible plan. With more time at their disposal my people explored further, hoping to find an uninhabited world that we could colonise. The experiments were stopped after a couple of years."
"Why?" Denil asked.
"The portals are dangerous." Sai'em paused, probably trying to find a way to explain something that was complicated even by the standards of her own people. "Each time one is opened, it creates a hole in the fabric of reality. When the portal is closed again, the hole is repaired. Over time, though, the repeated tears and repairs began to make patches of reality wear thin. The theorists weren't certain what would happen if one of those patches became too thin and they didn't want to risk finding out."
"So the portals were banned," Jak concluded.
"No one living has even seen one, must less opened one. The Council controls access to the only copy of the spells in existence. I don't even know what a portal would look like - just that they're possible. After the experiments were stopped, my people went north and the wood elves began to colonise the forests that covered a lot of the land at that time. We didn't want to give humans any reason to attack us so we've hidden our origins ever since."
"How accurate are your records?" Denil asked.
"The exodus was in my great-great-grandfather's time, so the books stayed fairly accurate."
"And they found no other intelligent species?"
Sai'em shook her head. "The conditions on most worlds were too harsh to allow much to thrive. The rest didn't support any higher life forms. There's no record of any intelligent creatures apart from the humans on this plane."
"Then who could have opened a portal to this house and stolen Jak's son?"
"Are you saying that we might be wrong?" Jak asked hoarsely.
"No, I'm more certain than ever that we're right. The wizard who wrote this described creatures that he met on one plane as human-like. I'd just like to know how they got there."
"There isn't much difference between you and the young lady," Elsa said. "Just your ears."
"We evolved on different worlds," Sai'em added. "It's possible that another life form like us evolved on a plane that my people didn't explore."
"There's only one way to find out," Jak said decisively. "We have to open a portal and follow them."
"It might not be that easy," Sai'em protested.
"Can you get the wizard's spell to work?" Jak asked, his voice flat.
"No."
"Why not?"
"It's a human spell. I can't work human magic."
A look of such bleak despair washed over Jak that Denil almost felt sick. How terrible would it be if, after all this work, their hope turned out to be in vain?
"I may be able to use his work to put together my own spell," Sai'em said slowly. "I'll be breaking several of my own laws, but we need to know who is using portals to access this world." She frowned uncertainly. "I can't guarantee anything, though."
"How long do you need?" Jak asked.
Sai'em thought for a moment. "I'll have an answer for you one way or the other in a day or so."
"Good enough."
She looked directly at Jak for the first time since her confession. "I am sorry. If I'd suspected that I had information that helped, I would have told you. I've broken a lot of laws today telling you what I have."
Jak didn't look at her, but he nodded curtly. "We'll talk again in one day."
Denil sighed and rubbed his forehead. He could feel a headache starting and his exhaustion was making him fuzzyheaded.
Jak noticed the gesture. "Why don't you get some sleep? There's nothing more you can do for now."
Part of Denil wanted to stay and make sure that his lover was coping, but that part was outvoted by his exhaustion. He gave Jack a tired smile before leaving the kitchen and going upstairs where he collapsed on the bed in a foggy half-trance. He was asleep before he'd taken off his boots.
Jak spent most of the day resisting the temptation to go into the study and check on Sai'em's progress. He helped Paet with the horses until the lad chased him out of the stables and then spent the afternoon in the den, lying on a battered old sofa, reading a translation of 'Teblith and Corath' that he'd found on a bookshelf a few days ago. The book was more interesting than he'd expected, although the way Teblith allowed Corath to walk all over him was irritating. He'd have preferred a stronger, more stubborn partner who could stand up to Corath. Someone more like Denil.
It was early evening by the time he finished the book. Jak stood and stretched the kinks out of his back from the long hours of reading. His stomach growled hungrily and for the first time he realised that he hadn't eaten since a hurried breakfast just after dawn. Cups of honeyed tea were no substitute for proper food. With that thought in mind, Jak walked out of his den and his nose immediately twitched at the savoury smell of roasting meat. He followed the scent into the kitchen where he found Elsa humming quietly as she stirred something in a pot over the stove.
"I thought you'd be here soon," Elsa said without turning around. "You shouldn't miss meals, Commander. It's not healthy."
Jak grinned. "Yes, Mistress Tanner."
