Kared's Children - Chapter 7

Gerald didn’t know how to respond. At last he said, "That was how you recognized me, was it not?"

She moved closer. "My eyesight is poor. I recognized you because I knew who would be in the chamber."

"What do you mean? When? In the Council hall?"

She reached a shaky hand to touch his cheek. "You will restore the honor to your father’s name."

Again he was lost for words; he stared helplessly at Shaerden, who shrugged. "Will you come inside with us?" he asked her.

"It is not my place. Where you are going, no one has gone."

He smiled at her gently, an old woman. "I meant indoors."

"And I did not." She took one of his hands in both of hers. "Remember that your mother and father loved you very much. I would not lie to you about that. Though I loved my sister, she loved you far more. Will you remember?"

Her expression was so intent he had to nod. He barely could make sense of what she was saying. "I’ll remember."

She nodded, too, and touched his forehead, then spoke a word, which seemed to pull Benjamin from whatever reverie in which he’d been hiding. "Now you will remember."

Benjamin said something in another language.

She glanced sharply at him; something flashing deeply within her eyes. She studied the pale, dark-haired man for a moment while she held Gerald’s hands, then answered in what sounded like the same language. "Your elders chose you well," she then said in Cregish. "I do not envy any of you."

Benjamin bowed stiffly, formally. "I am honored to have met you."

"The honor will have been mine."

The others all waited, looking at them, at each other.

She returned her gaze to Gerald. "Trust the mage."

Gerald looked at Benjamin. They all looked at him. His face was calm.

The old woman pulled Gerald’s head slowly toward her lips and kissed him dryly on the mouth. "Now I have kissed four Kings," she said, nodding and smiling, gazing into his eyes.

Gerald let her hold him. Words still were failing, but Dame Stearens didn’t seem to mind. She took his hands one last time and placed something in one, something cool to the touch and round. She closed his fingers around it carefully. "Show this as a sign." Then she turned, nodded to Benjamin, and stepped into the crowd.

Raven and Nartho turned, too, but she already had vanished among the people.

Gerald opened his hand. In his palm lay a dark blue stone, heavy and translucent.

. . .

"Life has gotten so strange," Raven said.

. . .

Indoors, they separated quickly for bed. The day had been unlike any they’d known, and, except for Gerald, each fell asleep effortlessly and rapidly. Gerald, however, lay restlessly in his bed for too long, considering everything that had happened. That Dox had kept such a secret from him was boggling. He’d always liked the big man, but Dox never had seemed to pay him any more attention than he did to anyone else in the house-or so Gerald had thought. The six of them had lived together for years-since most of them were children-or barely more than children-and they’d pooled their money to rent their first room. Whose idea it had been to buy a house, and then eventually this house, Gerald couldn’t remember. Could it have been Dox’s? He didn’t know.