“I think you’re all being ridiculous,” said Gewey. “If she wanted to hide something, why would she let us stay here in the first place? Why risk us finding out? You say her story fits too well. Would you rather that it didn’t fit?”
“I would rather not feel as though we were walking straight into a trap,” said Lee.
Kaylia nodded. “We should leave now, before the trap is sprung.”
“No,” said Lee. “At least, not yet. If there is something going on here, we need to know whether or not it involves us. Hopefully things are just as Salmitaya says, and I’m just being paranoid; but if she has motives that could hinder us, we need to know.”
“And what about the boy?” Kaylia asked. “You don’t really intend to let him go off with that woman, do you?”
“I don’t see that we have a choice,” Millet answered. “If he refuses, it could raise suspicion. If we’re wrong, and the High Priestess is telling the truth, then we will have insulted her and ruined any chance we had of gathering information during our stay.”
“I’m going,” Gewey said hotly. “I can make this decision for myself.”
“Indeed you can,” Millet said. “But you need to trust in our experience.”
“Listen to him,” Kaylia advised Gewey. “We are trying to out-maneuver a possible predator in her home territory. You need to watch and listen. One day it will be you making these decisions, and when the time comes, you will need to know how.”
“I’m not a child,” Gewey protested. “You act like I don’t know anything.”
“You don’t,” snapped Lee. “You are a child, regardless of how old you may look- and you’re too important for me to let you discover that fact on your own. Until you’re ready, you’ll do as you’re told.”
Gewey crossed his arms and glared furiously at Lee.
“I need you to pay attention tomorrow,” Lee instructed. “If Salmitaya is up to something, we need to know what.”
Kaylia handed Gewey a flask of jawas tea. “Drink this,” she said. “Now that it no longer knocks you out, you can use it to relax and help you sleep.”
Gewey took the flask and drank. Immediately, the tension left his body and he felt his troubles begin to lift away.
Kaylia returned to her room and Lee, Gewey, and Millet went to bed. Gewey, aided by the jawas tea, went right to sleep, but Lee and Millet stayed awake talking for a while longer.
“If I might be so bold, my lord,” said Millet, “you should remember that the boy has been on his own, without a father, for more than two years. He may be still little more than a child, but he’s been treated as a man for quite some time.”
“What do you suggest?” asked Lee. “The boy must learn, and I don’t know how else to teach him.”
“I think that perhaps you should trust the boy’s instincts from time to time,” Millet responded. “The fact of the matter is you intended to let him go with the High Priestess all along. I think all he wants is to be consulted.”
“Funny that you should talk about trusting his instincts,” Lee remarked. “When I first met Kaylia, I told her that it was the one thing I did trust. Still, he is inexperienced. Instincts are no substitute for good judgment. I hope mine is good enough.”
“You do show wisdom, my lord,” yawned Millet. “Occasionally. But you should learn to accept that some things are beyond your control.”
Lee chuckled. “Anyway, we’d better get some rest. Goodnight, Millet,” said Lee.
“Pleasant dreams, my lord,” he replied.
Chapter 10
Gewey woke up early and donned his robes. Millet and Lee were still sleeping. Not wanting to wake them, Gewey went to look around the temple. He wandered the narrow corridors for a while until he found his way back to the main hall. The dawn light shone dimly through small windows set high on the surrounding walls. The gold statue of Ayliazarah glowed eerily. As Gewey approached it, he felt a cold chill that made the hair on his arms stand up.
“I was just about to wake you,” said Salmitaya, appearing from the direction of the staircase. “We’ll leave in just a bit. Would you like breakfast before we go?”
“No, thank you,” Gewey replied.
“You should eat,” she insisted. “Please join me.” She motioned for Gewey to follow, and led him back to the same chamber in which they had eaten the night before. Waiting at the table were a bowl of porridge and a glass of apple juice.
“Good to see another morning person,” Salmitaya said with a smile. “Poor Celandine and Maybell simply hate an early rise.” She pointed to the food. “Please, Brother. I hope you don’t mind porridge. Last night’s fare was more lavish than we usually have. I’m afraid this is a bit more like what we’re accustomed to lately.”
Gewey nodded. “This is perfect, Holiness. I love porridge and juice.”
“Before these dark times plagued this place, I had good friends here,” she said. “In private, they called me Taya. I would have you do the same. Maybell refuses and Celandine, well…to get that girl to speak more than a few words would be a miracle.”
Gewey blushed. “I would be honored. What are we going to do today, Holi-Taya?” he asked after swallowing a large mouthful of porridge.
“The same thing I always do when I see Governor Mattlin,” she answered. “I’ll ask for the littlest thing, and he’ll act like I just told him the city is on fire.” She suddenly looked dismayed. “How’s your porridge, Brother Gewton?”
“Delicious,” Gewey replied, but even as he said it he began to feel dizzy. He tried to stand up, only to stumble into the wall.
Salmitaya made no move to help him. She smiled a sinister smile. “Is something the matter, my child?”
“You…” was all Gewey could manage to say before he collapsed in a heap on the floor.
Salmitaya got up and stood over Gewey. “Such an attractive boy,” she said, as two city guards entered the room. “Bind him, and take him to my carriage.” The guards nodded and dragged Gewey away.
“Such a pretty, pretty boy,” she said and laughed softly.
When Gewey finally awoke, it was to utter darkness. He feared he had been blinded until he realized he’d simply been blindfolded.
He couldn’t initially remember what had happened to him, but then it suddenly came rushing back- Salmitaya! She must have drugged him. But why? His body was seated upright, and when he tried to move, he found that both his hands and feet were shackled. He tested them, but they were too strong for him to break. As his head cleared, he could sense that he was in a wagon or carriage moving steadily along.
Gewey’s thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Salmitaya’s voice. “I see the young prince has awakened. Wonderful! I was getting lonely.”
“What’s going on here?” Gewey asked angrily. “Why did you drug me?”
“Why, why, why. With youth, it’s always why,” she mocked. “It’s actually the how that’s more interesting to me.
“One bite of that porridge should have been enough to put you to sleep for twelve hours,” she continued. “But you, my pretty young friend, ate nearly the entire bowl-yet here you are, awake after only six hours. Do you know what that makes you?”
“What?” growled Gewey.
“A mystery,” she replied. “One that I intend to solve before I deliver you.”
“Deliver me to who?”
“All in good time,” said Salmitaya.
‘Six hours,’ he thought. ‘She has a six hour head start. That’s nothing for Lee.’ Then it hit him: ‘They won’t expect me back until after nightfall. By then, who knows where we’ll be?’
“I get the shackles, but why the blindfold?” asked Gewey. “What are you afraid of me seeing?”
“Afraid? I wouldn’t go so far as to say afraid. But given how much moonbane root it took to knock you out, you clearly warrant a little extra caution.”