She snorted delicately. "I know that tone and you aren't getting away that easily. You'll do no one any good if you fade away to nothing."
"Has Denil been down?" Jak asked, hoping to head off a lecture.
The tactic worked. Elsa lifted the pot off the stove and put it on the kitchen table.
"I haven't seen the boy since this morning," Elsa said, her brown eyes betraying a hint of worry. "Haven't you checked on him?"
"He needed the sleep."
Elsa clucked sympathetically. "The boy was exhausted."
Jak hid his smile. Denil was only a few years younger than him but Elsa always seemed to take twenty years off anyone's age and treat them accordingly. She'd also developed a large soft spot for Denil, which was completely understandable, and a slightly smaller one for Sai'em, which was harder to understand. Thinking about the elf dampened some of his amusement and he had to remind himself that she seemed genuinely distressed that she'd inadvertently withheld important information.
Jak had to force some lightness back into his voice. "Could you make up a tray for Denil? He's probably hungry by now."
"Of course." Elsa gave him a sly grin. "Will you be eating with him?"
The look made heat rush to Jak's face and he had to work to keep his eyes on her face. Why could the woman make him blush about something that he usually wouldn't feel embarrassed about?
"Yes, I'll be eating with him," Jak said in the calmest tone he could manage.
Elsa nodded and began working quickly. In a couple of minutes Jak had a tray of covered plates and a flask of good red wine. He thanked her, ignoring the knowing smile, and carried the heavy tray upstairs. At the door to the bedroom he put the tray down on the floor and quietly opened the door so he could peek in and see whether Denil was awake.
The scholar was sitting propped up in the bed surrounded by flickering candlelight. He looked up from his book as the door opened and one of his quick, brilliant smiles crossed his face.
"I wasn't sure whether you'd be awake," Jak said.
Denil shrugged. "I woke up and couldn't get back to sleep. Over tired, probably."
"Hungry?"
A slightly surprised expression appeared. "Actually, yes."
"Stay right there."
Jak ducked back into the hallway and picked up the tray. He carried it into the bedroom and kicked the door shut before taking it over to the bed and putting it down. Careful not to disturb it, Jak climbed onto the bed and sat next to Denil. He took the covers off the two larger plates and handed one to Denil, keeping the other for himself. Slices of tender roast beef with thick gravy and Elsa's special mashed potatoes created an aroma that set his stomach growling. Jak balanced his plate on his lap, took a bowl of steaming vegetables from the tray to sit between them and handed Denil a knife and fork. For a while there was companionable silence as they concentrated on doing justice to Elsa's wonderful cooking. Jak was relieved; he didn't want to talk about the morning's revelations and Denil seemed to respect that. When they had cleaned their plates of even the last smears of gravy, Jak put them back on the tray and replaced them with smaller ones. Removing the covers on those plates revealed large slices of fruit pie and Jak discovered a dish of cream under the last cover.
"You have an excellent housekeeper," Denil said as he polished off the last crumb.
"Don't even think about it," Jak warned.
"Think about what?" Denil asked, blinking innocently.
Jak's eyes narrowed. "You know what - stealing my housekeeper and making her work in the kitchens at your university."
Denil didn't deny that the thought had occurred to him. "We could probably pay her more than you do."
"That's what scares me - you could probably buy half the countries around you if you wanted."
"We'd never do that."
"I know. You people are abnormal - most men with the wealth you have would use it to corrupt thrones and buy power. You people just sit on it instead."
Denil shrugged. "Value is in the eye of the beholder. The value of our collections, to us, is in the information the items contain. Their monetary value is completely irrelevant."
"Like I said - you people aren't normal."
Jak stacked his plate with Denil's and returned it to the tray. The flask of wine still sat there unopened so he picked it up and gestured invitingly.
"Care for a glass?"
Denil raised an eyebrow. "Are you trying to get me drunk?"
The look on his face sent shivers racing down Jak's spine and heat curled low in his belly.
Jak had to moisten his suddenly dry mouth before he could speak. "I thought it might relax you so that you can sleep properly."
Denil took the flask from Jak's nerveless fingers. "I think there are better ways of achieving the same end."
