The Priestess Superior hugged her back tightly, surprising Elli with her grip. When she pulled back, her eyes were filled with tears.
“Thank you, my dear,” she said to Elli. “Didn’t I tell you the Goddess would bless you? I prayed for a miracle and she sent me one in you.”
Elli was crying too, now—with happiness.
“I’m so glad you’re better,” she told the Priestess Superior, swiping at her eyes. “You’ve been so sick for so long.”
“Well, I feel better now.” The Priestess Superior blotted her tears and lifted her chin resolutely. “What did I miss?”
“Quite a lot I’m afraid, Priestess Superior.” Commander Sylvan bowed his head to the senior priestess reverently. “But nothing you can’t catch up on, I’m sure.”
“Well, thank goodness you came when you did, Commander,” the Priestess Superior said. “My memories are pretty foggy, but it seems to me that if you hadn’t, young Ellilah here and I would have been gone for good!”
“Yes, thank you, Commander,” Elli said, ducking her head shyly. “But there’s something I don’t understand—how did you know to come here? Did the Goddess tell you?”
Commander Sylvan shook his head.
“Not exactly. Though she did tell me to listen to someone who was certain you were in danger.”
“Really? Who?” Elli’s thoughts finally caught up with her mouth and she put a hand to her lips. “Not…not Roke?” she whispered.
Commander Sylvan smiled.
“Why don’t you go up to the Sacred Grove?” he said gently. “There are several people there who are very eager to see you.”
“I’ll go but first…” Elli turned to the Priestess Superior. “I…I broke my vows,” she confessed to the older woman. “All of them. I know that was wrong but I’ve already taken a sip of the Mortem Amore elixir so please don’t send me to the Priory of Extreme Atonement like the Ascending Priestess Superior wanted to do!”
“My dear, I would never send anyone to such a place!” The Priestess Superior cupped Elli’s cheek gently. “It sounds to me like you’ve already punished yourself enough for your indiscretions with your grief and remorse. But if it makes you feel better, I recommend that you go up to the Sacred Grove and confess your sins before the statue of the Goddess. That’s where I always go when I need absolution.”
“All right.” Elli nodded. “Thank you, Priestess Superior. I’ll do as you say.”
“Do that my dear—go now, for I can tell your heart is heavy.” The Priestess Superior gave her cheek a fond pat and then turned to Commander Sylvan. “Now then, let’s talk about what I missed…”
Elli left them talking and Beedra—who was happy to be working for her old mistress again—taking notes. She let herself out of the suite and found the lift to the Sacred Grove.
She just wondered who she would see there when she went to confess her sins to the Goddess.
Fifty-Seven
“There she is! Ellilah! Over here!”
Elli looked up at the sound of the voices and was surprised to see the human doctor Liv and the human girl named Sonja coming towards her through the green and purple trees of the Sacred Grove. Both of them were barefoot, since the Sacred Grove was holy ground, which made Elli realize that she still had her riding boots on. Hurriedly, she took them off and went to greet her friends.
“Hello,” she said tentatively, putting out her hands to them. “What are you two doing here?”
She didn’t know them very well—Sonja had been the one who had gotten her to admit what had happened during the Christmas party and Liv had been the doctor who had examined her—but both of the human women were kind and sweet.
“We’re looking for you!” Sonja exclaimed, taking Elli’s offered hand and squeezing it.
“We heard you were back on the Mother Ship,” Liv said, taking her other hand. “We’ve been trying to get to see you for days but the Ascending Priestess Superior just kept telling us you were in ‘seclusion’ whatever that means.”
“In fact, we were in a meeting with Commander Sylvan, complaining that we couldn’t get to see you when the man who drugged the punch at the Christmas party got dragged in by the guards,” Sonja continued.
“And he told us that you haven’t even been on the Mother Ship for the past week—he said the two of you were on Pok on some kind of quest,” Liv went on. “Of course, Sylvan didn’t believe him at first—”
“But then this booming voice came out of nowhere saying, “The warrior speaks the truth! Go to the suite of the Priestess Superior where you will find the novice is in danger,” Sonja finished. She shivered. “Whew—I was scared to death! I’d never heard the Goddess speak out loud like that before!”
“She certainly makes an impression,” Liv agreed. “But are you all right?” she asked, looking at Elli anxiously. “You’re not hurt, are you? Sylvan got to you in time?”