Yali whispered, her full mouth quivering.

Nomasdina, whos been investigating for the Arurim, he came and described her.She covered her mouth with a hand that shook. Keth hesitated, then reached out and clasped her shoulder, trying to comfort her. He had liked Ira, and his heart went out to Glaki. Iralima was the childs only family. Iras clan had kicked her out when she declared her intention to be a Khapik dancer.

have you been all day, in a hole in the ground?demanded Poppy. The Ghost got her. He got her, and he strangled her, and he dumped her in the fountain on Labrykas Square like she was rubbish.

scolded Yali in a whisper, covering Glakis ear. Not in front of the child, Poppy, for the All-Seeings mercy!

shouldnt have told Ira that she was a selfish old hen,wailed Xantha. s my fault.

Yali and Poppy exchanged disgusted glances. forgot the whole world spins around you, Xantha, said Poppy, her voice as tart as vinegar. dont fight with us and well have long, happy lives.

If Poppy and Xantha got started, Keth knew theyd be at it all night. Did you tell this

Dhaskoi when you saw Ira last? Where she danced?

Told him,replied Yali, rubbing her arm over her eyes without disturbing the girl in her lap. s not like he broke his back finding out who killed those other

yaskedasi, is it?

have a word for crimes against people like us, remember? Poppy demanded.

Defeated, Kethlun spoke it: Okozou.

Poppy repeated. one worth a bik -Tharioss smallest copper coin - hurt.

They scurry on this one, its because Ira fetched up in the Labrykas fountain,added Yah. ve had the cleansing tent up all day. They cant have a dead

yaskedasu defiling a public place, now, can they?

us your own Antrim back in the north would care about the likes of us,taunted Poppy. When Keth didnt reply, Poppy nodded. didnt think so.She struggled to her feet. I have to get dressed.

re working

Tonight? cried Xantha. With Iralima at Noskemiou Thanas?

Glaki whimpered. Yali bent over her, smoothing the childs rumpled curls with a tender hand.

Poppy glared at Xantha. youre not? Ira would be out there if it was you in Thanas. Didnt you say you dont have the rent money yet?

muttered Xantha, naming the patron goddess of Khapik. forgot!In a flash she was on her feet, pushing by the other two on her way upstairs.

s not right,Kethlun told Yah. She was the cleverest of the three, the one he could talk with most comfortably.

Are Tharians, too.

re sweet, Keth,Yah replied. wont last if you stay here. She got to her feet with a grunt, balancing Glakis weight on her hip. The child was all cried out and didnt even stir. Yah said, will be a Farewell at the Thanion.It was the temple dedicated to the god of the dead. Shall I tell you when they have it?

Keth replied. Tharioss dead were

burned outside the city, so there were no burials, only Farewell ceremonies. As Yali continued her climb upstairs, he called after her, what about her?He nodded to Glaki.

Yali kissed the little girls hair. s mine, now. Ill take care of her.

you need help, just ask,Keth said. ll watch her, help pay for her food, whatever you need.

His reward was a slight lifting of the cloud in Yali s brown eyes, and a smile that made his heart turn over. re a good fellow, Keth,she told him. ll take you up on that.

want you to,he said as she finished the climb to her room.

The night was close and hot, bringing very little rest with it. Around midnight Keth took his sleeping mat up to the roof and placed it between Ferouzes potted herb garden and the wall. He placed a jug of water beside him - he d been unable to drink wine since his encounter with a lightning bolt and lay down, locking his hands behind his head. Heat lightning played in sheets under the clouds in the sky. It made him edgy, but not enough to go back inside . Heat lightning didnt strike, it only taunted those trapped in the baking city with the promise of rain.

As always, once he was in the open air, the tangled ball of thoughts that had kept him awake began to unravel. Here in the dark, alone, with the sounds of the crowds on the main streets of Khapik

muffled, he could think about the girl who threw lightning. His gut twisted over the memory, but he could think about it, and he could admit some truths to himself. The glass in the blowpipe had fought him. Wh en, before his accident, had he ever felt that the stuff hed worked with all his life had a mind of its own? That idea had grown since his travels began, along with the notion that glass had come to life while he wasn t looking. It never even occurred to him to call that feeling magic. Perhaps that was because none of the glass mages in his family had mentioned sensing the glass was alive. He was used to thinking of glass magic as his family described it: a matter of charms, signs, special twists in pulle d glass, special shapes in moulded glass, and blown glass shaped to hold and direct spells. They spoke of glass as Keth and his friends did: a substance to which they did things, not a living being.

As much as it pained him, Keth finally admitted the redhea d was right. He should have been relieved to find an answer, but he wasnt. Hed had plans, important ones. His master s credential, marriage, a family, a rise in the guild until, one day, he led it. He would make glass for the imperial court and have the power and wealth to work on his own projects.

Now he was back at the foot of the ladder, a student, a beginner along with children. The study of magic would cut into his time with glass for years.

He had regrets; of course he did. He supposed

he would alwa ys have them. But watching heat lighting ripple through the clouds, Kethlun Warder faced facts. Tomorrow he would find a glass mage to teach him.

CHAPTER THREE