Page 127 of The Freedom You Seek

I growled at her mentioning the boy, but my focus stayed zeroed in on the reddish skin.

“You look like you’ve seen a ghost, Dion. What is it? Is it dangerous?”

“No, Naya, you don’t have to worry.”

“Your face tells another story.” She scratched the spot again.

I had to think fast and find an explanation close enough to the truth that would ease her mind. I caught her wrist before she could scratch herself bloody. “It has something to do with magic, Nayana. It happens sometimes. But it’s nothing malicious or dangerous. Please calm down.”

“With magic?”

“Yes. I’ve heard about it. Rare, but nothing to worry about.”

“You’re vague, and I have the feeling you are trying to evade an explanation.”

“I don’t have one right now. But I’ll try to find out if my suspicion is correct, and if yes, why you have this.”

“If you don’t have an answer, you can’t know if it’s harmless.”

I sighed. This stubborn woman would be the death of me. How in the name of the Triad could I explain why she had the beginnings of an Enamcoharta forming on her skin? And never in this lifetime or the next could I let her find out what it meant if it manifested completely. I didn’t even want to think about it—or worse, unravel the possible implications. My heart was racing, but I kept a calm and neutral expression. However, one thing I knew for sure. I wouldn’t get out of giving her at least something—her face told me as much.

“I need you to calm down, Naya. I read that on rare occasions it can occur that someone gets marked by some kind of magic. For me, it looks like this is the case here.” Close enough to the truth.

“So it’s no curse or sickness? I won’t perish because of it?”

“No! No, to all of that. When—if it forms, it’s just there, but it does nothing except, well, show the world you’re marked by some magic. Also, there’s a good chance it’ll go away again.” It had to, considering that the alternative was already eating me alive. But luckily, one winter wasn’t long, and it wouldn’t be a problem in the end, so why bother with explanations at all?—well, if I repeated that often enough, maybe I’d believe it myself at one point.

Finally, she calmed down, and I let out the breath that I’d been holding.

“I’ve decided to trust you.”

“Thank you, Naya. Just ignore the mark and stop scratching.”

She nodded and reached for the midnight dagger, bringing the weapon close to the hem of her dress. My mind was still racing over the implications of her potential Enamcoharta when my brain registered what Nayana was doing, and I quickly stole the dagger from her.

“I saw a sewing kit earlier. You better use scissors instead of a killing weapon.”

“You said my dagger would never cut me, so I feel safe using it. But if you found scissors, I’d prefer them.”

I moved back to the wardrobe and opened the drawer where I’d spotted the kit. “Here you go. Are you fine with being alone for a while? I’d go exploring.” And calming down.

“You’re going to leave me here? Alone? Unsupervised? You’re not allowed to bind me to anything for my safety, Dion.”

Always so suspicious, my little Naya. “No, feel free to roam as well, but take care that you don’t stray too far away. And take your dagger with you so I can find you should you get lost.”

“Who are you, and what have you done to Dion?”

“There’s one thing you need to internalize, Nayana. My primary objective is to keep you safe, and whatever I do, I do it with that goal in mind. So, since I know there’s no real danger here, and I trust you not to trip and fall into a pothole or manage to collapse a building on top of yourself, there’s no need for me to restrict you more than asking you to stay within the city limits.”

“Look at you, Dion. Two surprises in one day.”

I laughed, and not for the first time, I witnessed her eyes flicker down to my cheeks. One of these days, I’d ask her what she saw there.

“Stay safe, Naya, and don’t come back too late. Tomorrow will be an important day.”

With that, I left our little oasis and stepped back into the rubble of the ruins of Amalach. When I was out of sight, I shook my head in disbelief—an Enamcoharta, my ass. We were in so much trouble.

I spent the next hours looking around Amalach. I was glad to see that the temple was accessible with little effort, and luckily, the ceremonial crypt wasn't damaged, as it was protected by magic, just as our quarters were. Even the way down was easy enough, and I was very satisfied with what I found.