“But what about your poisoner studies?” Trynne asked. “I thought you wanted that?”
“I do, of course! It’s just that I’ve always been blessed with a very strong memory. I can hear a detail once and recall it later. So much of poisoner school is repetition. They teach you these little sayings and chants to help memorize plants and flowers and such.” She shrugged. “I only needed to hear things once to remember them. It normally takes three years to finish training, but I finished the studies in a year. The physical training takes longer, of course—I wasn’t going to skip that! But I had a lot of free time to read and that’s when I discovered the truth about The Vulgate. You already know this, right? That the ancient text holds words of power? If you’re Fountain-blessed, you only need to say the word—or even think it—to trigger the magic. I was so intrigued! As I read one of the older copies of The Vulgate—I think it was volume twelve—I came across the story of Myrddin using his magic to travel great distances. I discovered the word in that book. So then I went to the map room to try it out. Well, I didn’t want to startle anyone at Kingfountain by just showing up, so I tried to get to Glosstyr to see my father. But somehow I overshot it and ended up at Dundrennan instead.”
Trynne was so fascinated by the tale that she had stopped looking for Dragan. She knew Fallon had been spending much of his time at Dundrennan since becoming the duke of the North.
“The magic completely exhausted me,” Morwenna continued, shaking her head and chuckling softly to herself. “I was so spent . . . so sick . . . after leaving the fountain’s edge, I threw up and fell unconscious. The servants were startled to find me, and when I was finally strong enough to open my eyes, Fallon was there as my kindhearted nurse. He was very curious to find out how I had gotten there without anyone knowing.” Morwenna sighed and smiled with the memory. “He’s a good friend.” Then she paused, her brow wrinkling. “I’ve said something wrong. You look pale.”
Trynne felt as if a dagger had been plunged into her heart and was slowly twisting. She could hardly breathe. Her mouth was hot and dry and she was suddenly light-headed.
“Did I offend you?” Morwenna said in a worried tone.
“No . . . not at all.” It was difficult getting the words out.
Then Morwenna’s eyes widened. “Oh,” she whispered. “Oh, I see.” She began to nod her head slowly. “I’m sorry, Trynne. I was so caught up telling you my story that I hadn’t noticed it until now.” She licked her lips and glanced at the throng passing the alley entrance. “I should have picked up on it sooner, but you are very discreet. He doesn’t know; you can be certain of that.”
“Doesn’t know . . . what?” Trynne asked in confusion.
“How you feel about him,” Morwenna said as if Trynne were a simpleton. “I’ve an unfair advantage. Most women can spot such things quickly enough, but I’ve been trained at the poisoner school to notice such little signs of . . . tenderness. You mask yours well, Trynne, I’ll give you that. It’s the injury. Most people give themselves away with their mouth. But it was your eyes that told me.” She put her hand on Trynne’s shoulder. “Let me be perfectly frank with you. Fallon is my friend and I know that he is also yours. He speaks of you as if you were his own sister . . . with as much respect as he has toward the queen. He’s handsome and quite gallant,” she added with a droll smile. “A girl could get a bit breathless around him. But I assure you that I harbor no romantic feelings toward him.” She then sighed and looked directly into Trynne’s eyes. “He may be a bit . . . interested in me. I haven’t encouraged it, and I won’t, especially because I can tell that would hurt you. I do consider you a friend, Trynne. It was Fallon who persuaded me to tell the king and your father about my discovery. And your father explained the ley lines to me and told me what they are properly called. As I said, I’ve been a little jealous of you all these years. You know these things already, and I’ve had to struggle to learn each of the words. I’m sure you know so many more than I do. I won’t ask you to teach me, for that wouldn’t be proper. I’m a poisoner, not a Wizr. But I do serve my brother. As for why I’m here, I think it would be best if Fallon explained it to you himself.”
Trynne blinked with surprise. “I’m not sure . . .” She could not think of a reason why she shouldn’t stay. Nor could she summon the will to say no because she had only seen Fallon rarely during the last few years, and each time she had, her heart had been in commotion for weeks afterward.