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was very firm when he said it.
Elaine turned in the chair to see. Konrad's green eyes were sparkling, the
lines in his face tight with anger.
Would he have been this outraged over anyone's leaving, or was this especially
for her? Elaine's face lit with a heat that had nothing to do with the
potential loss of her home.
Tereza stood up. "Jonathan, you had better make yourself very clear on this
issue."
He spread his hands wide. "Well, of course, Elaine will stay, no matter what.
This is her home." But there was something in his voice that made Elaine
shrink against the chair back. A hesitation, as if he had more to say but left
it unspoken. If she were indeed a mage, Jonathan would never make peace with
it.
Not really.
She didn't want to be a mage. The visions were bad enough.
"Sit down, Gersalius," Tereza said. "Jonathan and I were just leaving so you
could get on with your work."
Jonathan opened his mouth to protest. She stopped him with a small gesture.
"We need to talk, Husband. And the wizard needs to see to Elaine."
She rarely called him husband. When she did, it was usually the beginning of a
quarrel, or at least a disagreement.
Jonathan stood very straight. "If you say so, Wife." Anger was plain in his
voice.
"I say so." She left the room first, and he followed.
There was silence for a time, then Gersalius sat down and said, "Describe one
of your visions for me, Elaine. Please."
Elaine sipped her tea. She didn't want to talk to the wizard. It wasn't just
wanting to avoid strife.
Jonathan had taught them well. Magic could be useful, but it was easily turned
to evil.
"I don't want to do magic," she said softly.
Gersalius's smile widened. "Child, magic is not a choice. I have known men who
wanted more than life itself to do magic but had not the talent. You cannot
force magic into your body, nor can you rid yourself of it if it is a natural
ability."
"I have seen people who bargained with evil things to gain magic," she said.
"That is not natural magic, Elaine. That is abomination."
"Magic is magic."
"Those are not your own words, child."
She stared down into her cup. "I don't know what you mean."
"Elaine, magic true magic is not intrinsically evil. It is like a sword. The
steel itself has no leaning to good or evil. It is the hand that wields the
sword that dictates whether it will be used for good or evil. The weapon
itself is neutral."
"But . . ." She searched his face, trying to find something that was not
there. She could sense no trace of evil about him. Elaine wasn't sure she had
ever been around a wizard that didn't bear some taint.
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"You can feel I mean you no harm."
"Yes."
"It is magic that allows you to detect whether I am telling the truth or not."
She shook her head. "I can't always tell who's lying and who isn't."
"With practice you could."
"Can you?"
He grinned. "Most of the time. There are those with greater powers than my
own. They can fool me from time to time."
"Magic is unreliable."
"Everything is unreliable, from time to time."
A small smile flashed across Elaine's face before she could stop it.
"See, not so bad," he said.
Elaine swallowed the smile, but couldn't quite chase away the warmth that had
accompanied it.
Mala refilled Elaine's mug without asking. She motioned to the mage. "Would
you like some more, sir?"
"Yes, please." He held out his mug. He offered her the empty cookie plate, as
well.
"Would you like some more sweets?"
"Some more of those excellent cookies would be quite nice."
Mala blushed and dropped a rough curtsey. It wasn't as though Mala weren't
complimented on her cooking often by the entire household.
Elaine watched the plump cook hurry away. Did Harry the stableman have a
rival? No, that was silly.
Mala would know that Jonathan would never let a wizard court her.
Elaine's stomach clenched in a cold, icy knot. Would Jonathan be able to abide
a wizard under his own roof? Even if it were her?
Mala returned with a plate of cookies for both of them. She set it on a little
stool before the fire.
"Thank you, Mala," Gersalius said.
Mala giggled.
A mere thank you, and she giggled. Elaine had never seen the cook like this,
not even around Harry.
Mala left to stir something at the stove. The back of her neck was red with a
blush of pleasure.
Was the mage that charming, or was it a spell? Elaine wanted to ask but didn't
want to embarrass Mala.
Gersalius sipped his tea and looked at Elaine. There was a twinkle in his eye
that seemed to say he knew what she was thinking.
"Do you know what I'm thinking right now?"
"Yes, but it is not magic."
"How, then?"
He leaned forward, lowering his voice. "Your body posture was very
disapproving when your cook catered to me just now. Your face is like a
mirror, child. Every thought chases across it."
She frowned at him. "I don't believe that."
"You don't want to believe it," he said. "The thought that your thoughts, your
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