As Denil moved the tray onto the floor and began carefully working at the lacings of Jak's shirt, it was obvious that he was doing his best to be seductive. Jak could have told him that he didn't need to make that effort - he was so damned beautiful that it was hard not to think about sex around him most of the time - but Jak decided not to. Their mouths met in a deep kiss that made the heat in Jak's belly bloom into aching need and, while he could still think, he decided that he was a lucky bastard to have someone like Denil in his bed.
The next morning, Sai'em checked her appearance in the mirror one last time before she left her room. Elsa was a goldmine for disguises; she had found brown, non-descript clothing cut in the Ventaxian style with only a few hours' notice. The boots pinched her toes uncomfortably and the fabric was scratchy, but it would suffice for a few hours. Even the fit wasn't too bad. The tunic didn't look too enormous when it was gathered in by a wide leather belt and the hem of her cloak reached her ankles instead of trailing on the floor. The deep hood could be pulled forward to hide her pointed ears and the Ventaxian name Jak had given her easily explained away the short blonde hair and breeches.
The house was quiet as she crept downstairs. Jak and Denil hadn't yet emerged and Elsa was drinking a cup of tea in the kitchen. Sai'em thanked her again for the clothes before leaving through the kitchen door into the stables. She had barely gone more than three paces before sandy-haired Paet was at her side with a bright grin.
"Will you be wanting Mya saddled, ma'am?" he asked eagerly.
Sai'em shook her head. "I need to be inconspicuous this morning and I'm afraid she draws attention."
"That she does, ma'am. I've never seen such a well-trained beast. Sometimes I could swear that she knows everything I'm saying."
"Do you have something I can borrow that's a little less noticeable?" She cut him off and redirected his thoughts quickly. Paet might have a problem with letters and numbers but he was definitely not stupid.
"I can saddle Scrub, if you'd like. She's not the prettiest thing, but she's calm and doesn't spook easily."
Sai'em smiled at him. "That sounds perfect."
The boy flushed and ducked his head before hurrying into the depths of the stable block. A few minutes later he returned with a chestnut mare that fitted her name perfectly. Her coat was thick and coarse and she had placid dark brown eyes.
"She's not really ours," Paet explained as he handed her the reins. "She belongs to the Watch but Commander Jak says that she's too old to be much use for duty now."
Sai'em held out her hand and allowed Scrub to sniff and nuzzle it. "She'll be fine, thank you."
It felt strange to mount a horse that was two hands shorter than Mya, and Scrub's gait wasn't as smooth. But it was only going to be for a few hours so Sai'em patted the mare's neck and nudged her into a walk. Paet ran ahead to open the gates and then they were out in the busy streets of Genta. Scrub wasn't skittish or jumpy, despite the bustling early morning crowds, but she didn't have Mya's training and Sai'em had to readjust to giving her a lot more direction than she usually gave Mya. They found the main gate out of the town with only a couple of wrong turns. The constables manning it seemed more attentive to their duty than the one Jak had reprimanded on their arrival. One took her papers and checked them carefully while another made notes in a large ledger before they let her out with a reminder that the gates would close at sunset. Sai'em nodded her thanks to them and Scrub obediently trotted out through the gate.
Without the protection of the buildings, a cold winter wind surrounded her and Sai'em couldn't help smiling as it blew away the smell of the town. It hadn't snowed for a few days so the road was now covered with packed down snow and the weak winter sun had softened the thin layer of ice on top. Sai'em encouraged Scrub into a canter and relished the feel of cold fresh air rushing past, streaming through her hair and biting at her skin. Her hood fell away but that didn't matter out here.
Sai'em reined Scrub in after a mile and allowed the mare to walk for a while. Her sharp blue eyes scanned the expanse of white fields until she saw what she was looking for. Scrub gave her a disgusted look when Sai'em tried to direct the mare off the road and refused to put one hoof onto the thick snow.
"I don't blame you," Sai'em said in Elvish. "How about if I help a little?"
The horse snorted. There was a small copse of bare trees a couple of hundred feet away that looked a little more inviting than the open fields.
"Is that more to your taste?" Sai'em asked.
Without waiting for an answer, she pulled off a glove and held out her hand. Creating heat had never been one of her talents - Sai'em blamed that lack on her ice elf heritage - so it took a while to melt a path through the snow that was wide enough for Scrub. The horse still wasn't impressed but she reluctantly stepped off the road, picking her way over the soggy brown grass and mud in a manner that suggested she was highly offended to be getting dirty. Sai'em dismounted at the trees and wrapped Scrub's reins loosely around a small sapling.
