Keres flicked her eyes up to me and away. ‘It sounds silly but I thought that maybe I’d find myself again if I was close.’ She gave a short, humourless laugh that wrenched at me. ‘As if I’d lost my house keys and not my damned soul.’
I waited for a moment or two so she could compose herself. ‘Speaking of losing things,’ I said quietly, ‘can I ask about your wedding ring?’
Alarm flashed across her face. ‘How do you know about that?’
‘When you were unconscious I went to Barton Road and spoke to your husband. He doesn’t know where you are,’ I added quickly. ‘And I won’t tell him unless you want me to.’
Keres exhaled. ‘Thank you. It’s not that Harvey is a bad man. He’s not, he’s really not. But he doesn’t understand what this is like for me. If he knew I was here, he’d want me to go home and I don’t want to be there. I don’t want other ban siths coming to visit. If I stay there, I’m a burden on the community. A cautionary tale.’
She assumed a soft, self-mocking tone. ‘Look at Nessie Johnson’s great-granddaughter. That’s what happens when you get your powers too young. That’s what happens when you get too big for your boots. That’s what happens when…’ She choked, unable to finish her sentence.
‘You don’t have to explain, Keres,’ I told her. ‘Staying away is your prerogative. I’m not judging your decisions.’
‘It’s not just the other ban siths. I love Harvey and I still want to be married to him but I can’t be near him when I’m like this. I can’t explain it. He’s so anxious, so worried all the time, and he hovers around me until it’s suffocating. He makes me feel worse. And in the long run, he’ll be better off without me,’ she addedsadly. She looked up at me. ‘But for the record, I didn’t leave my wedding ring behind. It was stolen.’
Suddenly I stopped breathing. ‘Stolen?’
She nodded. ‘It must have been. I took it off to wash the dishes and then the doorbell rang. I went to answer it and when I returned to the kitchen it had gone. The window was wide open – somebody must have sneaked in and taken it.’
‘When was this?’
She pursed her lips. ‘Almost two months ago. I should have bought a replacement but my life was overtaken with far bigger concerns than jewellery.’
‘Your ring was taken not long before your magic was stolen?’ I pressed.
‘Yes.’
‘Can you remember what time it was?’ I demanded. Her brow creased. ‘Was it day time?’
‘Oh.’ Her expression cleared. ‘No, it was still dark. I’d not long got home from skirling outside a block of flats for a woman who lived there. It was around four in the morning.’
Trows were nocturnal; perhaps Bin hadn’t limited himself to thefts in Danksville . My suspicions about his involvement rose another notch. ‘Thank you,’ I said. ‘That’s helpful.’
From the doorway, Dave coughed pointedly. ‘I think it’s time Keres got some sleep.’
He was right. I smoothed down my top and stood up. ‘Who was at the door?’ I asked Keres as I left. ‘Who comes calling at four in the morning?’
She smiled. ‘Another ban sith, my friend across the road. She wanted to complain about silvered clover. She doesn’t always have much success when she skirls and she thinks it’s because of charms like that. Sometimes it is, sometimes it’s not.’
She shrugged. ‘She doesn’t feel death as strongly as I do – as Idid,’ she amended. ‘I don’t feel anything now, and I miss thatas much as I miss the magic. There’s something beautiful about death that few people except ban siths understand. It’s like when you come to the end of a great book, it’s sad and it's certainly not pleasurable but somehow it's…’ Her voice trailed off.
‘Satisfying?’ I offered. That was how I used to feel about death. Mostly when I’d caused it.
‘Yeah,’ Keres said. ‘Satisfying.’ Her smile returned for a moment but it was tinged with melancholy. Then her eyes closed and I left her in peace.
Chapter
Twenty-One
‘What the fuck, Kit?’
My response was mild, even though Thane looked incandescent with rage. I stroked She Who Loves Sunbeams, cooed at She Without An Ear, and grinned at He Who Crunches Bird Bones as he batted a determined paw at Tiddles. ‘I gave Keres my word that I would find her magic and return it to her,’ I repeated,
‘And if you can’t?’ he demanded. ‘When you’re writhing on the floor and screaming in agony because you gave your word to a dead woman?’
‘Keres isn’t dead.’
‘Yet.’
