Chapter One

Of Past Things. Things Best Forgotten

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He sat in the shadows, crouching in the upper alcoves. Coming here was a risk. A risk that he’d taken several times over the last fifteen years. Should he be discovered, they would carry out his sentence. He knew that. Still, he had to make sure.

    It was his responsibility.

    He squinted to see better in the gloom. Five Masters were gathered this time. Five. The last time there were five, it had been his trial. He shivered. Best not to think back on that day.

    “Did he agree?” the Highest asked, his voice echoing through the cavernous room.

    “Of course,” Meir said.

    He should have known Meir would be involved. He had always been keen to rectify the ‘mistake’. “He didn’t want to die. Not really,” Meir continued. “He will find the girl –”

    “Yes,” Garelle interrupted, “but what if she doesn’t accept him? Your entire plan rests on him being able to connect with her.”

    “It will be fine,” Meir said, his words clipped. “As long as he follows the instructions, which he will, everything will fall into place soon enough.”

    Garelle shook her head, her pale face pinched. She flicked her long braid back over her shoulder. Meir did not appear to notice her disapproval. Or he chose to ignore it. Would the Order carry out a plan that did not have Garelle’s support?

     “How will he know when to proceed to the next stage of the plan?” the Highest asked.

    “As we decided,” Meir said, “I did not disclose everything to the mortal. I have instructed him to await my orders.”

    The Highest nodded his bald head making his heavy gold earring swing. The hefty piece of jewellery that was the emblem of the leader of the Order gleamed in the dim light. “It is done, then. Meir, be certain to monitor the situation and keep me informed.”

    Meir bowed and the Highest vanished from the room. Garelle glared at Meir before she too disappeared. She was soon followed by the other three and he was once again left alone with his thoughts.

    He cursed under his breath. Had he arrived a few minutes earlier, he would have learned what they intended. The little that he’d heard made him uncomfortable. He didn’t know how they had lost track of the girl in the first place, but he’d been glad they did. Now that they had found her, they wouldn’t let her be.

    What would they do?

    That was what troubled him most. Many years had passed since the incident, but in all that time, they never stopped looking for her. The Order had strict laws about interfering with the lives of mortals. Surely just because he broke their laws, it didn’t mean that they would too. They couldn’t. Could they?

    He scrubbed a hand through his dark curls. Just as he was about to leave, Meir reappeared, followed by Heran. “I told you there would be no questions,” Meir said.

    “Do you think Garelle suspects?” Heran said, wringing his hands. 

    “No. She is simply being her usual contemptuous self. Don’t worry about her, I have this in hand.”

    “What do you want me to do?”

    “Make sure this mortal does as he is supposed to. If he strays, remind him of what he stands to lose.”

    Heran nodded. “What are you going to do?”

    “That is my concern. Now, go.”

    Heran inclined his head before disappearing. He scrutinised Meir as he paced up and down the length of the room. What was he planning? Clearly, something that the Order wasn’t aware of. The ball of tension tightened in his stomach.

    He waited until Meir vanished from the room as well before Leaping to the top of the bell tower. He often came here when troubled. It was quiet up here. Calm. Peaceful. Soothing.

    The village below was still as only a little village can be during the small hours of the morning. He gazed up at the stars. They had always seemed a place he would have liked to escape to. A place where he could find peace. Perhaps that's where people go when they die, he mused.

    It was only when the sun rose over the distant mountain that he realised how long he had been sitting there. He stood, stepping up onto the ledge. Sitting idly will accomplish nothing, he told himself.

    The time had come. He would have to go to her. He stepped off the ledge.

 

 

 

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