"If I give you some food and make sure you're warm, will you stay here for a while?" Sai'em asked in Elvish. "Or do I have to tie you up?"
Scrub flicked her ears thoughtfully.
"It's your choice."
The mare butted Sai'em's shoulder with her nose and the elf decided to take that as a 'yes'. Paet had supplied a nosebag filled with grain that Sai'em easily slipped onto the horse. Providing heat was trickier. Sai'em put up shields around the horse and carefully warmed the air within the shields. The energy patterns around Genta were still in flux due to the wizards' disastrous spell so it took a while to find a small, stable line to hook into. Sai'em was cursing the wizards by the time she had the spells tied off and powered by a trickle of magic from the small energy line. Scrub didn't seem worried about the spells surrounding her so Sai'em patted her neck and stepped out of the cocoon of warm air.
The thing that Sai'em had been looking for was about half a mile away and she walked over the snow without leaving a footprint. She wanted somewhere uninhabited and relatively isolated to try out her cobbled-together portal spell. Elsa had suggested this place, a long-abandoned temple well away from anyone. Most of it had fallen down centuries ago and the stones had been stolen for other buildings. Only a few piles of rubble and a couple of walls remained. Sai'em walked around the ruin examining the walls that still stood. One was plain and the mortar crumbled under her fingers. The other had two small archways that had probably been doors when the temple was still in use. That wall was still solid and the archways were both strong. Sai'em chose the smaller of the two and spent a while standing next to it with her bare hands on the stone so that she could absorb the feel of it.
When she was satisfied, Sai'em moved a few feet away and took a couple of steps to the right before sitting down on the snow. Cold water immediately soaked through her cloak and breeches and she pushed the discomfort away into a distant portion of her mind.
Denil's notes from the unknown wizard's book had been as complete as he could make them, but Sai'em had still been forced to make some educated guesses about some of the ideas. Due to the different ways that elves and humans accessed and used magic, the conversion of one spell type into another was not a simple one. Sai'em had extrapolated what she could, but the only way to find out whether it would work was to try it. She could only hope that she was far enough from Genta if the spell backfired.
The unknown wizard had not been able to create a portal without some form of doorway to anchor it. This was different from the historical accounts of portals and Sai'em had spent a couple of hours trying to puzzle out some way of creating a portal without a physical framework. In the end it had been easier to follow the principles of the human spell and worry about neatening it up later, if necessary. Although she was confident that a wooden frame would be strong enough to contain the spell, trying out the spell with a stronger frame at first seemed like a good precaution.
It had been a long time since Sai'em had attempted a great spell, but the old methods returned easily and she was in a light trance after a couple of deep breaths.
In that trance, the energy patterns around her became clearer and sharper. The chaotic, swirling energy where there should be order made her stomach lurch, almost knocking her out of the trance. Sai'em waited for a moment, taking deep, even breaths until the sensation passed. Eventually, she could see the ordered patterns underlying the confusion. Magic's normal lines and pools were slowly reforming, the chaotic power draining into them, and Sai'em knew in a distant part of her mind that they would be completely normal in a few more weeks.
She searched and tested the lines and pools until she found a suitable one and put a tentative 'finger' in it. The magic immediately began flowing into her. She opened herself to it and felt power infusing every inch of her body until her mind screamed with it and she was sure she would disintegrate from the pressure. It was a heady feeling of combined pain and pleasure so intense that for a moment she forgot who she was and why she was there.
That was the danger in this kind of magic; the temptation to lose oneself in the incredible rush until the body couldn't contain the power and burned up completely.
Sai'em clawed her way back to sanity and reminded herself of who she was, anchoring her mind to that fact. She slowed the inrush of power to a tiny trickle and pushed away the ecstasy that threatened to carry her away.
The power had to go somewhere. Sai'em focused on the stone archway and extended a tendril of power to it. The stone grudgingly accepted the power and she pushed more in. Gradually the stone was forced to accept the magic and tiny sparks began to fly off the surface. Sai'em kept feeding power in until the air within the arch was filled with sparks and tiny lightning flickers. Then she pulled and twisted at it and the spell came alive.
It demanded power and she had to supply it, feeling magic rush out of her as fast as it had rushed in.
