Blood-tied Lies

~Chapter 17~

Basking in the morning sun above the clouds, I tried not to think about what my mother would say when I arrived home.

You are going to be in a lot of trouble when you get home, Ananta laughed.

Please don't remind me. I tried a healing spell on Ananta last night at the old temple. I wasn't sure if it had worked because she fell asleep while I worked but this morning proved it had.

And how are you going to explain why you have another spellbook with you?

I had spent most of the night flipping through the pages of the spellbook that now sat in my arms as I soared through the air. Well, maybe I would be able to come up with an excuse if you stopped talking for a minute. I gave her an irritated look and turned my attention back to the clouds that passed beneath me.

I could tell my mother the truth and never hear the end of it from her. I would probably be stuck in the house for a week or two so she could keep an eye on me though. I was not in the mood to be stuck in the house with her for two weeks so I trashed that idea and continued to think up a believable excuse.

You could just tell her I hurt myself and you had to take me to the old temple to find a healing spell. I mean, it's not a lie. Ananta tried to wink at me but struggled to close only one of her eyes.

I was ready to dismiss her suggestion as a ridiculous idea when I realized it was perfect. I could bend the truth to make myself sound completely innocent. Ananta, you are a genius! It was still a long shot and my mother would most likely doubt every half truthful word that came out of my mouth, but it was the only idea I had.

I know I am. Ananta gave me a smug smile.

I shook my head and laughed as my house came into view. The feeling of dread washed over me and second thoughts about talking to my mother clouded my mind.

When I walked through the door, I was expecting to hear her yell at me, asking where I'd been all night and why I didn't come back at sundown like I was supposed to. I shut my eyes and turned to bolt out the door when I was greeted by silence. The house was completely and utterly silent. I felt uneasy as I walked into the kitchen. Everything was clean and put away. The small vertical garden of rare magical ingredients was basking in the sun that shone through the small window at the far end of the room. Plants of all sorts hung from the ceiling in small, clay pots. There was no food cooking over the fire but the room smelled like cabbage. I gagged on the wafts of steam that rose from a bowl of boiled cabbage that sat on the table.

"Disgusting," I muttered and made my way to the next room. Again, there was no sign that my mother was doing anything in here. All of the books were neatly shelved and even the bookstand was empty. Something wasn't right. She would be yelling at me by now, scolding me for the number of rules I disobeyed but she wasn't here. She had definitely cleaned up the house, but there was no note left to tell me where she'd gone.

Are you going to eat that cabbage? Ananta never failed to be distracted by food. She would eat anything, including cabbage.

Go ahead. It's yours if you want it. I head Ananta run back into the kitchen but I was too distracted by the absence of a note on the table.

The silent treatment. It was strange for her to ignore or avoid me. That was my way of coping with her when we were at odds. I never thought it possible for her to not reprimand me for staying out too late or leaving without notice.

After hiding my bow and arrows, I looked around the house once more to see if anything might hint where she went. Nothing. I clenched my teeth in frustration. There was no point in staying home so I changed into a nicer pair of pants and a shirt and pulled a couple of leaves out of my hair. I decided it would be nice to go to the market in Antaham and visit Rose again.

Ananta, I'm going into town. If my mother comes back, don't tell her where I am. Two could play at this game. My mother was persistent, but I could be just as stubborn.

The flight to Antaham felt longer than usual and when I landed just outside the town, all I could think about was wherever she went. I wove through the crowded market where men and women argued over the raised prices.

"Novia!" a high pitched voice yelled over the sea of people. I guess I found Rose, or rather she found me. I struggled through the bustling market to a quieter stand where Rose stood inspecting a scarf.

"Well, if it isn't my only human friend."

"What about Brendan?" Rose wiggled her eyebrows.

"We do not speak of that. But no, Brendan is hardly a friend. He's more like a trade partner." I want to whack Rose upside the head for bringing up Brendan like that. I really wasn't in the mood to talk about that.

I held the scarf up to her and shook my head. "Not quite right. You need something with a warmer color."

"Oh, so now you're an expert on clothing?"

I put my hands up. "Fair enough."

"How are things in the forest?" she asked. Rose had taken a deep fascination in dragons but I had warned her to keep quiet about it.

"Everything is fine. I'm just staying out of the house as much as possible."

Rose frowned. "Are you at odds with your mother again?"

"It's more like we're looking in opposite directions. It's starting to scare me." I leaned in to get a closer look at some intricate wood carvings as we passed by another stand.

"Did she say something?" Rose asked with concern.

"Actually, it's what she didn't say. I always expect her to yell at me when I do something that bothers her but when I came home today, she wasn't there. No note, no clues, nothing." Rose knew my mother and I had a complicated relationship and yet she still didn't know half of it. Having magical abilities made any disagreement even more unpleasant.

"I'm sorry to hear that." Rose looked at me sympathetically.

"How are things here in Antaham?" I asked in an attempt to change the conversation.

"It's all the same. Hardly anyone visits the town and no one really ever leaves. The only good gossip I get these days is from the few travelers and merchants passing through from the High Kingdom." Rose looked bored, waving her hand dismissively. "The king has been raving about the curse. He says it happened years ago. His brother thinks he's gone crazy and wants to take him off the throne."

"They're probably right. There's no such thing as magic." I cringed at the words that came out of my mouth. Of course magic was real, but most of the world didn't believe in people like my mother and I.

I shuddered at the thought of the last time I brought up King Actaeon around her. It didn't go well and now a small part of me thought she was hiding something. She was never the most subtle about hiding something from me but she did a pretty good job of keeping me from finding out the truth. It wasn't going to be easy to get the information I wanted, but every time Rose or Brendan mentioned this curse, I became more interested in it.

What was mother hiding? Was she even hiding anything or was it her not so ordinary parenting? I was drowning in my own thoughts and barely heard Rose's voice calling my name.

"Novia!" Rose waved her hand in front of my face.

"What?" I tripped over an uneven stone by the fountain in the center of the square. Some people ignored me while others stopped for a second to see me stumble forward.

"You are really out of it. Are you sure everything is fine?" Rose said as she helped me regain my balance.

"I have some things on my mind. I'm sorry for being so distracted." I gave her a smile but she didn't buy it. She knew it was fake.

"Novia, I really think you should go home and sort things out with your mother before you trip over your own feet again." Rose said. 

I didn't want to go home but Rose was right. I was completely lost in my thoughts.

Rose walked me to the edge of the village and kindly stayed quiet. I thanked her for helping me and continued toward the rolling hills. I didn't want to go home but Ananta would be worried if I didn't walk through the door before dark. I muttered the spell for my wings and silently wished that my mother wouldn't be there when I entered the house.