The Priestess and the Thief

Remember the feeling you ignored back at the palace, a little voice whispered in his head. Remember what almost happened when you ignored that! If Demon hadn’t been there to protect her, Ellilah would have been raped!

Not that he thought the little priestess was in danger of being raped here aboard the Mother Ship. No Kindred warrior would ever take a female against her wishes. But the nagging feeling of anxiety and unease grew and grew until he was certain she was in some kind of danger.

Have to find her—have to make certain she’s all right, he told himself, as he climbed out of his ship. Have to—

And that was when a Kindred guard pointed a blaster at his chest and said,

“Hold it right there—you’re wanted in connection with an incident of espionage.”

“What?” Roke tried to paste an innocent expression on his face. “Look, friend, you have the wrong male. I’m just here to—”

“Save your excuses,” the guard barked. “I’ve been ordered to bring you to Commander Sylvan for questioning at once. Now, move!”

There was nothing Roke could do but obey.

Fifty-Four

“Goodness gracious, is that really you, Ellilah?”

It was Beedra, the assistant to the Ascending Priestess Superior, standing in the doorway of the office and staring at Elli as though she’d seen a ghost.

“What are you doing back here on the Mother Ship?” she demanded. “You’re supposed to be at the Priory of Extreme Atonement on Pok! And why are you dressed like that?”

“It’s kind of a long story,” Elli told her. “I did go to Pok—only I didn’t go to the Priory of Extreme Atonement. Instead, I went to the Tenebrian palace—that’s why I’m dressed this way.” She indicated the long red dress with a sweep of her arm.

“But why in the world did you go there?” Beedra looked at her blankly.

“Because I heard you tell the Ascending Priestess Superior that a piece of the Tenebrians’ Healing Lattice could heal the old Priestess Superior. And look—I got one!”

Elli pulled the delicate linen handkerchief out of her pocket and unfolded it to reveal the glittering piece of rainbow crystal.

“Ohhh!” Beedra breathed, leaning over to study the tiny crystal. When she looked up at Elli, there were tears in her eyes. “Bless you, my dear! I wanted so much to get the old Priestess Superior a piece of that lattice but…” She trailed off, looking guilty.

“But the Ascending Priestess wouldn’t hear of it—I know,” Elli said grimly. “I heard your whole conversation.”

Beedra flushed, her plump cheeks going pink with guilt.

“I never meant to—that is, I never thought—”

“Never mind,” Elli told her. “I can tell you’re ashamed but I’m not going to condemn you—I’ve done things I’m ashamed of too, lately.”

Though she no longer felt very guilty about the sins she had committed, she knew she would have to confess them eventually. Still, it wasn’t time for that—not yet.

“We need to give the old Priestess Superior this piece of the Lattice,” she told Beedra. Before the Ascending Priestess Superior comes to give her medicine.”

The guilt cleared from the other priestess’s face and she nodded firmly.

“You’re right—come on!”

They slipped across the hall into the old Priestess Superior’s bedroom, but Elli barely had time to realize that the poor old woman looked worse than ever when they heard a hard, sharp voice in the hallway.

“I must give the Descending Priestess Superior her medicine and then I’ll be back to sort out those rosters. Have them laid out in my office, ready for me.”

It was the Ascending Priestess Superior, presumably talking to her maid. Elli and Beedra exchanged a panicked glance and then dived into the closet together.

“Hush,” Beedra breathed in Elli’s ear as they huddled side-by-side in the darkness. “We mustn’t let her know we’re here. Just wait until she gives the old Priestess Superior her medicine and goes—then we can come out and administer the Healing Lattice.”

“All right,” Elli whispered back. “We can keep an eye on her through here.” She indicated the rather wide crack where the door met the frame of the closet. It actually did offer a very good view of the old Priestess Superior’s bed, which was directly across from it.

As they watched, the Ascending Priestess Superior swept into the room, her pure white robes swishing around her dramatically. She came to sit on the side of the old Priestess Superior’s bed and shook her—none too gently—by the shoulder.

“Wake up!” she demanded as the old woman opened her eyes tiredly. “Time for your medicine!”

“I don’t want it.” The old Priestess Superior shook her head. “It tastes so bitter—can’t we skip it just this once?”

“Certainly not!” The Ascending Priestess Superior scowled as she drew a tall, bright green bottle out of her pocket. It had a dropper on one end and some strange writing on the side of it that Elli couldn’t read. Beside her, she felt Beedra stiffen.