The space inside the archway suddenly filled with light and boiled out in a wave almost like a stone dropped into water. Just as fast, the light fell back and stabilised into a rippling blue surface that filled the archway. The spell stopped reaching for power and slowed so that it only pulled a small dribble of magic from Sai'em.
She felt drained and exhausted but curiosity forced her to stand on shaky legs and walk over to the portal. The vortex shimmered hypnotically. Sai'em reached out to touch it and couldn't restrain a gasp as tiny waves rippled out on the surface from her fingers. Taking a deep breath, she plunged her hand into the portal and winced at the sudden shocking chill, colder than ice, which enveloped it. She pulled her hand out and turned it to check that it was still intact.
Sai'em considered stepping through the portal before reluctantly conceding that she had no idea where it would take her. Instead, she picked up a small stone and threw it through. There was no way to tell whether it landed safely on the other side, but Sai'em didn't feel any change in the spell, which was an encouraging sign.
With no more experiments to make and no way to test it further, Sai'em began carefully closing the portal down. One of the dangers in spells as powerful as portal spells was that, at a certain point, they took control and completed themselves. Casters who didn't have the power reserves to supply a spell could rapidly find themselves dying when the spell claimed their life force. Conversely, when a spell that powerful collapsed the magic it returned to the caster could burn them out if they weren't careful. Sai'em resumed her seat on the snow and carefully began unpicking the spell.
The sudden inrush of power as the portal closed left her panting and so full that she wanted to scream. Again the mix of pleasure/pain tried to pull away her sanity. Sai'em had to slowly allow the energy to run out of her and back into the pool she had taken it from rather than losing herself in it. She kept enough to replenish her personal reserves and cut the connection.
For a long time she sat on the snow while she imprinted the memory of what she had done as firmly as she could. When she finally surfaced from her trance, Sai'em was surprised to see that it was only mid-morning. She stood and moved over to the archway so she could press her hands to the stone. Immediately she could feel a difference and a slow smile spread over her face as she realised that the change was distinctive enough to act as an arrow to track the destination.
Denil was surprised to find that he was awake before Jak. The angle of the pale sunlight streaming into the bedroom showed that it was already late morning and Jak was still sleeping heavily. He rolled onto his side and propped his head on his hand so that he could watch Jak. It was odd to see Jak's face relaxed in sleep. There had been faint lines of tension on his face ever since Denil met him, but in sleep they smoothed out and he had a feeling that this was the way Jak normally looked.
Over the weeks that Denil had known him, he'd noticed that Jak rarely laughed. He chuckled quietly, made a strange barking grunt if he was amused by something ironic, but real laughter was rare. Even when he did laugh, Denil always had the feeling afterwards that he felt guilt about it. The strange part was that Jak had the kind of face that looked at though it laughed a lot. Denil was certain that, under normal circumstances, Jak was the kind of man who often laughed and joked to lighten tension and reduce other peoples' stress. He'd seen flashes of that Jak when the other man managed to forget, for just a moment, that his son was missing.
Maybe that was why Jak sometimes seemed so intense when they were making love. Was it a way to forget the pain for a while?
For a moment Denil felt sick as he contemplated the idea that their entire relationship was no more than a temporary distraction for Jak. Then reason reasserted itself as he remembered Jak's words on their first night together, that he had a personal code of not being involved with anyone he needed to work with. He wouldn't have broken that code for someone he was just using as a distraction.
Jak stirred and Denil put the unsettling thoughts aside. There were other, far more important things going on at the moment.
Jak rolled onto his back and opened his eyes. "Hey."
Denil smiled. "Hey."
"You're awake."
"Uh-huh."
"It's pretty late."
"Nearly noon, probably."
"Crap." Jak closed his eyes for a moment. "I don't normally sleep this late."
"You needed it."
Jak grunted noncommittally. "How are you feeling?"
"Not quite as tired as yesterday."
"Good."
Denil watched him a moment before leaning over and kissing him. A hand came up and rested on Denil's neck, holding him there so that Jak could lazily explore his mouth. It wasn't really a sexual kiss, more of a thoughtful greeting and reconnection. After a couple of minutes, Denil pulled away slightly, licking his lips unconsciously.
"Good morning," he said, surprised by the huskiness in his voice.
"Morning," Jak said solemnly before wrapping his arms around Denil and rolling them so that he was on top. "Much better."
