Oubliette (Cloud Prophet Trilogy) Read Online Free

I am also gifted. Like you, I am not a full-blooded Serenian but I still manifested in early childhood. I must have had a Serenian ancestor. It’s not unheard of for masters to have affairs with their slaves, but it’s against the law for Malborn to mate with Serenians. The few of us who are like me hide from prying eyes. Nemison discovered and trained me. He also taught me the danger of revealing myself to my people. I owe him my life.”
    Reese held out his arm and I placed my hand on his as I’d seen ladies do countless times at home.
    “Who am I going to meet?” I asked.
    “The rest of the ruling council. Krissin is our leader but there are two others. We make all of the decisions for the good of the land of Serenia, not for the good of the Malborn people. It’s time everyone learns to get along.” His eyes narrowed. “Even if we have to force them.”
    Using force was my last option. He’d opened a wound, one I didn’t feel comfortable exploring now. I wanted, no needed, to know if there was a peaceful way of solving everything. We walked the rest of the way in silence.
    As we wound our way through the halls, I was surprised how few people we encountered. There were no slaves, no nobles, no one but Reese and I.
    “Where is everyone?” I asked.
    “Few are allowed up here,” he answered. “If we put you in a room where people were rushing by all the time, you’d be noticed quickly. News moves fast in a palace with chatty residents and guests.”
    “Not the slaves?” I asked.
    “Oh, I’m sure they gossip too, but at least they’re smart enough to keep it quiet,” he said. “The noblewomen are a completely different lot. They wouldn’t know discretion if it stood naked in front of them!”
    I laughed as we stopped in front of a set of wooden doors. He opened the door on the right and I took a deep breath. We were here. I had to steady myself before entering. Reese gently lowered his arm. I held my fists at my side, pumping them open and closed. I’d had enough trouble with Krissin already; I wanted to make a good impression on the rest of the council.
    Reese walked in ahead of me. “This is Reychel. Our Prophet.”
    A small bout of applause greeted me. Johna, the gifted woman who hid me in her cottage while Kandek’s soldier hunted me, had once told me not to let my guard down for a moment, to pretend I was in complete control even if I didn’t feel that way. I nodded my head a tad to acknowledge the two women. I imitated the noblewomen I’d seen at Kandek’s. I wanted to appear confident; I hoped it worked.
    “This is the Southern Ruling Council.” Reese held out an arm indicating I should offer my hand to them.
    “The Prophet.” A woman in a blue gown stood up from a plush chair. She walked over and took my hand in hers. I felt soft leather on her palms, the sign of a laborer who had retired to easier work. “I’m so pleased to meet you. I can’t believe I’m meeting you. Well, I believed,” she stuttered, “of course I believed you would come, but I did not believe it would be so soon!”
I smiled, placing my other hand over hers.
    “I can’t wait to learn more about your gift,” she exclaimed. “Oh, sorry I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Hanne, Reese’s wife.”
    “I’m also excited to learn more about my gift,” I said. “I’ve only recently discovered it myself. The visions come on without any prompting. I don’t know how to control it yet.”
    “Fascinating,” Hanne said.
    The second woman, dressed in red, turned on her heel and walked out of the room without a word. The look on her face hadn’t been welcoming, only full of anger. I wondered what I could have done to upset her so soon.
    “Don’t mind Jada. Considering what her father is up to, she isn’t handling your visit well,” Reese said.
    “Her father?” I asked.
    “Gerrold.”
    I shuddered. He’d betrayed me to Ivy. Now I had to work with his daughter.
     

Chapter Three
     
    “Ah, Reychel.”