Page 34 of Her Soul for a Crown

Calu ignored it. “I do not desire much, but what I do are things I cannot have or cannot do. If there were a night market, mayhap I could try them.”

“Like what?” Anula asked, interest well and truly piqued.

If rajas or shadows had hackles, Reeri’s would rise.

It was dangerous to tell humans too much.

Yet he said nothing, loosening his grip on the door to their truth.

A peek would be alright. It had been centuries since Calu had attempted to connect with a human; today’s essence offering must have given him newfound confidence. Ratti would have given him this moment.

“I am the Yakka of the Mind, remember? There is much I could do for people if only a bargain is struck. Like unwind a mind.”

She frowned. “That sounds cruel.”

“It is not. The mind can be a cage, Anula. A jailer worse than any man. I have the power to release them, but I am constrained. If given the chance, I would not hesitate. Mayhap then they would see me in a new light.” Longing lowered Calu’s voice and ached in Reeri’s chest.

Anula pursed her lips, assessing Calu without his notice, like a farmer would a cow, wondering at their strengths and weaknesses, at the things that made them up. “Why don’t you do it, then? Go save someone.”

Calu pressed a hand to his heart. “No one has asked.”

“You can’t act without a bargain?”

“Can?” Reeri clarified, his tongue moving before his mind could stop it. “Yes, we can always act. Yet we do not. It is taboo. Our existence is for communion, but without balance we disrupt the cosmos.”

Calu proffered his mangled elephant pendant to Anula. “If I had acted without a bargain, I would not have come to know Kushal. Our connection would never have begun. It would be a lonely existence, if we did not include others.”

Pride swelled in Reeri, for Calu’s bravery, his vulnerability, heeding Ratti’s advice even when she was not yet there. Reeri gave Anula a sidelong glance, hoping for a favorable response. Her head tilted in thought.

“Besides, Wessamony forbade it,” Calu added. “I doubt he would be too happy if we started wielding powers at all times of the day.”

Anula scrunched her nose. “Why would he care?”

Reeri and Calu exchanged a look. This time his warning was heeded. If she found out about Wessamony, about Reeri’s plan, there was no telling the outcome. Humans had turned on the Yakkas once before. Reeri would not allow it to happen again.

“As much as I’m certain the people of the city are grateful for your…extravagant purchasing tonight,” Bithul said, “perhaps we should focus on the relic.”

“Oh, did you think I was enjoying myself here, begging for any crumb of information? If these people knew of a relic that could save their lives from the devastation caused by the Polonnaruwans every day, I doubt they’d be here in search of help from the crown or the cosmos.”

Reeri heard what she did not say. She had a duty to try and do what neither had accomplished. “Do you want the fighting to stop?”

“Of course,” she scoffed.

Reeri paused and offered a different kind of sweet. “As the raja, I could command the army to stop.”

“No!” Anula snapped. “If we stop fighting, Polonnaruwa will march right through those gates and take us all. Anuradhapura can’t stop; we must win the war.

There was a strategy in place to appoint certain women proficient in warfare, politics, and diplomacy, and when my bargain is finally complete, I’ll enact it. ”

Her nostrils flared in beautiful fervor. Could she see it yet, how they were not dissimilar?

“Anula?” a man called. Reeri spun, catching sight of a brawny man, his gaze predatory as he neared. “Dismissed from concubine service so soon? Was your touch too toxic ?”

Reeri’s brows furrowed.

“Nuwan,” Anula sang with a false sweetness. “What a displeasure to see you again.”

He smirked, eyes hungry. Reeri shifted in front of Anula.

“You’re not as stealthy as your dearly departed auntie,” Nuwan said.

Anula stiffened at Reeri’s side. Bithul pushed forward, hand disappearing beneath his tunic, yet she held him off. “What do you want?”

“Me?” Nuwan mocked. “I’m not the one throwing around coin and asking questions about relics.”

“Told you,” Calu whispered. “An easy mark.”

Reeri bristled.

“So?” Anula asked.

“So, for the right price, I may have what you’re looking for.”

Reeri straightened.

“I’m not interested in the fake one you had last time,” Anula said.

“That was one mistake. Besides, it afforded me a real relic, the first of many.”

Anula rolled her eyes. “A great businessman now, are you?”

Nuwan laughed. “Don’t you trust me?”

“Not as far as a plow can throw an ox.”

Nuwan feigned hurt. “Even after I made good on our deal? After I forgave you for poisoning me?”

All eyes flicked to the jewels at her neckline.

She ignored them. “Describe the relics you have, or we find another merchant.”

“Ah.” Nuwan lifted a finger. “So it’s a specific relic you’re after.” His gaze turned feral, hunger aimed at her hips. “That will cost you extra.”

“The description,” Reeri growled.

Nuwan grimaced at him. “I hear whispers you’re searching for a certain blade. One imbued with Fate’s power, one that’s been hidden for centuries.”

“And?” Anula pressed.

White teeth flashed in a grin. “It’s no longer than my hand, with a handle as smooth and white as ivory, and a sharpened iron that never dulls.”

Reeri’s heart beat swiftly. That was the Bone Blade. Not made of ivory but of bones, ripped from willing bodies, cleaned and polished for Fate. “Your price?”

A tremor snaked down his fingers as he pulled out his coin purse. He nodded to Calu to do the same, grateful Anula had suggested they bring a hefty sum from the palace stores.

“I don’t want coin.” Nuwan smirked. “I would lose my business if I merely sold everything off. The cost is a blessed gift.”

Calu scoffed. “A relic for a relic?”

“A painting,” Nuwan clarified.

Reeri stiffened. “The Heavens dictated the blessed gifts were to stay within the palace.”

Nuwan laughed. “Exactly. I will be rich forever. My grandchildren’s grandchildren will be set.”

“Fine,” Anula agreed. “Give us an hour.”

“What, tonight?” He laughed again. The sound grated Reeri’s teeth. “I don’t have the relic on me. Do I look that stupid? Don’t answer that. I’ll send word on when and where to meet. Bring the largest painting you can carry. Better yet”—he nodded to Bithul—“one he can carry.”

“Deal.” Anula shook Nuwan’s hand. Reeri did not miss the way he lingered, the squeeze he gave at the end, nor what it did to his shadow.

“We did it.” Calu clapped his shoulder as Nuwan disappeared into the night. “We have found the Bone Blade! Kama and Sohon will be thrilled. We should bring them sweets and celebrate, all of us. We have only one step left—ah, Anula, where was that pani walalu from?”

The words buzzed like a cicada in the heat.

Only one step left. Freedom was closing in faster than the Maha Equinox. Reeri should be elated.

So—his gaze tracked Anula as she led Calu to the food—why was he not?