"We should probably get dressed," Denil said half-heartedly.
"Probably."
This time the kiss was more purposeful, more deliberately arousing, and heat began to flow through Denil's body. He ran his hands down Jak's back, feeling muscles twitch under his fingers, and rocked up against him. Jak gasped and Denil trailed his lips down Jak's jaw to his throat.
"You feel good," Jak groaned.
Denil smiled against Jak's throat and rocked up again, eliciting another strangled gasp. It amazed him how a simple morning greeting could turn into something so intense with so little forethought.
Jak suddenly reared above him and paused, brown eyes burning intently. "I...you are...this..."
He trailed off and dove down for a fierce kiss that stole the breath from Denil's lungs. There was a moment of struggle before he let Denil roll them, reversing their positions and making them both hiss as the movement created delicious friction. Denil forgot where he was and why he'd been weakly protesting, becoming lost in the pleasure of the moment.
Some time later, Denil lay sprawled across Jak listening as his racing heart gradually slowed. He felt sweaty, sleepy and thoroughly drained, but the noon sun refused to let him rest.
"We really have to get up now," he said.
Jak heaved a deep sigh. "Yeah, I guess so."
"You're a bad influence."
"Me?" Jak asked with mock outrage. "I hadn't slept past dawn for a long time until I met you."
Denil rolled off Jak and sat up. "I don't usually stay in bed until noon having sex. Then I met you."
"You probably sleep until noon after working through the night, right?"
"Well, yes."
"So there."
It was the most illogical argument Denil had ever heard and he could only shake his head helplessly. "We have to get up."
"I know."
It still took them another half hour to get out of bed, wash and dress. Denil thought that Jak took an undue interest in what he wore but he played along because the stress-lines on Jak's face seemed less pronounced this morning.
Eventually they left the room, only to stop at the sight of Sai'em sitting cross-legged on the floor in front of Charry's room with her hands resting on the doorjamb. Tension immediately began to radiate from Jak in waves. Denil put a hand on his arm, unsurprised to find the muscles under his fingers clenched tightly.
Jak cleared his throat and, in a strangely mild voice, said, "Good morning."
Sai'em opened her eyes and turned to look at them. "Heyla."
"What are you doing?" Jak gestured towards the door.
Sai'em gracefully unfolded her legs and stood up. "I can open a portal to the plane that your son was taken to."
"You can? How? No, I don't need to know." Jak took a deep breath. "You're sure?"
"I think so."
"That doesn't sound confident."
"She's sure," Denil said. "It's a scholar thing - we don't like to give guarantees until we've seen for ourselves that something will work and repeated it several times."
"I opened a portal this morning," Sai'em said, her eyes shining with excitement. "It worked better than I'd hoped. There's a signature in the wood of this door." She lightly touched the doorjamb again. "If I open a portal here, I can use that signature to direct it and send the other end of the portal to wherever the first portal came from."
"And you're confident that it will work?" Jak asked.
"As confident as I can be without trying it. If I open a portal here and it doesn't work, the signature in the wood will be lost."
"So we won't know if we're going to the right place until we try it."
Sai'em nodded.
"It's good odds," Denil said.
"Best odds I've had so far." Some of the tension drained out of Jak and the muscles in his arm relaxed a little. "How soon can you get it set up?"
"I'd like to have a night to build up my reserves," Sai'em said. "It's been a long time since I worked spells on this scale."
"Tomorrow morning then."
"That will be fine."
Jak turned to Denil. "I have to sort things out at the Watch house. I'll see you later."
He'd given Denil a quick, hard kiss and rushed down the stairs before Denil could respond. He wasn't sure how he felt about such a public display, even if Sai'em was the only witness.
A suspicion of a smile twitched at the corners of the elf's mouth. "You look like a stunned trout."
Denil snapped his mouth closed.
"I think it's sweet," Sai'em added. "Sharra used to do the same thing to you."
When Denil didn't reply, Sai'em's expression sobered. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to compare them - that's not fair."
It took a moment for Denil to find his voice. "I suppose some comparison is only natural."
"I know, but it's still not fair. To either of them."
"I'd rather not talk about it right now," Denil said, wincing as he saw hurt flare in Sai'em's eyes before being quickly masked.
She didn't argue and changed the subject. "What are you going to do now?"
