Journey Of Thieves (Book 5) Read Online Free

by praetors. There are other sources of danger.” The village head looked as if he would say more but then thought better of it. “However, your endeavor sounds like a worthy one, and if any members of the community are willing to take part, it is not for me to forbid it. And I sense that you are not quite a stranger to our kind, are you?”
    “I am not,” Hadrian agreed. “I was born with the gift of natural magic, as was one of my companions here.”
    I was glad when he did not single me out or go into detail. The loss of my powers was not a thing I was eager to share with strangers. As it was, this Calder could probably sense the flicker of what had once been in me.
    Thankfully, he did not pursue the subject. “I will not deny your party permission to stay in Swiftsfell for a few days. We will need to discuss boundaries for your mission to ensure the safety of our people is not compromised. But this is not the time or place for such a discussion. I invite you and your companions to be guests in my home. Perhaps we may clarify matters over dinner.”
    I had been following the conversation up to this point, but now I was distracted by a face in the crowd. A petite old woman had stationed herself at the front of the onlookers and was studying me with a strange look of fascination. As if unable to contain herself any longer, she pushed forward now.
    “Ada ,” she burst out. “Ada, it is you!”
    I blinked. The woman was looking directly at me, but I kept silent, half expecting someone else to step forward in answer to her question.
    When I did not respond, she came closer until she stood right before me. For a brief moment I thought she was going to reach out and touch me. The dazed look in her eyes, as if she could not believe what she was seeing, was unnerving. Unconsciously, I stepped back from her.
    At my motion, the light in her eyes died, the expression of confused hope being replaced by resignation and disappointment.
    “Oh,” she said dully. “You are not she.”
    “No,” I agreed. “I am Ilan.”
    She recovered herself briskly. “But you bear a resemblance to her, so I am not a mad old fool for thinking it. Do you know Ada?”
    My heart beat a little faster. “That was the name of my mother.”
    Her eyes lit up. “Then your Ada and mine are one and the same—and how like her you are! It is no wonder I was confused.”
    Instantly I was intrigued. I had never met any friends of my mother, and it was startling to find one here where I had least expected it.
    “You knew my mother?” I asked. “When? What can you tell me about her?”
    “It would be better to ask what you can tell me,” she countered. “For I have not seen her this past decade.”
    I swallowed. “I am sorry to tell you she is dead.”
    The woman’s eyes reflected pain. “That I have long known. But I would like to hear of how she died and of the life she lived since I last saw her. And in return, perhaps I can answer your questions as well.”
    “Ilan,” Terrac cut in. “Calder is leading the way.”
    He was right. The village head and Hadrian were departing together, and if Terrac and I did not hurry, we were in danger of being left behind.
    I made up my mind quickly. “You go on with Hadrian, and I will find the both of you later,” I said. “I need another moment here.”
    I could see he was displeased at the separation, but turning back to the old woman, I did not give him the chance to protest.
    “Is there someplace we could talk privately?” I asked.
    She nodded her silver head. “Of course. Come with me.”
    * * *
    From the outside, the old woman’s house was the same as all the others. Again it occurred to me that these cliff homes looked vaguely like mud-wasp nests turned on their sides. The sheer face of the cliff formed their backs, and their outer walls were a mixture of timber and dark clay constructed into tunnellike shapes. Each was stacked directly over the next in connected rows. Swaying rope bridges