"Tomorrow's going to be a very different day, Maati-cha," Otah said.
Maati nodded. After so much and so long, there should have been more.
Sinja appeared for a moment in the back of Otah's mind. There had been
no last good-bye for him. If this was to be the ending between the two
of them, Otah thought he should say something. He should make this
parting unlike the others that had come before. "I'm sorry it's come to
this."
Maati took a pose that agreed but kept the meaning as imprecise as Otah
had. One of the armsmen called out, pointing at the looming threat of
the Khai Udun's palaces. In a wide window precisely above the river, a
light had appeared, glittering like gold. Like a fallen star.
Ana and Danat were in a corner of the quay, their arms wrapped around
each other. Idaan stood among the armsmen, her expression grim. Eiah sat
alone by the water, listening. Otah saw Maati's gaze linger on her with
something like sorrow.
With a lantern in his unsteady hand, Maati walked off along the ruined
streets that ran beside the river. Otah guessed it would take him half a
hand to reach the palaces.
"All right," Idaan said. "He's gone."
Otah turned to look at her, some pale attempt at wit on his lips, and
saw that the comment hadn't been meant for him. Idaan crouched beside
Eiah. His daughter's face was turned toward nothing, but her hands were
digging through the physician's satchel. Danat glanced at Otah,
confusion in his eyes. Eiah started drawing flat stones from her bag and
laying them gently on the flagstones before her.
No, he was wrong. Not stones, but triangles of broken wax. The contents
of old, broken tablets with symbols and words inscribed on them in
Eiah's hand.
"You could try being of help," Idaan said and gestured toward the shards
at his daughter's knees. "There's a piece that goes right here I haven't
been able to find."
"You did enough," Eiah said, her hands shifting quickly, fitting the
breaks together. Already the wax was taking the shape of five separate
squares, the characters coming together. "Just going to the campsite and
bringing back the bits you did was more than I could have asked."
"What is this?" Otah asked, though he already knew.
"My work," Eiah said. "My binding. I hoped I'd have time. Before we
actually came across Vanjit-cha, there was the chance she was spying on
us. She'd always planned to kill me by distracting me during the
binding. But now, and for I think at least the next hand and a half, her
attention is going to be on Maati-kvo. So..."
Idaan shook her head, clearing some thought away, and gestured to the
captain of the guard.
"We'll need light," she said. "Eiah may be able to work puzzles in the
dark, but I'm better if I can see what I'm doing."
"I thought you couldn't do this," Otah said, kneeling.
"Well, I haven't managed it yet," Eiah said with a wry smile. "On the
other hand, I've studied to be a physician. Holding things in memory
isn't so difficult, once you've had the practice. And there's enough