"In the immediate future, I was thinking about breakfast."
Sai'em rolled her eyes. "You know what I mean. When are you going home?"
Denil noted the use of the singular 'you' instead of 'we'. "I'm not, yet. I'm going with Jak."
"I had a feeling you'd say that."
"I take it that you are, too?"
"He won't be able to open a portal home if I don't go."
"When are you planning to tell him?"
"Probably just before we leave - it will give him less time to argue about it. You?"
Denil shrugged. "The same."
There was awkward silence as Denil tried to think of something to say and realised that everything he thought of revolved around issues that he didn't want to think about. From the expression on her face, he thought Sai'em was having the same problem.
Eventually, she cleared her throat and gestured to her bedroom door. "I guess that I'd better start making preparations."
Denil nodded jerkily. "I think I'd better do the same."
They hesitated uncertainly before nodding to each other and separating. Denil went straight to Jak's bedroom and began digging through his clothes pack. After a few minutes he reluctantly concluded that, although his clothes were fine for the relatively inactive life of a scholar, they weren't suitable for anything else. It would be unrealistic to expect that they could simply walk through the portal, grab Jak's son and return. The evidence in Charry's room showed that the soldiers who had taken him had some skill. To go to the trouble of building a portal to another plane to kidnap one boy indicated that someone wanted Charry badly and wouldn't give him up easily. There was a good chance that if they found the boy, they'd have to fight their way out.
Denil dug a pouch of coins out of the pack and counted them quickly, tucking the pouch inside his jacket with a satisfied pat when he was finished. He picked up his thick fur coat, pulled on his riding boots and left to find the markets.
Denil didn't see Jak again until late that night. He was reading in bed, contemplating calling it a night and going to sleep, when the bedroom door opened and Jak slipped in. Jak looked surprised to see him and Denil frowned before realising that Jak had probably assumed he'd be asleep. He carefully marked his book and put it on the floor.
"Did you get everything sorted out at the Watch house?" Denil asked.
Jak pulled off his jacket and hung it in the wardrobe. "I fired my deputy and asked my new deputy to mind the shop for a while. It's fine."
"What did you tell him?"
He took of his boots and tucked them under the bed. "I said that I was going on a trip, chasing up a new lead in Charry's kidnapping. Not strictly a lie."
"Will the story hold?"
"For a while." Jak's voice was muffled as he pulled off his shirt. "Depends on how long I'm gone and when the wizards start poking their noses into things again."
Jak padded around the room snuffing candles until the only light came from the fire in the hearth before getting into bed. Denil half expected Jak to reach out for him as he had most nights since they became lovers. Instead, Jak propped himself up against the headboard and stared at the fire.
"Will you be here when I get back?" Jak asked quietly.
It was the conversation that Denil had hoped they could put off until morning, but Jak obviously wasn't going to cooperate. He thought about fudging the truth and decided that it wasn't worth it.
"I'm going with you, Jak. Sai'em too."
The reaction was immediate. "No. Absolutely not. No way."
"We've already decided."
"Without consulting me?"
"We knew that you'd react this way."
"Of course I'd react this way! You can't come."
"How do you plan to get back here without Sai'em to open the portal?"
Jak deflated a little. "I don't know. Yet."
"You need her."
"And you? Why should I let you come?"
"I promised to help you find your son. That's not over yet."
"You've done what I hired you to do."
That stung and Denil glared at Jak. "Do you think this was about money?"
"Well, I-"
"This has never been about money. I was never going to take your money."
"So why are you here?"
"Because this is important."
"Denil, I..."
Jak reached out to touch him and Denil shrugged him off. "I thought you understood that. I've never needed the money - I'm here because you needed me."
"I don't need you to risk your life. We have no idea what's out there."
"I can take care of myself."
"Someone almost took your arm off the last time you said that."
"It could have happened to any one of us."
"It happened to you."
"I'm going with you," Denil said stubbornly.
"I wish you wouldn't."
Denil shrugged. "You'd don't always get what you wish for."
He abruptly turned away and lay down with his back to Jak to forestall any more arguments. There was a long period of silence in the room before he felt the bed shift as Jak also lay down. Denil resolutely closed his eyes and tried to sleep but there was too much tension in the room. Eventually, the bed shifted again and a hand lightly touched his upper arm before settling more firmly.
