The Seekers of Fire Read Online Free PDF Page B

Rianor opened his coat and put it around her above the cloak, then drew her closer to himself.

    * * *
    The Mentors halted two houses away, where Linden could see them but not hear them. She had opened her eyes. He had her, anyway, so right now it was more essential to see than to hide her thoughts. The Mentors gestured as if they were talking urgently, their whips shifting on their belts. They could be at her in seconds. Fear and anger fought in her, and then somehow both faded away. Against all judgement, she suddenly felt safe in the man's embrace, and for a second stopped trying to break away from him. His response was to adjust his arms more comfortably around her. She felt the warmth of his body and the scent of his cologne, and for a moment wanted to stay like this. Then her rationality screamed—for a moment she had been a scatterminded female. If he suspected her, he might use anything to invade her mind and expose her thoughts, including physical attraction. She slowly moved her right hand up between the two of them.

    * * *
    Rianor could not resist another teasing smile when he felt the blade at his throat. The amber eyes were intent on his, and she pressed the blade slightly in response. Just slightly, not to draw blood, but to hint of the possibility. Her body was still trembling, but her hand was admirably steady. The perfect apprentice, Rianor thought, and wondered if she would really try to kill him. Mierber's laws gave her the right. Although he was a noble and she was not, if a man caught a woman like this, she could fight back.
    He suddenly shifted to the side, yanked her towards himself to catch her free hand between their bodies, and locked the wrist of her knife hand with his own. She tried to jerk it away, and he was forced to push a finger at the special tiny spot on her wrist that would cause her pain and loosen her grip of the knife. She gasped, and he released the pressure a little. It was not a good idea to have her drop the knife and make sound. It did not seem a good idea to hurt this delicate wrist too much, either. Rianor gently pulled the knife out of her hand and breathed in her ear.
    "Stop fighting me. I am not with them, and I am here to help you."
    "Who are you? What do you want?"
    She was still glaring at him, and he could not refrain from provoking her. "I want to take you with me, on the Day of the Master."
    He shifted just in time for her kick to miss his knee. "As a Science apprentice. If you want."
    The Mentors had started moving again. Rianor released his grip on her and handed her back the knife. "Only use it if they decide to attack. Better yet, stay aside and let me deal with them."
    She nodded, still eying him warily, and he unsheathed his own dagger and waited.

    * * *
    Linden watched the silhouettes intently. They did not seem to be aware of anybody in the tunnel, and gradually her fear of them gave way to curiosity. She had never seen a Mentor without being seen by him too, her thoughts scrutinized and her self-control pressured.
    One of the Mentors raised his hand and seemed to be looking at something at the back of it. "I wish it worked at a distance," he said.
    "Dominick, my son," the other one replied, "you should concentrate on the task at hand, and keep to yourself desires some of our brothers and sisters might consider aberrant. I will not overextend you. We go back if the two noisy young women are not here or in the next street."
    Linden knew the voice. It was the Mentor to whom she had to make Confessions every thirty days. An austere old man, but he had never hurt her. Well, only because I never let him deep enough in my mind to discover the reasons to do it, she thought bitterly, resisting a shiver. She was not certain that she could do the same today if they found her and made an inquest. And they were looking for her, whether or not they knew who she was. Worse, the Mentors were also looking for Cal, and even if they did not feel like raiding people's homes, only