"Denil?" There was a heavy pause. "I didn't...it's not...ah, crap, I'm bad at this. I'm...you know..."
Denil smiled faintly into the darkness. "I know."
"Good. Wouldn't want my apology to be wasted on you sleeping."
"Jak."
"I know. It's just...that...I don't want you to get hurt."
"Could you stay behind if the two people you cared about most were going into danger and might not come back?"
There was a moment's stunned silence and then Jak cleared his throat. "I guess not."
"So."
"Yeah, so."
Then there was silence again as Jak spooned up behind Denil and wrapped an arm around Denil's waist. A few minutes later, the room was filled with two men's soft snores.
Jak's internal clock woke him at dawn and he lay in bed for a couple of minutes feeling half-formed eagerness set something fluttering in his stomach. Today, after so many months, he might finally see his son again.
The gathering anticipation wouldn't let him rest or stay still so he carefully rolled away from Denil and sat up. Somewhere in the back of his mind he still hoped that if he didn't wake the scholar then Denil would stay behind. Denil stirred sleepily as Jak got out of bed and crept out of the room.
By the time Jak returned from the privy, Denil had disappeared and Jak sighed. Leaving the scholar behind hadn't really been a realistic hope.
Jak shaved, changed into clean breeches and pulled on an old worn shirt. He got his boots out from under the bed and checked the knife-sheaths before putting them on. He'd cleaned and sharpened his sword last night and now he laid the belt out on the bed.
His mail shirt was wrapped in cloths at the bottom of the wardrobe. Although it had been years since he'd needed it, he had kept it clean and rust free so it now shone dully as he laid it out on the bed and checked it over. The padded undershirt had been tucked away in a drawer since he had last used it and released an odd rust/rose petal smell as Jak pulled it on. It was rust-splotched, patched and the strange smell made his nose itch, but the chain mail shirt would rub in uncomfortable places without it.
Hell, the mail shirt would be uncomfortable anyway, but every little gesture helped.
The smell had to be Elsa's doing - she always sniffed and wrinkled her nose if he wore armour. She'd probably hoped that the rose petals would overwhelm the ingrained rust/sweat stink.
Pulling on the mail shirt proved tricky. It was heavy and refused to move the way fabric did. Jak ended up struggling with the thing, his arms trapped overhead, until strong hands suddenly yanked it down. Jak shrugged his shoulders to settle it before looking up.
Denil took his breath away. For a moment Jak almost didn't recognise him. The man standing in front of him looked completely different from the man he'd gone to sleep with last night. His hair was much shorter and stood up in untidy tufts. It looked like he'd attacked it with a belt knife, which was probably what had happened.
"Jak?" Denil said uncertainly.
"You cut your hair."
Denil fingered it uncertainly. "Yes."
"Why?"
"It was in the way."
It wasn't just the hair. Denil's face seemed older. Maybe it was because the hair no longer framed it or maybe it was the determined expression, but he looked closer to the age Jak knew he had to be. He also held himself differently, somehow looking more aggressive and assertive than he had been. Jak knew it was just his personal impression - Denil hadn't been a retiring wallflower by any standards - but there was an air of resolve about him that was new.
As he looked closer, Jak realised that his hair wasn't the only physical change. Denil's threadbare, mismatched clothes were gone. Instead he wore a calf-length worn leather coat, an unbleached linen shirt and heavy brown breeches. There was a knife hilt poking out of one sturdy boot. His staff hung from his belt and he wore his wire spectacles. Denil looked more like an odd combination of fighter and scholar.
Jak abruptly turned away and began to pull on and lace up his surcoat.
"Jak?" Denil asked again.
"Why don't you go and ask Elsa to get some breakfast sorted out? We should all eat a proper meal before we leave."
There was a long silence before Denil quietly said, "Breakfast. Fine."
Jak waited until he'd left the room before taking a deep breath. It hadn't struck him until then just how much the idea of Denil getting hurt, or even killed, terrified him. It sent icy shivers down his spine and when he swallowed there was a sour taste in his mouth.
By the time Jak had put his long leather coat on and secured his sword-belt, his hands had almost stopped shaking.
Jak was slightly worried about how Denil was going to react after his strange behaviour in the bedroom. Denil seemed to think talking about things was important and Jak wasn't sure he could put his feelings into words. But one of the w